, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
Oh, sorry. Yes. Des is here for—
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
No, no, no. I'm happy to do it whichever way—.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
I'm so sorry. I was told we were doing it the other way around.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
Chair, sorry, can I make sure—? This is the—. Are we starting with the Ireland relationship?
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
Joining me for the first session, we have Des Clifford, director of the office of the First Minister, and Paula Walsh, deputy director for international relations.
, Culture, Communications, Welsh Language, Sport, and International Relations Committee
Welsh Government international relations: scrutiny of the First Minister
Thank you very much, Chair.
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, I thank Jenny Rathbone for that, and congratulate St Teilo's on the decision that they have made. I wonder if I could just make this one point before replying to the substance of the supplementary question: my belief is that those schools that make…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Llywydd, our school essentials grant has made a real difference to many lower income families across Wales, helping to reduce the worry surrounding the purchase of school uniform and equipment. Funding of £13.6 million has been made available for this grant…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, I certainly do join with Paul Davies in congratulating all of those who have been involved in establishing Megan's Starr Foundation, and I congratulate them because they've obtained nearly £100,000 from the National Lottery community fund. I'm…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
I thank Paul Davies, Llywydd. Our third sector support grant provides core funding to the Wales Council for Voluntary Action and county voluntary councils across Wales to provide an infrastructure for small, community-based charities. In 2023-24, we are…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, I can tell Siân Gwenllian, I had an opportunity yesterday to discuss this issue with the Minister, and I know that the Minister wants to find solutions to these problems. As Siân Gwenllian has said, there are contractors on the ground who are…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
I thank Siân Gwenllian. Llywydd, independent advice secured by the Welsh Government has confirmed that the system placed in some properties in Arfon is inappropriate, and has noted some cases of poor work. Officials have had discussions with contractors, and…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, first of all, I thank Joel James for highlighting the success of the programme. If I can explain the current situation, I think he will find that he does not need to be as pessimistic about its future as he may have implied. This was, indeed, a…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
I thank Joel James for that question, Llywydd. SEREN is the all-Wales NHS educational programme for children and young people newly diagnosed with type 1 diabetes. This all-Wales collaboration has been an enormous success, with the programme achieving…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, first of all, on the point that the Member made about the shameful denial of democratic rights to people, what is really shameful about this is that it is mounted entirely in the self-interest of one political party. It's nothing to do with…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
—people being refused their democratic right to participate in an election. That is what we saw happening in England last week, and we will not collude in that happening here in Wales.
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, I have confidence in the system we have and in the people who run it, that the system is already secure. There was not a single prosecution for voter impersonation last year. [Interruption.] I think it does—. The Member tells me that it doesn't…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
I thank Sarah Murphy for that very important supplementary question, Llywydd. There is no doubt at all that people in local elections in England last week who turned up to cast their votes at a polling station were unable to vote. The chair of the Electoral…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Our programme for government includes a commitment to reforming local elections to reduce the democratic deficit. In addition to our recent White Paper on modernising electoral administration, we are sponsoring innovative projects to remove barriers and…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Llywydd, I'm simply not going to get drawn into the shrill and deliberately divisive debate that the Member continuously attempts to raise on the floor of this Senedd. Did she not see that her party lost over 1,000 seats in the elections in England last week?…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
The action plan follows terminology consistently adopted in Welsh Government publications and those used in the Office for National Statistics census dictionary. The plan acknowledges the importance of understanding how people refer to themselves and does not…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, first of all, Llywydd, to repeat what I said: if the Member has concerns about the decision reached by NHS Counter Fraud Service Wales, he must take up those concerns with them. I am not responsible for them, nor should I be, and I cannot be expected to…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, let me deal with the first point first. I have not seen the report and there is a good reason for that. When the report was submitted to the Welsh Government, there were already accusations in circulation—they were repeated again at the PAPAC…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, the leader of Plaid Cymru has the advantage over me, because I've not seen the report. I'm very surprised indeed that he is able to quote from it this afternoon, given that the board has not published the report either. So, any insights that he…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Well, Llywydd, the purpose of the new system was to move away from what had become, or was certainly perceived, in many places, to be an adversarial set of relationships, in which parents felt that they had to fight and fight to get the additional help that…
