Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:29 pm on 16 January 2018.
Firstly, I agree entirely with him about the need for young people to be financially educated. I think part of the problem is that money, despite what happened in 2008, still appears to be freely available in a way that it wasn't when I was younger, when loans were not as freely available as they are now. In the days when—well, my first car loan carried an interest rate of 29 per cent; I remember that very vividly, and painfully. For many people, they found it very difficult to manage—they'd not been shown how to manage; sometimes people learn through their families, sometimes people don't have that ability to learn, and don't have an example that they can follow. It is part, I understand, of the curriculum, of the new curriculum, so it will be there, to enable young people to be able to manage their—to help them them to manage their—finances in the future. Because the point is well made: how do you as a youngster cope with all the—? Quite often, money is being thrown at you—or debts thrown at you, for many, many people—without any kind of help available to you. That point is well made, and it's included in the curriculum.
In terms of the issue of breathing space, I know this is something that has been raised. It is something that we need to consider, as to how we—if we look to take it forward, how we take it forward, whether it's on a Wales basis or working with other countries in the UK. But, to my mind, anything that enables people to have a respite from debt, and particularly continuing debt, which people often find on their shoulders, must be a welcome thing.