, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales
2. Will the Cabinet Secretary make a statement on the new rail link between Ebbw Vale and Newport? OQ61692
, Plenary
Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales
Minister, the promises that were made by Welsh Ministers when the Grange was being established, of course, were that there would be these public transport links in place to enable people across the region to access services and to visit relatives who are…
, Plenary
Statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language: Welsh language communities
I'd like to thank the Cabinet Secretary for the statement this afternoon. I’d like, if I may, to thank Dr Simon Brooks for the work that he has led over the past few years. I think that the report is a historic piece of work when it comes to looking at the…
, Plenary
Statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning: Energy and the green economy
I'm grateful to you, Presiding Officer, and I'm grateful to you, Minister, for the statement this afternoon. I very much agree with the vision that the Welsh Government is outlining in terms of its future development of the green economy and green energy. I…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
Okay. I'm grateful. Thank you.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
I'm grateful to you for that. Can we just conclude, just from my own thinking, about this issue around the competition for places and recruitment? We've had a conversation now about where we are in terms of fees and pay and those sorts of issues, and I'm…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
Sorry, Chair—can I ask you to write to us on this matter, please? It strikes me as an important issue that we need to address here as well, and I think I'd prefer to hear from you in writing so you can give a more considered, longer view, if you like, of…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
Why is that?
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
I completely accept that, and I think paying people for the job is not an unreasonable expectation. So, do you believe that there is a perceived disparity between the two systems, or a real disparity, not perceived?
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
I was reminded, reading the report, that your predecessor outlined what he described as a fierce competition for appointments across the UK, in terms of across different tribunals and courts, and he spoke about how difficult it could be sometimes to fill…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
Okay. I'm content with that. Thank you.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
So, you think it's a balanced programme.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
I'm grateful to you for that. In terms of where the proposals are sitting at the moment, are there elements of those proposals that you consider to be of greater priority in terms of taking them forward? And are there any reforms that you would propose that…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the President of the Welsh Tribunals
I'm grateful to you and I'm grateful to you for that. It seems that you've got a very good relationship with the Welsh Government. From what you've said, you've had a series of meetings at a senior level, there's a rhythm to those meetings, it would appear…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Instruments that raise issues to be reported to the Senedd under Standing Order 21.2 or 21.3—previously considered
Yes, absolutely.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Instruments that raise issues to be reported to the Senedd under Standing Order 21.2 or 21.3—previously considered
I think seven years is wholly unacceptable, and the response from the Welsh Government I don't find in any way convincing.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Instruments that raise issues to be reported to the Senedd under Standing Order 21.2 or 21.3
On that final point, I think that's really important in terms of the time it's taken for the Welsh Government to provide us with these regulations, which seem quite defective in many ways. So, it would be useful if that correspondence could be copied to…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
I've concluded my questions.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
I'm content.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
And it is that level of transparency and accountability, I think, that is in question. Time is moving on, sorry. Can I just conclude with a single question on the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill? It's probably too early—. It's clearly too early for you…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
But you're looking at the impact of them, surely, on the market.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
I'm grateful to you for that. You mentioned common frameworks, and that's what I was going to come on to next. Can you look backwards and look forwards for me, please? To what extent have they achieved the objectives that were set for them? Some of us were…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
Yes, absolutely.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
Yes, that's why I used the word 'incremental'.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Evidence Session with the Office for the Internal Market
And we've had that conversation about Welsh-language labelling in that way. I appreciate that. Another lesson that I'm drawing out—I found the annual report really fascinating actually, the most recent one—is that, for policy makers, perhaps the lesson is…
