Could I thank everybody who has contributed to the debate? I think the debate that we've had in the last hour has shown how valuable having this kind of discussion is, and indeed how having an even broader discussion in terms of timing and the number of contributions would enrich and help the Minister and others in developing the Government’s budget, but that it’s important to do that at the early, formative stage, rather than as we now find ourselves, unfortunately this time, having it later in the process than we would wish.

I'll pick up on a couple of points. I think Nick Ramsay started by reminding us of the importance of engaging with the public more broadly, and evidently that’s something that the Finance Committee is trying to do. It’s something that every committee in this Assembly should be doing. Indeed, every Member should be embracing each and every opportunity to engage with constituents. I think that Mike Hedges's point was about that geographical broadening as well, in terms of who we speak to. And, of course, the consultation by the committee, which finishes today, as I mentioned earlier, is an opportunity to throw that net out wider.

It was interesting and encouraging to hear many Members referring to rural factors as one of the areas that is seeing a great deal of pressure at present. And I want to thank Alun Davies particularly for just asking the question, 'Well, what are we scrutinising?' Because we do get sucked into scrutinising line by line, where, very often, we don't take that step back to look at the shape of the budget as a whole and how that links with the ambitions or policy objectives of the Government. I think that is a central factor of our work as a committee, and other committees. When he mentioned that he had three priorities, I was afraid that he was going to say, 'Blaenau Gwent, Blaenau Gwent and Blaenau Gwent', but he didn't, to be fair to him. 'Education, public transport and climate change' is what he said. And, of course, that's the point. Every Member will have their three priorities, I'm sure, as we've heard from others today, and that’s the exact intent of this debate, to give a platform and a voice to those priorities as the Government forms its budget.

Rhun, Dawn Bowden and others talked about the tension between funding health services and other services, as did Mike Hedges in the context of the preventative value of investing in social services or social care services particularly. We've heard in the context of local government—. Nick Ramsay used the term 'saturation point' and I've heard 'tipping point' and 'we're on the edge'. These lines are often repeated to us, but I do think that the time has come for the Government to front up to this and we need to do something now about the situation.

Mark Reckless raised an important point, I think, in terms of the disconnect between engaging with stakeholders and our scrutiny of the budget. It is inevitable, as he said, because it is an executive-led process and maybe the perception of the public is one that suggests that they think that we have more influence than we would like, certainly. But that’s not only true in the context of finance. I think that’s true of other contexts very often: the lack of differentiation between the Welsh Government and the role of the National Assembly for Wales. But it does underline the need to strengthen the voice of backbench Members and the Members of the Assembly as part of that discussion.

I do share the frustration about the one-year spending round by the UK Government. Of course, if I'm right, that hasn't stopped the Scottish Government from offering more long-term assurance to their public bodies, but I do understand, of course, that it’s not easy to do that. But doing that does allow them to use that funding more effectively, and in the climate that we face now, we need every pound to work as hard as possible.

I thank John Griffiths for reminding us about education and the need to fund schools, again in this preventative context. And what we're looking for in general is this shift, this decisive shift to preventative investment, and youth services are a very important part of that.

And just to respond quickly to some of the comments made by the Minister, who did give us a list of projects: Ynni Ogwen, I CAN in Bangor, the RSPB at Lake Vyrnwy, Tai Ceredigion and so forth. I do feel that that is the danger, isn’t it? That is, you can point at individual projects to highlight something, but it doesn't necessarily represent a systemic change in the way that the Government proceeds to create its budget. And that comes back to the point made by Alun Davies: how can we strengthen that link between the budget lines and the policy ambition and the policy outcomes of the Government? That is, the difference between outputs and outcomes, and I do think that if we manage as a committee, as an Assembly and as a Government to resolve that conundrum and to create that clear link, rather than listing projects, then I think we will reach the point where I would like us to reach.

So, with those comments, could I thank all the Members for contributing? I do feel that we have had a flavour of the kind of discussion that we should be having around the budget priorities of the Welsh Government, but to do that in the years to come much earlier in the process. Thank you.