Can I thank David Rowlands for his contribution and also welcome his support for our vision and our position on the devolution of responsibilities and funding for rail infrastructure? I think David Rowlands makes an important point that we need a transport system that is fit for purpose, and rail is integral to that. We do want parity with Scotland. It's quite obvious. Other parts of the UK enjoy the ability to be able to operate services and invest in infrastructure in the way that we would wish to here in Wales.

I think the Member makes an important point about the efficiency of spending and the outcomes of investments. One of our frustrations in recent times has concerned the excessive cost of some improvements to rail infrastructure and the fact that some projects have fallen short in terms of outcomes. For example, I could point to the improvements on the north-south services and the overrun on costs of the work that was undertaken in the attempt to reduce journey times. Those journey times, incidentally, did not reduce as much as was originally anticipated. We would like to take control of such work and I think it's only right then that we would then take full accountability if any work did not meet with the expectations of the public.

No part of Wales should lag behind another part of Wales because of a lack of funding. That's why we've been very clear that the devolution of responsibilities should be accompanied by devolution of funding. The metro in the south-east of Wales enjoys significant investment as part of the growth deal for the region. But, in the coming months and years, we will see improvements within other metro areas and in those areas where there are no metro plans yet devised. In particular, I can point to investments that are coming down the track in north-east Wales, where we are seeing investment being pumped into the Deeside industrial estate park and ride scheme, into improvements for bus pilot scheme opportunities right across Wales, and the money that we're spending in the south-west of Wales to develop further the vision for the south-west Wales—the Swansea bay area—metro scheme.

But, in order to deliver on this vision and in order to deliver on all of the aims and objectives captured in the written statement that I've outlined today, it will require a significant investment. But, it's not an investment that we should not expect, based on our population and historic underinvestment in rail infrastructure in recent times.