– in the Senedd at 3:17 pm on 13 June 2018.
The 90-second statements is the next item. Ann Jones.
Diolch, Llywydd. Tomorrow marks the first anniversary of the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower that claimed the lives of 72 people, which remains the largest number of deaths from a single fire in living history. Behind each of those 72 deaths, there are families that have been broken and devastated, the immediate community of Grenfell Tower has been torn apart, and neighbouring communities deal with the anxiety and the fears post Grenfell Tower. Emergency service workers, too, are not immune from dealing with the aftermath of what they witnessed that day.
Today, as we did 12 months ago, we are able to stand with that community of Grenfell Tower to remember those who died and to offer our solidarity and our support to those who are still greatly affected by that incident. As we move forward, we must be ever thankful for the response from across the UK, including from many from Wales—many, many ordinary people who sought to help in those immediate days after the fire—and of those who are still in that community, offering support and help, be it the emergency services, be it the public sector or third sector, communities or just ordinary people who feel moved to help and support Grenfell. The greatest tribute we can pay to those 72 people who lost their lives that day is to provide a legacy by striving to work to ensure we take whatever steps we can to avoid similar incidents occurring. It's the least we can do to honour their memory, and we will not forget them.
Jane Hutt.
Llywydd, can I take this opportunity to praise the initiative of Joanne Cheek from the Beautiful Barry campaign? Joanne has led the way as an active citizen, encouraging Barry to become a plastic-free town. To help achieve this, Joanne wants to reduce the use of plastic water bottles, as she's found, as an ardent litter picker, that these make up most of the plastic she picks up. This has led Joanne to campaign for water fountains in Barry.
With imagination and flair, Joanne has drawn attention to historical sources as part of her campaign for water fountains in Barry. She has highlighted an article in the Barry Dock News from September 1906 entitled,
'Barry Sculptor’s generosity. Drinking fountain presented to the town. Splendid example to others.'
The article drew attention to the contribution of F. T. Mossford, a monumental sculptor, who presented the town in 1906 with a 'handsome granite drinking fountain'. Some of those can still be found, although they're not in use at present.
Can I welcome early responses, positive responses, from Barry Town Council and the Vale of Glamorgan Council to Joanne Cheek's imaginative and positive campaign, leading a team of volunteers to provide public drinking fountains across the town of Barry, leading the way in Wales with a clear example of citizen action taking forward this popular and important policy?
Thank you.