The next item on our agenda is 90-second statements. Steffan Lewis.

Diolch, Lywydd. I thought it fitting in the week when Wales hosted the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly that this National Assembly take a moment to recognise the bond between Wales and Ireland, and the significant contribution made to Welsh life by Irish people. The flow of people between Wales and Ireland spans millennia and, of course, led to a Welshman becoming their patron saint. Of course, not all visits over the years from across the Irish sea were of a friendly nature, and not all were universally welcomed here. Indeed, notable Welsh figures such as Iolo Morganwg lamented the arrival of Irish people to the shores of Pembrokeshire and Anglesey following the rebellion of 1798.

The most notable migration of Irish people to Wales, of course, occurred in the context of the horrors of the great famine, ‘an gorta mór’, where the hungry came for food and for life itself. A memorial stands in Cathays cemetery today, recognising those who fled that famine and as a mark of remembrance to the hundreds of thousands who perished.

The Irish community have enriched Welsh life, providing us with sportspeople, artists, workers, friends, and even a health Minister, and 2016 marks the centenary of the Irish proclamation of independence, a period and an event in which Wales featured. Irish prisoners of war were held at Frongoch camp, and it is said that two Welsh soldiers facilitated the escape of Irish rebels, Ernie O’Malley, Frank Teeling and Simon Donnelly from Kilmainham gaol in 1920. As their centenary year comes to its end, it is fitting, Llywydd, that we recognise the contribution of Irish people to our nation, and commit ourselves to strengthen the bonds between our two countries in the years to come. Diolch.

Janet Finch-Saunders.

Diolch, Lywydd. Tinnitus—not often mentioned here in the Senedd. Its impact debilitating, and the consequences can be devastating. Last year, James Ivor Jones, a much-loved member of my local community, took his own life in a tragic way after struggling with tinnitus for six months. His son describes his suffering as unbearable, and he sadly now suffers with the condition.

It is, though, often unrecognised, undiagnosed and underestimated. Often described as a ringing in the ears, sounds heard can include buzzing, humming, grinding, hissing, whistling and sizzling, and in some cases actually beating in time with a person’s heart, having a significant negative impact on day-to-day life, leading to sleeping problems and severe depression to 60 per cent of sufferers. Treatment, when available, includes sound therapy, counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy, and tinnitus retraining therapy. There is no single treatment that works for everyone, and diagnosis at a very early stage is considered crucial.

Action on Hearing Loss Cymru have highlighted that there is a postcode lottery for diagnosis and treatment here in Wales. I am speaking up today to call on the Welsh Government and all Assembly Members to become more aware of this illness, and would ask you to commit to an increased awareness, focus, and support early access to early diagnostics intervention and help for those suffering. Thank you.

Eluned Morgan.

All around Wales there are care homes, hospital wards and communities where people live without creativity, inspiration or hope for the future. Reported levels of loneliness and mental health are spiralling. I was the former chair of Live Music Now in Wales, a role now undertaken by the former Presiding Officer, Rosemary Butler. This is a charity that sends and funds high-quality musicians to play to people who don’t usually have access to live music. The organisation focuses in particular on working in care and nursing homes and in special schools, and I can testify to the fact that the experience of being exposed to the arts for residents is truly transformational.

The Welsh Assembly’s new cross-party arts and health working group, in collaboration, where appropriate, with the Arts Council of Wales, is in a unique position to bring these two worlds of the arts and health together. The group has written to both the health Secretary and the culture Secretary to ask for help in funding a study to prepare an evidence-based report where efforts would be made to collate the information and great work that’s already being undertaken in Wales to help justify a shift of funding from health to the arts and, where necessary, to do more pointed research in order to harden the evidence needed.

In care homes, the value of creative interaction is underrated, in particular in fields like dementia. Participation in the arts and music by older people can significantly improve their quality of life and mental health, and we believe that providing exposure to the arts is more cost-effective than popping pills. We hope that a dedicated piece of work commissioned on the subject will justify our position and help to make the case for shifting a proportion of that funding from health to the arts with a view to improving health and well-being outcomes for the people of Wales.

Thank you for your 120-second statement. [Laughter.] Diolch.