Can I begin by thanking the Member for Monmouth, Nick Ramsay, for raising this important matter and using the short debate during National Eye Health Week? I’m very grateful to him for highlighting the significant impact that low vision and sight loss has on people. Improving access to services for this group in all aspects of Welsh life is so important, as you so adequately have demonstrated in your short debate.

The Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 places a responsibility on specified public bodies to set and work towards well-being objectives, which contribute towards each of the well-being goals. One of the goals, of course, is to create a more equal Wales with a society that enables people to fulfil their potential no matter what their background or circumstances. As a Government, there’s work going on in many areas that supports this goal of creating a more equal Wales. One example is our disability equality forum, which allows us to engage directly with disabled people and hear from them how Welsh Government legislation policies are affecting their lives, and how things might be improved. Our framework for action on independent living sets out the action we’re taking as a Government to promote the rights of disabled people in Wales to live independently and exercise the same rights as other citizens. I recall, as many Members from previous Assemblies will, that we did actually take forward this framework for action as a result of a petition that then led to Government responding and developing this framework.

Many issues raised by disabled people are about local service access and delivery, which is, of course, so important to people living with sight loss. We know that local disabled people’s groups and organisations, where they exist, can be very effective in keeping up the pressure for improvement at local level. And it’s important that this continues. As a Government, we’re funding Action on Hearing Loss Cymru, working with RNIB Cymru, to train and support people with sensory loss to share their personal experiences with service providers in the health, social services and housing sectors. As part of this work, a best practice guide for housing providers has been published and similar guides are planned for social services and GP services.

Our digital technology can have a key role in improving access to services for disabled people, including those with sight loss, and this is another area of work that can help reduce isolation and enhance the capacity for independent living by giving disabled people the same choice and control over their lives as everyone else. So, Welsh Government’s digital inclusion programme, Digital Communities Wales, works with disabled people’s organisations so that these organisations can deliver digital skills support to the disabled people they work with. But we also recognise that e-accessibility can be a barrier to more people benefiting fully from the numerous opportunities presented by the internet. I’m aware of research that shows that disabled people are more likely to be digitally excluded, so it’s particularly important that we fully understand the issues, because arguably disabled people have even more to gain from digital technologies that are progressing all the time, as technology can open up opportunities that were previously out of reach. If we look at Digital Communities Wales, for example, it’s supported RNIB Cymru to deliver its lottery-funded Online Today digital inclusion project, which helps people with sensory loss to get more out of computers, tablets, smartphones and the internet.

If we move on to the area of employment, disabled people have told us how important accessing and remaining in work is to them. We also know that, sometimes, negative and inflexible attitudes by employers and managers can adversely affect disabled people. It’s vital that we tackle this, because disabled people have told us that being in employment promotes independence, confidence, health and well-being, as well as providing a route out of poverty and enabling participation in society. As a result of hearing these ongoing concerns, Welsh Government officials are working with the Department for Work and Pensions to raise awareness amongst employers and disabled people of the support that is available through the Access to Work schemes.

Nick Ramsay, you raised the important issue of public transport, which is an area of real concern. There are a number of examples where we in Wales have taken a lead in advocating improvements in our public transport system to improve accessibility. You raised the important issue of access to bus services. Since 2013, it has been our policy that public service vehicles operating local scheduled bus services should have next-stop audiovisual announcements on board. These systems do enable people who are blind or living with sight loss to use our public transport system with confidence, and they reduce the risk of passengers being left at the wrong bus stop in an unfamiliar area that can be a significant distance away from their final destination. In March, we published our voluntary Welsh bus quality standard, which, for the first time, directly linked the payment of grant funding made available from our bus services support grant to the delivery of Talking Bus and other quality expectations. It’s for this reason that we’ve welcomed the Secretary of State for Transport’s decision to introduce an amendment to the Bus Services Bill that will improve the availability of accessible information on buses as a requirement of the Equality Act 2010.

The award of the next Wales and borders franchise and the development of the north Wales and south-east Wales metro systems will provide a transformational change to public transport in these areas that’s long overdue. We’re determined that improving accessibility of the rail network to improve the passenger experience should be at the heart of the work that we’re doing with the rail industry.

Moving on to the crucial area of health, in December 2013, the Welsh Government introduced the all-Wales standards for accessible communication and information for people with sensory loss. The aim is to set up standards of service delivery that people with sensory loss should expect to be met when they access healthcare. Every patient or service user who requires communication support should have this need met. In implementing the standards, Action on Hearing Loss Cymru and RNIB Cymru have worked closely with the NHS Centre for Equality and Human Rights to develop training for NHS staff specifically around the needs of people with sensory loss. ‘Treat Me Fairly’ is an e-learning package that has been developed and accepted by all local health boards as statutory mandatory training at induction. It is about fair and equal treatment for everyone accessing healthcare and is very much centred on communication.

Access will increasingly improve as primary care is organised better. For example, there is a need for more options on how to get help and advice on a wider range of self-care services and professionals to respond. We are managing more people in primary care, including direct access for many conditions, rather than needing a GP referral. Our Wales eye care service leads the way in the UK, and I was very proud to be part of that development many years ago as health Minister. And I recall Dr Dai Lloyd and others—still one or two from then—and David Melding, who were involved at that time, I think in the first Assembly session. It is actually recognised as a significant advance in the provision of primary eye care services. There are two key aims: to preserve sight through the early detection of eye disease and to provide support to those who have low vision and whose sight is unlikely to improve.

Thank you for recognising, Nick, how Wales is ahead in terms of the NHS, but we mustn’t be complacent. There is more to learn, clearly, as you say, and we look to that evidence. The Wales eye care service’s prudent pathways benefit the patient by making their care more accessible and closer to where they live. They also ensure that optometrists in primary care and ophthalmologists in secondary care work at the top of their licence.

The social care provided by local authorities in Wales is a major component of the care offered in the community, and we’re driving improvements for the implementation of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014. So, we must be assured that the prevention of avoidable sight loss is a key priority. It certainly is a key priority of this Welsh Government, and this drives our policies. The challenges we face in eye care are well known. The number of people with eye disease is predicted to increase dramatically, and the burden on eye care services will continue to increase, but it’s good news—