, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
No, it's a fair point, Huw. I think we can—. I'm very happy to look again at whether the compensation system works effectively, but I do genuinely want to say: this is not about incentivising or fining TfW to do better, we have much better ways to do that…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Yes, yes, for sure.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
I'm happy to look at it again in terms of whether the amount of time is right. But I just want to be really clear. This isn't about incentivising TfW by fining them to do a better job. This is genuinely about compensating the passenger who's had a very bad…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
I guess, Janet, we could have a look at whether the 15 minutes is the most appropriate. I'm certainly happy, if the committee wants us to, to have a look at that. I will say, though, I've also watched James Price’s evidence to the committee. I do just want to…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
We hold their feet to the fire about that all the time. Even there it’s not as straightforward as you’d like. We have this conversation all the time. If you’re letting franchises for coffee shops and so on on the lines and so on, they can get the biggest…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
So, as Peter's already said, Luke, what we've got to do is try and recalibrate it. We've got to try and redo the forecast based on what we now know about passenger numbers, and, indeed, what we now know about capital costs. We spend a lot of time trying to…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Yes, okay. So, there are some quite complicated things going on there. Some of it is reprofiling, as we call it. So, we're moving schemes; we're not stopping them, we're moving them into future years. We're doing that, usually, not because the money isn't—…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
So, the budget’s, obviously, been an exceptionally difficult set of circumstances. For rail in particular, this has been an issue ever since the pandemic hit. So, the current budget difficulty is not the first time that rail has been involved in this. In…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
The last thing I'll say on that as well, though, is that it was clear from, if you remember, last summer—or was it the summer before; my time sense is terrible?—as there were two or three big events in Cardiff, one after the other. That's awful, because then…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
There are a couple of things that I'd just say as an overarching thing. Peter can talk about some of the very specific things. So, there are three things with major events. So, first of all, the stadium in Cardiff is in the middle of the city, which brings…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Over the next month to three months, we've got a whole series of plans for rolling out the rolling stock—forgive me for the pun—and for some other timetable improvements. So, there are specific ones, which Peter can go through, if you like, and then we'll be…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
You're absolutely right, Luke. As Peter said, this is sort of peak disruption. I absolutely understand your cynicism on that, but we have to hold our nerve, because we have to get the rolling stock to come out of the factories and onto the lines, we have to…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
There's a bit more to it than that as well, I think, which I'd really like the committee to understand. Passenger numbers are recovering on the railway, but they're recovering in a different pattern. So, we are going to have to look quite comprehensively at…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
We spend an enormous amount of time with TfW. I'm going to let Peter tell you about the internal discussions, but as part of my management team, we also get the head of TfW and the head of Natural Resources Wales to actually come to the management team so…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Just on that as well, Janet, there have been a series of issues that will make people cynical. So it is, as Peter says, about the storytelling, but it is about how you get the storytelling across that doesn't make people cynical. The new trains, for example…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Thank you, Janet. I think this is what sounds like an easy question disguising quite a complicated set of circumstances, which started from the way that we took over the rail franchise in the first place, followed shortly after by the pandemic and then the…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Transport scrutiny with the Minister for Climate Change
Bore da. It's very nice to be here, Cadeirydd. I've got with me Peter McDonald, who is the director of transport—I think that's your official title. Do you want to introduce yourself, Ruth? I've forgotten your title—apologies.
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
I couldn't agree more, Carolyn. And thank you very much for delivering the cards. I've had a read of them and they're very interesting. I was delighted to pick them up. The one that most struck me was one from a 10-year-old that said, 'Dear Minister, please…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
I do absolutely share your disappointment, Llyr. The idea that it's more important to shore up the kind of nonsense that we've got going on in the UK Parliament than it is to have a voice at the table of one of the existential crises—well, the existential…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
Yes, thank you, Jenny. So, there are a couple of issues there. On the house building point, there are two points there. The UK Government still insists on charging VAT on house renovations, including renovations to decarbonise, whereas new build doesn’t have…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
Yes, diolch, Delyth, a wealth of things to just run through there. So, just on 2035, we've got the working group working very effectively. It's a very interesting group of people who are giving their time to us because they very much care about this…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
Well, thank you, Janet. So, basically, just to summarise: you want to carry on mining coal; you don't like trees; you don't want a just transition, but you'd like us to go faster. I mean, dear me, where to start with that? I don't know if you know this, but…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
'positive steps have been taken in Wales, with a welcome focus from ministers on skills, jobs and public engagement for the Net Zero transition.' In line with the decade of action I have been advocating since we published our current decarbonisation plan, Net…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Climate Change
Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. When we published our programme for government in 2021, we said that we would embed the climate and nature emergencies in everything we do, and we would build a stronger, greener economy as we make maximum progress towards…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Water Quality
Yes, that's a very good point, actually, Carolyn. I'm very happy to make it clear whose responsibility what is. One of the things our colleague Joyce Watson always brings up is the paving over of front gardens, for example. You need planning consent for that…
