1. Will the Commission make a statement on the decision to select Carole Cadwalladr as the Assembly's Hay Festival speaker at the GWLAD—Future Wales Festival? OAQ54306

The GWLAD festival programme is delivered in partnership with a range of external organisations, one of which is the Hay Festival, which has agreed to deliver a Hay Festival lecture at the GWLAD festival. Carole Cadwalladr will be the speaker for the Hay Festival lecture during the weekend festival, which will be held in just under a fortnight. Carole Cadwalladr was the winner of the Hay Festival annual award for journalism this year.

Carole Cadwalladr has been responsible for some of the most extraordinary conspiracy theories relating to the EU referendum. She first called me up about three or so years ago about this, it was about Russia and Putin operatives brainwashing millions of people through social media to back leave. More recently, I think her line is that a conspiracy of hedge fund managers is trying to drive through a 'no deal' Brexit because they've shorted the pound. Even by her own admission, many of her articles have been grossly inaccurate, and I would just question the selection of this individual to speak for the Assembly. Doesn't this just underline the impression that this place speaks for a remain establishment, rather than for the people of Wales, who voted to leave?

Thank you for your contribution. You sound more informed and more fascinated by Carole Cadwalladr than most of us, I suspect. I would say that freedom of speech and the right to express any view is something that this Assembly holds very dear and wants to promote, and Carole Cadwalladr is as welcome here as anybody else to speak. I'm certainly looking forward to hearing her speak, and I hope you are too.

It is important that there's plurality of thought and as many speakers as possible should be engaged by the Assembly so that that plurality can be listened to by as many people as possible. We're a democratic institution. But it is a fact that Carole Cadwalladr has had to put many clarifications and corrections out there, and I'm just interested to understand why an alternative view isn't being offered as well, and there's only just the one speaker, as I understand it, speaking on this particular topic. As I said, I don't dispute that people should be able to come forward and offer as many views as possible, but this does seem to be a one-sided view that's coming from an individual who has had to clarify and correct many of the points that she's put over in her articles.

I certainly accept the point that we want to support a plurality of views and for all of those views to be offered a platform here, both in this Chamber and in work that happens on our estate generally. This is a lecture that's being held in partnership with the Hay Festival. The winner of the journalism prize at the Hay Festival this year was Carole Cadwalladr and she is the guest lecturer. I think it's important to remember as well that she is a Cardiff woman. She is an investigative journalist who has won many awards. Whether you agree with her views on any issues that she espouses, she is somebody that we can be proud of in terms of her being a Welsh person who has had quite considerable acclaim and attention from remainers, who are equally valid in this place as leavers are. And I urge you all, if there are tickets remaining because it's proved to be very popular—all tickets remaining—I urge you all, if you can find time in your diary, to listen to Carole Cadwalladr and maybe ask her a question, rather than asking me this question. [Laughter.]