6. Will the First Minister outline the Welsh Government’s response to the recent closure of the A465 between Rhigos and Glynneath? OAQ53633

I thank the Member for that. A defective culvert contributed to the closures to which the Member refers. It has now been replaced and local road conditions will return fully to normal by the end of this week.

I thank the First Minister for his response. Now, the A465 in that area is not just the only A road out of the Cynon Valley, it's also a very significant road regionally, linking, as it does, the Heads of the Valleys, as far afield as the midlands, down to west Wales and is, if I am correct, the only road in Wales that is classed as part of the trans-European road network. So, I'm sure you'll agree with me, First Minister, that effective maintenance of that road is absolutely crucial.

Two weeks ago, Rhondda Cynon Taf council took the unprecedented step of issuing legal notice against the South Wales Trunk Road Agent for not maintaining a major highway. And some of the criticisms levied against them were: not being able to access the correct pumps when RCT council was able to access them from a different supplier; not maintaining or monitoring the pumps to a sufficient standard, leading to the road reflooding; and inadequate signage in the village of Rhigos, leading to complete chaos for residents of that village, with all this traffic then attempting to flow through a minor B road.

With all of those issues, First Minister, what confidence can we have in SWTRA, moving forward, to maintain this road properly and not cause chaos to the residents of my constituency, to commuters and to local businesses?

Well, I understand, Dirprwy Lywydd, the concerns that have been caused locally by the events on the part of the road to which the Member refers, and, of course, she's quite right about the significance of that part of our transport infrastructure. I've discussed all of these matters with Ken Skates, the Minister responsible, and there are, I think, two different issues at stake here, Dirprwy Lywydd. There is the underlying issue of what has caused the difficulty at the culvert in the first place. And I know that there are many different explanations that are suggested locally, and as a result the Minister has asked his officials to be in contact with the local authorities so that a piece of work can be put to hand so that we get to the underlying difficulty that caused the culvert to collapse in the first place. There is then a set of issues about the way in which an immediate response was provided to the difficulties experienced earlier in the month, and I take very seriously what the Member has said. I think, however, there is also some other evidence that some of the mandatory signage that was put in place to divert traffic was ignored by some drivers, and there have been reports to the police where it was felt that that was done in a deliberate way.

The second flooding incident to which the Member referred took place after diesel-powered pumps, which were in place, were tampered with overnight—fuel was stolen from them and the pumps stopped working as a result. In response to that, SWTRA and its contractor has had to put in place 24-hour site supervision of the pumps with a four-hourly inspection of them, including right through the night. Following that, there have been no further failures. We will learn the lessons, they will learn the lessons of what has taken place, now that the road has been repaired and is just about to be fully reopened.