, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Wales has always been an outward-looking nation, and we are determined to maximise opportunities for young people in Wales to live, study and work in Europe. We are working closely with the UK Government to ensure that the benefits of rejoining Erasmus are…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Our future economic success depends on developing a highly skilled workforce. I will work closely with the Cabinet Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy to ensure that the skills system supports our wider economic ambitions. A comprehensive…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Skills and Tertiary Education: Priorities for Skills and Tertiary Education
Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd, and good afternoon, everyone. Today, I will be setting out this Government's priorities for skills and tertiary education. Our tertiary education sector supports young people taking their first steps after compulsory…
, Plenary
Nomination of the First Minister under Standing Order 8
Rhun ap Iorwerth.
, Plenary
Plaid Cymru Debate: The rail network
It's right, therefore, Llywydd, that we question a strategy that prioritises links with major English cities, while communities in Wales face poor, slow, infrequent and unreliable services. I wonder, even if this programme is ever delivered in full, whether…
, Plenary
Plaid Cymru Debate: The rail network
I wholeheartedly agree with the points that have been made by my colleagues in this debate. Quite simply, this is a headline figure that has no funding commitment behind it at all. But I want to focus on one issue in particular, and that is connectivity…
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
Whether it be on recruitment or raising standards, if Estyn were to inspect the Welsh Government's performance on education over the past 27 years, I don't think anyone would be surprised if it were put in special measures. The latest annual report from Estyn…
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
Sorry, I didn't hear that. Thank you very much.
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
It was.
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
Diolch yn fawr iawn. As this is my last question to you in the current Senedd, I genuinely would like to thank you for the co-operation that we've had since you've been in post. Now—
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
I'm coming to the question. Some 415 days have since passed. So, is the Government any nearer to delivering a credible solution to the teacher recruitment crisis?
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
Thank you very much; time will tell. Cabinet Secretary, at our conference over the weekend, Plaid Cymru outlined our plan to improve education in Wales, including our commitment to increase incentives for initial teacher training courses in subjects where…
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Education
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Llywydd. Cabinet Secretary, since 1999, Welsh Labour have presided over a decline in education standards. The most recent PISA results place Wales, as you well know, at the bottom of the UK rankings and represent the lowest performance…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Okay. I’ve got one more question, but we can send that in writing to you.
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Quite rightly the focus is on Gwynedd, but how can we be absolutely clear that all local authorities now are embedding those clear guidelines on listening to the voice of children?
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Yes, okay. Well, as we know, Neil Foden was convicted of 19 counts of sexual activity—it's horrific, truth be told—with a child, while he was headteacher, and the subsequent child practice review found more than 50 missed opportunities, with nine of those…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Another question for you, through the medium of Welsh, and that's to do with Flying Start childcare. During our recent draft budget scrutiny, you told us that you had not been able to fully achieve the programme commitment to deliver a phased expansion of…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Thank you for the clarity on that particular point.
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Okay. So, just to carry on on the theme of children in care, this committee called for a statutory entitlement of parent advocacy for all parents across Wales who are at risk of entering child protection receiving care and support from social services. Now…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
So, you wouldn't rule it out?
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Thank you very much. My next question is again about care-experienced children. This committee called for a statutory entitlement of parent advocacy, and that that is available for all parents across Wales who are at risk of entering child protection…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
I'm going to ask the question in Welsh. We have the Health and Social Care (Wales) Act 2025 coming into force in April 2026, and there's a commitment in that Act to reduce the number of for-profit accommodation providers, and that was part of the co-operation…
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Yes. So, my next question is to you, Minister.
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Gadeirydd.
, Children, Young People, and Education Committee
General scrutiny of the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care
Okay. Thank you.
