Welsh Government's Relationship with Local Authorities

Part of 4. Questions to the Minister for Housing and Local Government – in the Senedd at 2:40 pm on 24 June 2020.

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Photo of Julie James Julie James Labour 2:40, 24 June 2020

Yes, absolutely. I think I said in an earlier answer that it's been quite something watching us come together as a team in this way. This technology was available before, but we didn't use it. We travelled to get together and, consequently, we didn't see each other as often, and very rarely did we see all 22 leaders in one place, for all kinds of complex reasons. But this has enabled us to meet at least once, and sometimes twice, three, four times a week, when the crisis was at its height, and really share good practice and learn from each other and trouble shoot and so on. So, I'm very keen to keep that going. 

I've committed to the leaders that I'll continue to meet with them in that forum weekly—at least weekly—for the foreseeable future, and that supplements all of the formal arrangements we have through the partnership council and so on. Officials have been able to do it as well, and so we're able to pick up good practice from across Wales and spread it around, which is what we wanted, and the local authority leaders have been tremendous, actually. We've really worked together well as a team. So, I'm very happy to commit to doing that, Paul, because I think spreading that kind of good practice around is exactly where we want to be.