Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:25 pm on 4 April 2017.
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Succinct is something I often am. Can I welcome the statement by the Minister, and can I welcome the direction of travel? Can I put youth services in context, however? In the four years from April 2012, spending by Welsh local authorities on youth services was cut by £6.1 million. These cuts resulted in the loss of more than 100 youth centres, and also at least 360 jobs in the youth service have been cut by local authorities. I don’t blame local authorities for this; they’re under tremendous financial pressure.
Two areas that have supported youth provision have been ‘mentrau iaith’ and Communities First. ‘Mentrau iaith’ have supported youth provision such as Twrw Tawe in my constituency, which my daughter attends, and provided a youth facility involving music for young people. It crucially provides an opportunity for children and young people to speak and use Welsh in a social context, which I think is incredibly important. It’s an out-of-school context for it. And also Communities First youth work has involved providing both outreach services and indoor youth provision. Can the Minister indicate the future of ‘mentrau iaith’ youth provision, and the youth provision currently provided by Communities First? And will the Minister agree with me that you might not want to answer questions on funding—and I can understand that—but would he agree that funding is the key?