2. Business Statement and Announcement

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:32 pm on 26 April 2022.

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Photo of Darren Millar Darren Millar Conservative 2:32, 26 April 2022

Thank you, Trefnydd, for your statement. Can I call for two statements from the Minister for Health and Social Services please? The first is a very much needed update on the citizen voice watchdog, and the implementation of the new role of that organisation. Many people in north Wales, as Members in this Chamber will know, have been very impressed with the work of the north Wales community health council over the years, and one thing that I'm personally passionate about is I think that the new citizen voice watchdog ought to be located in north Wales, not in Cardiff, or any other part of the country. North Wales doesn't have many of the headquarters of the different bodies that have been established by the Welsh Government, and I do think that this would really put an important stake in the ground for the region. 

The second statement that I want to hear from the Welsh Government is in relation to an update on mental health services in north Wales. Y Byd ar Bedwar, the programme that was broadcast on S4C last night, had some shocking revelations. There were members of staff from the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, at the Hergest unit, who said that they were scared to come into work, that they were frightened from speaking out due to potential repercussions about services, that they felt there was a lack of support from management, that there were staffing issues on those wards, and that the working environment was toxic. In addition to that, there were patients alleging that they were denied the in-patient treatment that they needed. And, of course, this comes on top of a report last week that emerged about the suspension of a member of staff in your own constituency's hospital, at Wrexham Maelor, allegedly in relation to WhatsApp messages that were circulated of a patient with dementia who had soiled a bed. 

This clearly does not suggest that the issues in the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board's mental health services have been resolved. Many people have contacted me who had concerns and relatives who were impacted by the Tawel Fan scandal to say that they feel grossly let down by the Welsh Government and the Betsi Cadwaladr health board that theses sorts of things are still going on. When will the culture in our mental health services in north Wales change? People need to know, and they need to know what action the Welsh Government's health Minister is going to take in order to turn this situation around.