Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:07 pm on 3 November 2020.
First Minister, I think, actually, I will not ask the question I was going to, but I think I need to follow up on the observations made by the previous Member. We all recognise that we are in a very difficult world. We all understand that there are many people who flee to our shores for all sorts of reasons, whether it's because they are incredibly poor, or their lives are in danger. I feel great sympathy with the UK Government in that they have to find homes for these people, places for them to stay. They're in short supply and we have to step up to the mark. I'd like to take this opportunity, First Minister, to thank the people of Pembrokeshire who've been so kind and so welcoming to the asylum seekers who have found themselves in the Penally camp. I'd like to thank the local organisations who've stepped forward to try to help wherever they can. I would urge the UK Government to try to find better accommodation as soon as they possibly can, whilst recognising that we have an unprecedented number of asylum seekers looking for sanctuary in the UK. And I would absolutely like to refute all and any suggestion that these are people who should be dumped, who should be marginalised and who should be treated badly. It isn't their fault that they are in the position they're in, and I think that the people of Pembrokeshire have proven themselves to be exceptionally welcoming. I would like to finally ask that people who do not live in Pembrokeshire who insist on marching down to demonstrate outside the Penally camp refrain from doing so.