The next item on the agenda is the business statement and announcement and I call on Jane Hutt.

Llywydd, I've made one addition to today's agenda. The First Minister will make a statement on the programme for government, ‘Taking Wales Forward 2016-2021’, shortly. I've also amended the titles of today's oral statements by the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Well-being and Sport and the Minister for Social Services and Public Health. No questions were tabled for answer by the Assembly Commission tomorrow, so timings have been adjusted accordingly, and business for the next three weeks is as shown on the business statement and announcement found among the agenda papers available to Members electronically.

If I could just raise two issues with you and ask, first of all, if we can have a statement from the Minister for infrastructure, economy and transport regarding the closure eastbound of the A48 outside Carmarthen. I understand that this closure has started and is going to happen for six weeks, between Carmarthen and Nantycaws. I'm already getting some feedback of delays, severe delays, in the Carmarthen area. And, of course, this is not a local issue only; this is a main link between Wales and Ireland and between Wales and the rest of the European Union, heavily used by goods vehicles, as anyone who's been there knows, and diverting all the traffic through what is the old road, as it were, through Llangynnwr, is already causing concerns and, more importantly in that context, causing long delays.

I would particularly like a statement on how the Welsh Government intends to do the best they can to smooth these delays, and also on what relationship we have with contractors when—I understand the work is essential—such long periods of time seem to be allowed for work to be done, and whether we put enough pressure and requirements on some companies to attain this work as quickly as possible, rather than drag it out, and it will be an economic knock to the west if this isn't resolved quickly. So, I hope we can have at least have a written statement soon regarding that.

The second issue I'd like to ask about is: what is the procedure—I think maybe the First Minister can help in this regard, with a statement or an explanation—regarding statements by Cabinet Ministers on Government policy not in this Chamber? I note that the Secretary for education went to her party conference, which isn't the same as the Government's party conference, of course, and made several education announcements—doubling of the pupil deprivation grant, a ban on grammar schools in Wales—and yet, when I look in the programme for government that was published today, there's no mention of those commitments whatsoever. There is some vague wording on some of them, but there's no mention of these commitments, so I'm left with the question, and I'm sure many people are: is the Cabinet Minister going to a party conference making a statement about policy a commitment by the Cabinet and Welsh Government, or merely an expression of Liberal Democrat hopes, which we've had a lot of over the last couple of days, indeed? It would be good to know from the First Minister whether these are, in fact, Government and Cabinet-approved policies, and whether the Permanent Secretary was informed that the Secretary for education was going to make such commitments on behalf of the Welsh Government in public.

Thank you, Simon Thomas, for your questions. The first question is a very important point. Of course, you will be aware, I’m sure, that there is a leaking gas main and this obviously requires an essential work. Of course, in terms of handling that, and the impact on business, the public, and travel to school and work, all those issues have been taken into account by the Cabinet Secretary for economy, infrastructure and skills. Clearly, we will be doing everything to mitigate the impact of that in terms of diversions and handling, and we certainly will be reporting back, and also taking questions, I’m sure, as this work proceeds in terms of impact.

Your second point is an interesting point because of course I well remember our time in coalition together, when similar sorts of statements and arrangements were made. But I would say also to the Member that, of course, we have been very clear as a Welsh Government, as we were, and indeed I think you were too in the fourth Assembly, about our support not only for the pupil deprivation grant but also for early years.

Can I ask for a statement on census data collection for the 2021 census? What input does either the National Assembly or Welsh Government have on the boundaries of lower super output areas? These data, as you know, are used by the Welsh Government to target anti-poverty programmes. The mix created can—and has in my constituency—led to some of the poorest parts missing out because they were joined, some of them, with affluent parts, with the data producing a fairly high average, even though there are areas that were suffering extreme deprivation. What can be done to try and get the census organised to create more homogenous data collection areas to try and stop that happening?

Well, Mike Hedges raises an important point and I know he will be aware that the design of those lower super output area boundaries is the responsibility of ONS, the Office for National Statistics. It’s part of their work in managing the England and Wales census, but we do feed into the governance of that census. We have a close working relationship, of course, with ONS, and regular consultations, and we do need to look at how to manage the impact where there is a particular population change affecting the sizes of those LSOAs. But, of course, as Mike Hedges said, this is something where attention can also be drawn to this in terms of consultation by Assembly Members.

Diolch. Could I call for two statements, please, firstly on the application of local housing allowance to social rents for supported housing providers? Last Thursday, the UK Secretary of State for Work and Pensions announced that the UK Government was deferring application of the local housing allowance rates on social rents for supported housing until 2019-20 and would then be bringing in a new funding model where costs above the level of the local housing allowance rates in England would have funding devolved to local government for disbursement locally, but in Wales and Scotland an equivalent amount will be provided and it will be for those administrations, he said, to decide how best to allocate the funding. Having spoken at the annual general meeting of a large Supporting People provider in north Wales last Friday where this was raised—and also, very clearly, a concern that the Welsh Government should engage and explain its position on this over the next period of months—I’d be grateful if the Assembly could have a statement to explain how the Welsh Government proposes to respond to that.

Secondly and finally, I’m grateful for a statement regarding the provision of nurses for children with life-shortening conditions. The charity Together for Short Lives has launched a new campaign, You Can Be That Nurse, to encourage more nurses to work with children with life-shortening conditions. They refer to evidence showing a shortage of qualified nurses providing children’s palliative care in the voluntary sector, including children’s hospices, and that this is having a negative impact for children with life-shortening conditions, not just across the UK, but Wales also. They say as part of the campaign they are asking the Welsh Government and healthcare workforce planners to take action to bring the average nursing vacancy rate among voluntary sector children’s palliative care organisations to below 10 per cent and closer to the NHS nurse vacancy rate across the UK. Again, a call on the Welsh Government, which merits a response from the Welsh Government, and we would welcome a statement accordingly.

I thank the Member for those questions. The Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children is fully aware of the issues relating to the application of local housing allowance and is involved in discussions, and it’s helpful, of course, to have feedback in terms of those impacts at a regional level for those engaged, but he’s clearly responding to those. On your second point, again, it’s an opportunity to draw attention to Together for Short Lives, the campaign that you mentioned. Of course, nurses are vital to our NHS, and we’ve increased the number of nurses in the service, but also, it’s about an effective skills mix and making sure that we have those highly experienced nurses to ensure that we can meet those needs as you described.

Leader of the house, it was good to join with you and many other Labour AMs outside the Senedd last week to support the women from all across Wales who are protesting against the unfair changes in women’s pension arrangements that have simply been steamrollered in by the UK Government. Could we have a statement from the Welsh Government on their assessment of the impact these changes have had, as forcing women to work longer will surely have serious repercussions on our economic and employment policies here in Wales?

I’d like to thank Vikki Howells for ensuring that there was a very strong presence, certainly from colleagues here. Huw Irranca-Davies, I think, and other Labour Assembly Members were there, and also MPs as well, because this isn’t devolved. It was a national day of action and I’m very impressed with the work of the campaign. And, of course, in the fourth Assembly, the former Minister, Lesley Griffiths, did actually write to the Minister of State for Pensions in February this year, expressing the Welsh Government’s concerns about the impact of the Pensions Acts of 1995 and 2011, calling for better transitional arrangements for those women affected by the changes. Of course, that national day of action drew attention to this again, and we will continue to raise those concerns.