Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Social Justice – in the Senedd at 2:07 pm on 24 November 2021.
I thank Vikki Howells for that question, and you have identified a commitment in the 'Nation of Sanctuary' plan. That commitment hasn't changed. We have had challenging circumstances with the pandemic, which has delayed moving forward on that, but we are going to pilot a new scheme in the new year that will provide young asylum seekers with the same level of support from the education maintenance allowance and the financial contingency fund. So, we're looking at taking this pilot scheme forward in the new year, rolling out in 2022, but in the meantime, I'm glad that in my announcement last week of the £51 million household support fund, we're embarking on a short-term discounted public transport pilot for asylum seekers, and that should help alleviate challenges about accessing education opportunities in the next academic term.