, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
I understand there are often concerns when there are large infrastructure projects. I well remember the claims made when Gwynt y Môr was being developed by people in Llandudno claiming that visitors would stay away from the tourist destination, which has…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Engagement and consultation are central to the planning process, and opportunities for communities to express their views on energy schemes are integral to both the preparation of development plans and the determination of planning applications.
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Excellent. Mission accomplished, in that case. I don't know where to begin, really. First of all, there has been no imposition of 20 mph speed limits. The Senedd agreed by overwhelming majority at the beginning of the summer to change the default speed limit…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
I'm not sure how you put a sigh on the Record, Llywydd, but perhaps that—
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
I appreciate the Member will have written that down before she had a chance to listen to what I said and the challenge that I gave to her. I don't accept the premise of her point. The movement of goods and people is clearly critical. That is not currently…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Well, I'm not sure why this is such a complicated policy to grasp, really. We have all committed to meeting our climate change targets. Seventeen per cent of the emissions come from transport. Now, that means we need to take a different approach to transport…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Well, of course, we are taking action to reduce speed limits. All speeds on local roads will have a default speed limit of 20 mph from next September, with the ability for local authorities to provide for exceptions to keep it at 30 mph. And that, no doubt…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Thank you. As you know, the target of 86 million trees is the breakdown of what we need to plant to meet our carbon emission targets as set out by the UK Climate Change Committee, an independent body. We all sign up on a cross-party basis to achieving net…
, Plenary
Questions to the Minister for Climate Change
Diolch. Last year, we raised our ambition to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, and, ahead of COP26 last year, we published Net Zero Wales, our emissions reduction plan, which we are now working on implementing, and our current climate change adaptation…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Diolch.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
With respect, you could ask that about every single Bill. The reality is that we have got, I think, between us, something like 60 per cent of the Government's legislative programme in our department. There's a finite number of lawyers, there's a finite number…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Well, we can go through the answer that we've given you previously. There's no new information, really. We are developing it alongside all the other Bills that, no doubt, you're going to ask us about. We're working with the cross-party group to try and…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
I refer you to the answer that we gave some moments ago.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
There'll be some short answers too, I think.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
It is, because we were hiding the embarrassment of the UK Government, where its voucher top-up scheme was not sufficient to meet the extra connectivity costs in Wales, so we stepped in and plugged that gap. We can't keep doing that. We don't have the money to…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Well, let me tell you, as Julie James told you a hundred times when she was the Minister responsible, and I think you'd expect me to say it: telecommunications is not a devolved responsibility. And I think that's quite a relevant thing we keep losing sight…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
It depends what you define as a 'user'. It was designed, as I say, as a recommendation of the infrastructure commission, on the structural barriers to gaining better connectivity. I don't think an 'end user' is a particularly useful perspective to include…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
The barrier-busting taskforce was a recommendation of the National Infrastructure Commission for Wales, and it's been working diligently—I don't think it's quite as exciting as its title suggests—and its report is imminent to be finalised, I think later this…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Well, gusto is coming around the corner, Janet. For the winter planting season, we will have 25 regional hubs, and we'll look to scale this where the demand is there. And it's excellent that you're showing that there is more demand than there was supply in…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Well, to be fair, it was a soft launch to begin modestly.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
I'm sure you've read the deep-dive recommendations, Janet, and they cover the whole spectrum of these things. So, for example, we're giving every family who wants one a free tree. We started that earlier this year, and we'll be rolling it out further later in…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
I think I can add to it briefly, if you wish me to.
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
That's a relief. [Laughter.]
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
As part of the deep dive—just to remind you, the purpose of that was to look at why we've been so colossally bad at hitting our tree-planting targets and what was getting in the way and how you can overcome those barriers—one of the things we looked at is how…
, Climate Change, Environment, and Infrastructure Committee
Scrutiny of the Minister and Deputy Minister for Climate Change - session 2
Well, we certainly bought some land for the commemorative woodlands for COVID, and we are looking to buy land for the national forest, but I think the scale of this problem is being magnified by people who are resistant to the policy.
