Improving Digital Infrastructure in Pembrokeshire

Part of 2. Questions to the Leader of the House and Chief Whip – in the Senedd at 3:00 pm on 14 November 2018.

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Photo of Julie James Julie James Labour 3:00, 14 November 2018

Yes, absolutely. I very much enjoyed coming down to his constituency and meeting the residents there. My understanding is that my officials are in touch with a number of the residents who attended. Joyce Watson also invited me to a meeting down in Pembrokeshire and officials are in touch with residents who got together there to form a community group. There was a meeting with Elin Jones in Ceredigion, actually, where a similar thing has happened.

What we've been doing—and this is very much, Deputy Presiding Officer, part of the publicity for this—is asking people to come forward, and, if AMs know of any other communities that will be prepared to come forward and do that, we are very happy to facilitate any structure that can come forward. There are existing schemes up in the Llŷn Peninsula, for example, and all over Wales—those are just the two that have got the most publicity. We're looking to see what publicity we can give to the other schemes across Wales so that people can see that there are a large number of models that can be brought forward. It doesn't have to be the model in Michaelston-y-Fedw; although there is nothing wrong with that model, it doesn't suit everyone. So, there are a number of options available.

Once we've sorted out the lot 2 position, then I will know exactly how much money is left over in the £80 million pot that we've talked about for a long time, to facilitate those community schemes on a faster programme. Part of my frustration with not knowing what's happening on lot 2 is that I'm not able to say, definitively, how much money that is, but we know that it'll be a substantial amount of money and we're very happy to facilitate that for any community that wants it.