5. 4. Statement: The National Infrastructure Commission for Wales

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:02 pm on 18 October 2016.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 4:02, 18 October 2016

Can I thank the Member for the important points and questions that she raised in her contribution, and say that she is absolutely right in that the well-being goals are the driving force behind the creation of an infrastructure commission—goals that will ensure that we focus on longer-term strategies to drive infrastructure investment to help provide the sort of sustainable and integrated communities that we all wish to see across Wales? In respect of a question posed earlier by Russell George with regard to the well-being goals, it would be my intention to invite the commissioner to examine the potential of challenging the commission and holding the commission to account over the implementation of the goals, and for checking that they are being honoured.

In terms of membership—and I think the Member is right also to state that membership of the commission will be absolutely essential in paying due regard to emerging digital technologies—I am most certainly not closed to the idea of having experts from outside of Wales join the commission. This will be a fully open and transparent public appointments process, and I would welcome experts from anywhere, whether it be Wales, UK or further afield, because as I said in my statement, we want a diverse commission—one that has members who genuinely add value and are able to demonstrate a clear ability in analysing and understanding our infrastructure needs, not just physical, but also digital.

In terms of the city deals and smart cities, well, of course, it was a manifesto pledge for our party to support the development of smart towns and cities. In addition to this, as part of the consultation that took place for the new Wales and borders franchise, it was clear that what passengers wish for is a service that takes advantage of new and emerging digital technologies insofar as ticketing and on-board information is concerned, as well as a variety of other services. So, we would expect, during the process of procurement that is taking place now, four bidders to be able to present ambitious proposals to exploit and take advantage of the very latest and emerging digital technologies in transport.

In terms of motor vehicles, it is true that, until recently, Wales has not had as many charging points as we would wish for electric cars. But I am assured by my colleague the Cabinet Secretary for Environment that 100 electric charging points are being developed across Wales. The Member is also right to identify hydrogen cell cars as actually being a particular focus of research and development now. In this regard, we have a very proud story to tell with Riversimple in mid Wales—a company that is being supported by Welsh Government; a company that featured in the opening session of today’s Autolink 2016 conference here in Cardiff. I will be making a statement on export opportunities in the coming weeks, based on my recent trip to Japan. But last week, when I spoke with investors in Japan, there was clear knowledge of the research and development that has taken place with regard to hydrogen cell cars in Wales and in the UK. There is a good amount of interest in supporting that research and helping us to exploit it for the benefit not just of car users but the wider environment.