30 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government
Thank you, Minister, but the system isn't working, because it's allowing councils to continue to rise council tax whilst at the same time growing reserves in some cases. Your predecessor Leighton Andrews saw this and produced a guide for councils in 2016 to…
30 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government
I think I'm fine.
30 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government
Thank you for that, Minister, and I concur with Huw Irranca-Davies. I chaired, or hosted a meeting for Members to join local authority leaders, and, sadly, I was the only one who turned up, even though we had 10 south-east Wales leaders on the call sharing…
30 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Finance and Local Government
Thank you, Presiding Officer, and good afternoon, Minister. I've got a feeling I know what the answer to my first question will be. Over the last few weeks, Minister, we've spoken a lot about the challenging fiscal environment, as well as the UK Government's…
29 November 2022 , Plenary
& 10. The General Principles of the Social Partnership and Public Procurement (Wales) Bill and The Financial Resolution in respect of the Social Partnership and Public Procurement (Wales) Bill
Diolch, Llywydd. I'm pleased to contribute to this debate today on behalf of the Finance Committee. We have made 11 recommendations in total, but given the time available, I will focus on our main concerns. Whilst we are supportive of the aim of the Bill, a…
23 November 2022 , Plenary
Motion to approve the Senedd Commission Budget for 2023-24
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. And can I thank the commissioner for his statement? I would just like to clarify that, whilst I'm responding to this in my position as the shadow Minister for finance, I am, of course, also a member of the Finance…
23 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Education and Welsh Language
Thank you, Minister, for your response. Minister, a Youth Endowment Fund report highlighted some concerning statistics: over the past 12 months alone, some 54 per cent of children and young people in Wales had experienced or had seen some form of online…
23 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Education and Welsh Language
6. How will the new Curriculum for Wales help young people to better identify, and protect themselves from, online harm? OQ58755
22 November 2022 , Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Social Justice: Update on Ukraine
Thank you, Minister, for your statement. You may already be aware, Minister, that some local authorities—for example, Monmouthshire—have set up a guarantor scheme for Ukrainian families that mirrors existing support available to residents to prevent or…
22 November 2022 , Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Finance and Local Government: Response to the UK Government Autumn Statement and Economic and Fiscal Forecasts
Okay. So, I would be interested, Minister, if you could outline exactly what Labour's plan is. How would a Labour Government tackle the erosive effects of inflation, which make the cost-of-living crisis worse, and bring down the national debt? Deputy…
22 November 2022 , Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Finance and Local Government: Response to the UK Government Autumn Statement and Economic and Fiscal Forecasts
Oh, sorry. I thought we weren't in a debate.
22 November 2022 , Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Finance and Local Government: Response to the UK Government Autumn Statement and Economic and Fiscal Forecasts
Thank you, Minister, for the statement. I acknowledge that things have been difficult, as I referenced here I think the last time we spoke on these matters. However, it is clear that the Chancellor has taken decisive and welcome action to set the country on a…
22 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Of course, we will be debating the autumn statement a little later on, and I will have a contribution there, I hope. But it does include some very welcome support for communities, particularly given the current cost-of-living crisis, through policies such as…
16 November 2022 , Plenary
Welsh Conservatives Debate: Changing Places Toilets
Can I thank my colleague, the Member for North Wales, for proposing this debate and for all of his hard work in promoting the rights of disabled people? It is clear that we need to do more to create a fully inclusive society. Far too many barriers exist that…
16 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services
Presiding Officer, I would like to use my question to raise the issue of ambulance handovers at hospital, which contributes to increased waiting times. The Minister will be acutely aware of the recent report by Healthcare Inspectorate Wales into A&E services…
16 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Economy
Thank you very much for that, Minister. The importance of the Welsh retail sector cannot be stressed enough. We know that over 110,000 people are directly employed by the industry. Recently, I met with chief execs of major businesses in the retail sector, all…
16 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Economy
8. What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the impact of its shared strategic vision for the retail sector? OQ58701
15 November 2022 , Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Water Quality
I certainly welcome your statement, Minister, today. I think it's a good statement, and I thank you for your engagement with me, because, obviously, rivers are an important part, and some of these issues are really resonating in my community. I know that the…
15 November 2022 , Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
I too welcome you, First Minister, back to the Chamber following your illness; it's good to see you. I don't doubt that the Chancellor has some difficult choices to make ahead of the autumn statement, so I'm going to try to be constructive. This will have an…
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
That's a helpful update. I think that's enough for me.
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
Yes, those were the two KPIs I have here. And just a final question from me, and perhaps from all of us—I'm not sure—is: your interim report notes conversations with the Treasury and Welsh Government on the possibility of the quality of Audit Wales's work…
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
Thanks for helping us to understand.
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
Just a couple of questions left from me, just on the interim report. Your report notes some issues preventing you from achieving your target for local government audit. It also notes performance in two KPIs relating to the delivery of audits to certain…
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
Thanks for that. I've gone off piste, so—
9 November 2022 , Finance Committee
Audit Wales—Scrutiny of the Estimate 2023-24 and Interim Report: Evidence session
Thanks for your answers, and sorry for labouring on these questions. I would imagine that one of the things connected to this is you're probably already having to consider market supplements on staffing, are you? Is that something that you're fearful of? Or…
