National Assembly for Wales

The Welsh Government stands in solidarity with the people of Palestine, and remains steadfast in our calls for a peaceful and lasting two-state solution.

We promote ethical and responsible public sector procurement through Welsh Procurement Policy Note 015. Any organisations in receipt of public funding are expected to sign up to the Code of practice on ethical employment in addition to requirements to comply with all applicable domestic or international laws, regulations and official directives.

Enforcing formal legal sanctions, embargoes and restrictions are the responsibility of the UK Government.

The UK Government’s ‘Youth Matters: Your National Youth Strategy’ includes a number of funding commitments across a wide range of interventions aimed at supporting young people. These interventions are being funded from within existing UK departmental budgets which will not lead to additional Barnett consequentials for the Welsh Government.

The Welsh Government recognises the creative industries as a key driver of growth, innovation and opportunity in the Welsh economy. We are pleased to see the UK Government’s focus on the creative industries in its industrial strategy through the Creative Industries Sector Plan. However, further action is needed to ensure the benefits of this strategy are being fully realised in Wales. We will therefore be working with the UK Government to reset the relationship to ensure this strategy meets the needs of the sector in Wales and is delivered in line with the devolution settlement.

As stated in our pre-election manifesto, this government is committed to building on existing public support for journalism in Wales, including the previous Public Interest Journalism Fund and dedicated Senedd reporter post.  We will also continue to explore options for sustainable long-term funding mechanisms for the sector as well as training pathways and professional protection for journalists, details of which will be announced in due course.

Funded programmes across Government will be reviewed in as part of the budgetary planning process by the current Welsh Government.

This is a new Government with a clear mandate and ambitious priorities for the people of Wales. We came into office with a detailed programme for government and we are committed to delivering it.

As part of the budgetary process, we are now carefully reviewing both the level of funding required and how it can be targeted most effectively, to ensure every pound delivers the greatest possible benefit for the people of Wales.

These are early days for this Government, and we are working at pace. We will set out our approach to funding our priorities in due course, and we are committed to doing so in a transparent and responsible way.

Our 100-day plan includes the commitment to commission an audit of facilities, and I am currently considering options for that and will update Members as soon as I am able.

The UK Government’s package to restore national pride is being funded from within existing UK departmental budgets which will not lead to additional Barnett consequentials for the Welsh Government. The Arts Everywhere Fund is an England only fund and therefore cultural organisations in Wales will not benefit from this funding.

The Welsh Government recognises the important contribution that speech and language therapists make in supporting people of all ages and is taking forward a range of actions to support and develop this workforce.

Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW), as the statutory body responsible for education and workforce planning, leads the commissioning of training places through its annual Education and Training Commissioning Plan. This is developed in partnership with NHS organisations and informed by workforce planning data, taking account of service need, education capacity, placement availability and funding.

While training places have increased in recent years, a lower number of places has been commissioned for 2026–27. This measured approach ensures priority programmes are sustained and provides a one-year stabilising position while the Welsh Government and HEIW undertake detailed scenario modelling and develop a strengthened, longer-term workforce planning and commissioning model. We have been clear that NHS Wales needs a long-term workforce strategy, and we will publish this in the autumn.

There are two speech and language therapy degree programmes in Wales, including provision which supports the development of Welsh-speaking therapists and improved access to services through the medium of Welsh.

The Welsh Government also provides core funding to HEIW to support wider workforce priorities, including improving retention, wellbeing and workforce planning across allied health professions.

We remain committed to working with partners to ensure the speech and language therapy workforce is sustainable and aligned to service need.

The Welsh Government recognises the important role occupational therapists play within primary and community care, supporting prevention, rehabilitation and independent living.

Investment in the occupational therapy workforce is primarily delivered through our national education and training commissioning arrangements. Each year, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) provide advice to Welsh Ministers on the number of training places required across all professions, including occupational therapy, based on service need and workforce plans submitted by NHS organisations. This ensures commissioning decisions align with our ambition to strengthen primary and community care services, with an increasing focus on prevention, early intervention and care delivered closer to home.

These arrangements also underpin how we build and maintain an accurate picture of the occupational therapy workforce. Workforce plans submitted by NHS organisations, alongside wider service and population needs, inform HEIW’s advice and ensure that commissioning decisions are evidence-based and responsive to demand across primary and community services.

In recent years, we have supported growth in the occupational therapy workforce through sustained commissioning of training places. For 2026–27, there has been a reduction in commissioned training numbers. This reflects a planned, one‑year stabilising position following earlier expansion and is based on careful assessment of workforce demand, training capacity and placement availability. It is important that we balance supply with the system’s ability to train and employ graduates effectively.

As with all areas of public service, these decisions are taken within the context of the overall resources available, and we must ensure that investment in education and training is targeted where it will have the greatest impact in supporting service delivery.

Through this approach, we continue to support a sustainable pipeline of occupational therapists, with commissioning decisions reflecting the increasing need for rehabilitation, reablement and early intervention services delivered closer to home.

We will continue to keep both the workforce evidence base and commissioning levels under regular review, working with HEIW, NHS Wales and partners to ensure the occupational therapy workforce is appropriately sized and well positioned to support primary care and community services. We have been clear that NHS Wales needs a long-term workforce strategy, and we will publish this in the autumn.

The Welsh Government recognises the important role occupational therapists play within primary and community care, supporting prevention, rehabilitation and independent living.

Investment in the occupational therapy workforce is primarily delivered through our national education and training commissioning arrangements. Each year, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) provide advice to Welsh Ministers on the number of training places required across all professions, including occupational therapy, based on service need and workforce plans submitted by NHS organisations. This ensures commissioning decisions align with our ambition to strengthen primary and community care services, with an increasing focus on prevention, early intervention and care delivered closer to home.

These arrangements also underpin how we build and maintain an accurate picture of the occupational therapy workforce. Workforce plans submitted by NHS organisations, alongside wider service and population needs, inform HEIW’s advice and ensure that commissioning decisions are evidence-based and responsive to demand across primary and community services.

In recent years, we have supported growth in the occupational therapy workforce through sustained commissioning of training places. For 2026–27, there has been a reduction in commissioned training numbers. This reflects a planned, one‑year stabilising position following earlier expansion and is based on careful assessment of workforce demand, training capacity and placement availability. It is important that we balance supply with the system’s ability to train and employ graduates effectively.

As with all areas of public service, these decisions are taken within the context of the overall resources available, and we must ensure that investment in education and training is targeted where it will have the greatest impact in supporting service delivery.

Through this approach, we continue to support a sustainable pipeline of occupational therapists, with commissioning decisions reflecting the increasing need for rehabilitation, reablement and early intervention services delivered closer to home.

We will continue to keep both the workforce evidence base and commissioning levels under regular review, working with HEIW, NHS Wales and partners to ensure the occupational therapy workforce is appropriately sized and well positioned to support primary care and community services. We have been clear that NHS Wales needs a long-term workforce strategy, and we will publish this in the autumn.

The Welsh Government is taking steps to ensure that Help is at Hand Cymru is accessible to people bereaved by suicide with a digital version made available on the Suicide and Self-harm Programme (SSHP) website. 

To enhance accessibility, a short, bilingual “What Happens Next?” information and support booklet which is based on Help is at Hand Cymru has been developed. The booklet has been co-produced with stakeholders and individuals with lived experience, ensuring that the information is both relevant and sensitive to the needs of those affected.

The booklet is scheduled for printing in spring 2026 and will be widely disseminated through key touchpoint agencies and third sector organisations, including the police, coroner’s offices, mortuaries, funeral directors, and bereavement support services. This approach is intended to ensure that timely and appropriate information is made available to individuals at the earliest stages following a bereavement.

I recognise some smokers use vape products to help them to quit smoking. However, as many vapes contain nicotine, which is very addictive, and because the long-term impact of vapes use are still emerging, these products are not-risk free. I am also very concerned by increases in the number of young people using vapes in Wales and the impact these products are having on their health and wellbeing. I am therefore currently considering my approach to implementing the measures in the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026, including the most appropriate ways to prevent vape products from being made appealing to young people, but also their role in our smoking cessation system, Help Me Quit (HMQ).

As accessing NHS support increases smokers’ chances of success by up to 300% compared to going it alone, our HMQ service offers a range of services for smokers. This includes tailored support during pregnancy, for those who are hospital inpatients as well as in the community and includes free Nicotine Replacement Therapy. In relation to vapes, although the number of people using vapes in Wales has increased in recent years, many now want help to quit. To support these individuals, HMQ has recently been expanded to include vaping cessation support which is available to young people over 12 years old and includes online tools as well as the ability to speak to an adviser for support.

The Welsh Government is committed to supporting our social care workforce in Wales.

As a government we have committed to social partnership with trade unions, employers and government to guide solutions to complex challenges.

We have committed to ensuring that the Real Living Wage is paid as a minimum to social care workers in Wales. An evaluation published in Autumn last year suggested 84% of the workforce are currently receiving the Real Living Wage and we will ensure that we target the 16% who aren’t. As well as introducing more stringent monitoring mechanisms, we will use the review of the National Commissioning Framework to strengthen this commitment.

A number of areas are currently under consideration, including the recently published voluntary Pay and Progression Framework, proposals relating to a Social Care Negotiating Body for Wales where evidence and stakeholder feedback are being reviewed to help inform possible next steps.

In addition, we are now considering the next iteration of the Social Care Workforce Delivery Plan to ensure that its priorities and actions remain the right focus for the social care workforce in Wales. This will include aligning the Delivery Plan with the emerging priorities of our new Welsh government.

A range of wider activity is in place to support the workforce, including support for overseas workers, and initiatives focused on recruitment, retention, skills development and career progression.

In addition, we want to support and promote innovation across the sector, particularly in how the workforce is planned and delivered. This includes supporting and expanding social enterprise and co‑operative models of care, which can provide more flexible and community‑based approaches.

Some smaller, community-based providers offer personalised care in ways that enable flexibility and responsiveness to people’s needs. We are working closely with stakeholders to ensure that these approaches continue to provide safe, high-quality care, while supporting innovation in how services are delivered.

Personal assistants also play a vital role in this landscape, providing direct, person‑centred support that enables people to have greater choice and control over their care.

Taken together, this work is helping to build a broader understanding of how best to support a stable, skilled and valued social care workforce in Wales, while informing future priorities.

We will work with Social Care Wales, local authorities and other partners to review the challenges facing the social worker workforce, including issues of pay, recruitment and retention.

We will use the range of work undertaken across the sector to explore greater consistency in pay and conditions, including work led by the Welsh Local Government Association and the All-Wales Pledge on agency social workers, which harmonised pay rates aimed at reducing movement from permanent to agency roles, and improving stability.

Alongside this, developments such as the voluntary Pay and Progression Framework are helping to build the evidence base on how more consistent pay levels and career structures can be supported over time. While currently focused on part of the social care workforce, there is an ambition for this work to evolve to include social workers.

This collective work provides a foundation, and as a new government we will use it to inform our future considerations on workforce policy, including approaches to pay.

I have discussed the current situation with the Chair of the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. This is a dispute between the health board and Unite that relates to a series of decisions over several years. I have urged both parties to get back round the table to find a solution to the ongoing dispute in line with the principles of social partnership.

NHS Wales Employers is co-ordinating an expert group to develop a range of job descriptions and Unite has been invited to take part. This is important national work - the new job descriptions will be available to all NHS organisations, and will help them to design, plan and staff services to meet the needs of their local population going forward.

I have discussed the current situation with the Chair of the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. This is a dispute between the health board and Unite that relates to a series of decisions over several years. I have urged both parties to get back round the table to find a solution to the ongoing dispute in line with the principles of social partnership.

NHS Wales Employers is co-ordinating an expert group to develop a range of job descriptions and Unite has been invited to take part. This is important national work - the new job descriptions will be available to all NHS organisations, and will help them to design, plan and staff services to meet the needs of their local population going forward.

I have discussed the current situation with the Chair of the Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board. This is a dispute between the health board and Unite that relates to a series of decisions over several years. I have urged both parties to get back round the table to find a solution to the ongoing dispute in line with the principles of social partnership.

NHS Wales Employers is co-ordinating an expert group to develop a range of job descriptions and Unite has been invited to take part. This is important national work - the new job descriptions will be available to all NHS organisations, and will help them to design, plan and staff services to meet the needs of their local population going forward.

Responsibility for maternity services and perinatal services sits with the Deputy Minister for Social Care, Mental Health and Women’s Health. There is no designated responsibility for the wellbeing and health support for fathers and partners, this would depend on the support required, as this could be provided by primary care, mental health or public and preventative health services.

The Deputy Minister for Transport has written to the Secretary of State for Transport to raise the issue of HS2 funding. The matter will also be raised with the UK Government through intergovernmental engagement. We have made clear that Wales is not receiving its fair share, particularly given the continued classification of HS2 as an “England and Wales” project.

This remains a key issue in our engagement with UK Government, and we are committed to pressing the UK Government to right this wrong and ensure Wales receives the funding it is owed.

The Welsh Government recognises the critical economic importance of the road haulage industry in Wales. I will progress the actions outlined in the Maritime & Logistics Plan and have asked officials to establish the new Maritime & Logistics Council for Wales as an immediate first step. I will also be welcoming representatives from the road haulage industry at introductory meetings over the coming weeks and look forward to developing effective working relationships with the logistics sector in Wales. These actions sit alongside this Government’s priority work on options for the Menai Straits crossings and the M4 around Brynglas - both critical points on our strategic road network and vital for resilient and reliable freight movements.

The implementation of sanctions is a reserved matter and the responsibility of UKG. 

The UK Government has not eased sanctions on imports of diesel and jet fuel made from Russian oil in third countries, rather it has paused the rate of implementation due to start in May. The stated purpose of this pause is to provide UK companies with greater flexibility when purchasing these products from global markets, due to recent supply disruption caused by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

We understand that the government now plans to "phase in” the ban in the coming months. The rules will be reviewed regularly and "will allow for the full ban to be phased in without causing instability" amid the fuel supply shock stemming from the Middle East conflict.

The UK Government has not provided an assessment as to the impact this will have on UK prices and supply. Given there is also uncertainty as to how long the general trade license will be in effect, it is not possible for the Welsh Government to make a detailed assessment as to the impacts of this policy on Welsh supply chains.

The availability and cost of jet fuel and diesel are essential to the operation of our economy and its supply chains. We will monitor the situation as it develops and engage with stakeholders to support market stability as far as is possible in this fast-evolving position.

The UK Government recently concluded its consultation on children’s use of social media, which considered a range of potential measures aimed at protecting young people's wellbeing and ensure safer online experiences.

We are committed to improving the mental health and well-being of young people and will be working across the Welsh Government to do that. However, any potential ban or restriction of social media use by children under 16 years old would be a reserved matter and is therefore a decision for the UK Government. The consultation has provided an opportunity for the UK Government to gather evidence and we await the outcome.

Whatever change looks like, it must be evidence-led and it should lead to genuine improvements for the mental health and wellbeing of our children and young people.

Our Manifesto set out our commitment to implement a new science-led, outcomes based and risk-proportionate approach to managing nitrate vulnerability across catchments – moving beyond the outdated ‘farming by calendar’ approach and supporting farmers to adopt new technologies and practices to reduce agricultural water pollution. We need to understand all our options and come to a sustainable solution that is outcome focused, delivering both flexibility for farmers and better environmental outcomes for our river and marine ecosystems.

I will commission a review of the bureaucratic burden on family farms within the first 100 days of government and I intend to make a statement on the leadership and scope of this review in due course.

The Welsh Government is committed to improving water quality across Wales and reducing sewage discharges through a stronger, system-wide approach. We will prioritise targeted investment in wastewater infrastructure and drainage systems, including action to address storm overflows where they cause the greatest environmental harm.

The development and implementation of local parking policies and strategies is the responsibility of local authorities and does not involve the Welsh Government.

I am committed to exploring every possible avenue to speed up fire safety remediation works. The Welsh Government will use all available levers to drive progress and ensure all parties deliver on their responsibilities to keep residents safe. Sections 116-124 of the Building Safety Act 2022 do not apply in Wales. The Building Safety (Wales) Act 2026 requires the Welsh Ministers to lay a draft of a Welsh statutory instrument pertaining to Remediation Orders and Remediation Contribution Orders before the Senedd within 9 months of the Act receiving Royal Assent.