7. Plaid Cymru Debate: Food poverty

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:53 pm on 8 December 2021.

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Photo of Gareth Davies Gareth Davies Conservative 5:53, 8 December 2021

I can obviously see the Member's passion and the cases in his constituency, and I have exactly the same in mine. Rhyl is one of the most deprived areas in the country, in Wales and most of the UK, so I'm not going to take any lectures from Members from south Wales on issues in my constituency. So, the Member's very rich to be saying to me, 'Oh, well'—preaching about issues in Rhyl from Members in the Valleys. So—[Members of the Senedd: 'Oh.']

Foodbanks exist to help those in times of crisis, and I repeat they are not the enemy. Poverty is—poverty is the enemy—and, sadly, the Welsh Government, supported by Plaid on those benches, for the last two decades, have done nothing to tackle poverty in Wales. EU anti-poverty funds were squandered, cheap foreign labour was prioritised over creating high-paid jobs for those living in Wales, and if they spent less time on constitutional issues and pet projects and more and more transforming our economy, then maybe one in four of our citizens in Wales wouldn't be below the poverty line that they're in today. Thank you very much.