Category: Wales

  • Virginia Crosbie – 2022 Speech on Menai Suspension Bridge Temporary Closure

    Virginia Crosbie – 2022 Speech on Menai Suspension Bridge Temporary Closure

    The speech made by Virginia Crosbie, the Conservative MP for Ynys Mon, in the House of Commons on 1 November 2022.

    This debate is particularly poignant in the light of the recent collapse of the Gujarat suspension bridge in India with the loss of so many lives. I want to put on record that my thoughts are with those affected and that I am grateful that safety measures have been put in place on the Menai Bridge and that no one has been hurt there—yet.

    The Menai suspension bridge was designed by Thomas Telford and went into use in 1826. It is a masterpiece of 19th-century engineering, a grade I listed structure and, until the Britannia bridge opened to traffic in 1980, it was the only road connection between Ynys Môn—the isle of Anglesey—and mainland Wales. Responsibility for this bridge and the road going over it is devolved to the Welsh Government, who contract a commercial company—UK Highways A55 Ltd—to carry out repair and maintenance works.

    Members may ask: why I have brought this debate to Westminster? There are two reasons. The first is that the link to the mainland is critically important to my Ynys Môn constituents and the businesses on Anglesey. The bridges are an important link for local commuters, students and residents of Ynys Môn, for those visiting Anglesey for shopping, holidays or work, and of course for freight transport. The second is that both bridges form a vital link in the transport infrastructure of the United Kingdom. They form part of the land bridge between continental Europe and the UK, and the island of Ireland via the port of Holyhead. The land bridge is used by thousands of hauliers and freight vehicles, and a failure in either bridge over the Menai straits impacts the route and, as a result, the British economy.

    Indeed, Sir Peter Hendy, in his 2021 Union Connectivity Review described the A55, which includes the Britannia bridge, as

    “a key route for communities and businesses with connections to Manchester and Liverpool Airports and the island of Ireland via Holyhead”.

    He further noted:

    “Stakeholders in North Wales regard capacity and journey times on the A55 as a significant barrier to growth”,

    with the road becoming

    “vulnerable and overstressed during incidents or significant road work events”

    and lacking “viable diversion routes”. He recommended that work was needed to improve the A55.

    Until Friday 21 October, the Menai and Britannia bridges between them carried around 46,000 vehicles over the Menai straits every day. Then, suddenly, at 2 pm on a normal working Friday, that stopped. The Menai bridge was closed by the Welsh Government with immediate effect and no advance warning, on the urgent advice of structural engineers. I completely agree that safety must be our priority. If the Menai bridge needs to be closed to protect people and vehicles then that must of course happen. What has been shocking is the closure of such an important bridge without warning, without contingency plans and without thought for the local and national impact.

    Local people were taken completely by surprise. Many Anglesey residents were at work on the mainland in places such as Bangor University and our general hospital, Ysbyty Gwynedd. Children and young people were in lessons in mainland schools and colleges. They were effectively left stranded, finding themselves stuck along with lorries going to and from the port of Holyhead, as the Britannia bridge gridlocked.

    Robin Millar (Aberconwy) (Con)

    I was canvassing in my constituency the morning after the closure, and spoke to a couple of residents who told me that they work at Ysbyty Gwynedd, the hospital in Bangor, and, as a consequence of the closure, on the Friday afternoon and evening it had taken them three and a half hours to leave the car park. Does my hon. Friend agree that that kind of knock-on effect from such a sudden and unplanned closure could perhaps have been avoided with a little more thought and a little more notice?

    Virginia Crosbie

    My hon. Friend makes the point clearly that the impact of the bridge closure is far-reaching, touching not only other constituencies but every single person’s life in mine—and yes, it should have been avoided.

    The Welsh Government have said that the bridge will be closed for 14 to 16 weeks. The impact on my constituents has been huge. I have had parents on the phone in tears because they do not know when or how their children will get home from school. For those working on the mainland, attending appointments, visiting loved ones in Ysbyty Gwynedd or simply trying to go shopping, a journey that previously took 20 minutes now takes two to three hours.

    Jonathan Edwards (Carmarthen East and Dinefwr) (Ind)

    I congratulate the hon. Lady on securing this debate; this is a vital issue, and it is right and proper that it is addressed and discussed in this House. Does she support the words of Anglesey or Ynys Môn council, which is asking drivers travelling to the mainland not to go off the A55 at Gaerwen and take the shortcut, because it is creating more problems at a pinch point nearer the bridge in Llanfair?

    Virginia Crosbie

    I thank the hon. Gentleman; he makes a very good point about Isle of Anglesey County Council’s directing traffic. The closure has huge implications for local traffic and local businesses, which I will go into further in my speech. Constituents in Llanfairpwllgwyngyll cannot leave their homes because the roads through the village are blocked by drivers trying to shortcut the A55 queues.

    Businesses in Menai have seen their takings plummet; one shop holder contacted me to say that the usually bustling town centre was empty and one day last week she had taken no money at all for the first time in her shop’s history. People on Anglesey, already worried about how long it takes to get an ambulance in an emergency, now know that ambulances will also have to tackle huge traffic jams in both directions.

    Hauliers using the port of Holyhead are already looking for alternative routes to Ireland because of the extra hours now being built into transportation time. Holyhead is the second busiest roll on-roll off port in the UK and a hugely important link for passengers and freight between the UK and Ireland. It is also a major local employer, both directly and indirectly.

    One would think that, with such an important strategic piece of infrastructure, a sudden and unplanned closure would be the result of some kind of unforeseen event. However, in a statement in the Senedd a week ago, Lee Waters, the Deputy Minister for Climate Change—the Welsh Government does not have a Transport Minister—said:

    “As part of the last principal inspection in 2019, a concern about the resilience of hangers that support the suspension bridge were identified and led to a weight restriction being imposed on the bridge while further studies were carried out.”

    In a meeting last week with local Arriva UK Bus managers, we discussed the fact that the weight restriction was put in place only in June 2022, almost three years after the review. Arriva told me that because it was introduced at very short notice, it had been forced to restrict bus services because of the extra time now needed to cross the Britannia bridge instead of the Menai bridge. The impact locally has been most severely felt at a care home in Penmon that the bus service can no longer serve, affecting carers, residents and visitors.

    The delays now being caused by the full closure of the Menai bridge mean that Arriva has had to rip up its timetable completely. It now faces the financial burden of increased fuel costs, longer trips, bus drivers unable to get to work and the loss of some passengers.

    I spoke earlier about the port of Holyhead, which is a significant UK port. In 2019, 1.9 million people and 5.3 million tonnes of goods moved via the port of Holyhead to and from the island of Ireland. Back in 2020, in the run-up to Brexit, amid concerns about delays at the port, the Welsh Government recognised the importance of Holyhead when it said:

    “Holyhead is the second busiest roll on/roll off port in the UK…The Welsh Government is responsible for the trunk road network, and we must ensure that plans are in place to deal with any potential disruption at this major port. We want to ensure access to the port of Holyhead remains as easy as possible. We want to minimise disruption for the communities of Anglesey and the travelling public”.

    [Interruption.] It is disappointing that they did not extend that consideration when it came to maintaining the Menai bridge. It is disappointing too that, for what effectively constitutes a local emergency, they are not meeting key stakeholders to answer these important questions until 8 November—20 days after the closure.

    Robin Millar

    As a schoolboy, I did a project on the rebuilding of the Britannia bridge, which, as my hon. Friend will know, parallels the Menai crossing to the Menai straits. At the time, it was seen as a great step forward and an advancement that would increase the capacity of the crossings and alleviate some of the load on the Menai bridge. That was, dare I say it, more than two decades ago now—nearly four decades ago, even. Perhaps my hon. Friend will be in a position to agree with me in a moment that the loads on these roads and these bridges, including the Menai bridge, will have increased significantly over that time. There are two questions that she is bringing out well in her speech: the question of capacity, which has grown over the years, and the question of resilience, planning and forethought. Does she have a comment to make on how those might be addressed better in the future?

    Virginia Crosbie

    I thank my hon. Friend for intervening at a critical time; diolch yn fawr. He makes a valid point about the importance of this bridge and the fact that we need to hear from the Welsh Government what their plans are, so that we are not in this situation again.

    Until July this year, when the weight restriction was introduced, the Menai bridge had transported high-sided and vulnerable vehicles when wind restrictions prevented them from travelling over the Britannia bridge. Indeed, the winds are sometimes so bad that the Britannia bridge is closed completely, and all vehicles have to use the Menai bridge. That can also happen when there is an accident on or near the Britannia bridge. This is exactly what Sir Peter Hendy referred to in his review. I am sure Members will appreciate that, as we move into the winter months, the risk of high winds in north-west Wales increases significantly. With the Menai bridge closed, vehicles will not have a fallback during restrictions and closures on the Britannia bridge. That is a further discouragement for hauliers who would normally use the port of Holyhead.

    For years, the Welsh Government have been talking about putting a third bridge across the Menai straits. The 2019 report on the Menai bridge might have been the perfect time and reason to progress such a scheme. Sir Peter Hendy’s connectivity review adds meat to the argument. The Welsh Government’s own report into a third bridge, carried out in 2016, says:

    “The impact of not investing in the scheme has been clearly set out, with detrimental effects on the economy of the Isle of Anglesey and north west Wales, poor international connectivity and worsening performance of the trunk road network in terms of journey times, reliability and resilience. All of which will constrain the opportunity for future growth in Anglesey, surrounding areas and in particular impact on the ability of the Nuclear Power Programme to achieve its full potential.”

    A third bridge would make Anglesey much more accessible, as well as making it more attractive to businesses interested in locating there. Instead, the Welsh Government simply put all road building on hold in June 2021 to carry out a road review—a review that, incidentally, we have heard nothing further from. That is not such a problem around Cardiff, where there is good public transport infrastructure, but it is less helpful for someone working in a nursing home in Penmon whose bus is suddenly withdrawn due to weight restrictions on the Menai bridge.

    I mentioned that the Welsh Government contract with a company called UK Highways A55 Ltd to maintain and repair the A55 across Anglesey, including the Menai bridge spur. They have repeatedly and, some might say, disingenuously referred to this company as “UK Highways” in statements, press releases and posts about the closure. That has led many local people—including, bizarrely, the local Labour party—to assert incorrectly that this is a UK Government issue. What could be the reason for that? With so many seats in north Wales now Conservative, are the Welsh Labour Government concerned that local people feel closer to Westminster than they do to Cardiff? Do they feel the need to drive a wedge between north Wales and Westminster?

    My constituents have felt at first hand the neglect of north Wales by the Welsh Labour Government—huge disinvestment, one of the lowest GVAs in the UK, poor educational outcomes, a local health authority in crisis, transport links annihilated, the loss of major local employers and an annual haemorrhage of young people in search of work. It is small wonder if they want to align themselves with Westminster instead of Cardiff, and yet the Welsh Government’s priority is to increase the number of Senedd representatives from 60 to 96 at an estimated cost of £100 million. That will mean one representative in the Senedd for every 33,000 people in Wales. In Westminster the number is more like one representative for every 100,000 people. One hundred million pounds—just think how many doctors that would employ or bridge hangers it would repair.

    The closure of the Menai bridge is typical of the disdain in which Cardiff holds north Wales and the United Kingdom. It is the critical infrastructure of the UK that is being destroyed by a Welsh Labour Government that simply do not care, supported by a co-operation agreement with Plaid Cymru—a party, incidentally, which would rather see Wales an independent third-world nation than bring new nuclear and good quality jobs to Ynys Môn, simply because a large power station at Wylfa would generate more energy than Wales alone needs so some might go to England.

    I have done all within my power to support my constituents and raise this matter. I requested an urgent question last Monday; I raised the matter at both business questions and Cabinet Office questions last week; I have called this debate; and I have the support of the Leader of the House who has written to the Secretary of State for Wales expressing her concern.

    I urge the Minister— llongyfarchiadau, congratulations to him on his appointment as Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Wales—to get answers from the First Minister of Wales, not just for the people and business owners of Ynys Môn but for the people of the United Kingdom. Why did the Welsh Government allow that critical piece of transport infrastructure to fall into such poor repair that an emergency closure was necessary? What steps will be taken to support and compensate local people for the loss of earnings, increased fuel and childcare costs, distress and inconvenience caused by their incompetence? What will they do to minimise the impact on the port of Holyhead, its employees and the people and businesses that rely on it? How will they make sure this does not happen again? How will they ensure that we have robust transport and communication links with the mainland, because without those, Ynys Môn cannot possibly attract the investment and opportunity that our young people so desperately need? Finally, when will they start to realise that the country they are responsible for extends further north than Merthyr Tydfil?

  • Julie Morgan – 2022 Statement on Childcare Offer for Wales National Digital Service

    Julie Morgan – 2022 Statement on Childcare Offer for Wales National Digital Service

    The statement made by Julie Morgan, the Welsh Deputy Minister for Social Services, in the Welsh Parliament on 31 October 2022.

    Through the Childcare Offer for Wales, the Welsh Government provides 30 hours a week of funded childcare and early education for three and four-year-olds, 48 weeks of the year. This enables parents to go to work or increase their working hours. We have extended the offer to parents studying on many higher and further education courses.

    We are making a further significant investment in this policy area by developing an all-Wales digital service, to make accessing the Childcare Offer even easier and providing a more consistent experience across Wales. The new service will also simplify the processes childcare providers have had to follow to claim payments via the different local authority systems. It will streamline administration of the Childcare Offer for local authorities, bringing efficiencies of scale.

    The application window for the January 2023 uptake of funded childcare will start on 7 November, and that is the point at which the new digital service will open to parents. Local authority legacy services for delivering the Offer will continue until August 2023 for parents already in receipt of the Offer.

    While the Childcare Offer national digital service will only be available online, a range of offline support options will be available to people to enable them to interact with the online service, for example by phone or through face-to-face support.

    As the service is available via devices connected to the internet, people will be able to access the service via free-to-access devices in public libraries.

    In moving to the national digital service, we have worked closely with all 22 local authorities, and with parents and childcare providers across Wales, to develop the digital platform and support service. Over the summer a controlled test of the new service was undertaken in live conditions, producing positive results and feedback.

    As a result, all childcare settings providing Childcare Offer hours have been invited to register onto the new platform by the end of October. Local authority staff have been supporting them to do this since early September.

    This statement is being issued during recess to keep Members informed. Should Members wish us to make a further statement or to answer questions on this when the Senedd returns we would be happy to do so.

  • Jane Hutt – 2022 Statement on Ukraine

    Jane Hutt – 2022 Statement on Ukraine

    The statement made by Jane Hutt, the Minister for Social Justice in the Welsh Government, on 25 October 2022.

    Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Thank you for providing an opportunity for me to give an update to Members about our ongoing work to support people from Ukraine seeking sanctuary in Wales. When I last updated you in September, Wales had welcomed just over 5,600 Ukrainians in Wales under the Homes for Ukraine scheme, including under our supersponsor route.

    Arrivals have continued, but at a much slower pace in recent weeks. Just under 6,000 Ukrainians sponsored by the Welsh Government and Welsh households had arrived in Wales by 18 October, and there have been additional arrivals under the Ukraine family scheme, but we are not given that data by the UK Government. More than 8,300 visas have now been granted to people from the Ukraine who have sponsors in Wales, so we can expect the number of arrivals to continue to grow steadily in the coming weeks, and we are mindful that events in Ukraine can have a direct impact on the number of Ukrainians who may arrive in Wales. We deplore the latest attempts by Putin to try to break the will of the Ukrainian people. We are continuing to work with the Home Office to ascertain the likelihood of the additional 1,600 individuals we have sponsored arriving in Wales, so that we can properly plan for providing accommodation and wraparound support.

    In recent weeks, we have been considering the offer that we make to Ukrainians who we support in our accommodation under the supersponsor route. I and other Ministerial colleagues have visited many of our accommodation sites and received feedback directly from Ukrainian guests and the dedicated staff who are helping us to provide assistance. We want to help people to transition from a supportive welcome to active integration as quickly as possible.

    We believe that we can enhance personal independence and support people to move on to the next stage of their lives in Wales by revisiting our wraparound support offer. We will be aligning our initial accommodation offer much more closely to the support that would be received in other forms of temporary accommodation, and this will encourage guests to contribute to costs via earnings or universal credit wherever possible, after an initial short period. I have also engaged with my Scottish Government counterpart, Minister Neil Gray MSP, and I understand that they will be taking a very similar approach, as we learn from each others’ experiences in our response as supersponsors.

    Our supersponsor route is a key part of Wales’s response to the Europe-wide humanitarian crisis. We must ensure that we are steadfast in our commitment to supporting Ukraine and displaced Ukrainians living in Wales, despite the increased cost pressures we’re all experiencing. The support we provide here will have an impact on the family and friends still defending Ukraine. The changes we make will carefully balance helping people to be more independent, to move on to alternative accommodation more quickly, and to ensure that we have the finances we need to fulfil our commitment to the Ukrainians we have sponsored.

    As well as my visits to welcome centres, I recently attended the Ukraine arts festival and the new Cardiff Ukraine centre. In each case, I have been struck by the desire and ability of Ukrainians, with a wide range of skills and experience, to integrate and join the workforce as quickly as possible. Many Ukrainians are already working, including a sizable proportion of those in our initial accommodation.

    We need to be conscious that initial accommodation should be a short-term provision, with our guests supported to move on to longer term accommodation as soon as practicable. We understand that our welcome centres, which are funded by the Welsh Government, are of a good quality—and we are proud of that—but they are not a long-term option for people, not least because roots cannot be properly established in communities in such temporary accommodation.

    Last time I updated you, I remarked upon the good working relationship we had with the previous UK Minister for Refugees, Lord Harrington, and my hopes for a similar relationship with his successor. I am sorry to have to report that we have had no engagement from UK Ministers on these issues since Lord Harrington’s resignation.

    But we are at a critical juncture in the UK Government Homes for Ukraine scheme. Welsh households who signed up as sponsors are at, or near, the six-month hosting milestone that represents the commitment they made to their guests at the point of application. These households have done an inspiring thing and embodied the nation of sanctuary vision in its truest sense. We know many did not plan to continue beyond six months, but we urge as many hosts as possible to consider hosting for a longer period if at all possible. Where that isn’t possible, we thank you for everything you have done for your guests and for us as a nation. For those that can continue, we have funded Housing Justice Cymru to provide advice, training, peer support and mediation services for hosts in Wales. More information can be found by calling 01654 550 550 or emailing UkraineHostSupport@housingjustice.org.uk.

    We know that hosts in Wales are struggling with cost-of-living pressures, and this is a major factor in deciding if they can continue. This is why I wrote to UK Ministers, with my Scottish ministerial counterpart, to urge a quick decision on increasing the ‘thank you’ host payment to at least £500 per month from the current level of £350. We are still waiting for an update on this. We do need an urgent decision to avert a wave of homelessness presentations as we move into November, and I again call upon the UK Government to act on this, as well as providing financial certainty for year 2 of the programme, supporting the unfunded ESOL provision and ensuring funding parity across the three Ukraine visa schemes.

    We are now communicating regularly with hosts and Ukrainian guests, with a monthly newsletter being sent from the Welsh Government, and we’ll build upon this with additional information sessions and participation opportunities. Alongside our funded third sector partners, we recently held an open information session, which I was glad to see around 180 people attended to hear more about our work; we are mobilising a Ukraine peer support group through Displaced People in Action; and we’ll also soon survey our Ukrainian guests to better understand their unmet skills and employment needs. Ukrainians are clearly integrating very well indeed, but we will continue to consider any action we can take to make this as effective and supportive as possible. Diolch.

  • Dawn Bowden – 2022 Statement on Her Visit to New Zealand

    Dawn Bowden – 2022 Statement on Her Visit to New Zealand

    The statement made by Dawn Bowden, the Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport, and Chief Whip, in the Welsh Government on 25 October 2022.

    I have recently returned from New Zealand in my role as Deputy Minister for Arts and Sport.

    The primary focus of my visit was to support the Wales women’s rugby team as they took on the hosts and current world champions, the Black Ferns, in their group match of the Women’s Rugby World Cup on Sunday 16 October.

    My visit helped raise the profile of Wales, both within the rugby community and beyond. Ahead of the game it was an honour to meet the playing squad and WRU staff to discuss the progress they have made over the past two years, whilst recognising there are opportunities for further investment and development in the women’s game.

    In the days leading up to the game, I had a full schedule of visits, meetings and events where shared experiences of sport, culture and heritage were explored.

    My first meeting was with the Māori Language Commission in Wellington to discuss shared pathways to the revitalisation for indigenous languages. I then met Peter Miskimmin, Sports Diplomacy Manager and former CEO of Sport New Zealand. We discussed sport diplomacy, inclusion and collaboration, and the economic and social benefits, in particular for smaller nations. The final meeting of my first day was with the High Commissioner at the British Consulate in New Zealand, Iona Thomas.

    On my second day in New Zealand, I had an opportunity to discuss the development of the women’s game with Traci Houpapa, professional director at Women in Rugby Aotearoa. This was followed by a meeting with Waikato University senior deputy Vice-Chancellor, Professor Alister Jones to discuss the academic links between our two countries.

    I later met representatives of Healthy Active Learning and Active Me – Kia Tu. These are two programmes run by Sport New Zealand aiming to improve the quality of physical activity experiences of young people to promote wellbeing and support disadvantaged children into physical activity.

    I also had constructive meetings with Raelene Castle, CEO of Sport New Zealand, Rachel Froggatt and Raewyn Lovett, Secretary-General and Co-Chair respectfully of the International Working Group on Women in Sport. I had bilateral with Priyanca Radhakrishnan MP, Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities to discuss how our respective governments are seeking to address many of the challenging issues facing both nations.

    I travelled to Queenstown to visit Skyline Enterprises Ltd and the Shotover Jet – two adventure tourism attractions to see how Queenstown has used the natural landscape as a beautiful backdrop to successful enterprises.

    We are in discussion to bring an adventure tourism attraction from New Zealand to Wales and it was valuable for me to see first-hand one of its main attractions whilst also discussing the many parallels with our work in Wales in particular managing environmental obligations and incorporating native language as part of their strategies.

    This visit – at a time when the Welsh team is performing on the world sporting stage – is an excellent opportunity to demonstrate that Wales is an outward looking nation, open for business and determined to maintain existing relationships and explore new avenues to strengthen the special friendship that exists between Wales and New Zealand.

  • Rebecca Evans – 2022 Comments on Impacts of Austerity on Wales

    Rebecca Evans – 2022 Comments on Impacts of Austerity on Wales

    The comments made by Rebecca Evans, the Welsh Minister for Finance and Local Government, on 25 October 2022.

    By announcing reckless uncosted tax cuts for the rich, the UK Government lost control of the economy. Now the new Chancellor wants us all to pay for its failures with deep spending cuts.

    We are facing a new damaging era of austerity, which would threaten jobs, businesses and public services.

    The Chancellor could protect public services by using his tax levers more fairly and increase investment to get the economy moving in the right direction. He could help people pay their bills by increasing benefits in line with inflation.

    As we look ahead to our Budget, we need the UK Government to take action to avoid the type of destructive austerity that will further damage our economy and the public services so many of us rely on.

  • Mark Drakeford – 2022 Answer to Andrew RT Davies in the Welsh Assembly

    Mark Drakeford – 2022 Answer to Andrew RT Davies in the Welsh Assembly

    The answer given by Mark Drakeford, the First Minister of Wales, in the Welsh Assembly on 18 October 2022.

    Llywydd, the prescription of the Welsh Government is to invest more money in the ambulance service, to have more staff working in the ambulance service, to have a wider range of people able to provide those services and for ambulances to know that, when they arrive at hospitals, the hospital will be in a position to receive that patient so that the ambulance can get back on the road again and attend in a timely way to other people who are waiting. That is the prescription of the Welsh Government.35

    What do people who work in the service—? And as I say, they’ll have heard the way that the Member has described the service they provide this afternoon. What do they face? They—[Interruption.] He has chosen to use that language this afternoon, he didn’t—[Interruption.] And you have chosen to use that language here this afternoon. What do those people face? They face cuts to their pay because of the policy of your Government, and now they face cuts to the budgets that the health service itself will have at its disposal. It is shocking. It is absolutely shocking to me that you think that you can turn up here this afternoon, with the mess that your party has made of the budgets of this country, of the reputation of this country around the world, and that you promise those people that there will be more to come—[Interruption.] And you think you can turn up here this afternoon and claim some sort of moral high ground. What sort of world do you belong in?

  • Mark Drakeford – 2022 Comments on the Resignation of Liz Truss

    Mark Drakeford – 2022 Comments on the Resignation of Liz Truss

    The comments made by Mark Drakeford, the Welsh First Minister, on Twitter on 20 October 2022.

    This has been a complete and utter failure of government with everyone in this country now having to pay the price.

    The deep division within the UK Government means that any successor will face the same challenges.

    A #GeneralElection is now the only way forward for the country.

  • Rebecca Evans – 2022 Speech on Chancellor’s Statement on Medium Term Fiscal Plan

    Rebecca Evans – 2022 Speech on Chancellor’s Statement on Medium Term Fiscal Plan

    The speech made by Rebecca Evans, the Minister for Finance and Local Government in the Welsh Assembly, on 17 October 2022.

    In the wake of the ongoing turmoil caused by the mini-budget, the new Chancellor has now reversed most of the tax changes made a few short weeks ago in the hope of stabilising the financial markets and reducing the size of the hole fracturing public finances.

    The economic outlook was already challenging, as a result of EU exit, the pandemic and cost-of-living crisis.

    But the perilous situation which the UK’s public finances are now in is inexcusable. This is a direct result of the flawed and reckless measures announced in the UK Government’s mini-budget on 23 September and which were the central pillar of the Prime Minister’s leadership campaign.

    The fall-out from the mini-budget has been mayhem in the financial markets; mortgage costs have risen sharply, as has the cost of government borrowing; the Bank of England has had to take extraordinary measures to prevent a collapse in pension funds; and household budgets have been stretched even further.

    Our economy and UK finances are now in a far worse situation than they were less than a month ago as a result.

    The Chancellor’s statement today has signalled a new era of austerity.

    Those hit hardest will be the households already struggling to make ends meet. Our public services are facing cuts, and jobs could be lost. The actions announced by the Chancellor will shrink the economy and make the recession deeper and last longer – the opposite of the so-called plan for growth.

    While the Chancellor stated the UK Government’s priority in making the difficult decisions that lie ahead will always be the most vulnerable, he offered nothing of comfort to them today. The announcement of changes to energy support only creates additional uncertainty for households and businesses which are already worrying about costs.

    The UK Government has repeatedly failed to take opportunities to improve our energy security for the future and address the climate emergency. It must be more ambitious on investment in green energy and decarbonisation.

    The Chancellor must use his 31 October statement to provide reassurance that we will not see spending cuts that will affect public services, jobs, and our economy. Instead, he has a real opportunity to provide much-needed support to the most vulnerable, funded by using the UK Government’s tax levers more equitably, including taxing the windfall gains in the energy sector.

    Inflation has already significantly eroded the Welsh Government’s budget settlement to worryingly low levels. This Statement continues to fall far short of what is needed to meet the very significant challenges faced by our public services and workers. The UK Government must provide us with the additional budget flexibilities to support our response in Wales.

    While we will not be able to protect people and services from the full force of the UK Government’s actions, we will do everything we can to help households, services and businesses through this crisis.

    We will publish the Welsh Government’s Budget on 13 December and provide a considered and careful response to the crisis taking into account the full fiscal forecast provided by the Office for Budget Responsibility to provide as much certainty as possible for our public services and partners.

    While our resources are limited, and today’s announcement will do nothing to alleviate the already challenging funding position facing the Welsh Government, our priority will be to shield the most vulnerable and create a stronger, fairer and greener Wales that safeguards the wellbeing of our future generations.

  • Eluned Morgan – 2022 Statement on Progress Implementing the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Plan

    Eluned Morgan – 2022 Statement on Progress Implementing the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Plan

    The statement made by Eluned Morgan, the Minister for Health and Social Services, on 14 October 2022.

    On 16 October, we mark Restart a Heart Day. Save a Life Cymru and its partners will be encouraging us to learn more about life-saving cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR), using defibrillators and knowing how to help when someone has a cardiac arrest.

    I want to use this opportunity to provide Members with a further update about progress to implement the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Plan and Save a Life Cymru’s work.

    The Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Plan was launched in 2017 and we established the Save a Life Cymru partnership that brings together organisations across Wales to help develop the Welsh public’s CPR and defibrillation skills so people feel confident to help if they witness someone experiencing an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. Last year we increased the funding for this life saving programme.

    Earlier this month a new save a Life Cymru campaign was launched. ‘Help is closer than you think’ (Cofia, mae help wrth law) which focuses on increasing people’s confidence to intervene in a cardiac arrest emergency by highlighting the importance of calling 999 immediately, as well as the support provided by the call handler to do CPR and locate a registered defibrillator until an ambulance arrives. A TV, radio and social media advertisement went live from Monday 10 October.

    Save a Life Cymru has recruited a clinical out-of-hospital cardiac arrest programme manager who is developing an all Wales CPR and defibrillator framework to help communities become rescue ready and have the right resources in the right place to help someone having a cardiac arrest. It has also recruited four Save a Life Cymru community support coordinators, one of whom is already in post, and it is hoped the remainder will be in post before the end of November. They are also currently advertising for two Save a Life Cymru community support team leader posts.

    Save a Life Cymru is working with a range of organisations to support people of all ages and backgrounds to learn CPR and defibrillation skills, including:

    • Continuing to develop their partnership with the Football Association of Wales to broaden the reach of teaching CPR in Wales.
    • Following a successful pilot, Cardiff University has rolled out its model for all medical students who are trained in CPR to train all first year students.
    • Supporting One Voice Wales, which represents community and town councils, employing a person to co-ordinate CPR and defibrillator activity in communities across Wales, including ensuring defibrillators are registered and in good working order.
    • Appointing, in conjunction with Cardiff Metropolitan University, a post-doctoral research fellow who will develop research projects to initiate improvements in Out of Hospital Cardiac arrest outcomes in Wales
    • Partnering with Ospreys Rugby medical team to help raise awareness of CPR and defibrillation among its audiences.
    •  Producing a bilingual educational leaflet to support community CPR
    • Providing CPR training at the Welsh Government stand in some national events such as the Urdd Eisteddfod and Royal Welsh Show
    • Supporting Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board (BCUHB) to produce a bilingual Primary School resource, supported by BSL, which teaches children the sequence of CPR through song and dance.

    During 2021/22 I announced a further £1m to purchase 1,000 additional defibrillators which community groups and public organisation across Wales were able to apply for.  638 groups and organisations successfully applied for a defibrillator and so far about 238 have been installed in communities across Wales. There have been some delays in groups being able to purchase and install the cabinets so defibrillators are still being distributed.

    Communities and organisations which already have defibrillators are being encouraged to register them on The Circuit – more than 7164 are registered and now 72% have a guardian. We have seen a significant increase in the number registered and in the percentage with a guardian but there is still more work to be done.

    Additionally, the Welsh Ambulance Service partnered with GoodSAM app to improve mobilisation of clinically trained staff and volunteers to life-threatening emergency calls. So when an emergency call is received by the ambulance service and classified to be of a life-threatening nature, details will automatically be sent through to the GoodSAM app to alert the nearest approved volunteer responder. They will shortly be relaunching the GoodSAM app in Wales, which was paused during the pandemic, and this will open up being a GoodSAM responder to all eligible individuals who have signed up and been approved by GoodSAM and partner organisations. This will be a huge step forward in Wales.

    We have made substantial progress over the course of the last twelve months and have heard stories of the differences this work is making to people’s lives. We know that every second counts when someone goes into cardiac arrest. We can all help raise awareness of the importance of dialling 999 and giving early CPR and defibrillation.

  • Jane Hutt – 2022 Statement on Funding for Warm Hubs in Wales

    Jane Hutt – 2022 Statement on Funding for Warm Hubs in Wales

    The statement made by Jane Hutt, the Welsh Minister for Social Justice, on 12 October 2022.

    On 20th September we announced an initial £1m of funding to support Warm Hubs. Today I am announcing how that funding will be distributed and what it will be used for.

    With domestic fuel prices increasing, it is expected many people will struggle to keep their homes at a healthy temperature this winter, particularly those people at home all day, the elderly and the vulnerable. Many organisations including local authorities, community councils, faith groups, sports clubs, community centres are already setting up, or looking to set up, Warm Hubs within local communities. Warm Hubs are intended as places in local communities where people can find a safe, accessible and warm environment during the day to help reduce the cost of heating their own homes and to help those facing extreme fuel poverty this winter.

    Early discussions with stakeholders have indicated That Warm Hubs should be an inviting place to spend time. They should be open and inclusive and take into account local and cultural needs.

    Warm Hubs might offer:

    Refreshments and snacks (as a minimum) but may extend to a more substantive meal where relevant or possible.
    Advice and support services to those who attend, this can be for example advice and support on financial matters, health and well-being or digital accessibility.
    Activities such as exercise, or arts and cultural activity (subject to location and availability).
    Much of the expertise on where Warm Hubs should be placed, and what should be provided within Warm Hubs, rests within local communities. Local authorities working in partnership with the public sector, voluntary sector and community partners will be best placed to gauge and understand local needs, existing provision and to design and deliver local solutions.

    Funding for Warm Hubs will therefore be distributed via local authorities in Wales. Funding will be distributed in line with local authority agreed existing formula. As part of the funding local authorities will be required to engage with their local partners, including County Voluntary Councils (CVC’s), in the development of Warm Hubs and in the provision / distribution of funding at a local community level to local community groups wishing to operate / establish a Warm Hub.

    It is important that the approach to the delivery of Warm Hubs is joined up and meets local needs. In the same way that it is expected local authorities will work with local stakeholders, it is expected that any organisation wishing to put Warm Hub provision in place will contact their local authority or their local CVC to ensure they are delivering as part of the overall area approach and not duplicating local provision. It may be more appropriate in some places for organisations and volunteers to work with existing Warm Hubs rather than establish additional ones.

    For more information on the local arrangements for Warm Hubs and local funding, I would encourage people to contact their local authority to register their interest.