We now move to the short debate. If Members are leaving the Chamber, can they do so quickly, quietly? I now move to the short debate, and I call on Paul Davies to speak on the topic that he has chosen. Paul. 

Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm delighted to use my short debate today to once again highlight the issue of the protection of war memorials across Wales. I'm deeply honoured to have the opportunity to once again raise the importance of protecting war memorials in Wales. As I've often said before, they are an essential part of the cultural and social fabric of Wales and Britain, and it's so important that these memorials are protected for years to come. Our future generations must remember and never forget those who died for our freedoms, and, by doing so, they can learn from previous conflicts so that they are never repeated again. It's therefore essential that governments at all levels do all that they can to safeguard these memorials, as sadly, in recent years, they have come under increasing threat.

Of course, this is not a party political campaign, as support for the protection of our war memorials has come from politicians at all levels and from all sides of the political spectrum, and I'm really heartened by the support shown by so many for this worthwhile cause. At Westminster, the then Member of Parliament for Liverpool Wavertree, Luciana Berger, said, and I quote,

'It is so important that we remember the enormous sacrifices made...to secure, for us all, the freedoms that we enjoy today. War memorials help us to remember the people who have given their lives. Memorials also help local communities and young people engage with local history.'

And at Holyrood, the Greenock and Inverclyde MSP, Stuart McMillan, said, and I quote again,

'We owe it to our servicemen and servicewomen to preserve the monuments that honour and remember the fallen.'

Calls from politicians of all parties, and from all parts of the UK, remind us that we are not alone in seeking to honour our fallen heroes, and it also reminds us of the enormous impact that those conflicts have had on the United Kingdom. And so we have an opportunity to lead by example and work together to ensure that Wales's war memorials are safeguarded for the future.

Now, according to the latest estimates from the War Memorials Trust, there are approximately 10,000 war memorials in the United Kingdom. Each war memorial is unique in its own right. Some are plaques, others gardens, others statues, and others even windows. But each of them carry an enormous significance to the families of those who fell in previous conflicts and to the local  community. For some, the names listed on a memorial may be the only record of that individual's sacrifice. That makes it all the more disturbing as we continue to hear stories of memorials vandalised and desecrated across the country. Members may remember, back in March, when a swastika was spray-painted across the Connah's Quay and Shotton war memorial. The vandalism of that memorial shows the deepest disrespect for the 70 soldiers who lost their lives during the first world war.

And that's not the only case  of vandalism in recent months. The Boer War memorial on Swansea seafront, opposite St Helen's rugby ground, was daubed with anarchy symbols and the words 'smash empire' and 'troops out'. And following a climate change protest in north Wales in September, a war memorial in Bangor was vandalised. All of these events happened in the last 12 months, proving that the protection of Wales's war memorials is as important and relevant as ever. And so, today, in this Chamber, I hope Members will join me in saying that we will remember those who fought and died for this country, and that we, as representatives of communities across Wales, will do all that we can to protect and preserve their sacrifice.

Now, as the Minister will be aware, this is not the first time I've called on the Welsh Government to protect war memorials in Wales. Back in 2012, I put forward many of the same arguments that I will today to the then Minister for Housing, Regeneration and Heritage, Huw Lewis. I have to say, the Minister's response was sincere, and at that time he committed to bringing forward proposals that would strengthen the protection of war memorials across the country. Sadly, whilst his sentiments were very much welcome, in reality, very little was done. And so I say, with the greatest of respect to the Deputy Minister, that I hope that the Welsh Government will start to take this matter very seriously. The then Minister said, and I quote:

'In terms of a statutory duty to protect, we now have an open process in the development of the heritage Bill in order to take a good, long look at that, although we must remember the complexity of the patterns of responsibility that Paul has already outlined.'

However, the subsequent Historic Environment (Wales) Act 2016 did not include any measure specifically to protect war memorials. Therefore, it remains a great source of regret that, in Wales, the only legislation specific to war memorials is the War Memorials (Local Authorities' Powers) Act 1923, and subsequent amendments. And so, above all else today, I sincerely hope the Deputy Minister will commit to reviewing the legislation around the protection of war memorials, and work with stakeholders to tighten up that legislation, and bring it into the twenty-first century. I'm sure the Deputy Minister will agree with me that this is the very least that our fallen heroes deserve.

Therefore, the first commitment that I ask of the Welsh Government today is to begin to undertake a nationwide, up-to-date inventory of war memorials in Wales. I appreciate that this is no small feat, but it's so important that data is recorded that details the number and locations of all war memorials here in Wales. This could be done via local authorities, who may be better placed to identify and draw up a list of the war memorials in their respective areas. Of course, I accept that, in some cases, memorials may be on private land, or, for example, located at a school or church, and, as such, the responsibility for maintaining those memorials would lie with them. And even today, I received correspondence regarding the vulnerability of unofficial war memorials, and the need for greater protection for them. Therefore, it's crucial that the Welsh Government works with local authorities to ascertain where our war memorials are located, and under whose stewardship.

Now, I accept that, as part of Cymru'n Cofio Wales Remembers 1914-1918, the centenary programme of commemoration of the first world war, Cadw launched the grants for war memorials in Wales scheme. As I understand it, it was developed in partnership with the War Memorials Trust, and aimed to provide funding for the repair and conservation of memorials across Wales, and that initiative is very, very much welcome. But funding is only one piece of the puzzle, and so it's vital that, moving forward, the Welsh Government works with organisations like Cadw and the War Memorials Trust, and also local stakeholders and authorities, to ensure that those memorials most in need of repair are identified, and, indeed, prioritised.

Therefore, I'd like to once again put it to the Welsh Government that there should be a statutory duty on local authorities to protect our war memorials. As I said back in 2012, this would mean that the legal duty would require local authorities across Wales to ensure that war memorials in their areas are maintained. We know that the war memorials Act 1923 permits local authorities to use public money for the maintenance of memorials, but councils are under no obligation to do so. This would involve ensuring that each local authority, working closely with community groups and organisations, have a specific custodian whose job it would be to identify and preserve war memorials in their areas. There's also an opportunity with the role to include some outreach educational work, to promote war memorials in local areas, for example, by visiting schools, and talking to children and young people. The creation of this role would send a clear statement that the Welsh Government is honouring its heroes by breathing new life. into their stories and ensuring that our future generations fully understand their significance in our history. It's a great shame that there are a number of local authorities across Wales where there is not a point of contact for the local community to find out more about memorials in their areas, and that is something that desperately needs to change.

It's only through collaboration between the Welsh Government, local authorities and local communities that we can ensure that war memorials are being protected properly. Therefore, it's my view that a statutory duty on local authorities to provide a conservation custodian or war memorials officer would be the best way to establish a point of contact for the public, develop partnerships with local community groups and organisations, which have already established responsibility for some memorials in the area, and, indeed, to forge links with local schools to educate children and young people about the importance of war memorials and to tell the stories of the great sacrifices made for us.

Of course, some community groups already do a fantastic job of protecting war memorials and they should be encouraged to continue to do so. Those groups must be allowed to continue their work and we must support the efforts of community groups, which have established responsibility for memorials in Wales. However, a strong, working relationship with a point of contact at a local authority would strengthen the level of protection offered to their war memorials and may be a way of better safeguarding them at a time when thefts and damage to memorials are actually on the rise.

And my final proposals, Dirprwy Lywydd, is to call on the Welsh Government to ensure that local authorities have the very best resources possible to combat those who are targeting war memorials for scrap metal. It's beyond comprehension why someone would choose to steal a memorial, or parts of it, but, sadly, this does happen. And we must remember that these are not victimless crimes at all—they are crimes against society and have far-reaching consequences for our communities. Therefore, I'm pleased that in 2013, the UK Government brought in the Scrap Metal Dealers Act 2013 to strengthen the regulations around scrap metal dealers and to tighten up the current regime.

The legislation now requires all individuals and businesses to complete an enhanced application process to obtain a scrap metal dealer licence, giving local authorities the power to reject unsuitable applicants and revoke licences. That legislation has had a huge impact, in fact, and it's estimated that metal theft had fallen by more than three-quarters in the first four years of the legislation coming into existence. However, there's always more that can be done. I'm sure that the Deputy Minister is already aware of the state-of-the-art SmartWater signature that is visible only under ultraviolet light, which will help police to trace stolen memorials. Once applied, SmartWater is virtually impossible to remove and can withstand burning, sandblasting and long-term exposure to UV. This is one way of protecting war memorials, and I hope that the Welsh Government would agree to developing a wider partnership with the SmartWater Foundation and the War Memorials Trust to use this powerful deterrent and ensure that our local authorities have access to it.

In closing, we have an opportunity to extend our scope of remembrance and show our armed forces community our utmost respect by pledging to protect war memorials in Wales. I for one am proud of Wales's military heritage and I believe that the Welsh Government should do everything within its power to work with others to help protect and promote our war memorials. This is about honouring our heroes and providing opportunities for our children and young people to learn more about them and the ultimate price they paid for our freedom. Therefore, I do call on the Welsh Government to genuinely commit to doing more to protect war memorials in Wales. We owe our fallen heroes nothing less.

Thank you. I'm going to call on the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism to reply to the debate—Dafydd Elis-Thomas.

Thank you very much for this opportunity to respond to the debate, and thank you to Paul Davies for choosing this very timely subject to discuss here.

The Assembly Commission, of course, is responsible for a notable memorial before this Senedd, and it's in that place that I'll be attending the merchant navy's service, because I continue to appreciate my post of being the honorary president of the merchant navy, as a recognition of the special relationship between us in this Senedd and our maritime heritage.

We have as many as 5,000 war memorials in Wales, and they take different forms—be they plaques or small cenotaphs. There are parks, there are hospitals and village halls that are also memorials and are part of what was invested by Welsh communities, with public support, to remember those lost from those communities in the first world war and the second world war, without forgetting, of course, the wars since then, or, indeed, the civil war in Spain.

Remembering these events is a duty on all of us. I have listened carefully to what was said by Paul today, and I have read what he has said before, and I praise his diligence in continuing to pursue this debate. Therefore, in responding, I want to say that we will look anew at our relationship with the War Memorials Trust. I do note that Historic England, the body that corresponds to Cadw in England, and, indeed, Historic Environment Scotland, have a direct relationship with the War Memorials Trust, and perhaps it would be appropriate for us too to strengthen our relationship with that trust, as we have collaborated with them in the grant scheme that Paul referred to.

Local communities, of course, do contribute, particularly in terms of the Royal British Region and volunteers to that vital work of looking after war memorials, and we do see the importance of us, as a Government, not just acknowledging that work but supporting these activities. It’s fair for me to say that Cadw has taken action in this field from the point of view of listing memorials. I accept that listing legislation does not mean that there is safety guaranteed for these memorials, but the number of memorials has increased, and the Welsh Government, through the Cymru’n Cofio Wales Remembers programme that Paul referred to, has been designating or noting the centenary of the first world war, and Cadw prepared practical guidance for communities wishing to conserve and care for their war memorials. And over 40 individual grants, totalling almost £230,000, have been awarded for conservation of all types of memorials, and that has now been allocated from that source. One of those is the other memorial that I will be visiting on Sunday, hopefully, namely the national war memorial in Cathays Park.

So, we as, a Government, have shown that we do have the will to care for memorials in Wales but we've also supported memorials of national importance outside of Wales, with expenditure of £25,000 towards the Welsh memorial in Flanders, and also support for the memorial in Mametz Wood, in northern France—expenditure of around £7,000 there. But as this specific period of remembering the first world war is coming to an end, and as we have collaborated with the War Memorials Trust in the past, I will commit that I am going to consider further how we can strengthen our action as a Government in the way that Paul has suggested. He wouldn't expect me to make a stronger commitment than that today, but I do have my own interest, not just from the point of view being the Minister with responsibility in responding today, but also as regards the importance of remembering and remembering appropriately. I appreciate very much the contributions that have been made in the different communities throughout the years to celebrate, to remember and to acknowledge, and to grieve of course. All of these aspects come together.

Will you take an intervention?

Yes, of course, Joyce.

Thank you very much. I know that this is an area that you feel very strongly about, so I just wonder whether you'll join with me in congratulating Patti Flynn, who saw, just last week, a plaque awarded to remember the members of the black and minority ethnic community who fought for us in the war. That plaque was put up at the Welsh National War Memorial in Cardiff last Saturday. I'm sure that we would all share in congratulating her—for 26 years she campaigned—but also at the same time in remembering those who gave their lives as well. 

It was remiss of me not to mention Patti Flynn, a person for whom I have the highest personal regard. And, indeed, it's not only the importance of the commemoration of the war memorial to the black and ethnic communities that took such an active part in the defence of the United Kingdom and our communities at these difficult times, but it is also the importance for us, as a Government, in recognising that we are a genuinely multicultural society and multiracial society here in Wales. So, I'm very grateful to you for reminding me of the importance of Patti Flynn's contribution. 

To conclude, I very much hope that this, today, is the beginning of this discussion. I look forward to working further with Paul Davies and other Assembly Members who clearly have interest and who have remained for today’s debate, to ensure that we do continue to commemorate and remember in an appropriate way those on whom our freedom depends.

Thank you very much. That brings today's proceedings to a close. Diolch yn fawr. 

The meeting ended at 18:18.