, Plenary
Short Debate: The importance of port infrastructure and maritime traffic to the Welsh economy
You're probably not going to realise how much I actually like ports, but you'll find out after this, because I've got quite a lot I want to say. I'm sure you'd like to go home, but there's a lot in ports. Wales is home to a strong and diverse ports and…
, Plenary
Short Debate: The importance of port infrastructure and maritime traffic to the Welsh economy
I'm grateful to the Member for raising the importance of port infrastructure and marine traffic to the Welsh economy.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Diolch yn fawr.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
There's competing information. What we'll do is send this committee a link to the Wales travel survey, which will give you the data that we'll be building on, to show the progress. But I just want to link you back to how I answered the question before. I…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Forty-four.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
So, it's still critical and central to the transport strategy. I think I'd reflect on the way that previously we perhaps suggested to people that the modal shift was a personal necessity for them to do, and in some of our communities, that's tougher to do…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
I think that talks to the immediacy from the statement yesterday. We wanted there to be actual work on things that—. You know, there are things that we will disagree on on the statement yesterday—I get that—but there were things that we need to agree on, and…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Okay. There are a few elements to that and some of it is outside of my lane, in particular the private sector developments at the business park. But I think your points about local engagement are really important, and that's something that we'll take away and…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Do you fancy kicking off on that one?
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Good question. I've not—. That will be a question for Cardiff Bus in the first instance. I think it's a really important point that talks about a modern city and a modern economy as well. I think that it talks to some of the stuff I mentioned yesterday in my…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
They're really important. I think that the SME market is really important to this. They're the ones that I referenced earlier, and John's question about fuel as well. They're the most vulnerable ones to fuel hikes at the moment, and they also provide other…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
The first thing is about delivering to a timetable that we've set, which is the critical thing. We are operating within—. I think I said earlier about working within the current envelope. So, we have to be really careful that we don't oversell the immediate…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
And part of that was about showing how communities were central to how these buses used to operate. I think that's where this bus franchising starts to get to. So, the communities need to show how they connect within their community, but also how they connect…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
It's a great museum. Honestly, it's the best thing I've ever done by a mile.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
So, the route development work is being done with communities. That's quite an intense piece of work, to make sure we pick the right routes that suit people. Shav mentioned earlier that bus deregulation didn't work. It's been hugely damaging to Welsh…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
And the answer to that is—. You know, we've got the Fflecsi bus in particular, which is a huge benefit to that, and a lot of them are electric at the moment. So, how do you make sure that those shorter services that pick up fewer people are effective as well?…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
So, we've got a fleet strategy coming through from TfW that talks directly to not just that point but the wider point about what sort of fleet we should be buying in Wales for the future of it. It'll be a comprehensive piece of work that reflects on all of…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
Can I just add to that? Just in terms of my direction as well, I think that, sometimes—. The final roll-out is coming close to the next election, and one of the things that I've been quite clear about is that we work right to the end. So, we don't stop—we…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
So, we're committed to the bus franchising model that was set, which we as a party supported in the last Senedd. The timescales associated with it are probably the first risk, and we're committed to doing it in the timescales that we prescribed. So, that's…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
But it's a live consultation that's going on today, and I've met the unions ahead of the consultation. I've also met the operators.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
I think there are some difficulties with this, because you've got individual operators who've got their workforces there. Although, you're right—now that we're under the bus franchising model, we've got a chance to be able to influence this. We're going…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
So, I think you tried to ask this question of the Cabinet Minister the other day and he said to ask me, didn't he? [Laughter.] So, it shows that I watch this committee and think it's important. So, I think it's really important that we get this right. So…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
That's a really interesting point and something we'll take away.
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
—and I got off that other bus and the bus was there. Sometimes we characterise, and I'm not going to do that, because I think there are some things that work really well. We need it to work well every time and we need it to work well across the country as…
, Economy, Energy and Connectivity Committee
General Ministerial Scrutiny: Transport
I think I'm referencing the point I made a short while ago about there are communities of interest who are outside of the normal parameters of how we may travel. It may be because they've got disability, it may be because they're using cash to do things. And…
