May I thank Mike Hedges for his comments? He has reminded me of the irony here that Plaid Cymru has had to table a motion in order to try and persuade the Labour Government to commit themselves to their own policy. So, that tells us something about where this Government finds itself at the moment. And this is the party, of course, that claims to be 'for the many'—no. 'For the many, not the few', yes, I was right the first time. I have become confused today. But who are we talking about here? Who do they represent? Well, if we are talking about a group that needs representation and needs a voice to speak on their behalf, it's the 1,300 people who have been reliant on this independent living grant; that 1,300 people who have suffered anxiety and concern over the past two years as to the implications of losing that grant. And the u-turn that we've seen from the Government came 24 hours before this Plaid Cymru debate is news that is to be welcomed—of course it is. And I understand that the intention now is to do some more research to see what the options are in terms of developing an alternative proposal or varying the scheme. So, my plea is that you listen to the evidence of those who are in receipt of these funds, their families and carers, when you come to look at the options whilst making progress.

Now, much of the discussion has focused, and has done over the past few years, on the funding element, but I think it's important to remind ourselves of the importance of the independent living element. The experiences of those in receipt of this grant do lead them to fear that life under local authority control would be far more prescriptive, and that it would risk removing independence from them. And the swingeing cuts that the local authorities have suffered do mean that it would be almost inevitable that the systems would be more prescriptive because of the need to prove value for money. But what is value for money if the value put on the life and the quality of life of these individuals decline as a result of that? How can you measure an individual's quality of life on a financial spreadsheet at the end of the financial year? The recipients of this grant are already suffering a lack of independence because of circumstances that are out of their control. They are taking medicines and are using wheelchairs and they are already restricted to their homes, and the last thing that they need is further restrictions because of the financial rules and bureaucracy of local authorities who have to count every penny to prove value for money.