I'll be speaking in my capacity as Chair of the Local Government and Housing Committee, and I'd like to thank the Welsh Local Government Association, the Minister for Finance and Local Government and the Minister for Climate Change for attending the committee's evidence sessions.

Our committee welcomes the local government settlement. We heard from the sector that it is generous and it will enable local authorities to undertake longer term planning rather than simply reacting to immediate pressures. But we are concerned at the reduction in capital funding for local government, which is part of a wider reduction in capital spend across the budget. We've therefore recommended that Welsh Government and the WLGA work together to explore alternative ways of supporting larger capital budgets for local government, including the role of supported borrowing.

We're also concerned by the continuing difficulties faced by local government in recruiting and retaining staff across all service areas, but particularly in social care. The Minister referred to an additional £60 million direct funding for reforming the care sector; however, we would like to know how the Welsh Government will ensure that this funding will achieve its aims. We've recommended that Welsh Government, before publishing the final budget, provides further information as to how this additional money will contribute to the long-term sustainability of the sector.

In terms of housing, we welcome the commitment to reform homelessness services to focus on prevention and rapid rehousing. However, we are concerned that there is currently an unprecedented number of people in temporary accommodation. The latest data for October 2021 shows that there were over 7,000 people in emergency temporary accommodation and 1,728 were dependent children under the age of 16. People need to be moved into long-term permanent accommodation if homelessness is to be rare, brief and unrepeated, as Welsh Government aspires to in its strategy. We're concerned that local authorities may face financial challenges if the number of people in temporary accommodation continues to increase. We therefore recommend that the Welsh Government closely monitors the pressures on emergency temporary accommodation, so that local authorities have the necessary resources to ensure that no-one is left without accommodation.

And, as the pandemic comes to an end, local authorities will not be able to help people with no recourse to public funds. The introduction of public health legislation to extend help and support to people in this position has provided a lifeline to many during the pandemic. So, it's very concerning that some people may fall through the gaps and not be eligible for support once the public health emergency is over. We therefore recommend that Welsh Government works with the UK Government to ensure that it's still able to extend housing-related help and support to people with no recourse to public funds.

There is a concern that Welsh Government will have problems with material price inflation, supply chain disruption and a shortage of skilled labour in trying to build new, low-carbon social homes for rent. We're worried about the impact this will have on the target of 20,000 affordable homes, especially as we heard that this figure may not be sufficient to address problems with housing supplies in Wales. And on the subject of low-carbon homes, we're also concerned as to whether the budget allocation for decarbonisation is sufficient to enable local authorities and registered social landlords to decarbonise their stock. Given that the Welsh Government has declared a climate emergency, this is something that should be prioritised, and we've asked the Minister to provide detail on how the budget allocation is sufficient to progress retrofitting work at the level and pace required.

Finally, we welcome the additional revenue in the draft budget to support fire safety surveys and the creation of building remediation passports for all mid and high-rise buildings across Wales. We appreciate that the Welsh Government's priority is to determine what's wrong with these buildings. However, providing leaseholders and tenants with solutions, as well as information about the safety of their buildings, must be a priority. This is a very worrying time for those affected. Leaseholders and tenants need to be provided with answers about how the funding will be used as soon as possible, so that they at least have some clarity and certainty at this difficult time. We've recommended that Welsh Government should ensure that leaseholders will not have to cover the cost of remediation, and that work to improve the safety of these buildings should be progressed urgently. Diolch yn fawr.