Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:46 pm on 7 February 2023.
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. When Plaid Cymru suggested in November that you used a combination of the Wales reserve departmental underspends and unallocated funding to fund a better pay offer for NHS staff, the Minister for Health and Social Services told us there was no unallocated spending available, there were no underspends, and that you couldn't use the Wales reserve. 'Even if we did have underspends,' she said,
'let's be clear that this could not be used to fund pay awards.... Reserves can't be used for everyday spending.'
She said,
'They can only be used once, and they're held for emergencies.'
For months you refused to negotiate, for months you refused to admit more money could be found, and for months you refused to acknowledge that we were in an emergency. Now, you've effectively u-turned on all of that. What took you so long?