Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:09 pm on 6 December 2022.
Minister, I'm sorry to hear that you're unwell; hope you feel better soon. This, indeed, is a momentous moment and it does need to be celebrated; although it's jarring, of course, to be looking at the very bleak picture that we're looking at globally, I think that, obviously, it would be remiss not to do that. The UN has concluded that there are no credible pathways in place at present at least to limit global heating to below 1.5 degrees, and the need to accelerate decarbonisation plans is so urgent because of that. I think that there’s this catastrophe that’s tremendous on the one hand and the window of opportunity that we have is so small, and it’s the difference between those two things that is so stark.
I’m glad that, because of the co-operation agreement, we’ve helped bring about more of a possibility of reaching net zero by 2035. I’m glad of the commitment to establish Ynni Cymru, but again, the backdrop of this globally, and also domestically, actually—there are worrying trends closer to home, like the slowdown in renewable energy development in Wales since 2015, the cost-of-living crisis, which is just having an impact on absolutely every element of policy, the constraints on our grid capacity, and the fact that we still await further devolution of powers over the rail network and managing the Crown Estate. Minister, could you provide an update, please, on the Welsh future energy grid for net zero project, and tell us whether progress has been made to address the slowdown in renewable energy development since 2015? I’d be grateful to know if the Welsh Government has, particularly since June of this year, raised the issue of a lack of grid capacity in Wales in the relevant inter-ministerial forums, and if so, what the response has been, please.
As well as that, I know that on Wales’s net-zero plan, the Welsh Government’s modelling suggests that Wales is on track—and this has come up already—to meet carbon budget 2; there’s a 37 per cent reduction in that, and it will achieve a 44 per cent reduction against the baseline. You’ve committed to an updated budget improvement plan and you’ll consider assessments of the carbon impact of spending decisions through that, and how they could be made more robust. Could you explain, please, Minister, if the anticipated hits to your Government’s spending power because of this cost-of-living crisis will have any impact on the budget improvement plan?
On transport targets, Minister, do you agree that the lack of full devolution of this area to Wales is hampering our efforts to achieve targets in terms of reducing car usage and so on, and that the fact that this isn’t devolved, after all, has inhibited the development of an effective pan-Wales rail network, and we’ve missed out on untold money in Barnett consequentials from the high speed 2 scheme?
There’s one final area I’d like to cover briefly—it has come up already—on land usage. I know the Government has plans to increase woodland creation rates substantially by 2050; I note the concern that’s already been raised about this, about the reduction in carbon capture from land usage between 2019 and 2020. I would add my concern to that already expressed. I wouldn’t wish the Minister to have to repeat what she’s already said, but if there’s anything further that she’d like to say on that, could you tell us of any assessment that’s been made of the implications in Wales of the UK Government’s proposals for their habitats regulations assessment process, please? Diolch.