Thank you for the series of questions, which I’m aware that the Member has raised on a number of occasions in the past. He is consistently interested in this area, as I’m sure everyone realises. Of course, it was dying matters week last week, that was when I attended the Byw Nawr conference and spoke to them about the work that they’ve done, recognising the work they’ve done in promoting this as a more national and natural conversation to have. There’s more work to be done with them, but more work, frankly, to be done amongst all of us in the communities that we represent.

I certainly don’t underplay the contribution of the hospice movement and the variety of hospices around the country, which were the main focus of the comments and questions that were made. And, in fact, most Members in this Chamber will know of a local hospice where their constituents attend, if not having hospices within constituencies or regions, and I have regularly visited a number of hospices in this role, but also I have two within my own constituency. So, I understand perfectly well the role that they play in engaging with clinicians, in engaging with the public in designing and delivering care around a person that better meets their needs. One of the real significant steps forward in the lifetime of the last plan, which is going to be carried forward in the next one, is actually promoting the Hospice at Home movement so that people don’t need to go into a hospice, necessarily, but providing that hospice care at home, and there are real strides forward that have been made. In fact, in the way that the care is commissioned, it’s a regular part of what health boards do, and that will stay with us, but hospices are very much part of the design and the delivery of this plan, and I don’t necessarily share the Member’s rather pessimistic approach and assessment of the contribution of the hospice movement, both to designing this strategy, being part of how it’s delivered, but also understanding the successful nature of its impact on palliative and end-of-life care.

In terms of the financial matters raised, well, as I’ve indicated, the £1 million goes for each of the major conditions plans, of which this is one. It has £1 million allocated recurrently, and I indicated in my contribution the significant amount, the £6.4 million, that is spent recurrently in this area. I am well aware of the issues in Frome that he mentions, about the Compassionate Communities approach, and much learning has been taken, both by Government officials, the health service, and the third sector, in seeing what’s happened within that particular community, and it’s something for us to build upon here in Wales. And I look forward to having the ongoing conversation that I will have with the end-of-life care board and all of its members and supporters, on how we develop not just compassionate communities but, ultimately, for us to be a more compassionate nation.

I’ll end with your point about outcomes and delivery, because part of the strength of the delivery plan approach that we take is that we take an issue of major significance, we bring together people from Government, from the health service, and the third sector, and individual clinicians who are leaders in their field as well. And there is a constructive and helpful tension there that is created, both about understanding and agreeing on priorities, and those priorities then being carried forward. And the reporting mechanism that takes place is an open and an honest one, and there are times where each of the delivery plans and their associated delivery boards recognise that we haven’t made all the progress we would otherwise want to. I expect exactly the same process here: to have an honest reporting coming in about what we have and have not done, and then how we reset our priorities looking forward to the future.