Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:47 pm on 8 March 2022.
I'd like to request a Government statement on day-care provision for disabled people during the pandemic. I raise this with you again because there seems to be a big contrast between what is provided, with some local authorities, such as Gwynedd and Blaenau Gwent, retaining day-care centre provision for the most profoundly disabled, and other local authorities, such as Caerphilly County Borough Council, have slashed provision, leaving many parents and carers of disabled people with little or no respite. It seems that local authority interpretation of Government COVID regulations and guidance has led to a postcode lottery whereby somebody profoundly disabled in Crumlin, for instance, which is in Caerphilly County Borough Council area, would not receive day-care centre provision, whereas somebody living in Sofrydd, a few yards away in Blaenau Gwent, would. I've raised this matter a number of times in this Siambr since my election. I was hoping that, with things opening up and this Government's commitment to the importance of day-care centres, we would see some change in disabled day-care provision, but that hasn't happened in many parts of the country yet. Can the Government look at this as a matter of urgency? I don't think it's good enough just to say that it's a matter for local authorities.