2. Business Statement and Announcement

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:23 pm on 27 November 2018.

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Photo of Julie Morgan Julie Morgan Labour 2:23, 27 November 2018

I wanted to raise the issue about folic acid. The UK Government, as the leader of the house will know, recently announced its plans to fortify flour with folic acid to reduce spina bifida and other preventable birth defects linked to low folic acid. I think we know that, at the moment, two children a week in the UK are born with preventable birth defects. It's very good news that the UK Government has announced this, and I know this is something that Scottish and Welsh Ministers have lobbied for, and I assume it will apply to all UK flour producers. But I did wonder whether it would be possible to have a statement in Wales to clarify that this will apply in Wales and how it will link with our duties to regulate food and our responsibilities for food standards, because I think, obviously, this is something that mothers in particular need to know.