24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Well, the draft budget allocates—. It allocates—. It's part of the draft budget, so it's a priority of the Welsh Government.
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Well, I have answered these points. This is in the draft budget and it's an important commitment from the Welsh Government. All of the points about value for money evaluation are all going to be part of the consideration, and you'll get a statement very…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
—in brief at this stage. So, all of the evidence that comes before us, of course, we consider very carefully. And I think that's probably, Chair, as much as I think will be valuable today.
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
I think I have responded to the committee—
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you very much, Altaf, and these details will be given in my forthcoming statement. Can I just say, I was very pleased to see the fact that the Petitions Committee undertook this inquiry? And also, I haven't responded to it formally, but I just want to…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
I think, Chair, it would be helpful, because we're very much at the sort of cutting edge in terms of finalising details, if I could say that I'll come back to you as soon as possible. There will be a written statement in the next week or so on the actual…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Yes. We have done our best to try and seek co-operation with the Department for Work and Pensions, and we want to do this to give a decent basic income to our care leavers, so that's why it is a decent allocation for those young people to actually make this…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you very much, Jane, and I know that you particularly have got a very keen interest in this, as have other Members of the Equality and Social Justice Committee. I am imminently going to be providing more detail about this in a statement to the Senedd…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you, Sioned, for that crucially important question in terms of what we've been discussing about the particular circumstances we're in now. The circumstances we're in now in terms of the cost-of-living crisis, it wasn't anticipated to this extent, was…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Well, I think it will provide—. Well, obviously, there's already a huge range of evidence that we have to feed into the budget, and that's not just for my benefit, it's for all Ministers. It is an equality evidence unit, which is part of our monitoring and…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Diolch yn fawr, Sioned. It's crucial that we're doing the right things, that we get it right. It's interesting how there was a time when research bodies were looking at even having a 'what works' kind of work stream in terms of Government policy. We've got to…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thanks very much, Ken. Yes, it's vital, if you have a role like the Minister for Social Justice and equalities, that you speak up at every possible moment on those issues because they're very cross-cutting, aren't they? We've got a mainstreaming equality…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you very much, Ken. The co-operation agreement has had a major impact, and particularly it's the impacts on social justice in my portfolio, rather than on my budget itself in terms of the outcomes from that agreement. And I think what is important about…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Well, the third sector, of course, nationally, regionally and locally—. Local organisations, as you know, Chair and colleagues, are very much dependent on local sources of funding, not just local authorities and health boards, but their own income generation…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Diolch yn fawr, Sioned. Of course, the third sector is critical to the lifeblood of Wales in terms of delivering services directly themselves, but also, as you say, in relation to supporting statutory services, and hasn't this come out so strongly and vividly…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you very much, Jane. It's interesting, because in some ways these are questions for the Minister for Finance and Local Government, because, clearly, Ministers have to ensure that they are using the strategic integrated impact assessment in terms of…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
I recall being back there, in fact, in former ministerial roles. Getting this right has taken time. We were the first to do it, the first country to do it. So, moving on from that very lengthy—. It was then, I remember, considered to be just, 'Are we sort of…
24 January 2022 , Equality and Social Justice Committee
Draft Budget 2022-23: Scrutiny session with the Minister for Social Justice
Thank you very much, Chair, and thank you very much for this invitation to come to this budget scrutiny. Of course, for social justice, it is absolutely crucial that we look at the impacts of all spending decisions in terms of this draft budget across the…
19 January 2022 , Plenary
Plaid Cymru Debate: The cost of living
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. As National Energy Action has clearly stated, the UK Government has the powers and fiscal resources to address these issues, but we will do what we can with our powers and policies here in Wales to support this motion and take this…
19 January 2022 , Plenary
Plaid Cymru Debate: The cost of living
I thank Members for identifying the role local authorities can and do play. They are crucial to help us in these action plans that we can take here in Wales, not just the Welsh Government, but working with local government and the third sector as well…
19 January 2022 , Plenary
Plaid Cymru Debate: The cost of living
Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to thank Plaid Cymru for bringing this important debate today. It's absolutely topical currently and a really important debate as we take action as a Government to tackle the cost-of-living crisis, which is so seriously adversely…
18 January 2022 , Plenary
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
But today we are considering those clauses that have been assessed by the Welsh Government as impacting upon devolved matters, and it is an impact on devolved matters that are, we believe, within the competence of the Senedd. We do recognise that with many of…
18 January 2022 , Plenary
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Diolch, Llywydd, and can I thank all Members for their very powerful contributions to this debate? Can I start, though, by thanking the Chair of the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee for your reports and your members' consideration of this…
18 January 2022 , Plenary
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Diolch, Llywydd. I am bringing forward today two legislative consent motions for the UK's Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill for your consideration. The Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill is a complex and controversial piece of legislation. The…
12 January 2022 , Plenary
Short Debate: Deaf People Wales: Hidden Inequality
Last December we marked the international day of disabled people's rights, and I made a statement then, highlighting how the COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on disabled people, which has exasperated existing inequalities. This debate goes…
