, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Thank you to Buffy Williams, and I recognise that the leadership role she's played in her own community in responding both to the floods and to the worry about the moving tip has been extraordinarily helpful. I hope her constituents are now reassured that the…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Well, I'd like to echo Vikki's comments about the responsibilities of the UK Government, and this is not a party point. This has been a long-running legacy over generations where the UK as a whole benefited from the wealth of the communities across Wales, and…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
So, I think there are a number of very helpful and constructive points there. On the first on the availability of technical expertise, then Delyth Jewell is quite right, that is a challenge, and that's one of the reasons why we are supportive in principle of…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Well, thank you very much for that.
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Thank you for those comments and the constructive tone. I think that there is much that we can agree on and work together on. We will, of course, be responding in full to all the recommendations in the commission's report, as well as publishing our own White…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Our priority, Dirprwy Lywydd, is to ensure that people living and working near coal tips feel safe and secure now and in the future by reducing the risks of further landslides. I am able to inform the Senedd that we have made significant progress in the last…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Coal Tip Safety
Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. Thank you for the opportunity to update Members on the measures we are taking to improve the safety of coal tips. We have made significant progress in the last two years since the First Minister established a coal tip safety taskforce…
, Plenary
Short Debate: Supporting communities at continuous risk of flooding: Is it time to establish a flood forum for Wales?
I'd just like to set out how the Government is supporting communities at risk of flooding and whether we feel it's time to establish a flood forum for Wales. We have in place, through the flood strategy that was published in 2020, a comprehensive strategy…
, Plenary
Short Debate: Supporting communities at continuous risk of flooding: Is it time to establish a flood forum for Wales?
Well, thank you for the opportunity to reply to the debate.
, Plenary
Welsh Conservatives Debate: Food Security
You don't like it when somebody heckles you, do you?
, Plenary
Short Debate: Restoring our seaside towns to their former glory: A necessary task or an impossible ask?
Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd. I'm sorry I'm not in the Chamber with you; you sound like you're all having a very jolly time there. The way that we use towns and our reasons to visit them have changed and our town centres are adapting to a new set of demands. Past…
, Plenary
Debate on a Member's Legislative Proposal: Janet Finch-Saunders (Aberconwy)—Marine planning in Wales
And that's why we've put in place the first Welsh marine plan, which we will be reviewing in the autumn, and it will be reviewed every three years, and the Government will report on its finding to the Senedd. So, the Welsh Government already has extensive and…
, Plenary
Debate on a Member's Legislative Proposal: Janet Finch-Saunders (Aberconwy)—Marine planning in Wales
It's an important debate, and it's centred on the importance of planning for development, while protecting and restoring our marine environment. And the Government is very supportive of this sentiment, and, as noted by the committee, urgent action is needed…
, Plenary
Debate on a Member's Legislative Proposal: Janet Finch-Saunders (Aberconwy)—Marine planning in Wales
Thank you very much for the opportunity to respond to the debate this afternoon.
, Plenary
Point of Order
Well, I'd need to examine the register of interests to see what the relevant register is, and I'm still awaiting an apology from Janet Finch-Saunders for misleading the Chamber about myself. But if I have misled, I'd be happy to. She looks puzzled; I've…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
Yes, I think it's an area we need to do better at. I don't have the answers today. It's an area of vulnerability. As I said, Vaughan Gething and I held a joint session with officials on it not a month ago. I'd be happy to write to him and the cross-party…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
Well, thank you for the comments, and I thank him for taking on the role with the cross-party group. I think it's really important that there is a cross-party group, and it continues to hold the feet to the fire. One of the problems with this agenda is it's…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
Thank you. I think that's a very timely question. There is no doubt that we are seeing increased activity on the cyber-attack front. Certainly, as state actors, this is something the UK Government—and we work closely with them—is taking seriously and doing an…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
I agree with that. The digital divide is real. We saw it during the pandemic and it's a complex divide. It is about poverty, it's about access to equipment, it's about ability to afford a broadband connection, it's about digital and data poverty. That is no…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
Those were an excellent and fair set of questions, but I'm not a robot, so there's no way I can possibly answer all the detail in the time that's available to me. I'd be very happy to send a comprehensive reply to the Member, to work through those very fair…
, Plenary
Statement by the Deputy Minister for Climate Change: Update on Digital Strategy
Diolch, Dirprwy Lywydd, and now for something completely different. [Laughter.] A year ago, we published a new digital strategy for Wales, a strategy that sets out how we want to use digital and data in a better way to improve people’s lives and help…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, 2022-23 Programme of Investment
On the confusion of responsibilities, I think there is an issue here in that there are overlapping responsibilities and there isn't always clarity, and that is one of the things I think the section 19 review that we agreed with Plaid Cymru as part of the…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, 2022-23 Programme of Investment
Thank you. Yes, and we are aware of the report. We've seen the report and our technical team have been analysing it. It's a matter for the local authority, as the responsible body here, and I understand that Gwynedd are also considering the report, or have…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, 2022-23 Programme of Investment
Well, we are committed to implementing TAN 15, just to be clear about that. We have agreed to a delay of 18 months before it and the flood map for planning become operational because of concerns about the practical implementation by local authorities. And the…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Climate Change: Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, 2022-23 Programme of Investment
Well, as we've said, we've increased the level of funding for NRW, and how it is spent in detail is a matter for them and a matter for dialogue with us. I'm not able to say any more than that today, but clearly it is a key question, and I acknowledge that. I…
