Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:03 pm on 17 October 2017.
Well, these are matters primarily for Powys council. There is a role for Ministers of course, which I’ll come to, but it does show that there has been a lack of leadership in Powys, and it shows—. I don’t disagree with what the report has said in terms of there not being enough political commitment to children’s services. What then is the role of Government? We’ve issued the warning notice. It is an unprecedented step. It provides the rigour and impetus to ensure that Powys delivers the improvements that are needed to its services. Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales will be monitoring, as will we, very, very closely, but let me be clear: if we don’t see prompt and sustained improvements, we will be minded to consider increased intervention, which may well include taking over the authority’s social services functions.