Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:34 pm on 29 September 2020.
Well, Llywydd, I have with me here, as Members can see, the stakeholder briefing that was distributed to Members and others about the plans for development of the Flintshire corridor scheme. In case the Member hasn't had an opportunity to see that document, let me just assure her that it makes it clear that the stage we are at with the red route is a preliminary design process, which will look at all the environmental and engineering issues raised during consultation in more detail. The preferred route will be developed further as a result of that consideration, including environmental, traffic and economic appraisals, and, as the stakeholder briefing makes clear, all of that will be designed to minimise the impact of the improvements—the very necessary improvements—on local residents, the landscape, air quality and biodiversity. So, I don't dismiss for a moment the concerns that the Member has raised. They're right and proper ones, but the process that we are embarked upon is designed exactly to explore with local people and with local stakeholders the issues the Member raises and to resolve them in a way that takes account of those important matters.