7. Will the First Minister make a statement on how the Welsh Government is supporting Powys Teaching Health Board? OAQ53943

Llywydd, on 8 May the health Minister announced £2.554 million in new funding for the north Powys well-being programme. That is just one example of the support provided by the Welsh Government to the Powys Teaching Health Board.

Thank you for your answer, First Minister. I very much welcome the intention to build a healthcare facility in north Powys, almost certainly to be located in Newtown. The initial sum that you talked about is, of course, just for the initial stages, but the full amount will, of course, be 10 times more in order for that project to go forward. Is there anything more you can say at this stage to provide assurances that further capital funding will be invested to ensure that this facility becomes a reality? And secondly, even if this project moves at quite a pace, it's going to be some years away until that facility is in place. In the meantime, there are concerns about the sustainability of the GP practice and wider health services in Newtown as well. What can be put in place in the meantime in the short and medium term?

I thank the Member for that. We understand, of course, that whenever the Government provides funding from the Welsh Government's transformation fund, there are questions that have to be explored as to the long-term sustainability of those services, and those sustainability arguments are absolutely part of the decision making that leads to that investment in the first place. So, I understand the reason why people ask those questions, but I want to give the Member an assurance that those questions are explored as part of the decision making that has led to this investment in the first place. We wouldn't be making the investment if we didn't believe that it would bring about sustainable change and sustainable new services in the areas in which we are investing.

The Member knows that Powys local health board has had to work on a series of issues where GP services have been altered in the area. They have, I think, a very creditable record of reinventing primary care services in the way that will become increasingly familiar in all parts of Wales, where it is that wider range of professionals who come together under the leadership of GPs to make sure that people going through the door of a practice go directly to the person most likely to be able to respond to their need, whether that is a pharmacist, a physiotherapist, an occupational therapist, whatever that wider team is able to provide. That experience and that expertise continues to be applied to issues in Powys where there is a need for change to be brought about in primary care provision.

And finally, question 8, Lynne Neagle.