Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:50 pm on 8 July 2020.
I would otherwise, Jenny. The relaxation of the coronavirus restrictions on travel has created, I think it's true to say, a range of challenges, but also a range of opportunities, and I think that we need to look at the balance between those and make sure that we appreciate that. As Darren Millar said in opening, there's no doubt at all that restrictions, such as the 5-mile rule, no matter how much Ministers maintain that they were discretionary—it was causing confusion. It was causing stress. And for us to be told and for our constituents to be told that it was a rule but it wasn't a rule at the same time—well, that wasn't serious. And I'm pleased that that five—. And we all welcome the fact that that rule has been abolished, as Darren Millar said in opening.
Darren also said that he welcomed the bus emergency fund, and, yes, we do welcome that, but we do require more detail on it. And I wish, actually, the Minister in his response, rather than going on about the nuances of our motion so much, had actually given a little bit more detail on what is a very opaque area at the moment, and an area that the bus industry needs support on.
I'm pleased that Helen Mary Jones clarified her comments earlier. She must have anticipated that I was going to come back on her—. She also called our motion 'bonkers'. I'm not sure what it is, when you try to put in a motion things that are common sense to the public and common sense to people out there, that you need to support the economy, support transport links and support the public at a time of a pandemic—why on earth that would be called 'bonkers', I don't quite understand. But, yes, the common travel area, the example used with Paris, was an odd one.
I think it is perfectly reasonable to say, however, that in terms of, at some point in the future, trying to enforce a quarantine along the England-Wales border and within a common travel area that has existed within the UK and between Ireland for a 100 years—there would obviously be major difficulties in enforcing that quarantine. There would be major costs involved. So, I think it is again quite reasonable for us to say that that should not be something that the Welsh Government should be counting on. Of course, it would require further co-operation across the UK as well. And, yes, the Minister emeritus, Alun Davies—well, he piped up earlier and accused the Welsh Conservatives of having a fetish with the border. Well, all we're pointing out is that the border is a long, porous border. It does have real issues and to try and enforce a quarantine would be difficult. And once again, there was no detail given. It was all very opaque as to how that would happen in practice.
Caroline Jones, and Lynne Neagle, actually, made very sensible points about calling on the Welsh Government to review the decision not to make the wearing of face masks mandatory on public transport. Again, how can you describe that as not a serious point to make in the debate? Most experts accept that the wearing of face masks should be a mandatory condition, and that's happening elsewhere. So, if there really is this evidence that the Minister has identified as to why we shouldn't have that mandated in Wales, then let's see that evidence. I think Lynne Neagle called for that. Let's see it. Let's all understand why it is that the wearing of face masks should not be mandatory in this corner of the United Kingdom when it should be mandated everywhere else.
Central to all of this is the need, as I know the Welsh Government constantly say and have argued in the past, to protect the public. That is why we have brought this debate forward. That is why we have these debates on the need to deal with the pandemic. We need to protect the public, but at the same time we need to ease the lockdown and support the economy as we move forward.
And I'll say in closing, Llywydd, that I hope that when we do come out of this lockdown, going back to some of Darren Millar's initial points—I do hope that we will not simply be trying to return to all the old practices of the past, and that we will be seeking to walk the walk, not just talk the talk, in terms of developing a greener economy, a more sustainable economy in the future, an economy that builds on opportunities that have been presented over the last month, and doesn't just respond and shy away from some of the challenges that are being presented. I think the public understand that, we understand that, many Assembly Members—Senedd Members, I should say—from the Government benches understand that as well. This is a serious debate, it's a serious motion, this is a serious discussion to be had. Let's all of us work together and as we move forward put the Welsh economy on a footing so that we can come out of this lockdown in a really solid, sustainable way and we can build a Wales in the future that people can be proud of.