Budget discussions were held with a range of stakeholders and Cabinet colleagues on financial issues, including priorities within the education main expenditure group, which informed the spending plans approved yesterday.

As tax devolution develops, the Welsh Government will create a system based on greater fairness and simplicity, as well as stability and certainty. These principles will support jobs and growth, as well as the public services on which all businesses rely.

Collaboration is an essential part of the landscape of public services in Wales, both now and in the future. I am pleased that partners from both the public and private sector continue to work together to support the Swansea bay city region.

I welcome the approach, already adopted by an increasing number of local authorities, of abolishing child burial fees altogether. I intend to discuss this matter with the WLGA at an early meeting this year.

The Welsh Government expects local authorities to conduct their business in an open and transparent manner. This includes public access to the majority of local authority meetings, except those where confidential or exempt matters are being discussed.

The invest-to-save fund is an integral part of the Welsh Government’s strategy to ensure continuous improvement in public services in Wales.

Extensive engagement to test the options for reform and to refine the proposals set out in my statement on 4 October has taken place over the autumn. I am considering the results of these discussions and will set out a way forward at the end of January.

The additional £0.5 million investment will help provide quality meals and services during the school summer holidays, supporting those in some of Wales’s most deprived communities.