The next item, therefore, is the business statement and announcement. I call on the Cabinet Secretary for Energy, Planning and Rural Affairs to make the statement on behalf of the leader of the house. Lesley Griffiths.

Diolch, Llywydd. There's one change to today's agenda: the statement on the reform of fire and rescue authorities' governance and finance statements has been postponed until next week. Draft business for the next three weeks is set out on the business statement and announcement, which can be found amongst the meeting papers available to Members electronically.

Can I ask the Cabinet Secretary what assessment she has made of the opportunities to commemorate the significant contribution of the Royal Welch Fusiliers, of the 53rd Battalion, to the war in Palestine and Egypt during the first world war? The Cabinet Secretary will no doubt be aware of the Wrexham museum exhibition that has taken place, which was excellent, but the only exhibition of its kind that was actually marking the contribution of the Royal Welch Fusiliers on that particular front. I'd be grateful to know whether the Welsh Government has considered undertaking some work to mark this and what discussions there may have been with the Israeli Government in order to take that forward.

Can I also ask for a statement from the Welsh Government on the work that it is doing to promote experiences with cadet programmes in Wales? The sea cadets have recently launched a report on the impact of sea cadets, which was published by New Philanthropy Capital, which touched on the tremendous benefits that participation in sea cadets can bring to young people across Wales, including engaging with a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds, driving social mobility, reducing social exclusion, increasing academic aspirations and outcomes, improving relationships with parents, and improvements in mental health and well-being. I wonder what work the Welsh Government might be able to do in order to promote cadet experiences, particularly given the resources that have been made available from the UK Government to promote these across Wales.

Thank you for those two questions. In relation to the first question, the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services will be making a statement later today. On the second point, I understand the same Cabinet Secretary met with the Ministry of Defence just yesterday and will be very happy to update Members in due course.

Cabinet Secretary, you will no doubt agree that the way in which complaints are handled by public bodies is vitally important to people's faith in any system. You'll also be aware that under stage 2 of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014, local authorities appoint independent investigating officers to look at complaints against the local authority. What is apparent however is that, even though independent investigating officers perform a statutory public service, they are not subject to any professional regulatory standards. Social workers are; doctors are; nursers are, but these independent investigating officers are not subject to any professional regulatory standards. There is currently no national register of investigators. I understand that some even have no social care practice experience either, which came as a bit of a surprise to me, to say the least. I'd therefore be grateful if the Minister for social services would agree to bring forward a statement on the role of independent investigating officers. I would ask that the statement look at whether we need to establish specific standards for investigators, registration and training, and what role a professional body could play in this. These investigators are an integral element of the social care community in Wales, but they are largely hidden from practice development staff and policy makers. I would be grateful if the Minister would commit to starting to change all this.

I think you're absolutely right that people need to have confidence in a system if they complain. The Minister will, I understand, meet with the Member if he wishes to discuss—obviously, you've got very specific concerns, to address those.

Cabinet Secretary, I was delighted to join the First Minister yesterday at the Living Wage Week launch event at the Bigmoose Coffee Company and to welcome the rise in the real living wage rate to £9 an hour. We already have a number of accredited employers paying the real living wage. In my constituency, the Vale of Glamorgan, it includes Barry Town Council, Glamorgan Voluntary Services, Citizens Advice, Santander—branches of—and more employers are coming on board in the new year, including Cardiff Airport. Supporting the real living wage campaign will help tackle low pay, counter the growth of indebtedness and use of food banks and support a fair work economy. It makes economic sense and is the hallmark of a caring, compassionate and fair society. Can we have a statement on Welsh Government measures to support employers in the public, private and third sectors to adopt the real living wage in Wales?

Thank you for that question. As you said, yesterday the First Minister launched Living Wage Week in Wales, announcing the new rate, and in doing so outlined many of the actions being taken by the Welsh Government to promote the living wage across the economy, reiterating the commitment in the programme for Government to take action on the living wage. This includes action right across the public sector—the Welsh Government, our sponsored bodies, NHS Wales, national parks and local authorities. You mentioned Cardiff Airport, they've just recently announced they are bringing forward their own commitment and, of course, our higher education institutions are also increasingly adopting it. I think we all need to make that commitment. We all need to talk about the living wage and to spread that message very widely.

You'll be aware, in parallel, earlier this year, the First Minister established the fair work commission. We are waiting for it to conclude its work. It's already met with a range of stakeholders, including trade unions, businesses and representative organisations. And I think probably after the commission has reported would be the appropriate time for the relevant Minister to bring forward a statement.

Acting leader of the house, may I ask for a statement from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance on Welsh Government support for the retail industry? The Welsh retail industry is under considerable pressure due to the growth in the number of customers shopping online and the increased burden of business rates. Welsh retailers already pay a quarter of all Welsh business rates and it is becoming increasingly expensive to operate from property, so much so that the Welsh Retail Consortium has projected that over a fifth of shops could close as the next decade progresses. The Chancellor, in this budget, announced funding to cut business rates by a third over two years, saving 90 per cent of all shops in England up to £8,000 each year. Can we have a statement on what measures the Welsh Government is taking to support the retail sector in Wales, please?

I think you make an important point about people's shopping habits having changed. We have done a great deal as a Welsh Government to support many businesses in relation to rate relief. Obviously, again, you will have heard the First Minister say that Cabinet will be making a decision around the additional funding we are receiving.

Could I request an update on what the Welsh Government is doing for those with complex care needs, especially those people with muscular dystrophy? I hosted an event last week—a cross-party event—with regard to muscular dystrophy, and we had many families there who raised concerns about the lack of medical awareness among key staff in the NHS. Two of the people at the meeting told the group that they or their family member had been to a hospital where medical staff were sadly not listening to the specific needs and pharmaceutical requirements of these patients and, in one case, medical staff asked the patient to take medication that could have—had she taken it—led to her death. I think this is something that needs to get more political priority. We need to understand how specialists are engaging with those with muscular dystrophy. There may not be hundreds of thousands of people suffering from this condition in Wales, but when they do have it it is something that they have for life. So, I would like to have a statement from the Welsh Government on an update on what's happening in this area, so that we can go back to those people who have concerns and raise them appropriately. 

Thank you. Obviously, there are many conditions that health boards have to look to address, and I'm sure that muscular dystrophy is something that the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services will have discussed with health boards. I will ask the Cabinet Secretary if there is something specific in relation to muscular dystrophy, to write to the Member.  

Cabinet Secretary, I've just had a letter from the managing director of Schaeffler in the UK confirming that they're beginning their 45-day consultation period, with a view to closing the long-established plant in Llanelli with the loss of some 220 jobs. Clearly, this is very disturbing news for Llanelli and for the country. We can hardly afford to have further losses to our manufacturing base, and for the economy of an area like mine, this could be a very serious blow. The Cabinet Secretary has kindly agreed to meet with me, I've spoken to the First Minister this morning and I'm touch with the trade unions, the company and the Engineering Employers' Federation, because I hope there's something we can do to persuade Schaeffler that they can adjust their business model and continue to make things that they can sell at a profit in Llanelli.

I was disturbed to read that one of the reasons they cited was the continued uncertainty around Brexit as one of the factors that has influenced their decision making, because we have been pressing for the last two and a half years that certainty of access to the single market is essential to make sure that these multinational companies in all our communities feel that they can stay here. So, would the Government consider making a statement about what they can do to work with Schaeffler to see if there is a way forward for them staying in Llanelli?  

Thank you and, obviously, this is devastating news, as you say, not just for your own constituency in Llanelli, but for other parts of Wales, too, and our thoughts are definitely with the workers and their families. I'm very pleased you've spoken to the First Minister and, obviously, Ken Skates, the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport. Obviously, Welsh Government stands ready to offer every assistance we can within our power to the plant, and I'm very pleased you will be having a meeting with Ken Skates. We should do everything we can to support the workers. However, I do think that the UK Government has some serious questions to answer. As you say, we've raised time and again over the last two and a half years the detrimental impact that their approach to Brexit is having. Businesses need clarity and they need the confidence that a deal will be struck that will not adversely affect them and, unfortunately, really, that's just been so woefully lacking and we're not getting that, and it is now starting to cost jobs in Wales.   

I'd like to ask the Government for clarity regarding when it intends to hold the debates and votes in relation to the terms of the UK's departure from the European Union, if a deal is actually reached. The First Minister confirmed while giving evidence to the External Affairs and Additional Legislation Committee yesterday that the Government intends to hold two debates and, presumably therefore, two votes, first on the withdrawal agreement reached between the UK and the EU, and then another in the form of a legislative consent motion on the withdrawal Bill itself. Given that the legislative consent motion will only be brought forward if the withdrawal Bill has been agreed to or it looks like passing unamended, it seems to me that the vote on the withdrawal agreement gives Assembly Members the best opportunity to express a view as to whether this Assembly accepts or rejects the deal. Could you ask, therefore, the leader of the house to confirm that the debate and the vote on the withdrawal agreement will be held here in Wales before the meaningful vote at Westminster, in order to ensure that the voices of the people of Wales, as expressed through this Assembly, will be meaningfully expressed as well? 

Thank you. I will ensure that Members are updated on that point in the business statement next week when the leader of the house returns. 

Many people in Wales, especially in my region, are very worried, very concerned and, in some cases, devastated by what is happening to family members in the Yemen with the conflict, and family members literally being bombed out of existence. What I'd like today is a statement from the Government about what you could do to help the Welsh Yemeni community in terms of mental health support for people in Wales, and also grief counselling. I think we really should do something, and I'd like a statement about what we could do, or what you could do as a Government, please.  

Thank you. We obviously work widely with the black, Asian and minority ethnic sector across Wales to identify and seek to address issues that affect people's everyday lives. So, you'll be aware, I'm sure, of several of the programmes that we have within our equality and inclusion funding programme. We have a Cardiff co-ordinator who works with the Yemeni communities. Findings from that project feed into Welsh Government policy development. You may be aware there was a BAME remembrance event held last week at the Temple of Peace, in partnership with the Horn Development Association, and Welsh Government formally honoured the contribution made by such communities during the first world war and second world war, and that included Yemeni merchant seamen. 

We do have a broad programme of work to support the community, under our community cohesion and tackling hate crime programmes, and that works with a wide variety of communities, obviously, not just Yemeni, and individuals in Wales. 

Thank you to the Cabinet Secretary.