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14 January 2026, Plenary

Plaid Cymru Debate: The Senedd election

… Government. One in four people in Wales are on an NHS waiting list. Over 8,700 pathways are waiting more than two years for treatment. That's not compassionate governance—it's institutional failure. Wales has the second … numeracy scores are the lowest they have ever been since the Programme for International Student Assessment began. Five times running we're bottom of the UK league tables, and yet instead of focusing on relentless standards, discipline and …

2 July 2025, Finance Committee

Financial implications of the Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets) (Wales) Bill: Evidence session

… why we've come up with an assessment that we think it's around about 15 full-time equivalents, on a range of grades, by the way, reflecting what is taking place in the Scotland model—Environmental Standards … efficient. And there will be an expectation, frankly, from the public that this organisation that we've been waiting for for so long for will deliver for the people of Wales, and for the environment in Wales …

8 May 2024, Children, Young People, and Education Committee

Implementation of education reforms: evidence session

… get under the skin of what is happening. So, there's no suggestion that we're going to wait while we put in place these more appropriate mechanisms to do that. I'm really conscious of making sure … individual meetings with my officials. I have indicated to officials that I am willing to dedicate as much time as is necessary to make sure we deliver on this, because ministerial input can make a difference. It sends …

22 October 2024, Plenary

Debate: The First Supplementary Budget 2024-25

… Government has allocated its funding that it has received in-year, and while we cannot go back in time and change their choices, we can challenge the priorities that were made and highlight the need for a change … our NHS. However, something is clearly still not working. For the last six months, we have seen NHS waiting lists increase to record numbers, and our hospital beds are still full of patients who are healthy enough …

15 February 2022, Plenary

Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Update on COVID-19

… asking for evidence; where is your evidence to suggest that it caused great damage to the night-time economy? I'm not sure if there is much evidence to suggest that, actually, the COVID passes—[Interruption.] I understand … was that, actually, more people felt confident going out knowing that other people around them were vaccinated. On waiting lists, we are in a really difficult situation, and it's not just here in Wales, but …

5 March 2024, Plenary

Debate: The Final Budget 2024-25

… position remains really challenging for a whole host of reasons, and it doesn't look like changing any time soon. All public bodies are going to have to find new ways of working if we are to heed … truly are a very sickly nation. So, I commend the work of our health boards for bringing down waiting lists—again, not something the opposition ever mentions—and, indeed, reducing the nursing agency bill by £65 million …

10 March 2022, Health and Social Care Committee

Women and girls' health: evidence session with the Women's Health Wales Coalition

… think you're right, Jack, when you have patients who have, maybe, gynaecological conditions and they've been waiting multiple years for diagnosis. My own personal experience was that I had two laparoscopies for endometriosis with general gynaecologists … was in the worst 1 per cent that he had seen of the disease. So, all of that time, this was dismissed as irritable bowel syndrome, as being in my head, as me being weak, with low pain …

10 October 2023, Plenary

Debate: 'NHS in 10+ years: An examination of the projected impact of Long-Term Conditions and Risk Factors in Wales

… those from across the area to access services, with a projection of not just being able to cut waiting lists for orthopaedic surgery, but even eliminate them within just a few years. These ambitious plans show that … the Minister's commitment to providing the right services at the right place and at the right time for patients. The project is also an excellent example of the kind of collaborative working between local and central Government …

31 January 2024, Plenary

Questions to the Minister for Social Justice and Chief Whip

… report health conditions that limit daily tasks when compared to the general public, as a result of their time in active service, and this is one among many of the reasons why the armed forces covenant lays out … how this Act is applied across public bodies. The constituent has been faced with a 100-week wait to receive necessary health treatment for an injury sustained during active service. It has put enormous strain on himself, his …

10 February 2025, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee

Instruments that raise issues to be reported to the Senedd under Standing Order 21.2 or 21.3

… that have been used in the regulations. The second point asks Welsh Government why there is no set time frame within which the Welsh Ministers must provide the outcome of their review of the inspection rating … noting that the section of the explanatory memorandum relating to consultation appears to be incomplete. We're just waiting for Welsh Government to respond to all three points …

18 September 2025, Local Government and Housing Committee

Building Safety (Wales) Bill: Evidence session 2

… sort of specification. And again, I keep referring back to my experience on construction, which was a long time ago, but I think it's still relevant today, in that you're dealing with a commercial animal who … person on site was a quantity surveyor, because he's parked outside and he's got a digger waiting to go into that field, but the gate is locked. Now, that gate might be locked for two hours …

26 May 2021, Plenary

Questions to the First Minister

… appreciate the First Minister wants to use diversionary tactics time and time again, but it is a fact that the comments I put to you were comments from business owners themselves feeling punched in the stomach or stabbed … have that money unallocated in the budget, and businesses need that money now. They don't need to wait another month, another six weeks. These are businesses themselves talking that they need the money now, because they need …

16 February 2022, Finance Committee

Welsh Tax Acts etc. (Power to Modify) Bill: Evidence session 6

… the Senedd lock as well. So, it would only be possible to introduce new legislation at certain times of the year, unless it was proposed that we recalled the Senedd during recess to address the question of whether … that we had envisaged in terms of responding to these external events. So, we wouldn't want to wait arguably until summer recess was over to vote on unlocking the lock and then to start the process with …

5 February 2026, Local Government and Housing Committee

Follow-up inquiry on social housing supply: Evidence session 3

… when census data comes out, and it comes out in the middle of the plan, at the wrong time in a plan, so—. There is one argument to say, 'Isn't it better to almost overallocate, and have … and more expensive; you haven't got the technical advice note 1 process, so you've got to wait for a review of the plan, which is taking five, six, seven years, and it isn't flexible and …

4 February 2026, Health and Social Care Committee

General scrutiny session with the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, Minister for Children and Social Care and Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing.

… through all of those years, there has been progress. You're right to say that some of the time points that we attached to those milestones weren't met. We didn't manage to make that level … think, have been recognising it's about the size of the list as well as the long waits, because unless you're tackling the size of the list, people are still going to be tipping over into the …

17 October 2022, Equality and Social Justice Committee

Gender-based violence and abuse: evidence session with national advisers for violence against women, gender-based violence, domestic abuse and sexual violence

… increase in people coming forward, a significant complexity of cases of people coming forward, some because they've waited for longer, or we have people who've come forward because they've become aware of services being available … very hard with the limited resources that they have. There has been an increase of funding at times. This hasn't been funding that could be sustained for many different reasons, and hasn't been sustained for many …

9 June 2026, Plenary

Statement by the Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning: Priorities for Local Government, Housing and Planning

… gets to grips with the scale of the challenge. As it stands, one in every 14 households are waiting for a social home, which means that at the current rate, it would take 35 years to meet that … you so sure that you can meet this target when the previous Government failed? We've heard many times in this Chamber that Ministers will work closely with local government and other stakeholders, so it would be nice …

26 November 2025, Plenary

Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales

… raising something slightly different. Public transport should be for everyone. It's an issue I've raised countless times because the spaces, the stops, the services, the stations—they're not designed for everyone. Wheelchair users can find … space for one wheelchair, so if that space is taken, sometimes by a baby pram, you have to wait for the next bus, which might be hours away, and if you are travelling with someone else who …

5 October 2021, Plenary

Debate: Devolution of New Tax Powers

… don't really want to tackle the issues facing our country, and they want to use this precious time to debate constitutional matters. The people of Wales are no fools. They see that you're struggling to fix … had the lowest GDP of all the GB nations. The Welsh NHS—one in five people on a waiting list. And do you know, you're currently failing to meet housing targets, and a vacant land tax will …

17 July 2024, Plenary

Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution and Cabinet Office

… all of that. As to where we are now in the financial year, of course, this is the time when we start to take the strategic approach to the budget, which is why we have our Finance Committee … some of the macro-economic picture as well, which will, again, inform of our planning. We are, really, waiting for the Chancellor to make her statement now ahead of the summer recess in Parliament, where we will get …