Assembly Members and stakeholders will see from the exchange that the Cabinet Secretary has addressed a small number of the committee’s many concerns, but the majority of our questions are still unanswered. But I'm sure the Cabinet Secretary will address those today. Our report, 'Turning the tide', addresses several issues, including the Welsh Government’s approach to enforcing, the availability of reliable data and funding and management of marine protected areas post Brexit. But, today, I will concentrate on the three key areas that came out of the inquiry: the need for the Welsh Government to take a stronger leadership role, the need for appropriate levels of resource, both financial and staffing, and the need for greater transparency in the work that is already ongoing.

During our inquiry, we heard criticism from stakeholders about the lack of leadership from the Welsh Government. This is not a new complaint. Our predecessor committee heard calls for a stronger lead from the Welsh Government back in 2012. Stakeholders want the Welsh Government to give a clear strategic direction. This would ensure that a coherent management system for marine protected areas is in place and that it is understood by all. Simply put, for Wales to fully realise the benefits of its marine protected area sites, it must be managed effectively. The committee has therefore recommended that the Welsh Government should bring forward a marine protected area strategy and that all management authorities, including the Welsh Government, are fulfilling their duties and responsibilities in relation to marine protected area management. This recommendation was accepted by the Welsh Government, but it's apparent from the response there will be no marine protected area strategy. I hope that I've misunderstood that and there will be a marine protected area strategy. There will an action plan. The obvious concern is that this will not be the strategic document that is so badly needed. I hope that the term 'action plan' will be started off by a strategy, and the action plan will sit underneath that strategy, because we do need a strategy to take us forward, and the action plan should sit underneath that strategy rather than exist in isolation. 

Cabinet Secretary, stakeholders have been expressing concern about a lack of leadership for at least five years. These are sincere concerns from people about the marine environment. These are people who work in the environment, who take a deep interest in the environment and who want to see an improvement in marine protected areas management. Their concerns should be addressed. It's not clear from your response what, if anything, will be done differently in the future. These are people who really care about the marine environment, and whilst other Members here will get up and make speeches on it, these people care about it day in, day out, and for many of them it is the passion of their lives. 

The second key area was resources, both financial and staffing. Stakeholders did not ask for vast sums of money or a huge increase in staffing numbers. I think they actually understood that they were unlikely to get either of those. They were very pragmatic and understood the wider financial pressures the Welsh Government is under. But, they were clear: marine protected areas cannot be managed effectively without the appropriate level of resources. The committee notes that an additional £0.5 million has been made available for marine and fisheries in the 2018-19 budget. This is intended to address a variety of issues, including the costs associated with identifying and designating five new marine protected areas and ensuring that marine protected areas achieve and remain in favourable conditions. Of course, this additional resource is welcome, but we have sought reassurance from the Cabinet Secretary that this resource is sufficient to deliver their several ambitious priorities. Put simply, is there enough money to achieve what we want to see achieved?

We were not reassured that the current staffing resources within Welsh Government are sufficient to deliver its marine conservation responsibilities. We were also concerned that a lack of resources would have a negative impact on Natural Resource Wales’s ability to deliver its marine protected area-related activities in the immediate and medium terms. We also asked the Welsh Government to bring forward proposals for funding an area-based approach, with each management area having a dedicated officer. The evidence suggests that there are benefits to this approach, particularly for strengthening local delivery and facilitating cross-site collaboration, and, I would argue, perhaps most importantly, for people to know the person they have to go and see about a problem in the area. I think that having somebody in charge, somebody responsible for it, makes life a lot easier. These issues are addressed in our second recommendation, which the Welsh Government accepted in principle. However, the Cabinet Secretary has said she disagrees with an area-based approach, saying that she believes it would be more cost-effective and provide better value for money to focus on specific projects.

It is, of course, the Cabinet Secretary’s right to disagree with the committee’s recommendations. However, it would be helpful to receive information to explain that alternative position. Members will see from our correspondence with the Cabinet Secretary that the committee has asked to see any financial analysis that supports the Cabinet Secretary’s position. We have yet to receive that, but I'm sure, again, that will be provided for us this afternoon.

Transparency—we'll turn now to our third key area. Many stakeholders felt strongly there was a lack of transparency in relation to the meetings of the considerable number of Welsh Government-led groups in this field. The committee welcomes the commitment given by the Cabinet Secretary that minutes of the marine protected areas management steering group will be published.

We were also advised that updates from the steering group are also shared with the Wales marine stakeholder advisory and action group, and are available on the internet. However, no minutes of this group are available, only their terms of reference. I am disappointed that the Cabinet Secretary’s response says that the notes from the Wales marine fisheries advisory group are available, but only on request. Why can't they just be put on the internet? People put lots and lots of things on the internet. People who are interested in it will be able to access it. If we get one thing out of today, please can we ask that those are put on the internet? If they're available to anybody who asks for them, then they're not being kept secret for any particular reason, then, to save people having to ask for them, let's just put them on the internet, and let people have access to them.

For other Welsh-Government-led groups, summaries of meetings are available, but again only on request. And I make the same request to the Welsh Government—don't just only provide them on request, make them available on the internet. This does not address the considerable concerns expressed by stakeholders about the lack of transparency of these groups. I would be grateful if the Cabinet Secretary could explain why the minutes of all of these groups’ meetings cannot be published.

In conclusion, this is a vital area, given the value of our marine protected areas to supporting wildlife, our coastal tourism industry, and our fisheries. I am grateful to all the stakeholders and members of the public who contributed to the committee’s work. I am also very grateful to members of the committee, who put an awful lot of time and effort into this project. I believe that this is an important report, however I must end by reiterating the committee’s concerns that, despite all but one of our recommendations being accepted, there's a lack of clarity about what will change in practice and, as a consequence, whether any progress will actually be made.

Cabinet Secretary, as we saw in yesterday’s debate on the marine plan, this is an exciting time for marine policy in Wales, and there is support across this Chamber for a renewed emphasis on this policy. There's support in amongst the public, especially those in the voluntary and other sectors, who take an interest in the marine environment and this policy. You've got an awful lot of goodwill, Cabinet Secretary, from Members in here and from the public at large, and I hope you will use that goodwill to keep on taking things forward. I welcomed the marine report yesterday, and I think that that is a step forward. I hope you will take the opportunity to reassure stakeholders that this is a priority area for you, and that they can expect to see meaningful improvements as a result of this report. We've waited a long time for the marine to make its way to the top of the political agenda in Wales, and we have pushed it there this week. Let's hope that we can make substantial progress following this debate.