The next item is the business statement and announcement, and once again it's the Trefnydd who will make this statement. I call on the Trefnydd to make the statement. Lesley Griffiths.

Diolch. There are no changes to this week's business. Draft business for the next three weeks is set out on the business statement and announcement, which can be found amongst the meeting papers available to Members electronically.

Trefnydd, can I call again for an oral statement on the investigation into the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board concerning the events that gave rise to the qualification of accounts for 2021-22 and the subsequent £122 million counter-fraud investigation, which is now under way? There are lots of questions that people in north Wales have and want answers to, including whether this investigation extends beyond the health board, when it will be concluded, are any prosecutions likely, will there be significant financial implications for NHS services in north Wales to our local residents, will there be a further qualification of the accounts for the last financial year, and whether there are also Welsh Government officials that might be implicated in this. I think these are fair questions, which we do need some answers to, and it would be helpful if we could have an oral statement that we can ask questions to the Minister about. I can see the Minister is nodding, so it looks like we might get one.

The questions you ask are very fair and do need a thorough answer. I don't have the answers now. I think it's probably a little bit too early at the moment, but I think at the most appropriate time the Minister for Health and Social Services will do a statement.

The Deputy Presiding Officer (David Rees) took the Chair.

Trefnydd, we have all rightfully been horrified by the testimony that has come forward relating to sexism, misogyny and racism within the Welsh Rugby Union. As Members will be aware, a Senedd scrutiny committee had the opportunity to question both the WRU and the Deputy Minister for arts and sport last week on the matter. During the scrutiny session with the Welsh Government, it was clear that the Welsh Government had been made aware of some serious allegations in May 2022, and that there had been discussions between the Deputy Minister and the WRU on these matters. I would like to request an oral statement from the Deputy Minister for arts and aport on this matter, clarifying what was known to Welsh Government and when, and outlining what steps were taken. Given the public interest in the matter and the significance of the allegations made, I would welcome the opportunity for the Senedd as a whole to be updated on the Welsh Government's discussions with the WRU during that time.

Thank you. Following the committee appearance by both the chair and acting chief executive of the WRU, and obviously the Deputy Minister for culture and arts and her officials, I think the next step, and that's the most appropriate step, is for the Minister to write to the committee.

His Majesty's Inspectorate of Prisons published a very troubling report on Friday about its unannounced inspection of Eastwood Park prison. That inspection took place in October, and the conditions described by the inspectorate make for very difficult reading: bloodstains on the wall, extreme mental distress, including spiralling incidents of self-harm, which well-meaning but poorly trained staff were not equipped to deal with. As this is the main prison where south Wales women are being incarcerated, I'd like to request a statement from the Minister for Social Justice to find out at what point was she informed of these conditions and what has been done in these last three months to improve the desperate situation for women who are acutely unwell and yet being incarcerated on very short sentences in really awful conditions.

Thank you. I know the report made for very harrowing reading. It identified substantive gaps in care and a real lack of support for some very distressed and vulnerable women. It's really important that women involved with the criminal justice system are held in safe and secure facilities that are absolutely fit for purpose. I know the Minister for Social Justice visited there recently with the Counsel General and will be making a written statement.

I call for two oral statements or debates in Welsh Government time on two important matters.

The first of these is on accessible communication and information for people with a sensory loss. Public services have legal duties under section 20 of the Equality Act 2010 to ensure that disabled people can access services on an equal basis to non-disabled people, known as the reasonable adjustments duty. This includes making sure that people who have an impairment or sensory loss are provided with information in a format that they can read and understand. However, following the health Minister's response to the joint letter from RNIB Cymru and the RNID in Wales seeking clarity around the all-Wales standards for accessible communication and information for people with a sensory loss, they replied outlining a number of continuing concerns they still have, which they also shared with me as chair of the cross-party groups on disability and on deaf issues.

They highlighted the lack of scrutiny, accountability and reporting around the implementation of the standards across NHS Wales, and that this is a patient safety issue. They called on the Welsh Government for clarity around why the Welsh Government has not allocated the resources necessary to appoint an accessibility lead, despite accepting this as a recommendation on two separate occasions, initially made by the Senedd's Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee and then again by the Health and Social Care Committee. They called for a clear commitment from the Welsh Government to ensuring the standards are embedded within health boards and are accompanied by a clear action plan, targets and timescales. They called for transparent and public reporting on the standards, setting out which targets are not being met by which health boards and trusts. So, I call for an oral statement or debate accordingly.

I also call for an oral statement or debate in Welsh Government time on support for deaf children in Wales. National Deaf Children's Society Cymru have warned of a looming educational crisis for deaf children in Wales. Their Consortium for Research into Deaf Education survey of local authorities shows that the numbers of teachers that are deaf in Wales has fallen by 20 per cent over the last decade. In addition, more than a third of teachers that are deaf across Wales are over the age of 50, meaning there they're likely to retire in the next 10 to 15 years.

Mark, you need to conclude now.

They're calling on the Welsh Government to implement a Wales-wide workforce strategy to recruit specialist staff to meet the additional learning needs of deaf children, provide funding to ensure there is sufficient training provision to create a new generation of teachers who are deaf, and to work with local authorities to ensure all parents are aware of the support available through the additional learning needs reforms. This is the fact behind the rhetoric.

I call again for an urgent oral statement or debate in Welsh Government time on these two issues, perhaps combined or perhaps separately. Thank you.

Thank you. In relation to your second question, you're absolutely right; it is vital that the learning needs of a deaf child are absolutely met. I will ask the Minister for Education and Welsh Language to write to you on the issue.

With regard to your first request—they wouldn't be able to be done together, because it would be two different Ministers—I know the Minister for Social Justice's officials work very closely with the disability equality taskforce, and at the most appropriate time, I'm sure she will be able to write you with some further information.

I'd like to ask for a debate and a statement in Government time on the future of dentistry in Wales, because I do have to say that it's hard to see a future for NHS dentistry in Wales at the moment. A year ago, there were nine dentists providing NHS services on Anglesey. Now, there are only six. In Holyhead, the dentist there is the latest to inform patients they won't be treating on the NHS now. They've told patients they should seek another dentist, but there aren't any other dentist surgeries available, and the health board isn't confident that they will be able to find dentists to provide those services. Although we've lost those three dentist surgeries, with the level of morale as it currently stands, and the lack of confidence in the Government, we could lose more. The dental health of everyone is going to suffer—everyone across society—but of course, those least privileged will suffer most. They're going to suffer as individuals and we as a society are going to pay the price for that. We need to sort this out, or the hole that we're in will get deeper. We need the Government to introduce a plan for how we're going to move forward, and as a matter of urgency.

Thank you. You'll be aware that the majority of dentists are independent self-employed practitioners. They can choose how they spend their time. I don't think there's any shortage of dentists, but I think there is a shortage of dentists who are prepared to treat more NHS patients. As you know, we have a new dental contract, and the Minister already did a written statement in relation to that, so I don't think there's any need for a further statement at the moment.

Two written statements, please, Trefnydd, firstly with regard to Madrid, which is trying to encircle itself with a 75 km urban forest to mitigate the climate emergency and to improve biodiversity. There's a similar idea being put forward by campaigners here in Cardiff for the city to become a new park city, with large country parks on the outskirts of the city in areas such as St Fagans, Caerphilly mountain, the Rhymney river and St Mellons. Most of the Cardiff parks up to date were opened during the Victorian age, so there haven't been new parks in Cardiff for many decades. This would develop natural flood defences, improve air quality and absorb greenhouse emissions generated by the city. Could we have a written statement by the Government on this welcome initiative?

Secondly, could we have a written statement with regard to Cardiff's replacement local development plan? I had a very interesting meeting recently with the Radyr and Morganstown local development plan group on this issue. There are suggestions that large green spaces can be built inside the replacement local development plan in view of the lower-than-expected population growth in the last census and the environmental impact of excess run-off rainwater and flooding. So, could we please have a written statement on that also? Diolch.

With regard to your latter question, an LDP is a matter for the local authority, so I don't see any need for a Government statement. It was really good to hear about the first initiative you were discussing. As you know, one of our programme for government commitments is for a national forest right across Wales, and we're certainly doing all we can to make sure people are planting trees. You'll be aware of our Welsh Government initiatives, and I would encourage everybody to pick up a free tree from their nearest hub and either plant it in their garden or ensure that we can plant it for you if there is nowhere for you to do so. But it's always good to hear about new initiatives. As you know, one of our programme for government commitments is for a new national park. I know it's up in north-east Wales, but I think it is important that we identify areas where we can indeed have parks that, obviously, everybody can enjoy.

Minister, may I ask for a statement from the Minister for Climate Change regarding the historic dumping of toxic waste at Ty Llwyd quarry at Ynysddu? Caerphilly County Borough Council is now the owner of the site, having compulsorily purchased the quarry, but has refused to register Ty Llwyd as contaminated land in spite of local concern about leachate leaking out and polluting neighbourhood properties as well as the roads. Natural Resources Wales confirms it is solely the council's responsibility to register contaminated land, but Caerphilly CBC maintains that the leachate does not flow from its property. Will you join me in supporting the residents, Minister, and local councillors Jan Jones and Janine Reed, in calling for a public inquiry to be held into the potential threat to neighbouring land and the River Sirhowy from the leaking of harmful substances from Ty Llwyd quarry? Thank you.

Public Health Wales have been fully engaged with Caerphilly council and are content with the measures currently being employed to minimise any human health risks. I know NRW are also working with the local authority and their contractors to provide some technical assistance and advice regarding further works that may be required to minimise off-site impacts caused by site drainage during peak rainfall events.

Finally, Mabon ap Gwynfor.

Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'd like to ask for two statements, please. Firstly, can I ask for an update from the Government regarding the uplift in funding for care workers, please? In December 2021, I think it was, the Government announced funding to ensure that care workers received the real living wage, which was due to be paid to the care workers from April 2022. My understanding is that the Government provided the funds for the local authorities, and in my constituency, at least, I know that Gwynedd county council in turn passed those funds on to the providers. However, there is one provider, Achieve Together, that has failed to pay its workers that uplift for the period between April to October 2022. This is money that is rightly the wages of its workforce. The company say that they can't pay out because not all authorities have passported the funds on, but it's not theirs to keep, so it begs the question what have they done with that money and when can their workers expect to see this pay that is rightfully theirs. I'd like the Deputy Minister to look into this and bring forward a statement if possible.

Finally and briefly, I've previously raised the issue of the T19 bus service from Blaenau Ffestiniog to Llandudno, which is due to stop at the end of this week. Neither I nor the residents of Blaenau Ffestiniog have received an update, nor heard anything, since I raised this. Can the Deputy Minister please give an urgent update on what plans are in place for that route so that my constituents can continue to attend school, get to work or get to their appointments on time? Diolch.

Thank you. I don't think the Deputy Minister for Social Services was aware of the specific issue that you raise, and I think it would be really good if you could write to her, and she will certainly look into what was, obviously, a very worrying situation that you outlined. 

In relation to bus services, you'll be aware that, across Wales, we've had some issues with being able to provide some certainty to our buses. I think the Deputy Minister for Climate Change will be making a statement around bus services probably a bit more generally, but it won't be in the very near future, but it will be, probably, in the next term. 

I thank the Trefnydd.