7th December
Plaid Cymru Debate – Economic Stimulus for Wales
Mark Drakeford: Last week’s autumn statement demonstrates just how deep the crisis in the British economy has now become. There was a discussion here yesterday on whether the UK economy is on the brink of a double-dip recession; the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development thinks that it already is in recession again. The OECD predicts that real gross domestic product will fall by 0.1 per cent during the current quarter, and that it will fall again by 0.6 per cent in the next quarter. As the mover of the motion said, when you look at the detail of the autumn statement, you easily see where that prediction came from. The UK Government’s own text straightforwardly demonstrates that we are in the grip of a depression, and will remain so for at least another five years. On the basis of the autumn statement’s figures, output from the British economy will not return to its pre-recession peak until 2014, making this the deepest recession and the slowest recovery in the last 100 years.
Against that utterly bleak position, what does the autumn statement aim to do? I will consider just four of the things that are proposed. First of all, the statement confirms that any gains that had been made in average household incomes in the first half of the last decade will be completely wiped out in the first half of this one. For those in the middle bracket of income distribution, real household incomes in 2015-16 will have retreated to where they were in 2002-03. In three years, of which this is the middle year, real incomes in the British economy will have dropped by an astonishing 4.7 per cent. Secondly, as we have heard around the Chamber, a two-year pay freeze for public-sector workers is to be followed by two further years in which pay will rise by a maximum of 1 per cent annually. When inflation is running at over 5 per cent, and you have a Government that switches to regressive indirect forms of taxation, real incomes are inevitably falling. Taken together, this amounts to a 16.5 per cent cut in the living standards of public-sector workers across the United Kingdom. However, that is not enough for Mr Osborne: it does not go far enough, as far as Wales is concerned. The analysis of the autumn statement by the Institute for Fiscal Studies clearly demonstrates that Wales stands to suffer most from any move to regional pay. A further reduction of up to 9 per cent in the incomes of public-sector workers in Wales would be the result of a move in that direction, which represents a race to the bottom in terms of pay and conditions. Does the UK Government not understand that, for every pound that you take out of the pocket of a public sector worker in Wales, you have a pound less to spend on goods and services—the things that private sector employers try to provide? It is economic madness.
The third point relating to the autumn statement is on child poverty. Nearly three-quarters of the reduction in child poverty achieved in Wales in the last decade has already been lost since the coalition Government came to power. The Joseph Rowntree Foundation concludes that the remainder will be gone within the next two years. Again, for Mr Osborne, that was not enough. The autumn statement freezes the working tax credit and reverses an earlier coalition pledge to increase the child element of the child tax credit by more than inflation. The first of these decisions takes £265 million out of the pockets of the least well-off. The second takes £975 million from families struggling to bring up children. The result is that every single piece of ground so painfully won by Labour will be lost, and a minimum of 100,000 extra children will be in poverty as a result of the deliberate decisions that were made by the coalition Government and announced last week.
Finally, as the autumn statement makes clear, public sector net borrowing is expected to total £111 billion more over the next five years than was forecast by the Chancellor in his March budget. Not only is his plan not working in terms of supporting growth and reducing unemployment, but it is not even achieving his own myopic concentration on reducing Government borrowing. As a result, what little capacity there was for growth in the British economy is being strangled out of it—knowingly, deliberately and with deep damage here in Wales. I shall be glad to support this motion
Wednesday 23rd November
Questions to the Minister for Business, Enterprise, Technology and Science
Mark Drakeford: Sut bydd y Gweinidog yn asesu’r effaith y gallai datblygu ‘rhanbarthau dinas’ ei chael ar economi Cymru.
[How will the Minister assess the impact which the development of 'city regions’ might have on the Welsh economy]
Edwina Hart: As Members are aware, I have appointed Dr Elizabeth Haywood as chair of the city region task and finish group, along with quite a distinguished team. It will consider the likely economic development benefits of city regions, and, on the basis of its recommendations, I will make decisions
Mark Drakeford: I know that the group has been widely welcomed because it brings together an excellent balance of existing expertise and a capacity to bring fresh thinking to the subject. However, in the end, the development of city regions will rely on action across ministerial portfolios; it also has an impact on potential future European funding. Can you give an assurance that, as Minister, you will retain the overall responsibility for bringing these strands together and for assessing the potential impact that city regions might have here in Wales?
Edwina Hart: It is quite clear that the principal responsibility will lie with me, but it is important to recognise the role that other portfolios will have in this discussion. It is also important for us to recognise, when we talk about city regions, that Cardiff, and Swansea and Newport even more so, are relatively small in the context of city regions more generally. Therefore, there are different types of considerations to be had in the discussion of city regions within the Welsh context, and within the context of European funding, than there might be in other regions of Europe
Tuesday 22nd November
FMQs
Mark Drakeford: First Minister, at the same time as the welfare reform proposals are taking £2 billion out of the pockets of the poorest families in Wales, the same Government, through its legal aid proposals, is cutting the help that those families might have had to challenge those decisions or to deal with the debt into which they will be plunged. Will you join organisations up and down Wales in condemning these proposals and the effect that they are going to have on some of the most disadvantaged communities and most needy families in our land?
The First Minister: I worked in that system for 10 years, and I can say that, if legal aid is not available to people who cannot afford legal representation, justice will be for the rich. It is as simple as that. It is also a false saving, as more and more people will represent themselves in court, which takes a lot longer than having an advocate. Therefore, there will be greater costs for the court system. However, this is typical of the party opposite. All that it wants to do is ensure that the rich have access to justice, and the poor can go to hell.
15th November
Sustainable Social Services
Mark Drakeford: It is always good to have a debate on social services, if only because—as Kirsty Williams has said—it is a subject too often neglected, particularly given that it is the only branch of the welfare state that has consistently been redistributive in its effect. Equally, it is a branch that has received particular attention here in Wales. Indeed, research conducted over more than 30 years has shown that Welsh local authorities are more likely than any others to invest a higher proportion of their budgets in social services for children and adults.
I hope to say something this afternoon on a small number of points to do with principles and priorities, but before doing so, and while mentioning resources, I want to say something about the Conservative Party’s amendment 3, which regrets the reduction in social services budgets. I leave aside its technical incompetence in failing to understand the ways in which funding lines that previously appeared in the social services budget have simply been transferred elsewhere, to appear, for example, as the Minister has already said, in the RSG. Rather, I simply want to point out that this is a party that earlier this afternoon called for more money for health, more money for education, more money for the economy and more money for capital investment. They entirely refused to answer a direct question from my colleague Jenny Rathbone about where that money is to be found. It really does beggar belief that they should be prepared to table an amendment that flies so fast in the face of their own demands.
Even the most rudimentary understanding of the Welsh Government’s budget would demonstrate that to meet those demands for more money, for health, the economy, education services, capital and so on, can only mean taking money from elsewhere and, as the second largest area of spending in local government, that could only mean social services.
At its very best, amendment 3 is disingenuous. At worst, it is simply the politics of posture, shedding its crocodile tears into the lives of some of the most vulnerable individuals in Wales and those whose lifeline services could only be radically reduced if that party were in a position to implement the policies that it was so insistent upon less than an hour ago.
Gan droi’n gyflym at yr egwyddorion, hoffwn ddweud gair o ddiolch i’r Dirprwy Weinidog am y gwaith y mae wedi ei wneud i adeiladu ar yr hyn sydd wedi’i wneud yng Nghymru. O edrych ar ddogfen ‘Bywydau Bodlon, Cymunedau Cefnogol’, a gyhoeddwyd gan Dr Brian Gibbons, y Gweinidog dros Iechyd a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol yn ôl yn 2006, gwelwn yr un egwyddorion priodol sy’n parhau i fod yn bwysig yn y cynlluniau y mae’r Dirprwy Weinidog presennol am eu datblygu.
Cyfeiriaf at ddwy ohonynt. Yr egwyddor gyntaf yn ôl y ddogfen oedd y dylai cynghorau lleol barhau i fod yn brif gyfrwng darparu gwasanaethau cymdeithasol. Dywedodd Dr Gibbons yn y rhagymadrodd,
‘Ein sail resymegol dros y ffordd hon o feddwl yw, am resymau atebolrwydd democrataidd, dilyniant o ran gwasanaethau craidd a chysylltiadau â gwasanaethau allweddol eraill megis tai ac addysg a’r agenda cynhwysiant cymdeithasol ehangach, llywodraeth leol yw’r lle priodol ar gyfer gwasanaethau cymdeithasol o hyd.’
Mae’r ail egwyddor yn y ddogfen honno yn cyfeirio at fodel ar gyfer staffio adrannau gwasanaethau cymdeithasol drwy sicrhau bod unigolion yn cael eu hyfforddi yn y sgiliau sy’n angenrheidiol iddynt allu gwneud penderfyniadau cymhleth dan amgylchiadau bregus. I mi, mae’r egwyddorion hynny’n parhau i fod yr un mor bwysig heddiw
[To swiftly turn to the principles, I would like to say a word of thanks to the Deputy Minister for the work that she has done to build on the work that has gone on in Wales. When we look at 'Fulfilled Lives, Supportive Communities’, which was published by Dr Brian Gibbons, the Minister for Health and Social Services, back in 2006, we see that the same relevant principles continue to be important in the plans developed by the current Deputy Minister.
I will refer to two of them. The first principle according to the document was that local councils should continue to be the main providers of social services. To quote Dr Gibbons in the foreword,
'Our rationale for this approach is that, for reasons of democratic accountability, core service continuity and links with other key services such as housing and education and the wider social inclusion agenda, local government remains the right place for social services.
The second principle in that document refers to a staffing model for social services department by ensuring that individuals are trained in the necessary skills so that they are able to make complicated decisions in difficult circumstances. To me, those principles continue to be just as important today.]
It is a tribute to the Deputy Minister that the document that she has developed, and which we are debating this afternoon, is based on those core principles, which command the respect of the profession right across Wales.
Questions to the First Minister
Mark Drakeford:
A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am y polisïau y mae ei weinyddiaeth yn eu dilyn ar hyn o bryd i helpu i wneud Cymru yn gymdeithas sy’n fwy cyfartal.
[Will the First Minister make a statement on policies currently pursued by his administration to help make Wales a more equal society.]
The First Minister: Our anti-poverty action plan and strategic equality plan will combine to deliver a positive difference to the lives of people living in Wales.
Mark Drakeford: Thanks to the work of the Newport equality group, a number of us were able to hear recently from Professor Richard Wilkinson, as he again marshalled all the evidence that demonstrates, right across the globe, that more equal societies enjoy better health, do better economically and have less crime. Yet, in the same week as he was here, a plethora of research reports indicated that Britain has embarked on another period of sharply increasing inequality. Will you give us an assurance that Welsh Ministers will continue to use whichever levers are at their disposal to resist that trend in Wales?
The First Minister: Unequal societies are unhappier societies. There have been a number of studies that confirm that and many of us will have read the book, The Spirit Level: Why More Equal Societies Almost Always do Better, which is an interesting study of how more equal societies are more cohesive and happier than societies where inequality is huge. As a Government, we are committed to creating a fair and just society. We recognise the broad range of issues that this encompasses. An example of our commitment to narrowing inequalities within society is our ‘Fairer health outcomes for all’ strategic action plan, which aims to reduce inequities in health.
9th November 2011
Questions to the Minister for Local Government and Communities
Mark Drakeford: Pa baratoadau y mae’r Gweinidog wedi’u gwneud ar gyfer y posibilrwydd o ddatganoli cyfrifoldebau’r Gronfa Gymdeithasol i Gymru
[What preperation has the Minister made for the potential devolution of Social Fund responsibilities to Wales?]
Carl Sargeant: A consultation on the options for replacement arrangements in Wales following the devolution of the social fund is currently being developed by my officials. I expect this consultation to be issued shortly.
Mark Drakeford: Despite its deeply unsatisfactory history, the social fund remains a safety net of last resort for many of the poorest families and individuals in Wales. If the coalition Government in Westminster succeeds in its ambition to become the only post-war administration to divest itself of such a core responsibility, can you reassure us that, here in Wales, we will look for imaginative and creative ways in which we can try to preserve the services that the social fund already provides, and build on the fund further for some of the most vulnerable families in Wales?
Carl Sargeant: You raise an important point, namely that the social fund is supporting the most vulnerable in our communities at a difficult time in their lives. I would like to see the social fund continuing in Wales. I note the Bevan Foundation’s suggestions and a pamphlet contributed by the Member. I will look at all options to ensure that the issues faced by the vulnerable in our communities are addressed during the difficult times caused by the actions of the UK Government.
8th November
The Older People’s Commisoner Annual Report
Mark Drakeford: Diolch am y cyfle i gyfrannu at y ddadl y prynhawn yma. Yr wyf yn siarad yn rhinwedd fy swydd yn Gadeirydd y Pwyllgor Iechyd a Gofal Cymdeithasol. Yr oedd yn ddefnyddiol iawn clywed am gyfraniad Comisiynydd Pobl Hŷn Cymru yn y pwyllgor iechyd am y tro cyntaf ym mis Hydref, a chlywed am y gwaith y mae ei swyddfa wedi’i gyflawni dros y flwyddyn ddiwethaf. Nid yw’n syndod mai iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol yw’r materion sydd ar frig rhestr pobl hŷn pan maent yn mynd at y comisiynydd i drafod eu blaenoriaethau. Byddaf yn canolbwyntio ar dri pheth a gododd yn yr adroddiad, ac a drafodwyd yn y pwyllgor.
[Thank you for the opportunity to participate in this afternoon’s debate. I speak in my role as Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee. It was very useful to hear of the contribution of the Older People’s Commissioner for Wales in the health committee for the first time in October, and to hear about the work that her office has done over the last year. It is no surprise that health and social care top the list of priorities for older people when they contact the commissioner. I will focus on these issues that arose in the report and that were discussed in committee.]
The first of these is the work on dignified care, which the commission has undertaken, and the willingness of that office to use its powers to drive compliance among bodies for which this Assembly has responsibility. The second is the work that the commission has undertaken on care home closure and quality of care in residential homes. This has been especially important in the context of the collapse of Southern Cross Healthcare, and will feed directly into the inquiry into residential care of older people, on which the committee intends to embark after Christmas. The third is the issue of finance, and the impact of inflation on those on fixed incomes. We know that the change to uprating pensions by the consumer price index, rather than the retail price index, will reduce the incomes of the poorest pensioners in Wales by more than £200 a year. It is little wonder that the Daily Telegraph refers to CPI as the ‘cutting pensions index’—a development that cannot but be of concern to anyone who reads what the commissioner has to say about poverty across the course of a person’s life.
It seems to me that the unifying thread in the work of the commission is that it exists for the purpose of taking on those issues that make life uncomfortable for those who occupy positions of power in our society, whether that be major public sector organisations, such as local health boards, large multinational corporations providing residential care or Ministers here and in Whitehall.
We recognise most public services by the extent to which they generate satisfaction among their users. The commission is different. That office does best when it provides the grit that allows us to hear from those who know where things are not as they ought to be. I wish the commissioner well for the future, but most of all I wish her well in making that future uncomfortable for the rest of us.
Questions to the First Minister
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am gynhyrchu Papur Gwyn Llywodraeth Cymru ar Roi Organau yng Nghymru
[Will the First Minister make a statement on the production of the Welsh Government’s White Paper on Organ Donation in Wales]
Mark Drakeford: I support the Welsh Government’s decision to proceed on this matter by means of a White Paper in the first instance, as it remains a topic on which there are many different views that need to be brought together to shape the legislation. Can you give us an assurance that, in conducting the consultation that the Government will carry out on the White Paper, the views of staff associations, patient groups and third sector organisations such as the Kidney Foundation, the British Lung Association, Diabetes UK Cymru and so on will be sought in order to form a comprehensive approach to consultation, so that we have a wide range of views and so that an effort is made to spread information and education, which are so important in this area?
The First Minister: Yes, we welcome a wide range of views on this issue. It is the Government’s intention to bring forward the organ donation Bill, but the form of that Bill is, of course, a matter for consultation. We want to ensure that we get it right. It will be an important piece of legislation for the people of Wales and for so many people who will, literally, depend on it to get a better life or, indeed, to extend their life.
Wednesday, 2 November 2011
Welsh Liberal Democracts Debate
Raising GDP
Mark Drakeford: I hope to contribute this afternoon in my capacity as chair of the programme monitoring committee for European funding. Most Members will know that the PMC is a European requirement that brings together senior figures from business, local authorities, the research community, trade unions, the third sector and beyond to discharge functions on behalf on the Commission and to advise the Welsh Government on the progress of the programme. Thanks largely to the hard work of my predecessor, Jeff Cuthbert, and the team that works on the programme, there have been significant achievements in recent years. I believe that members of the PMC would be disappointed at the negative tone with which this motion begins—not at the call for lessons to be learned, because we do that all of the time, but at the way in which it devalues the efforts of so many individuals and organisations, not here, but in those parts of Wales where European funding makes a positive difference every day. The mover of the motion was right in one thing at least: it is worth putting on record some of those achievements. They are not bureaucratic achievements, in the rather flippant way that she suggested, and in a moment I will try to explain to her why those achievements that are to do with administration are particularly important to Wales’s reputation in this area.
Beyond issues of administration, it is worth reminding ourselves that Wales was the first country in the European Union to win the RegioStars award for innovation. It was nothing to do with bureaucracy; it was to do with recognition of the work done by European-funded companies. In 2008, it was OpTIC Technium in St Asaph. In 2009, it was a programme at Swansea University that shows businesses how to use new technologies to improve energy efficiency, increase turnover and become more successful. It is no wonder that, in 2010, during a visit to Wales, EC President Barosso praised Wales and said that he considered it to be one of the most successful regions, or in this case a nation, properly using EU funding. He said that Wales is among the best and most effective spenders. The awards for innovation did not stop there. We are the only place in Europe that has won a third RegioStars innovation award. This year it was for growth in environment and marine sciences, for a project that prepares graduates working in marine sciences for the commercial world. When he presented that award, Commissioner Hahn of DG Regio said that Wales should be proud of its successes and for providing inspiration for other European nations.
Nid ydym yng Nghymru yn ystyried materion Ewropeaidd yn yr un ffordd elyniaethus ag y mae Llywodraeth San Steffan yn eu gweld. Yr ydym yn cydnabod y cymorth cyson yr ydym wedi’i gael o gyllidebau Ewropeaidd dros y degawd o ddatganoli. Yr ydym yn edrych ymlaen at gynllunio a pharatoi ar gyfer y cyfnod nesaf. Rhaid inni fod yn ofalus er mwyn diogelu’r enw da yr ydym wedi llwyddo i’w ennill ers dechrau’r rhaglen.
[We in Wales do not think of European issues in the same hostile way as the Westminster Government. We recognise the consistent support that we have received from European funds over the decade of devolution. We look forward to planning and preparing for the next period. We must be careful, so that we safeguard the reputation that we have succeeded in gaining since the start of this programme.]
It is on that point—its willingness to dispense with that hard-won reputation for careful and effective administration—that this motion is so badly wrong-headed. It attacks where it ought to have proceeded carefully; it suggests action where only care is required. Let us hope that, at the end of this afternoon, it does not leave here representing this Assembly’s view of those very important issues on which our reputation depends, not only in Wales, but far beyond.
Questions to the Minister for Housing, Regeneration and Heritage
Mark Drakeford: Pa asesiad y mae’r Gweinidog wedi’i wneud o effaith newidiadau arfaethedig i’r budd-dal tai ar denantiaid yng Nghymru.
[Mark Drakeford: What assessment has the Minister made of the impact of proposed changes to housing benefit on tenants in Wales]
Huw Lewis: I thank the Member for Cardiff West for his question. I am very concerned about the financial implications for the vast majority of local housing allowance claimants. My officials are working closely, as I have said, with local authorities. We are also jointly funding a research programme, with the Department for Work and Pensions, to monitor the impacts of the changes.
Mark Drakeford: You have dealt extensively this afternoon with the impact of housing benefit changes on private sector tenants. However, these changes will have an impact on people in the public rented sector as well. I recently met a number of residents who were distressed due to the bills that they had now received because of the increase in non-dependant deductions from benefits, which they simply had no way of paying. When these people find themselves at the sharp end of all of this, they will begin to claim from the homelessness budgets. Can you give us an assurance that, as part of the monitoring that you are carrying out, you will be looking at the impact of housing benefit changes on public sector tenants and the impact that they will have on demands relating to homelessness in Wales?
Huw Lewis: Of course I will give that assurance. It is an issue of enormous concern. It causes me a great deal of worry, and I do not think that anyone has an exact picture, yet, of how this is going to affect the housing situation across Wales as a whole. The signals that we are getting early on from our surgeries, as the Member has mentioned—all of us have probably picked this up already—are very ominous indeed.
Tuesday, 1 November 2011
Questions to the First Minister
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am yr anogaeth a roddir gan gyrff sector cyhoeddus i ehangu aelodaeth undebau credyd yng Nghymru.
[Will the First Minister make a statement on the encouragement provided by public sector bodies for the expansion of credit union membership in Wales]
The First Minister: Public sector organisations in Wales, including the Government, publicly support Welsh credit unions. We know that they provide a tremendous service for many individuals and communities that would otherwise have no access to affordable credit.
Mark Drakeford: Since you last answered questions here, International Credit Union Day has been celebrated in many different parts of Wales. Part of those celebrations was to draw more people into membership of credit unions, especially at a time when access to fair and affordable credit is ever more important. Public sector organisations have a leading role to play in extending that opportunity to their workers. They should be encouraged to offer that facility through payroll deductions and so on. Will you encourage them to do those small but important things that they are able to do to, such as advertising, encouraging and promoting credit union membership among their employees?
The First Minister: Trade unions have excellent networks and many employers are moving forward with increasing credit union membership among their employees. We have looked to support those initiatives. We have worked with Wales Trades Union Congress to promote the work of credit unions through organised training events, union representatives and their networks.
18th October 2011
Questions to the Minister for Finance and Leader of the House
Mark Drakeford: Pa asesiad y mae’r Gweinidog wedi’i wneud o’r canlyniadau i gyllideb Llywodraeth Cymru yn sgil datganoli’r cyfrifoldeb dros Fudd-dal y Dreth Gyngor i Gymru
[What assessment has the Minister made of the consequences for the overall Welsh Government budget of devolving responsibility for Council Tax Benefit to Wales]
Jane Hutt: The Welsh Government is aware of the serious consequences that the changes in the administration of council tax benefit, alongside the 10 per cent cut in funding, could have for the people of Wales. A range of options are being considered.
Mark Drakeford: Successive Welsh Governments have a strong record of promoting council tax benefit take-up in Wales, which is the least taken up of all the major benefits of the welfare state. Now that this national pillar of the welfare state is about to be kicked away by the coalition Government in Westminster, will you assure us that the efforts that the Welsh Government makes to promote take-up and secure the future of the benefit in Wales will continue just as strongly over the next 12 months?
Jane Hutt: I thank the Member for Cardiff West for that question. As I said, we are considering options as a result of what will be the ending of the council tax benefit as we know it, alongside the 10 per cent cut with regard to the transfer of resources. We know that some of the most vulnerable citizens of Wales will be affected by these changes, and therefore, as the Minister for Local Government and Communities said recently with local government leaders, we urge a take-up campaign to take us through to that point when we lose that benefit.
First Ministers Questions
Mark Drakeford: Brif Weinidog, a ydych wedi cael cyfle i ddarllen yr adroddiadau a gyhoeddwyd dros y penwythnos diwethaf ynglŷn â’r cynnydd mawr yn yr elw a godwyd gan gwmnïau ynni preifat ar gefn pob cwsmer? Mewn cyfnod o doriadau mewn taliadau tanwydd gaeaf i bensiynwyr, onid ydych yn credu ei bod yn hen bryd i Lywodraeth San Steffan roi taw ar y siarad di-werth â’r cwmnïau ynni a mynnu bod y cwmnïau yn rhannu’r elw gyda’r cwsmeriaid hynny sydd wir angen help?
Y Prif Weinidog: Mae’n hollbwysig bod Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Unedig yn sicrhau ei bod yn cefnogi’r hyn mae’n ei ddweud ynglŷn â phrisiau ynni. Mae’n wir dweud ei bod hi’n anodd i gwsmeriaid weld unrhyw fath o gystadleuaeth yn y farchnad ynni ym Mhrydain Fawr. Mae’n wir hefyd ddweud bod prisiau ynni ym Mhrydain yn llawer uwch nag ydynt mewn sawl gwlad yn Ewrop lle nad oes cystadleuaeth o gwbl. Mae hon yn broblem ynglŷn â sicrhau buddsoddiad i Gymru, yn enwedig gyda rhai busnesau lle mae taliadau mawr ar gyfer ynni yn rhan o’r busnes. Felly mae’n hynod bwysig bod cwsmeriaid yn gweld lleihad ym mhrisiau ynni ac, wrth gwrs, fod busnesau yn gweld yr un peth.
[Mark Drakeford: First Minister, have you had an opportunity to read the reports published over the last weekend about the large profit increases made by private energy companies on the back of each and every customer? At a time of cuts to winter fuel payments to pensioners, do you not think that it is time that the Westminster Government put a stop to the meaningless talk with the energy companies and insisted that those companies share the profits with those customers who truly need help?
First Minister: It is vital that Government of the UK ensures backs up its words with regard to energy prices. It is true to say that it is difficult for customers to see any kind of competition in the energy market in Great Britain. It is also true to say that energy prices in Britain are much higher than those in several European countries where there is no competition at all. This is a problem to do with ensuring investment for Wales, particularly with in the case of some companies for which large payments for energy are a part of business. It is therefore particularly important that customers see a reduction in energy prices and, of course, that businesses see that, too.]
5th October 2011
Questions to the Consel General
Mark Drakeford: Sawl gwaith y mae swyddogion y gyfraith yn Lloegr wedi ymgynghori â’r Cwnsler Cyffredinol am y goblygiadau posibl i Gymru o ddeddfwriaeth sydd yn yr arfaeth gan Lywodraeth y DU
[Mark Drakeford: How many times has the Counsel General been consulted by law officers in England about the potential implications for Wales of forthcoming UK Government legislation]
Theodore Huckle: I am sorry, I am not able to make statements about discussions that I have had the with UK law officers as to the content of those discussions either directly or indirectly. Even the fact of advice and discussions of this kind is not disclosable, let alone the content. I can say that it is my understanding that the ordinary processess of discussions about the potential implications of forthcoming UK Government legislation is between departments.
Mark Drakeford: I am afraid that I think that that is an unsatisfactory answer to what was a simple question. I asked nothing about the content of your discussions. I do not want to know anything that is privileged or anything that a member of the public might not feel entitled to know. I simply asked you for the number of occasions on which law officers in England have contacted your office. It is a simple numeral, and I am happt to take the answer just as that. I ask you again: how many times?
Theodore Huckle: I am afraid that the difficult is that, although a number has been asked for, it has been asked for in reference to a specific issue. If I breach the convention now, there will be no reason to maintain it in future, so I am afraid that the answer must remain the same.
27th September 2011
Business Statement and Announcements
Mark Drakeford: Yr oeddwn yn ddiolchgar iawn i’r Dirprwy Weinidog Plant a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol dros yr haf am ei datganiadau am sefyllfa Southern Cross Healthcare. Mae’r cwmni newydd gyhoeddi’r rhestr gyntaf o gartrefi preswyl y bydd yn eu trosglwyddo i’r cwmnïau newydd. A ellir cael datganiad arall ynglŷn â’r sefyllfa ddiweddaraf?
[Mark Drakeford: I was very grateful to the Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services over the summer for her statements on the Southern Cross Healthcare situation. The company has just published the first list of residential homes that it will be transferring to the new companies. Could we have another statement on the latest situation?]
Jane Hutt: The Member for Cardiff West rightly acknowledges the statements that have been made by the Deputy Minister for social services on 25 July and, indeed, last week, on 19 September. The announcements from Southern Cross today have to be considered carefully. It is an important step that is being taken in terms of the orderly transfer of care homes, but I will say on behalf of the Deputy Minister that I understand that, under the Care Standards Act 2000, applications for new providers to be registered to run all of the 33 Southern Cross care homes in Wales are currently being considered and assessed by the Care and Social Services Inspectorate Wales on an independent basis.
Questions to the First Minister
Mark Drakeford: Pa amcangyfrif y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi’i wneud o’r gofynion sydd ar wasanaethau cyngor am arian yng Nghymru ar hyn o bryd.
[Mark Drakeford: What estimate has the Welsh Government made of the demands currently experienced by money advice services in Wales.]
The First Minister: We work closely with the Money Advice Service. We know that it helps very many people when it comes to advice. Demand is clearly high in the current financial climate and we are working with it to ensure that people are aware of all the services that it offers.
Mark Drakeford: The Department for Work and Pensions announced recently its intention to make benefit payments monthly rather than fortnightly. Would you agree that this can only add to the difficulties for many hard-pressed families in managing on their very limited budgets and that this can only add to the demands already experienced by the Money Advice Service?
The First Minister: As we encourage people to manage their finances properly, it can only be detrimental when the UK Government makes it much more difficult for them to do so. It is undoubtedly correct that that will provide the Money Advice Service with more work; its services will, inevitably, be in more demand, and this has been done at a time when so many people are worried because of the situation of the world economy and the UK Government’s failure to offer something tangible to deal with it.
21st September 2011
Plaid Cymru Funding debate
Mark Drakeford: Thank you for the opportunity to take part in the debate. On the whole, the debate has been serious in tone, and that is absolutely right, because it is almost impossible to exaggerate the dangers that face the British economy, now and in the months to come. That is a view that is shared by some parties in the Chamber, but not by all. Some of you will have heard the Chief Secretary to the Treasury this morning desperately trying to defend the coalition Government’s economic policies in the face of the IMF’s evidence. He referred persistently to his Government’s policies as the greatest asset that Britain has. It reminded me of a man who, having decided to go swimming, has tied a great iron ring around his neck, and as he disappears below the waves, he waves to the shore and says, ‘At least I have an asset’. As the leader of Plaid Cymru set out clearly in the first half of his opening contribution, the British economy is in exactly that position: disappearing fast below the waves. That puts an even greater obligation on the Welsh Government to do everything it can to protect and defend the Welsh economy. However, there is a little bit of good news, which Members will have heard in the Chamber already, which is that there is no dearth of ideas about what might be done in Wales to do just that. Those ideas include—I do not think that they have all been mentioned so far this afternoon—social impact bonds, a Welsh housing bond, a Wales savings super mutual, and a development bank for Wales that would draw on the experience of solidarity funds in Quebec and on the finance that is held by the eight major public sector pension funds.
I want to say something about the experience in Quebec, because there are lessons to be drawn from it. It is called a solidarity fund, because it is an $8.2 billion fund that has grown out of the funds of the trade union movement. These are assets that belong to trade unionists, in their pension funds and in their savings. Those who run the fund say that those assets are used in Quebec to be part of the struggle for full employment and the struggle to improve conditions for labour in the Quebec economy. Last year, the Quebec solidarity fund put $25 billion aside for a new fund for agriculture in that province, in order to provide capital funding for new entrants into farming, to provide them with an equity stake in the purchase of land, and to provide them with start-up grants so that, as they said, aspiring young farmers facing a tough challenge can get a new start in their own economy. This year, the solidarity fund has provided £6 billion to invest in the growth of the aerospace industry in Quebec. This investment will almost double the number of high-skilled jobs that that industry provides.
Yn hynny o beth, mae gennym yr hyn glywsom gan y Llywodraeth yr wythnos hon. Hoffwn groesawu datganiad y Gweinidog dros fusnes am gyhoeddi y bydd parthau menter yng Nghymru. Drwy fuddsoddi mewn sectorau penodol, fel y mae Cwebéc yn ei wneud, bydd yn bosibl adeiladu ar y meysydd hynny yn economi Cymru sy’n parhau i fod yn gryf.
[In this regard, we have the announcement we heard from the Government this week. I would like to welcome the statement by the Minister for business for announcing that there will be enterprise zones in Wales. By investing in certain sectors, as is being done in Quebec, it is possible to build on those areas in the Welsh economy that continue to be strong.]
This is an example of exactly what the Government has done this week, and this can be seen in the example from Quebec. There are ideas that we can use in Wales. Therefore, Minister, we look forward to hearing your reply to the debate, particularly because we know that we will be relying on your vast experience and your commitment to these things, because the key political task that we face is in taking these new ideas and making them a reality in Wales. We are not short of such ideas, but you know, as do those who were involved in the One Wales Government, that there is a huge amount of passive resistance to new ideas in the machinery of government. It is a really difficult job, but it is one that relies on key political determination to take some of the ideas that we have heard in the Chamber this afternoon and put them to work for the benefit of Wales.
Questions to the Minister for Business, Enterprise, Technology and Science
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Gweinidog ddatganiad am ddyfodol Maes Awyr Caerdydd.
Mark Drakeford: Will the Minister make a statement on the future of Cardiff Airport.
Edwina Hart: Cardiff Airport is an international gateway to Wales, and its future is very important to the Welsh economy. I am aware that the airport is in active commercial discussions with several airlines regarding establishing new routes, and I am confident that there will be positive announcements in the coming months.
Mark Drakeford: Minister, do you agree that the decline of Cardiff Airport is a clear example of market failure and that it exposes the complete inadequacies of policies pursued at Westminster of a hand-wringing, do-nothing approach to the future of the economy? Will you continue in Wales to pursue active government, which means that the power that we can bring to improving that vital service—both to Cardiff and to the city region—will be pursued in the future?
Edwina Hart: Yes, I think that we will keep to that clear policy direction, because there has to be intervention from Government. With regard to the airport, we also have to look at its management and the commitment there. The First Minister has had discussions with the airport’s senior management and its owners. A good relationship is developing, which will hopefully bear fruit in the form of improvements to the airport and an increase in the number of passengers who use it.
13th July 2011
Questions to the Education and Skills Minister
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Gweinidog amlinellu’r amserlen y mae’n bwriadu ei dilyn i gyflwyno un cwmni gyrfa cenedlaethol ar gyfer Cymru.
[Mark Drakeford: Will the Minister outline the timetable against which he plans to bring about a single, national careers company for Wales.]
The Deputy Minister for Skills (Jeff Cuthbert): Thank you for the question. My officials are undertaking work on the options for establishing a single body for the delivery of careers services. This requires complex work to determine both the form of the new organisation and its remit. I expect to make an announcement in the autumn outlining the future of the careers service.
Mark Drakeford: I thank the Deputy Minister for that answer. Can he give us an assurance that, as part of that complex plan, consultation is taking place between the Welsh Government and Careers Wales, as an employer, and with the employees of that organisation and the relevant trade unions?
Questions to the Minister for Local Government and Communities
Mark Drakeford: A oes gan y Gweinidog unrhyw gynlluniau i ddatblygu cynigion ar gyfer creu cofrestri asedau cymunedol mewn ardaloedd awdurdodau lleol ledled Cymru.
[Mark Drakeford: Does the Minister have any plans to develop proposals for the creation of community asset registers in local authority areas across Wales.]
The Minister for Local Government and Communities (Carl Sargeant): I thank Mark Drakeford, the elected Member for Cardiff West. I can confirm that the community right to buy clauses of the Localism Bill will apply in Wales and England. I am currently considering how this could be applied in Wales and will make an announcement regarding the appropriate timing.
Mark Drakeford:Thank you very much for that reply, Minister. In giving consideration in the way that you have outlined, will you take steps to be satisfied that sufficient safeguards are in place in respect of such important community assets as Bute, Llandaf and Pontcanna fields in Cardiff, which seem under such constant threat of commercial exploitation by the present city council?
Public Sector Employment (Debate)
Mark Drakeford: In my contribution this afternoon, I want to focus on the first part of the motion, which refers to the importance of public sector employment to communities throughout Wales. I want to do that because the Prime Minister in his lecture to us yesterday got this exactly wrong. He began by making a point that is widely accepted, that is, that the private sector in Wales needs to grow. He then fell into the basic neoconservative error of asserting that the private sector is too small because the public sector is too big. That mantra of ‘private good, public bad’ is never far below the surface of the present Westminster coalition Government, but its premise is mistaken both economically and socially.
Economically, the argument fails to understand the impact that public sector employment has on the wider economy. A report by the University of Manchester only two years ago concluded that, for a period stretching back well into the Thatcher area, the growth in private sector employment in the United Kingdom has largely been the product of public expenditure decisions—state sponsored and state supported, as the report says.
Once you get below the surface of that, you understand that the teacher employed in a local authority school in Wales is a public sector employee and, according to the Prime Minister’s definition, an obstacle in the path of the Welsh economy. However, a teacher in a private school is counted by the Office for National Statistics as a private sector employee, and is thus in receipt of the Prime Minister’s approval, despite the fact that, as the University of Manchester report demonstrates, such schools are highly dependant on fiscal favours from the state, do nothing to pay for the training infrastructure upon which they depend for staff, and, in many cases, could not continue to trade were it not for the fees paid directly to them from the public purse.
Far from squeezing out the private sector, public expenditure and the public sector employment that it provides is crucial in supporting economic growth across Wales. If investment is squeezed out of public services, growth is imperilled, not promoted.
The prescription that we were offered yesterday was not only mistaken economically, but socially destructive. I am always struck by the way in which those who have never needed to rely on the services provided by public sector employees are so confident that the rest of us can do without them. As a leader of a Cabinet of millionaires, it is perhaps not surprising that the Prime Minister was so dismissive of the work of public sector workers in Wales.
Nick Ramsay: We need to clarify that the Prime Minister has spoken on many occasions about the valuable work of people in the public sector, particularly in the national health service. He has said that he could not have survived without having it to rely on over the last few years. That point needs to be put on the record.
Mark Drakeford: It is all very well for the Prime Minister to pay lip service to the work of public service workers when it suits him to do so, but, on Monday, he published a White Paper that talks about the wholesale privatisation of public services, including the health service and others, putting public services and public sector workers in jeopardy.
We judge people by what they do rather than by what they say. The UK Government attaches no value to the work of people in public services—in health, education, social care, and in supporting the work of this Assembly—but we know that people rely on them day in, day out, and that they provide the bedrock of Welsh communities and support the lives of people within them. If today’s motion goes some way towards redressing the impression given here yesterday, it will have achieved something worth while. I am grateful for the chance to have played some small part in putting the record straight.
12th July 2011
Questions to the First Minister
Mark Drakeford: Pa asesiad sydd wedi’i wneud gan Lywodraeth Cymru o’r hyn sy’n achosi’r cynnydd mewn diweithdra ymysg pobl ifanc yng Nghymru.
[Mark Drakeford:What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the causes of the rise in youth unemployment in Wales.]
The First Minister: The main factor behind increases over the last few years has been the recession. Tackling youth unemployment and supporting young people continues to be a priority for us as a Government.
Mark Drakeford: During the 1980s, when youth unemployment rose so rapidly in Wales, at least young people in that position had the comfort of knowing that, as far as the Government of the time was concerned, it was a price worth paying and something about which it had no regrets. The tone of voice may be different today, but the effect of Government policies at Westminster is no different, as we can see from the rapid rise in youth unemployment in Wales. Will you give an assurance that, as far as the Welsh Government is concerned, the unemployment of any Welsh young person is not a price that we would willingly pay, and that this Government will do everything that it can to address what surely is the single most urgent policy priority facing the fourth Assembly?
The First Minister: You are absolutely right. The level of youth unemployment is unacceptably high, and we have committed to establishing a Wales jobs fund, which will enable 4,000 young people to receive training or an apprenticeship. It will also ensure that the opportunities that were available under the Future Jobs fund continue to be available in Wales, despite the UK Government’s unfortunate decision to end the Future Jobs fund.
6th July 2011
Questions to the Health Minister
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Gweinidog ddatganiad am wasanaethau iechyd meddwl yng Nghymru.
[Mark Drakeford:Will the Minister make a statement on mental health services in Wales.]
Lesley Griffiths: Mental health services in Wales remain a key priority. Within the last year, the Mental Health (Wales) Measure 2009 has been introduced, a mental health programme board has been established to provide direction and leadership to drive forward improvements to services, and a national action plan to improve children’s mental health services has been launched.
Mark Drakeford: We know that economic recession is closely associated with an increase in the demand for mental health services. Will your department monitor any increase in the use of prescribed drugs in response to that increased demand? While pharmaceutical solutions to the economic recession may alleviate individual symptoms, they do little to address the underlying social and economic distress that caused the problem in the first place.
Lesley Griffiths: You raise a vital point, and I recognise and share your concern on this issue. Prescribing patterns for key groups of medication are already monitored, and, earlier this year, we completed work to examine the prescribing patterns for hypnotics and the newer generation of Z drugs, to give but two examples. Local health boards have been asked to keep this matter under review, and will be expected to report progress in reducing inappropriate prescribing and in developing services to support individuals who are dependent on such drugs. We are also developing mechanisms to facilitate access to psychological therapies, in line with our manifesto commitment to review access to talking therapies in Wales.
Questions to Counsel General
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Cwnsler Cyffredinol nodi cyfrifoldebau ei swydd o ran pwyso a mesur Cynigion Caniatâd Deddfwriaethol.
[Mark Drakeford:Will the Counsel General set out the responsibilities of his office in relation to the consideration of Legislative Consent Motions.]
Theodore Huckle: I take it that by ‘office’, what is meant is the office of Counsel General, namely the position of the Counsel General. In relation to that, my responsibilities are no different, as I understand it, to any other aspect of advisingon legal issues that may arise. I notice that Standing Order No. 29 states that, where appropriate, a member of the Government must lay a memorandum and so on. I am a member of the Government so, in theory, I could be called upon to do that.
Mark Drakeford: It seems to me that the fourth Assembly is in a slightly different position in relation to legislative consent motions and their predecessors in that, whereas legislative consent motions previously were most often a vehicle for adding to the powers that the Assembly could exercise, in the post-referendum world, they may prove more useful in resisting attempts to place responsibilities on the Assembly that the Assembly may not wish to exercise. In that context, will you, through your office, continue to take a close interest in this matter so that we may be fully legally advised should such an occasion arise?
Questions to the Assembly Commission
Mark Drakeford: What provision has the Assembly Commission made to allow Committees of the National Assembly for Wales to meet outside Cardiff?
Rhodri Glyn Thomas: It is for committees to decide what, if any, activity they wish to undertake outside Cardiff. If the activity would impact on other Assembly business, practice in previous Assemblies has been for the Business Committee to decide whether any such meetings or visits should be permitted. Once approved, the Commission will make the necessary arrangements and ensure that services and facilities are available to meet any relevant procedural or legal requirements.
Mark Drakeford: Thank you very much for that reply. After more than a decade of devolution, will the Commission think about our experience over the years and learn any lessons from the experience of taking committees outside Cardiff?
Rhodri Glyn Thomas: As you have noted, there have been instances in the past where committees have met outside the Assembly. I have been a member of committees that have visited different parts of Wales. One or more of the committees usually holds a meeting in the Royal Welsh Show, which will take place soon. The former Committee on European and External Affairs held meetings in Brussels. Therefore, there is sufficient evidence there. I accept what you have said, that is, that we should look at that and consider the value of doing that. Of course, a lot of work goes into planning such visits and we would have to measure that against the value that is placed on those visits by the people who are able to attend those meetings.
5th July 2011
Frist Minister’s Questions
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am ddyfodol y rhaglen Cymunedau yn Gyntaf yng Nghymru.
[Mark Drakeford:Will the First Minister make a statement on the future of the Communities First programme in Wales.]
The First Minister: The Minister for Local Government and Communities will be making a statement later in Plenary regarding the future of Communities First.
Mark Drakeford: Labour’s manifesto included pledges to support the development of time banking in Wales, especially in those communities that are cash poor but time rich. Many Communities First schemes, such as those in Ely and Caerau in the Cardiff West constituency, have taken a highly successful lead in the development of time banking across a whole range of key services, such as health, education, climate change and so on. As the programme moves into its next phase, will you draw these developments to the attention of Ministers so that the contribution that time banking can make to both community and service development can be felt across the Welsh Government?
The First Minister: We are committed to supporting the development of time banking and this will, in part, be done through the next phase of Communities First.
Tuesday 28th June
First Ministers Questions
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am gynlluniau ar gyfer Sefydliad Polisi Cyhoeddus yng Nghymru.
[Mark Drakeford: Will the First Minister make a statement on plans for a Public Policy Institute for Wales.]
The First Minister: I want to make best use of the expertise that we have in Wales to ensure high-quality, strategic policy making and research to improve our public services. A public policy institute has a role, alongside our commitment to a leadership academy and the need to improve public services across Wales.
Mark Drakeford: Do you agree that, given the difficult financial circumstances that we face over the next few years, it is even more important that policy making in Wales is able to draw on the widest range of advice, and that a public policy institute would provide a way in which new sources of expertise and new policy solutions could be fed into the way that we think about these issues in Wales? How soon would you hope to be able to bring forward this urgently-needed development?
The First Minister: Officials are beginning the process by convening a group of relevant experts, including some from higher education, to develop a series of options. The intention is that the institute will capture the expertise that exists outside Government, including in the higher education sector, to achieve better outcomes for Wales. That work has begun.
Tuesday 21st June
First Ministers Questions
Mark Drakeford: A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad aryr egwyddorion a fydd yn llywio’r broses o lunio polisïau iechyd yng Nghymru yn ystod cyfnod y Pedwerydd Cynulliad.
[Mark Drakeford: Will the First Minister make a statement on the principles which will guide health policy making in Wales during the period of the Fourth Assembly.]
The First Minister: We will not look to privatise health services, we will not look to commission general practitioner services and we will ensure that we provide high-quality services to our people.
Mark Drakeford: Would you agree that consistency and continuity are essential in providing a stable policy framework for delivering health services, and that the positive approach you have just outlined provides a sharp contrast with what The Times newspaper called the ‘debacle’ of last week’s health policy u-turn in England?
The First Minister: It is fair to say that no-one in Wales would want to see that kind of debacle here. I have heard many times that people are grateful for the fact that they have a Welsh Government that is interested in providing good GP services rather than toying with the markets in order to make a profit.
Wednesday 15th June 2011
Welsh Lib Dem Debate: Building a Strong Economy
Mark Drakeford: Llongyfarchiadau, Ddirprwy Lywydd, am eistedd yn y Gadair am y tro cyntaf y prynhawn yma. Yr wyf yn cymryd rhan mewn dadl yn y fan hon am y tro cyntaf y prynhawn yma, ac yr wyf yn siŵr ein bod yn rhannu rhai o’r un teimladau.
[Mark Drakeford: Deputy Presiding Officer, congratulations to you on taking the Chair for the first time this afternoon. I am participating in a debate here for the first time this afternoon, and I am sure that we are sharing some of the same feelings as we do so. ]
Thank you for the chance to speak in this afternoon’s debate. When Kirsty Williams opened the debate, she referred to the challenges facing the Welsh economy as being fundamental, long-term and entrenched. In the few minutes that I have to speak, I want to try to concentrate on just one aspect of the debate that I think shares some of those characteristics.
Those who have spoken on the motion have tended to assume that economic growth is a straightforward and uncomplicated goal and that, if only we could achieve it, everything in the Welsh economy would turn out to be fine. In some ways, that is understandable because, across the great sweep of the twentieth century, workers in the developed world came to be accustomed to sustained year-on-year growth in the real value of wages, particularly as growth in productivity fed through into that sort of remuneration. Economies grew and wages grew with them. As the economists say, a rising tide lifted all boats.
The question I want to ask is whether that remains a sufficient approach to the Welsh economy at the start of the twenty-first century, because, for the past 30 years, that economic rule has been unravelling. An American worker on average wages in 2009 earned no more in real terms than that worker earned in 1975. Despite the fact that, over the same 30-year period, American GDP had more than doubled, workers on average earnings had no share whatsoever in that economic growth. For a while, economists believed that this was somehow an American phenomenon, and yet a report this week by the TUC and, last month, by the Resolution Foundation, have discovered that that phenomenon is far more widely shared among developed economies and that it is shared in the UK economy as well. Over the past 10 years in the UK, output has expanded, productivity has grown, but the average worker has not seen that feed through into gains in their pay packet at all. There has been what economic analysts call a ‘great decoupling’ of economic growth and the living standards of ordinary working households.
How do we explain that? Part of the explanation is in the way that the economic cake is cut, and part of the explanation is in the make-up of that cake. Over the same 30-year period, the share of GDP taken by workers, as compared to capital, has shifted hugely. In 1975, 65 per cent of GDP went in wages to workers. Now, that is less than 53 per cent. So, less is going to workers and more is going to capital, largely in the form of profit. Within the money that goes to workers the share taken by very high earners has escalated enormously at the expense of the low and middle earners.
As well as the way that the cake is shared, the nature of the cake has also changed. Across every developed economy in the western world, jobs in the middle of the spectrum have declined and jobs at the high and low end of the economy have grown; that is true of the economy in the United Kingdom and Wales. All of this is set to get worse over the next few months. Using the projections of the coalition Government’s own Office for Budget Responsibility, real wages will dip significantly as the result of high inflation. By 2015, median real wages in Wales will be lower than they were in 2001—15 years in which real wages will have declined. There are ways in which we have to think about that. If we think of growth, by itself, being enough to raise the living standards of two thirds of people living in Wales, we are beginning to fly in the face of 30 years of accumulated evidence. There are things that we can do in relation to the enforcement of minimum wage levels and in relation to the social wage that we get through the things that the Assembly provides. Should the Minister be responding on the point of zones, will she think of the benefits of social enterprise zones? There are things that social enterprises face that, if they could be addressed, would help them to grow and contribute to that sector of the economy.
Tuesday 14th June 2011
First Ministers Questions
Mark Drakeford: A yw Llywodraeth Cymru yn bwriadu diweddaru ei strategaeth chwarae yn ystod y tymor Cynulliad hwn.
[Mark Drakeford: Does the Welsh Government plan to update its play strategy during this Assembly term.]
The First Minister: Every child has the right to play; it is an essential part of growing up and enriches the lives of children. Wales has led the way in promoting play and supporting play opportunities for children and young people. The Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services will set out our priorities for play in due course.
Mark Drakeford: Successive Welsh Governments have emphasised the importance of play in promoting a child’s development, culminating in the foundation phase. Are you able to provide an assurance that, in any work on the strategy, Wales will not follow the lead of that flagship Conservative local authority in Wandsworth in charging children for the use of play facilities? Can you also assure us that children in Wales will continue, in the words of the strategy, to be ‘free to play’, not free to pay, where access to these essential public services is concerned?
The First Minister: I assure you that we have no intention of introducing charges for the use of playgrounds in Wales. We would be dismayed if any Welsh local authority followed the lead of Wandsworth. Charging children for playgrounds: how low can you get?
Wednesday 8th June
First Ministers Questions
Mark Drakeford: First Minister, tucked away in the Westminster Government’s programme of swingeing cuts for people who rely on benefits in this country is a proposal that the social fund and council tax benefit should be devolved to this Assembly. Those are lifeline benefits that many families, particularly those with children, rely on. Is it the view of the Welsh Government that such proposals would require a legislative consent motion in this Assembly?
The First Minister: The thinking at the moment is that it would not. There has been a legislative consent motion in Scotland, but that was in relation to matters that were devolved. It appears with regard to council tax benefit and the social fund that the issues are not devolved. However, we will monitor the situation closely from a legal point of view in order to ensure that we have maximum influence over the outcome.
Urgent Question on The Financial Difficulties of Southern Cross
Mark Drakeford: Diolch am eich atebion y bore yma, Ddirprwy Weinidog. A allwch chi fanylu am yr hyn y mae’r Llywodraeth yn bwriadu ei wneud yn ymarferol i sicrhau bod safonau gofal yng nghartrefi preswyl Southern Cross yn cael eu gwarchod a’u diogelu dros y misoedd nesaf, yn enwedig tan ddiwedd mis Medi?
[Mark Drakeford: Thank you for your answers this morning, Deputy Minister. Can you elaborate on what the Government intends to do on a practical level to ensure that care standards in Southern Cross residential homes are protected and safeguarded over the coming months, particularly until the end of September?]
Gwenda Thomas: Mae Arolygiaeth Gofal a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol Cymru yn monitro’r sefyllfa, ac ni fydd hynny’n wahanol i’r modd y mae’n monitro pob cartref yn arferol. Yn achos Southern Cross, mae AGGCC yn gweithredu’n ddyfal i geisio sicrhau nad yw sefyllfa ariannol Southern Cross yn dylanwadu ar y safonau, a bod y safonau hynny’n cael eu cynnal.
[Gwenda Thomas: The Care and Social Services Inspectorate for Walesis monitoring the situation, and that will not be any different to how it routinely monitors every home. In the case of Southern Cross, CCSIW is working hard to try to ensure that Southern Cross’s financial situation does not affect standards, and that those standards are maintained. ]
Wednesday 25th May 2011
Business Statement
Mark Drakeford: Weinidog, a wnewch ystyried neilltuo amser am ddatganiad ar gwmni Southern Cross Healthcare, ac effaith y problemau sy’n wynebu’r cwmni hwnnw ar greu gwasanaethau preswyl i’r henoed yng Nghymru?
[Mark Drakeford: Minister, will you consider making time for a statement on Southern Cross Healthcare, and the impact of the problems facing that company on the provision of residential services for the elderly in Wales? ]
Jane Hutt: I know that the Deputy Minister for Children and Social Services, Gwenda Thomas, and her officials have been keeping a close eye on the situation with regard to Southern Cross Healthcare. In fact, I met the Deputy Minister before the election because of the great concerns about what happened, and the impact on residents was at the forefront of our discussions. There is ongoing dialogue between the Welsh Government, the Association of Directors of Social Services Cymru and Southern Cross Healthcare, in order to ensure that there is sound communication and an understanding of developments. Indeed, as I said, a key priority is to protect care-home residents and to ensure their wellbeing. I understand that that is under consideration, and that there is stability and sustainability with regard to Southern Cross Healthcare at the moment. We will come back to you to inform you of any developments.