Y Cyfarfod Llawn
Plenary
10/01/2023Cynnwys
Contents
Yn y fersiwn ddwyieithog, mae’r golofn chwith yn cynnwys yr iaith a lefarwyd yn y cyfarfod. Mae’r golofn dde yn cynnwys cyfieithiad o’r areithiau hynny.
In the bilingual version, the left-hand column includes the language used during the meeting. The right-hand column includes a translation of those speeches.
Cyfarfu'r Senedd yn y Siambr a thrwy gynhadledd fideo am 13:30 gyda'r Llywydd (Elin Jones) yn y Gadair.
The Senedd met in the Chamber and by video-conference at 13:30 with the Llywydd (Elin Jones) in the Chair.
Prynhawn da i chi i gyd a blwyddyn newydd dda i bawb.
Good afternoon to you all and a very happy new year.
A happy new year to you all.
Blwyddyn newydd dda i chi gyd.
Yr eitem gyntaf ar ein hagenda ni y prynhawn yma, yn 2023, a'r cyfarfod cyntaf, yw'r cwestiynau i'r Prif Weinidog, ac mae'r cwestiwn cyntaf yn 2023 gan Peter Fox.
The first item on our agenda this afternoon, in 2023, and in the first meeting, is questions to the First Minister, and the first question in 2023 is from Peter Fox.
1. Pa gefnogaeth mae Llywodraeth Cymru'n ei rhoi i sefydliadau'r trydydd sector i'w helpu drwy'r argyfwng costau byw? OQ58917
1. What support is the Welsh Government providing to third sector organisations to help them through the cost-of-living crisis? OQ58917
Wel, Llywydd, blwyddyn newydd dda i chi a phawb hefyd.
Well, Llywydd, happy new year to you and to everyone else too.
I thank the Member for that question. Third sector organisations in Wales both provide vital help to others in the cost-of-living crisis and are directly affected by it themselves. We have increased funding to the sector on both counts, most often alongside our local authority partners.
Diolch i'r Aelod am y cwestiwn yna. Mae sefydliadau'r trydydd sector yng Nghymru yn darparu cymorth hanfodol i eraill yn yr argyfwng costau byw ac mae'n effeithio'n uniongyrchol arnyn nhw hefyd. Rydym wedi cynyddu cyllid i'r sector ar gyfer y ddau beth hyn, gan amlaf ochr yn ochr â'n partneriaid awdurdod lleol.
Diolch, Llywydd. And can I wish you, First Minister, and other Members here, a happy new year as well? Recently, a charity contacted me with their concerns about the impact that the cost-of-living crisis is having on their staff. They highlighted that their staff are of course highly skilled and provide a valuable service to people from across Wales. Many of these organisations also provide employment to people who were vulnerable, giving them an opportunity to become fully involved within their community. However, the charity noted that they are simply unable to provide additional financial support to their employees to help them through this difficult period. Despite increased Welsh Government funding, as you just referenced, First Minister, they've used the money to expand services rather than to help improve staff pay and conditions. There are, then, worries about the well-being of staff and their families, as well as staff retention rates, at a time when demand for third sector services are ever increasing. First Minister, I realise that there are numerous demands on Welsh Government resources at this time, but I wondered what discussions you have had with your colleagues and others about ensuring that planning boards fully consider their role in improving conditions for third sector staff when commissioning services. Thank you.
Diolch, Llywydd. Ac a gaf i ddymuno blwyddyn newydd dda i chi, Prif Weinidog, ac Aelodau eraill hefyd? Yn ddiweddar, cysylltodd elusen â mi gyda phryderon ynghylch yr effaith mae'r argyfwng costau byw yn ei gael ar ei staff. Fe wnaethon nhw dynnu sylw at y ffaith bod eu staff yn fedrus iawn wrth gwrs ac maen nhw'n darparu gwasanaeth gwerthfawr i bobl o bob rhan o Gymru. Mae llawer o'r sefydliadau hyn hefyd yn darparu cyflogaeth i bobl a oedd yn agored i niwed, gan roi cyfle iddyn nhw gymryd rhan lawn yn eu cymuned. Fodd bynnag, nododd yr elusen nad ydyn nhw'n gallu darparu cymorth ariannol ychwanegol i'w gweithwyr i'w helpu drwy'r cyfnod anodd hwn. Er gwaethaf y cynnydd yng nghyllid Llywodraeth Cymru, fel y cyfeirioch chi, Prif Weinidog, maen nhw wedi defnyddio'r arian i ehangu gwasanaethau yn hytrach nag i helpu i wella cyflogau ac amodau staff. Mae yna bryderon wedyn, am lesiant staff a'u teuluoedd, yn ogystal â chyfraddau cadw staff, ar adeg pan fo'r galw am wasanaethau'r trydydd sector yn cynyddu'n barhaus. Prif Weinidog, rwy'n sylweddoli bod galwadau niferus ar adnoddau Llywodraeth Cymru ar hyn o bryd, ond tybed pa drafodaethau yr ydych wedi eu cael gyda'ch cyd-Aelodau ac eraill ynghylch sicrhau bod byrddau cynllunio yn ystyried eu swyddogaeth yn llawn o ran gwella amodau i staff y trydydd sector wrth gomisiynu gwasanaethau. Diolch.
Llywydd, I recognise the dilemma that Peter Fox points to. I want to, as he did, pay tribute to the fantastic work that voluntary organisations and the third sector carry out here in Wales. And it's not a surprise to hear that many of those organisations, where there has been some extra funding available, want to put that into expanding the services that they provide, given the significance of those actions in local communities.
And working in the third sector should be properly rewarded; it shouldn't be that people feel because they're working in that sector that they themselves should not receive adequate remuneration. I'll make sure that we raise the point that the Member has made in the different forums that we have. I'm pleased to say, Llywydd, that the Cabinet committee on the cost of living that met every week in the autumn term had representation from the third sector on that committee—the Wales Council for Voluntary Action, the Child Poverty Action Group, Citizens Advice. We heard from them all over that period. So, the third sector has a voice right in the heart of the Welsh Government. But the pressures on the sector are absolutely real. Yesterday's announcement by the UK Government of the reduction in support for the third sector in energy costs will mean that there will be even further dilemmas for the sector to bear, and the Welsh Government cannot be the answer to every dilemma that every part of Welsh society faces.
Llywydd, rwy'n cydnabod y ddilema y mae Peter Fox yn cyfeirio ato. Rwyf i'n dymuno, fel y gwnaeth ef, dalu teyrnged i'r gwaith gwych y mae mudiadau gwirfoddol a'r trydydd sector yn ei wneud yma yng Nghymru. Ac nid yw'n syndod clywed bod llawer o'r sefydliadau hynny, pan oedd rhywfaint o gyllid ychwanegol ar gael, eisiau rhoi hwnnw i ehangu'r gwasanaethau y maen nhw'n eu darparu, o ystyried arwyddocâd y camau hynny mewn cymunedau lleol.
A dylai gweithio yn y trydydd sector gael ei wobrwyo'n iawn; ni ddylai pobl deimlo, oherwydd eu bod yn gweithio yn y sector hwnnw na ddylen nhw gael taliadau digonol eu hunain. Byddaf yn gwneud yn siŵr ein bod yn codi'r pwynt y mae'r Aelod wedi'i wneud yn y gwahanol fforymau sydd gennym. Rwy'n falch o ddweud, Llywydd, bod pwyllgor y Cabinet ar gostau byw a oedd yn cwrdd bob wythnos yn nhymor yr hydref wedi cael cynrychiolaeth o'r trydydd sector ar y pwyllgor hwnnw—Cyngor Gweithredu Gwirfoddol Cymru, y Grŵp Gweithredu ar Dlodi Plant, Cyngor ar Bopeth. Clywsom ganddyn nhw i gyd dros y cyfnod hwnnw. Felly, mae gan y trydydd sector lais yng nghanol Llywodraeth Cymru. Ond mae'r pwysau ar y sector yn sicr yn real. Bydd cyhoeddiad ddoe gan Lywodraeth y DU am y gostyngiad yn y gefnogaeth i'r trydydd sector mewn costau ynni yn golygu y bydd mwy o ddilema yn wynebu'r sector, ac ni all Llywodraeth Cymru fod yr ateb i bob dilema y mae pob rhan o gymdeithas Cymru yn ei wynebu.
First Minister, credit unions have a vital role to play in supporting people in our communities, a role that is of course all the more critical during the cost-of-living crisis. At the last meeting of the cross-party group on co-operatives and mutuals, we had a presentation on how credit unions have come together to develop their Moneyworks Wales scheme, aimed at helping employers to help their staff. I know Welsh Government is doing lots to support credit unions, as highlighted just last week, but how can it make sure that employers are aware of this initiative and encourage them to participate?
Prif Weinidog, mae gan undebau credyd ran hanfodol i'w chwarae wrth gefnogi pobl yn ein cymunedau, rhan sydd wrth gwrs yn fwy allweddol yn ystod yr argyfwng costau byw. Yng nghyfarfod olaf y grŵp trawsbleidiol ar fentrau cydweithredol a chydfuddiannol, cawsom gyflwyniad ynglŷn â sut mae undebau credyd wedi dod at ei gilydd i ddatblygu eu cynllun Moneyworks Wales, gyda'r nod o helpu cyflogwyr i helpu eu staff. Rwy'n gwybod bod Llywodraeth Cymru yn gwneud llawer i gefnogi undebau credyd, fel yr amlygwyd dim ond yr wythnos diwethaf, ond sut mae'n gallu sicrhau bod cyflogwyr yn ymwybodol o'r fenter hon a'u hannog nhw i gymryd rhan?
I thank Vikki Howells for that, Llywydd. It was very good last week to have an opportunity there, with three other ministerial colleagues, to highlight the work of the Cardiff and Vale credit union. There were other colleagues, I know, out on the same day drawing attention to the services that credit unions are now able to provide, and we know that, whenever credit unions find themselves in the news, or with additional publicity, then more members come forward to join. The Welsh Government provided support to the sector in the run-up to Christmas to make sure that its services were as well advertised as possible. And early results from that campaign suggest that 7,000 additional members were made for the credit union movement in the run-up to Christmas. So, looking around, Llywydd, I see three other Members who were members of the first-ever employer credit union in Wales, when South Glamorgan County Council established a credit union that worked through payroll deduction. And that's exactly the system that Vikki Howells is pointing to—the Moneyworks Wales campaign is a campaign to encourage employers across Wales to offer payroll deduction facilities to their employees, so that they can join credit unions in that way. I'm pleased to say that, as one of 13 different credit union projects, the Welsh Government will fund Moneyworks from April of this year so that they can go on encouraging as many employers as possible, in as many communities as possible, to make that way of becoming a member of a credit union available to people who work for them.
Diolch i Vikki Howells am hynna, Llywydd. Roedd yn dda iawn yr wythnos diwethaf cael cyfle yno, gyda thri chyd-Weinidog arall, i dynnu sylw at waith undeb credyd Caerdydd a'r Fro. Roedd cyd-Aelodau eraill, fe wn i, allan ar yr un diwrnod yn tynnu sylw at y gwasanaethau y mae undebau credyd bellach yn gallu eu darparu, ac rydym yn gwybod, pryd bynnag y bydd undebau credyd yn y newyddion, neu'n cael cyhoeddusrwydd ychwanegol, yna mae mwy o aelodau'n dod ymlaen i ymuno. Rhoddodd Llywodraeth Cymru gefnogaeth i'r sector yn y cyfnod cyn y Nadolig i wneud yn siŵr bod ei wasanaethau yn cael eu hysbysebu cystal â phosib. Ac mae canlyniadau cynnar yr ymgyrch honno'n awgrymu y cafwyd 7,000 o aelodau ychwanegol ar gyfer y mudiad undeb credyd yn y cyfnod cyn y Nadolig. O edrych o gwmpas, Llywydd, gwelaf dri Aelod arall a oedd yn aelodau o'r undeb credyd cyflogwyr cyntaf erioed yng Nghymru, pan sefydlodd Cyngor Sir De Morgannwg undeb credyd a oedd yn gweithio trwy ddidyniad o'r gyflogres. A dyna'r union system y mae Vikki Howells yn cyfeirio ati—mae'r ymgyrch Moneyworks Wales yn ymgyrch i annog cyflogwyr ledled Cymru i gynnig cyfleusterau didyniad o'r gyflogres i'w gweithwyr, fel y gallant ymuno ag undebau credyd yn y ffordd honno. Rwy'n falch o ddweud, fel un o 13 prosiect gwahanol undeb credyd, y bydd Llywodraeth Cymru'n ariannu Moneyworks o fis Ebrill eleni fel y gallant fynd ymlaen i annog cymaint o gyflogwyr â phosibl, mewn cymaint o gymunedau â phosibl, i sicrhau bod y ffordd honno o ddod yn aelod o undeb credyd ar gael i bobl sy'n gweithio iddyn nhw.
Good afternoon, First Minister.
Prynhawn da, Prif Weinidog.
2. Pa gamau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru'n eu cymryd i ddileu arosiadau aml-flwyddyn am driniaeth yn y GIG? OQ58907
2. What action is the Welsh Government taking to eliminate multi-year waits for NHS treatment? OQ58907
Good afternoon to Dr Hussain. Llywydd, in the six months following publication of the planned care recovery programme, long waits in the Welsh NHS have fallen by 23 per cent. That is the result of significant additional investment, expanded facilities, service reform and, most of all, the enormous effort of NHS staff themselves.
Prynhawn da Dr Hussain. Llywydd, yn y chwe mis ar ôl cyhoeddi'r rhaglen adfer ar gyfer gofal a gynlluniwyd, mae arosiadau hir yn GIG Cymru wedi gostwng 23 y cant. Mae hynny o ganlyniad i fuddsoddiad ychwanegol sylweddol, cyfleusterau estynedig, diwygio gwasanaethau ac, yn bennaf oll, ymdrech enfawr staff y GIG eu hunain.
Thank you very much, First Minister. Of course, we all acknowledge the tremendous stress our NHS is currently under, but multi-year waits have been around since well before the pandemic, especially in orthopaedics. One of my constituents has been waiting for a total knee replacement since 2019. He has been waiting in agony for three and a half years, and all the local health board can tell me is that the waiting list is over four years long and that the patient should see his GP to manage the pain. First Minister, do you agree with me that it is totally unacceptable that patients should wait that long, or that secondary care should be placing these additional burdens on an already over-stretched primary care sector? I remember raising similar questions during my first term in the Senedd, and yet, here we are nearly a decade later having the same old discussion about orthopaedics. First Minister, when will Welsh patients finally get the service they deserve?
Diolch yn fawr Prif Weinidog. Wrth gwrs, rydym i gyd yn cydnabod y straen aruthrol sydd ar ein GIG ar hyn o bryd, ond mae arosiadau aml-flwyddyn wedi bod o gwmpas ers ymhell cyn y pandemig, yn enwedig mewn orthopedeg. Mae un o fy etholwyr wedi bod yn aros am ben-glin newydd ers 2019. Mae wedi bod yn aros mewn poen dros dair blynedd a hanner, a'r cwbl y mae'r bwrdd iechyd lleol yn ei ddweud wrthyf i yw bod y rhestr aros dros bedair blynedd o hyd ac y dylai'r claf weld ei feddyg teulu er mwyn rheoli'r boen. Prif Weinidog, a ydych chi'n cytuno â mi ei bod yn gwbl annerbyniol i gleifion orfod aros mor hir â hynny, neu fod gofal eilaidd yn rhoi'r beichiau ychwanegol hyn ar sector gofal sylfaenol sydd eisoes wedi'i or-ymestyn? Rwy'n cofio codi cwestiynau tebyg yn ystod fy nhymor cyntaf yn y Senedd, ac eto, dyma ni bron i ddegawd yn ddiweddarach yn cael yr un hen drafodaeth am orthopedeg. Prif Weinidog, pryd fydd cleifion Cymru yn cael y gwasanaeth y maen nhw'n ei haeddu o'r diwedd?
Llywydd, I don't accept the general picture that the Member paints, of this being a condition that has always been a problem in the Welsh NHS. Waiting times in the Welsh NHS had been falling for four and five years in a row up until March of 2019 and beyond. It is the impact of the pandemic that has built up those lengthy waiting lists, in every part of the United Kingdom. As I said in my original answer, long waits, the longest waits in the Welsh NHS, fell by 23 per cent between the end of March and the end of October of last year, and that includes gains in orthopaedics, which is one of the most difficult specialities to see a way of resolving the backlog and increasing activity, because of the impact that COVID continues to have, in the way that operating theatres and other procedures are carried out in the Welsh NHS. Of course we want to see those waits brought down further, and, while people are waiting, I think there is a role for primary care clinicians in helping people to manage their conditions in the best way possible.
In Swansea Bay particularly, the Member will be aware that the health board is intending to concentrate planned orthopaedic care in the Neath Port Talbot Hospital, freeing up capacity at Morriston, retaining 10 beds in Morriston for the most complex cases, and, in doing so, to have dedicated beds that will allow even more procedures to be resumed as fast as possible.
Llywydd, nid wyf yn derbyn y darlun cyffredinol y mae'r Aelod yn ei bortreadu, sef bod hwn yn gyflwr sydd wastad wedi bod yn broblem yn GIG Cymru. Roedd amseroedd aros yn GIG Cymru wedi bod yn gostwng dros bedair a phum mlynedd yn olynol hyd at fis Mawrth 2019 a thu hwnt. Effaith y pandemig sydd wedi creu'r rhestrau aros hir hynny, ym mhob rhan o'r Deyrnas Unedig. Fel y dywedais yn fy ateb gwreiddiol, mae'r arosiadau hiraf, sef yr arosiadau hiraf yn y GIG yng Nghymru, wedi gostwng 23 y cant rhwng diwedd mis Mawrth a diwedd mis Hydref y llynedd, ac mae hynny'n cynnwys enillion ym maes orthopedeg, sef un o'r arbenigeddau anoddaf o ran gweld ffordd o ddatrys yr ôl-groniad a'r gweithgarwch cynyddol, oherwydd yr effaith mae COVID yn parhau i'w chael, yn y ffordd y caiff theatrau llawdriniaeth a gweithdrefnau eraill eu cynnal yn y GIG yng Nghymru. Wrth gwrs rydym eisiau gweld yr arosiadau hynny'n cael eu lleihau ymhellach, a thra bod pobl yn aros, rwy'n credu y gall clinigwyr gofal sylfaenol chwarae rhan yn helpu pobl i reoli eu cyflyrau yn y ffordd orau bosibl.
Ym Mae Abertawe yn enwedig, bydd yr Aelod yn ymwybodol bod y bwrdd iechyd yn bwriadu canolbwyntio gofal orthopedig arfaethedig yn Ysbyty Castell-nedd Port Talbot, gan ryddhau capasiti yn Nhreforys, cadw 10 gwely yn Nhreforys ar gyfer yr achosion mwyaf cymhleth, ac, wrth wneud hynny, cael gwelyau pwrpasol fydd yn caniatáu ailddechrau hyd yn oed mwy o driniaethau mor gyflym â phosib.
First Minister, do you agree with me that it takes some front for a Conservative to criticise the national health service? One of the issues we've seen over the last decade has been how austerity has ripped the heart out of our public services. Brexit ripped the heart out of our economy. What we need to do to celebrate the seventy-fifth anniversary of Aneurin Bevan establishing the national health service is to provide it with the sort of funds it requires in order to deliver for people today and in the future. That means that you need to be absolutely crystal clear in your next meeting with the Prime Minister: austerity has failed for a decade, it's not going to succeed in the next decade, and if we want to see the national health service succeeding as it has, and as Aneurin Bevan wanted it to do, then we need to invest in it for now and the future.
Prif Weinidog, ydych chi'n cytuno â mi ei bod hi'n cymryd tipyn o wyneb i Geidwadwr feirniadu'r gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol? Un o'r problemau yr ydym ni wedi'u gweld dros y degawd diwethaf yw sut mae cyni wedi rhwygo'r galon allan o'n gwasanaethau cyhoeddus. Fe rwygodd Brexit y galon allan o'n heconomi. Yr hyn sydd angen i ni ei wneud i ddathlu 75 mlynedd ers i Aneurin Bevan sefydlu'r gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol yw rhoi'r math o arian sydd ei angen arno er mwyn cyflawni ar gyfer pobl heddiw ac yn y dyfodol. Mae hynny'n golygu bod angen i chi fod yn gwbl glir yn eich cyfarfod nesaf gyda Phrif Weinidog y DU, bod cyni wedi methu ers degawd, nid yw'n mynd i lwyddo yn ystod y degawd nesaf, ac os ydym eisiau gweld y gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol yn llwyddo fel y mae wedi gwneud, ac fel yr oedd Aneurin Bevan yn dymuno iddo wneud, yna mae angen buddsoddi ynddo ar gyfer heddiw ac ar gyfer y dyfodol.
I thank Alun Davies for that question, Llywydd. He reminds us of how fiercely Aneurin Bevan was opposed by the Conservative Party at the time. There never would have been a national health service had that party had its way. Where he is certainly true is this: Llywydd, if you look at satisfaction levels with the national health service, they were at their height in the year 2010, and they've been at their lowest in recent months. Why is that? It's because, in 2010, there had been a decade of investment in our public services. The level of investment in our NHS had reached the level that was available in our European neighbours. A decade of austerity has eroded all of those gains. It lies at the root of the difficulties that we currently face—the difficulties we face with people feeling obliged to go on strike to express their dissatisfaction at the impact that pay held back over a decade has had on their lives, and we see it in the investment that has been available across the United Kingdom to keep that service in good order. I'll certainly make that point when I next see the Prime Minister, but it's a point we make more generally to people across the United Kingdom: this country needs a Government prepared to invest in the NHS and to repair the damage done by the last 12 years.
Diolch i Alun Davies am y cwestiwn yna, Llywydd. Mae'n ein hatgoffa ni o ba mor ffyrnig yr oedd y Blaid Geidwadol ar y pryd yn gwrthwynebu Aneurin Bevan. Ni fyddai gennym wasanaeth iechyd gwladol petai'r blaid honno wedi cael ei ffordd. Yr hyn sy'n sicr yn wir yn yr hyn a ddywed yw hyn: Llywydd, os edrychwch chi ar lefelau boddhad o ran y gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol, roedd y lefelau ar eu hanterth yn y flwyddyn 2010, ac maen nhw wedi bod ar eu hisaf yn ystod y misoedd diwethaf. Pam felly? Y rheswm am hynny, yn 2010, yw y bu degawd o fuddsoddiad yn ein gwasanaethau cyhoeddus. Roedd lefel y buddsoddiad yn ein GIG wedi cyrraedd y lefel oedd ar gael ymhlith ein cymdogion Ewropeaidd. Mae degawd o gyni wedi erydu'r holl enillion hynny. Mae hyn wrth wraidd yr anawsterau yr ydym yn eu hwynebu ar hyn o bryd—yr anawsterau yr ydym ni'n eu hwynebu gyda phobl yn teimlo rheidrwydd i fynd ar streic i fynegi eu hanfodlonrwydd ynghylch yr effaith y mae cyflog sydd wedi ei ddal yn ôl dros ddegawd wedi'i gael ar eu bywydau, ac rydym yn ei weld yn y buddsoddiad sydd wedi bod ar gael ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig i gadw'r gwasanaeth hwnnw mewn trefn dda. Byddaf yn sicr yn gwneud y pwynt hwnnw pan fyddaf yn gweld y Prif Weinidog nesaf, ond mae'n bwynt yr ydym ni'n ei wneud yn fwy cyffredinol i bobl ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig: mae angen Llywodraeth ar y wlad hon sy'n barod i fuddsoddi yn y GIG ac i atgyweirio'r difrod a wnaed gan y 12 mlynedd diwethaf.
Cwestiynau nawr gan arweinwyr y pleidiau. Arweinydd y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig, Andrew R.T. Davies.
Questions now from party leaders. The leader of the Welsh Conservatives, Andrew R.T. Davies.
Thank you, Presiding Officer. It is remarkable that the First Minister says that this country needs a Government to invest in the NHS when he and his colleagues voted to cut the NHS budget in 2011 and 2012. The record shows that you're the only politicians in this Chamber who have ever voted to cut the NHS budget, First Minister.
The other point of difference to other parts of the United Kingdom that has happened over the last week is you've brought forward a proposal and instructed the NHS to discharge patients without care plans and suitable provision within the community when they're discharged. Doctors and health professionals have said that patients could potentially die or come to serious harm. Do you agree with the doctors and health professionals on their assessment of your plans?
Diolch Llywydd. Mae'n rhyfeddol bod y Prif Weinidog yn dweud bod angen Llywodraeth ar y wlad hon i fuddsoddi yn y GIG pan bleidleisiodd ef a'i gyd-Aelodau i dorri cyllideb y GIG yn 2011 a 2012. Mae'r cofnod yn dangos mai chi yw'r unig wleidyddion yn y Siambr hon sydd erioed wedi pleidleisio o blaid torri cyllideb y GIG, Prif Weinidog.
Y pwynt arall o wahaniaeth rhwng rhannau eraill o'r Deyrnas Unedig sydd wedi digwydd dros yr wythnos diwethaf yw eich bod wedi cyflwyno cynnig ac wedi cyfarwyddo'r GIG i ryddhau cleifion heb gynlluniau gofal a darpariaeth addas o fewn y gymuned pan fyddan nhw'n cael eu rhyddhau. Mae meddygon a gweithwyr iechyd proffesiynol wedi dweud y gallai cleifion, o bosib, farw neu gael niwed difrifol. Ydych chi'n cytuno gyda'r meddygon a gweithwyr iechyd proffesiynol o ran eu hasesiad o'ch cynlluniau chi?
Llywydd, I completely reject the characterisation that the leader of the opposition has made, and he should know better. It is utterly irresponsible of him to misrepresent the advice not of the Welsh Government, but of the Deputy Chief Medical Officer for Wales and the Chief Nursing Officer for Wales. I have their letter in front of me and it does not in any way bear out the accusations that the leader of the opposition has just made. It refers throughout to safe discharge. But, what it does is to say to the system that the system has to attend to the balance of risk across all of those people for whom it seeks to provide care. We have people, as he well knows and often puts to me on the floor of the Senedd, who are struggling to get access to the front door of this system, often people with very significant needs. At the other end of the system, prior to Christmas, we had 1,200 patients in a health service bed in Wales who were medically fit to be discharged. Now, what the letter from the deputy chief medical officer and the Chief Nursing Officer for Wales does is to say to health boards that they have to balance those risks. If there are patients in a hospital bed waiting for tests to be done, they could be safely discharged and called back in when those tests are available. It may be that not every element of a care package is in place, but the care package that is there is safe enough to allow discharge to take place. Instead of a culture of perfection around discharge, and the culture of crisis at the front door of a hospital, the letter seeks to rebalance that and to do it in a clinically responsible way.
That was good advice to the health service in Wales; you will find parallel advice being prepared in other parts of the United Kingdom. I support what the chief nursing officer and the deputy chief medical officer have said to the service, and I think it will result in better care for many patients, who otherwise—with very critical needs—find themselves waiting too long to get access to the front door of a hospital.
Llywydd, rwy'n gwrthod yn llwyr y cymeriadu a wnaeth arweinydd yr wrthblaid, a dylai wybod yn well. Mae'n gwbl anghyfrifol yn camgyfleu'r cyngor, nid gan Lywodraeth Cymru, ond gan Ddirprwy Brif Swyddog Meddygol Cymru a Phrif Swyddog Nyrsio Cymru. Mae gennyf eu llythyr yma o fy mlaen i ac nid yw mewn unrhyw ffordd yn cadarnhau'r cyhuddiadau y mae arweinydd yr wrthblaid newydd eu gwneud. Mae'n cyfeirio drwyddo draw at ryddhau diogel. Ond, yr hyn y mae'n ei wneud yw dweud wrth y system bod yn rhaid i'r system ymdrin â'r cydbwysedd risg ar draws yr holl bobl hynny y mae'n ceisio darparu gofal ar eu cyfer. Mae gennym ni bobl, fel mae e'n gwybod yn iawn ac fel mae'n fy atgoffa i ar lawr y Senedd yn aml, sy'n ei chael hi'n anodd cael mynediad at ddrws ffrynt y system hon, yn aml, pobl ag anghenion sylweddol iawn. Ar ben arall y system, cyn y Nadolig, roedd gennym 1,200 o gleifion mewn gwelyau gwasanaeth iechyd yng Nghymru a oedd yn ddigon iach yn feddygol i gael eu rhyddhau. Nawr, yr hyn y mae llythyr y dirprwy brif swyddog meddygol a phrif swyddog nyrsio Cymru yn ei wneud yw dweud wrth y byrddau iechyd bod yn rhaid iddyn nhw gydbwyso'r risgiau hynny. Os oes cleifion mewn gwelyau ysbyty sy'n aros am brofion, gallent gael eu rhyddhau'n ddiogel a'u galw'n ôl i mewn pan fydd y profion hynny ar gael. Efallai nad yw pob elfen o becyn gofal yn ei le, ond mae'r pecyn gofal sydd yno'n ddigon diogel i ganiatáu rhyddhau cleifion. Yn hytrach na diwylliant o berffeithrwydd ynghylch rhyddhau, a diwylliant o argyfwng wrth ddrws ffrynt ysbyty, mae'r llythyr yn ceisio ailgydbwyso hynny a'i wneud mewn ffordd glinigol gyfrifol.
Roedd hwnnw'n gyngor da i'r gwasanaeth iechyd yng Nghymru; fe welwch gyngor cyfochrog yn cael ei baratoi mewn rhannau eraill o'r Deyrnas Unedig. Rwy'n cefnogi'r hyn y mae'r prif swyddog nyrsio a'r dirprwy brif swyddog meddygol wedi ei ddweud wrth y gwasanaeth, ac rwy'n credu y bydd yn arwain at well gofal i lawer o gleifion, sydd fel arall—ag anghenion critigol iawn—yn cael eu hunain yn aros yn rhy hir i gael mynediad at ddrws ffrynt ysbyty.
First Minister, I'm not misrepresenting anyone's advice. The British Medical Association, the Royal College of General Practitioners, the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, practitioners on the front line, week after week, day after day, last week, were coming out saying that this advice is bad advice, and ultimately it puts patients at harm. That's not me saying it. A quick Google on any of the computers that everyone's on in here today will find that on the news stories that accompanied this particular announcement. If you say it's misrepresenting, why didn't you have the health professionals in before this announcement was made, to give the security and assurance that they would require to back up the advice that your deputy chief medical officer and chief nursing officer put out there last week, rather than rushing out the advice and causing concern, causing worry, and causing distress?
Prif Weinidog, nid wyf yn camgyfleu cyngor unrhyw un. Roedd y Gymdeithas Feddygol Brydeinig, Coleg Brenhinol yr Ymarferwyr Cyffredinol, y Coleg Brenhinol Meddygaeth Frys, ymarferwyr ar y rheng flaen, wythnos ar ôl wythnos, ddydd ar ôl dydd, yr wythnos diwethaf, yn dweud mai cyngor gwael yw'r cyngor hwn, ac yn y pen draw mae'n rhoi cleifion mewn perygl o niwed. Nid fi sy'n dweud hyn. Byddai chwilio drwy Google yn gyflym ar unrhyw un o'r cyfrifiaduron y mae pawb yma heddiw yn eu defnyddio yn gweld hynny yn y straeon newyddion a oedd yn cyd-fynd â'r cyhoeddiad penodol hwn. Os ydych chi'n dweud ei fod yn camgyfleu, pam na chawsoch chi'r gweithwyr iechyd proffesiynol i mewn cyn i'r cyhoeddiad hwn gael ei wneud, er mwyn rhoi'r sicrwydd y byddai angen arnyn nhw i gefnogi'r cyngor a roddodd eich dirprwy brif swyddog meddygol a'ch prif swyddog nyrsio yr wythnos diwethaf, yn hytrach na rhuthro i roi'r cyngor ac achosi pryder, achosi poendod, ac achosi gofid?
Llywydd, the advice was not rushed out in any way; it was given out on 30 December. The 27 December was the single busiest day in the 75-year history of the Welsh NHS. On that single day, 550 patients were admitted to a bed in the Welsh NHS. Five per cent of the whole of the bed capacity of the NHS used in a single day, and still with ambulances having to wait to discharge patients into A&E departments and people having to wait for treatment when they arrived. The letter responded in a sober and responsible way to that set of circumstances, advising clinicians of how they could safely make arrangements for people who are medically fit to be discharged—1,200 people in a hospital bed for whom the health service had already completed everything that the health service was intending to provide to those patients. I simply do not think it can be responsible to characterise that advice in the way that the leader of the opposition has sought to do this afternoon.
Llywydd, ni frysiwyd y cyngor mewn unrhyw ffordd; cafodd ei gyhoeddi ar 30 Rhagfyr. 27 Rhagfyr oedd y diwrnod unigol prysuraf yn hanes 75 mlynedd y GIG yng Nghymru. Ar y diwrnod unigol hwnnw, cafodd 550 o gleifion eu derbyn i welyau yn y GIG yng Nghymru. Roedd pump y cant o gapasiti gwelyau'r GIG i gyd yn cael eu defnyddio mewn un diwrnod, gydag ambiwlansys yn dal yn gorfod aros i ryddhau cleifion i adrannau damweiniau ac achosion brys a phobl yn gorfod aros am driniaeth ar ôl cyrraedd. Ymatebodd y llythyr mewn ffordd sobr a chyfrifol i'r gyfres honno o amgylchiadau, gan gynghori clinigwyr ynghylch sut y gallent wneud trefniadau yn ddiogel ar gyfer pobl a oedd yn addas yn feddygol i gael eu rhyddhau—1,200 o bobl mewn gwelyau ysbyty pan oedd y gwasanaeth iechyd eisoes wedi cwblhau popeth yr oedd y gwasanaeth iechyd yn bwriadu ei ddarparu i'r cleifion hynny. Yn syml, nid wyf yn credu y gall fod yn gyfrifol i nodweddu'r cyngor hwnnw yn y ffordd y mae arweinydd yr wrthblaid wedi ceisio ei wneud y prynhawn yma.
I have merely taken the comments and quotes and observations of health professionals, First Minister. I haven't added any of my own words. As I said, the evidence is there for people to see. You say this evidence wasn't rushed out. Twenty-seventh of December to 30 December, that's 72 hours. A fundamental principle was changed in the discharge process, which was having care plans in place for people who were discharged. What people want to know is, can you give an assurance that when people are discharged there will be that help, that support, and that guidance, so that people don't end up being readmitted because the circumstances that they have been discharged into are not good enough for them to be looked after for the condition they went into hospital originally for? Because otherwise, you will be betraying their confidence in the ability of the health and social care system here in Wales to put them back on the road to recovery and ultimately security in life.
Nid wyf ond wedi cymryd sylwadau a dyfyniadau ac arsylwadau gweithwyr iechyd proffesiynol, Prif Weinidog. Nid wyf wedi ychwanegu dim o fy ngeiriau fy hun. Fel y dywedais i, mae'r dystiolaeth yno i bobl ei gweld. Rydych chi'n dweud na ruthrwyd y dystiolaeth hon. Y seithfed ar hugain o Ragfyr i'r degfed ar hugain o Ragfyr, dyna 72 awr. Newidiwyd egwyddor sylfaenol yn y broses ryddhau, sef cael cynlluniau gofal ar waith ar gyfer pobl a oedd yn cael eu rhyddhau. Yr hyn y mae pobl eisiau gwybod yw, a allwch chi roi sicrwydd, pan fydd pobl yn cael eu rhyddhau y bydd y cymorth hwnnw yno, y gefnogaeth honno, a'r arweiniad hwnnw, fel nad yw pobl yn cael eu haildderbyn yn y pen draw oherwydd nad yw'r amgylchiadau y maen nhw wedi'u rhyddhau i mewn iddyn nhw yn ddigon da i sicrhau gofal am y cyflwr yr aethant i'r ysbyty o'i herwydd yn y lle cyntaf? Oherwydd fel arall, byddwch yn bradychu eu hymddiriedaeth yng ngallu'r system iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol yma yng Nghymru i'w rhoi yn ôl ar y llwybr i adferiad ac yn y pen draw diogelwch mewn bywyd.
Llywydd, the advice deals directly with ensuring that people are not discharged in circumstances that would lead to their rapid readmission. It talks about people who are, for example, waiting for an assessment, and suggests that it is better that someone might wait for an assessment at home, rather than waiting in a hospital bed—a hospital bed that is then not available for someone who is not in a medically stable condition waiting for assessment, but is waiting to get in through the hospital door to receive the treatment that they need. The balance of risk is something that the health service deals with day in and day out, and always has.
What the letter did was to make sure that the clinicians knew that, in making those decisions, they had the support of their most senior colleagues in the service in Wales behind them in making those difficult decisions. There is nothing in the letter at all that suggests that anybody should be unsafely discharged, that anybody should be discharged in circumstances where it would be known that that person would need to seek readmission. It simply sought, in a responsible way, to respond to the circumstances of the health service by saying that people who could be safely looked after at home could be accelerated in that journey in order to make sure, in one of the most basic principles of the whole of the NHS, that those with the greatest need were able to get to the front of the queue.
Llywydd, mae'r cyngor yn ymdrin yn uniongyrchol â sicrhau nad yw pobl yn cael eu rhyddhau o dan amgylchiadau a fyddai'n arwain at eu haildderbyn yn gyflym. Mae'n siarad am bobl sydd, er enghraifft, yn aros am asesiad, ac yn awgrymu ei bod hi'n well i rywun aros am asesiad gartref, yn hytrach nag aros mewn gwely ysbyty—gwely ysbyty nad yw ar gael wedyn i rywun nad yw mewn cyflwr meddygol sefydlog yn aros am asesiad, ond sy'n aros i fynd i mewn drwy ddrws yr ysbyty i gael y driniaeth sydd ei hangen arno. Mae cydbwysedd risg yn rhywbeth y mae'r gwasanaeth iechyd yn ymdrin ag ef o ddydd i ddydd, ac wedi gwneud erioed.
Beth wnaeth y llythyr oedd sicrhau bod y clinigwyr yn gwybod bod ganddyn nhw, wrth wneud y penderfyniadau hynny, gefnogaeth eu cydweithwyr uchaf yn y gwasanaeth yng Nghymru wrth wneud y penderfyniadau anodd hynny. Nid oes dim yn y llythyr o gwbl sy'n awgrymu y dylai unrhyw un gael eu rhyddhau'n anniogel, y dylid rhyddhau unrhyw un mewn amgylchiadau lle byddai'n hysbys y byddai angen i'r person hwnnw geisio aildderbyniad. Yn syml, fe geisiodd, mewn ffordd gyfrifol, ymateb i amgylchiadau'r gwasanaeth iechyd drwy ddweud y gellid cyflymu taith y bobl y gellid gofalu amdanyn nhw yn ddiogel gartref er mwyn gwneud yn siŵr, fel un o egwyddorion mwyaf sylfaenol y GIG cyfan, bod y rhai sydd â'r angen mwyaf yn gallu mynd i flaen y ciw.
Cwestiynau nawr gan arweinydd Plaid Cymru, Adam Price.
Questions now from the leader of Plaid Cymru, Adam Price.
Diolch, Llywydd. On NHS pay, First Minister, we've estimated, based on figures that you've shared with us, that you could afford at least an additional 3 per cent extra pay award in this financial year. Now, I understand the health Minister has said that she does not recognise those figures, so can we assume that the pay award that you are intending to offer will be less than that figure? You said a month ago that there was no additional money available in this financial year, and now you've found it. You're now saying that there will be no additional money next year, so it can only be a one-off payment. But why can't you apply the same process that you have done to this year's budget to next year's budget? And even if that is not sufficient, do you accept that you do have tax-raising powers that could generate additional revenue? So, it's not right to say that your ability to turn a one-off payment into a recurrent pay rise is entirely determined by Westminster; it's a political choice.
Diolch, Llywydd. O ran cyflog y GIG, Prif Weinidog, rydym wedi amcangyfrif, yn seiliedig ar ffigurau yr ydych chi wedi'u rhannu â ni, y gallech fforddio o leiaf 3 y cant o ddyfarniad cyflog ychwanegol yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon. Nawr, rwy'n deall bod y Gweinidog iechyd wedi dweud nad yw'n cydnabod y ffigurau hynny, felly a allwn ni gymryd yn ganiataol y bydd y dyfarniad cyflog yr ydych chi'n bwriadu ei gynnig yn llai na'r ffigur hwnnw? Fe ddywedoch chi fis yn ôl nad oedd arian ychwanegol ar gael yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon, a nawr rydych chi wedi dod o hyd iddo. Rydych chi nawr yn dweud na fydd arian ychwanegol y flwyddyn nesaf, felly dim ond taliad untro y gall hwn fod. Ond pam na allwch chi ddefnyddio'r un broses yr ydych chi wedi'i defnyddio ar gyfer y gyllideb eleni ar gyfer y gyllideb y flwyddyn nesaf? A hyd yn oed os nad yw hynny'n ddigonol, ydych chi'n derbyn bod gennych chi bwerau codi trethi a allai gynhyrchu refeniw ychwanegol? Felly, nid yw'n iawn i ddweud bod eich gallu i droi taliad untro yn godiad cyflog rheolaidd yn cael ei benderfynu'n llwyr gan San Steffan; mae'n ddewis gwleidyddol.
Well, there are political choices here, Llywydd, and there are also hard facts, and it is simply a hard fact that you cannot spend one-off money to pay for recurrent bills. Now, the Welsh Government has written to our trade union colleagues making sure that we are able to go on talking to them. We've put a package of measures together. I'm glad that we will have a meeting with our trade unions on Thursday of this week.
One element of that package involves the offer of a one-off non-consolidated payment in this financial year. The amount of money that has been brought together for that has been hard-won over the Christmas period, in which Cabinet colleagues have all had to look at plans for spending in the final quarter of this year and agree to ways in which that could be reordered to release money to support that offer. But that is money available only in this financial year.
We will discuss with our trade union colleagues; that is the right place for us to discuss the quantum of money that is able to be found, and then we will discuss with them the best way in which that money could be dispersed amongst our public sector workers.
So, it is interesting that Plaid Cymru has joined the Welsh Conservatives in suggesting that the way to finance public sector pay in Wales is to raise taxes even further than they are already on the Welsh population. The leader of Plaid Cymru is right that that is a political choice, and that is a political choice that this Cabinet rehearsed in detail in the lead-up to the draft budget. There was a moment—a brief moment, as you know, when Liz Truss was Prime Minister—in which there were plans to reduce the level of income tax across the United Kingdom, and that did, I believe, open up a realistic possibility that we might have been able to raise income tax rates in Wales without disadvantaging Welsh citizens next year beyond the position they are this year.
Welsh citizens will pay higher taxes next year, Llywydd, than they have for the last 70 years. They're being asked to do that in the teeth of a cost-of-living crisis where they are already struggling to pay fuel bills, energy bills, food bills and other bills too. This Cabinet looked to see whether we should take more money out of their pockets by raising taxes, and decided that that was not a sensible course of action. That remains our view and, therefore, it's not a course of action we will follow, to find one-off money this year and to find recurrent money next year by raising tax levels even higher in Wales.
Wel, mae yna ddewisiadau gwleidyddol yma, Llywydd, ac mae ffeithiau caled hefyd, ac mae'n ffaith galed na allwch wario arian untro i dalu am filiau rheolaidd. Nawr, mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi ysgrifennu at ein cydweithwyr yn yr undebau llafur yn sicrhau ein bod yn gallu parhau i siarad â nhw. Rydym wedi rhoi pecyn o fesurau at ei gilydd. Rwy'n falch y byddwn yn cael cyfarfod gyda'n hundebau llafur ddydd Iau yr wythnos hon.
Mae un elfen o'r pecyn hwnnw'n cynnwys cynnig taliad anghyfunol untro yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon. Mae'r swm o arian sydd wedi ei gasglu ar gyfer hwnnw wedi ei ennill drwy fawr ymdrech dros gyfnod y Nadolig, pan oedd cyd-Weinidogion yn y Cabinet i gyd wedi gorfod edrych ar gynlluniau gwario yn chwarter olaf eleni a chytuno ar ffyrdd y gellid aildrefnu hynny i ryddhau arian i gefnogi'r cynnig hwnnw. Ond dim ond yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon y mae'r arian ar gael.
Byddwn yn trafod gyda'n cydweithwyr yn yr undebau llafur; dyna'r lle iawn i ni drafod cwantwm yr arian y gellir dod o hyd iddo, ac yna byddwn yn trafod gyda nhw y ffordd orau y gellid gwasgaru'r arian hwnnw ymhlith ein gweithwyr yn y sector cyhoeddus.
Felly mae'n ddiddorol bod Plaid Cymru wedi ymuno â'r Ceidwadwyr Cymreig wrth awgrymu mai'r ffordd i ariannu cyflogau'r sector cyhoeddus yng Nghymru yw codi trethi hyd yn oed ymhellach nag y maen nhw ar boblogaeth Cymru eisoes. Mae arweinydd Plaid Cymru'n iawn yn dweud mai dewis gwleidyddol yw hwnnw, a dyna ddewis gwleidyddol wnaeth y Cabinet hwn ei drafod yn fanwl yn y cyfnod cyn y gyllideb ddrafft. Roedd yna eiliad—eiliad fer, fel y gwyddoch, pan oedd Liz Truss yn Brif Weinidog—pryd yr oedd cynlluniau i leihau lefel y dreth incwm ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig, ac fe wnaeth hynny, rwy'n credu, agor posibilrwydd realistig y gallem fod wedi codi cyfraddau treth incwm yng Nghymru heb roi dinasyddion Cymru o dan anfantais y flwyddyn nesaf y tu hwnt i'r sefyllfa y maen nhw ynddi eleni.
Bydd dinasyddion Cymru yn talu trethi uwch y flwyddyn nesaf, Llywydd, nag yr oedden nhw dros y 70 mlynedd diwethaf. Gofynnir iddyn nhw wneud hynny yn nannedd argyfwng costau byw a hwythau eisoes yn ei chael hi'n anodd talu biliau tanwydd, biliau ynni, biliau bwyd a biliau eraill hefyd. Edrychodd y Cabinet hwn i weld a ddylem ni dynnu mwy o arian o'u pocedi drwy godi trethi, a phenderfynu nad oedd hynny'n ffordd synhwyrol o weithredu. Dyna ein barn ni o hyd, ac felly nid yw'n gam gweithredu y byddwn ni yn ei dilyn, i ddod o hyd i arian untro eleni ac i ddod o hyd i arian rheolaidd y flwyddyn nesaf, sef drwy godi lefelau treth hyd yn oed yn uwch yng Nghymru.
But the progressive use of income tax in order to defend public services from Tory austerity is a long-standing socialist position that we espouse in this party, and it's something you used to believe in as well.
You did recognise, in your comments yesterday, the collapse in trust in the pay review body process. How do you intend to rebuild this trust? Do you intend to change the nature of the remit by focusing squarely on what pay levels are necessary to recruit, retain and motivate staff, and leave the question of affordability for politicians to decide? And can you also say whether you're open to the union suggestion that any rise agreed for next year is backdated to January this year? That's a principle that you have accepted in your pay negotiations in Transport for Wales. And are you open to asking the pay review body to revisit its recommendations for this year, made before the huge hike in living costs, and reflect any higher award in a permanent pay rise?
Ond mae'r defnydd cynyddol o dreth incwm er mwyn amddiffyn gwasanaethau cyhoeddus rhag cyni Torïaidd yn safbwynt sosialaidd hirsefydlog yr ydym yn ei arddel yn y blaid hon, ac mae'n rhywbeth yr oeddech chi'n arfer credu ynddo hefyd.
Fe wnaethoch gydnabod, yn eich sylwadau ddoe, y cwymp mewn ymddiriedaeth ym mhroses y corff adolygu cyflogau. Sut ydych chi'n bwriadu ailadeiladu'r ymddiriedaeth hon? Ydych chi'n bwriadu newid natur y cylch gwaith drwy ganolbwyntio'n llwyr ar ba lefelau cyflog sy'n angenrheidiol i recriwtio, cadw a chymell staff, a gadael y cwestiwn o fforddiadwyedd i wleidyddion benderfynu arno? Ac a allwch chi hefyd ddweud a ydych chi'n agored i awgrym yr undeb bod unrhyw gynnydd a gytunir ar gyfer y flwyddyn nesaf yn cael ei ôl-ddyddio i fis Ionawr eleni? Dyna egwyddor yr ydych chi wedi ei derbyn yn eich trafodaethau cyflog gyda Trafnidiaeth Cymru. Ac ydych chi'n agored i ofyn i'r corff adolygu cyflogau ailedrych ar ei argymhellion ar gyfer eleni, a wnaed cyn y cynnydd enfawr mewn costau byw, ac adlewyrchu unrhyw ddyfarniad uwch mewn codiad cyflog parhaol?
Well, Llywydd, the Government will carry out our negotiations with trade unions with the trade unions. That is the right way for these matters to be resolved, and that, actually, is the way that I think is respectful to our trade union colleagues, that we discuss these matters directly with them, rather than by proxy on the floor of the Senedd. And that's what we will do.
We will, in doing so, talk to them, as I say, about how any sum of money we may be able to establish in this financial year can be dispersed amongst trade union members. We will certainly want to talk to them about ways in which trust could be re-established in the pay review process. There will be ideas that we will want to put on the table as to how that could be done, and I'm very keen indeed to hear from our trade union colleagues as to how they think that confidence in that process can be restored.
I think it is very important, from a Welsh worker's point of view, that we are able to do that, Llywydd. Over 20 years, and particularly in the last 12 years, we have been involved in seeing off a series of attempts by Conservative Chancellors to move to regional pay in public services. There is nothing they would like more than to see Welsh workers paid less than workers elsewhere. The pay review process protects Welsh workers from pay regionalisation, and that's why I believe that a real effort to re-establish trust in that process is worth making.
Wel, Llywydd, bydd y Llywodraeth yn cynnal ein trafodaethau gydag undebau llafur, gyda'r undebau llafur. Dyna'r ffordd gywir i ddatrys y materion hyn, a dyna, mewn gwirionedd, yw'r ffordd rwy'n credu sy'n barchus i'n cydweithwyr yn yr undebau llafur, sef ein bod yn trafod y materion hyn yn uniongyrchol gyda nhw, yn hytrach na thrwy ddirprwy ar lawr y Senedd. A dyna a wnawn ni.
Byddwn ni, wrth wneud hynny, yn siarad â nhw, fel yr wyf i'n ei ddweud, ynghylch sut y gellir gwasgaru unrhyw swm o arian y gallwn ei sefydlu yn y flwyddyn ariannol hon ymhlith aelodau'r undebau llafur. Yn sicr, byddwn eisiau siarad â nhw am ffyrdd y gellid ailsefydlu ymddiriedaeth yn y broses adolygu cyflogau. Bydd syniadau y byddwn eisiau eu rhoi ar y bwrdd o ran sut y gellid gwneud hynny, ac rwy'n awyddus iawn yn wir i glywed gan ein cydweithwyr undebau llafur ynglŷn â sut maen nhw'n credu y gellir adfer ffydd yn y broses honno.
Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn, o safbwynt gweithiwr yng Nghymru, ein bod ni'n gallu gwneud hynny, Llywydd. Dros 20 mlynedd, ac yn enwedig yn y 12 mlynedd diwethaf, rydym wedi bod wrthi yn ceisio ymladd yn erbyn cyfres o ymdrechion gan Gangellorion Ceidwadol i symud tuag at gyflogau rhanbarthol mewn gwasanaethau cyhoeddus. Does dim y bydden nhw'n hoffi mwy na gweld gweithwyr Cymru yn cael llai o gyflog na gweithwyr mewn mannau eraill. Mae'r broses adolygu cyflogau yn diogelu gweithwyr Cymru rhag rhanbartholi cyflogau, a dyna pam yr wyf yn credu bod ymdrech wirioneddol i ailsefydlu ymddiriedaeth yn y broses honno'n werth ei gwneud.
But the pay review process has led to a decade-long, real-terms cut in the wages of our NHS staff. So, the system is broken, and I make no apology for holding the Government to account and asking them to state what are your broad democratic principles. And we are here being the voice of NHS staff. We've been on the picket lines talking to them. We're making the points that they've asked us to share with you.
It's good to see that you are prepared to address, at long last, the massive increase in the use of private sector agency staff in delivering NHS services. Does this mean that you distance yourself from the position of the Labour Party in England, which is calling for the greater use of the private sector in the NHS—privatisation by proxy, essentially? Are you, as a Government, prepared to recommit to the principle you espoused 16 years ago, which was to completely phase out the use of the private sector in the NHS? Or is that promise to go the same way as Keir Starmer's 2020 leadership pledge, which was to end outsourcing in the NHS?
Ond mae'r broses adolygu cyflogau wedi arwain at doriad degawd o hyd, mewn termau real yng nghyflogau staff ein GIG. Felly, mae'r system wedi torri, ac nid wyf yn ymddiheuro am ddal y Llywodraeth i gyfrif a gofyn iddi ddatgan beth yw eich egwyddorion democrataidd eang. A ni yma yw llais staff y GIG. Rydym ni wedi bod ar y llinellau piced yn siarad â nhw. Rydym ni'n gwneud y pwyntiau maen nhw wedi gofyn i ni eu rhannu â chi.
Mae'n dda gweld eich bod yn barod i ymdrin o'r diwedd, â'r cynnydd enfawr yn y defnydd o staff asiantaeth y sector preifat wrth ddarparu gwasanaethau'r GIG. Ydy hyn yn golygu eich bod chi'n ymbellhau o sefyllfa'r Blaid Lafur yn Lloegr, sy'n galw am fwy o ddefnydd o'r sector preifat yn y GIG—preifateiddio trwy ddirprwy, yn y bôn? Ydych chi, fel Llywodraeth, yn barod i ailymrwymo i'r egwyddor a arddeloch chi 16 mlynedd yn ôl, sef dileu'r defnydd o'r sector preifat yn y GIG yn llwyr? Neu a yw'r addewid hwnnw am fynd yr un ffordd ag addewid arweinyddiaeth Keir Starmer yn 2020, sef rhoi diwedd ar allanoli yn y GIG?
Well, Llywydd, I think it was the BMA that described the Welsh NHS as the NHS closest to the founding Bevanite principles of the health service of any of the four UK nations, and that is a position that I would wish to see us maintain. The impact of the pandemic meant that we have made greater use of private sector facilities than we would have prior to that, and there was no criticism of that, as I remember, during the pandemic period, because we needed to use all the facilities that we could put our hands on to make sure that people suffering from coronavirus had the treatment that they needed. In the aftermath of COVID, we will be making use of some private sector facilities to erode the backlog of people waiting for care that we talked about earlier this afternoon. Actually, I make no apologies for doing that. I regard it as a short-term measure to deal with a backlog. But when we have a backlog of the sort that we have seen—and we've heard this afternoon about people waiting in pain to get the treatment that they need—I make no apology for the fact that we will use facilities in the private sector here in Wales in that short-term way to erode those backlogs. At the same time, we want to build up the capacity of the health service itself, so that in the long run it is able to provide for all the needs that are there in Wales within the public service.
Wel, Llywydd, rwy'n credu mai'r BMA a ddisgrifiodd GIG Cymru fel y GIG agosaf at egwyddorion gwasanaeth iechyd sefydlol mudiad Bevan o unrhyw un o bedair gwlad y Deyrnas Unedig, ac mae hynny'n safbwynt y byddwn yn dymuno ei weld yn cael ei gynnal. Roedd effaith y pandemig yn golygu ein bod wedi gwneud mwy o ddefnydd o gyfleusterau yn y sector preifat nag a byddem cyn hynny, a doedd dim beirniadaeth ar hynny, fel rwy'n cofio, yn ystod cyfnod y pandemig, oherwydd roedd angen i ni ddefnyddio'r holl gyfleusterau y gallem ni roi ein dwylo arnyn nhw i wneud yn siŵr bod pobl a oedd yn dioddef o coronafeirws yn cael y driniaeth yr oedd ei hangen arnyn nhw. Yn dilyn COVID, byddwn yn gwneud defnydd o rai cyfleusterau yn y sector preifat i leihau'r ôl-groniad o bobl sy'n aros am ofal y buom yn siarad amdano yn gynharach y prynhawn yma. Mewn gwirionedd, nid wyf i'n ymddiheuro am wneud hynny. Rwy'n ei ystyried yn fesur tymor byr i ymdrin ag ôl-groniad. Ond pan fydd gennym ôl-groniad o'r math yr ydym wedi'i weld—ac rydym ni wedi clywed y prynhawn yma am bobl sy'n aros mewn poen i gael y driniaeth sydd ei hangen arnyn nhw—nid wyf yn ymddiheuro am y ffaith y byddwn yn defnyddio cyfleusterau yn y sector preifat yma yng Nghymru yn y ffordd tymor byr i leihau'r ôl-groniadau hynny. Ar yr un pryd, rydym ni eisiau meithrin gallu'r gwasanaeth iechyd ei hun, fel ei fod yn y tymor hir yn gallu darparu ar gyfer yr holl anghenion sydd yna yng Nghymru o fewn y gwasanaeth cyhoeddus.
3. Pa gefnogaeth mae Llywodraeth Cymru'n ei darparu i Gyfoeth Naturiol Cymru er mwyn lliniaru llifogydd tir yng nghanolbarth Cymru? OQ58916
3. What support is the Welsh Government providing to Natural Resources Wales to alleviate the flooding of land in mid Wales? OQ58916
I thank Russell George for the question, Llywydd. We have provided over £71 million to flood risk management activities across Wales for this financial year. This represents our biggest budget ever. The £39.5 million provided to NRW for flood risk management works includes specific provision for schemes in mid Wales.
Diolch i Russell George am y cwestiwn, Llywydd. Rydym wedi darparu mwy na £71 miliwn i weithgareddau rheoli risg llifogydd ledled Cymru ar gyfer y flwyddyn ariannol hon. Mae hyn yn cynrychioli ein cyllideb fwyaf erioed. Mae'r £39.5 miliwn sy'n cael ei ddarparu i CNC ar gyfer gwaith rheoli risg llifogydd yn cynnwys darpariaeth benodol ar gyfer cynlluniau yn y canolbarth.
Thank you, First Minister, for your answer. You will know that I've regularly raised issues with you and other Ministers in regard to the flooding of land across mid Wales. You may recall the issue of flooding of homes in Llandinam I raised with you last February, and indeed other areas. Of course, there is great anxiety and worry, as you will know, for people whose homes have been flooded, but they worry that their homes may be flooded as well. We're currently in a position in mid Wales where rivers are overflowing. Further flooding of low-lying land is expected today as a result of levels in the River Vyrnwy and the River Severn. Currently, there are a number of Met Office warnings in place.
A key lever in terms of preventing and reducing flooding risk is the better management of the Clywedog and Vyrnwy reservoirs. I wonder if you can provide an update, First Minister, in regard to the works that I know you and NRW are involved with, especially in regard to the possibility of enhancing the Clywedog dam to provide greater resilience. It's also been my view, for many years, that the operating rules of both dams need to be explored and looked at to allow for greater capacity of storage in the winter months. I know the counterbalance to that is that those dams need to be kept high in times of drought, but I'm absolutely of the view that those rules are out of date and need to be examined and explored. I wonder if you could update me, First Minister, on the Welsh Government's involvement and discussions in regard to the operating rules of both dams.
And finally, compensation for landowners when landowners' land is flooded, sometimes in a planned way, in order to allow for flooding of homes upstream not to occur. Those particular landowners will be considerably disadvantaged. I wonder what considerations the Welsh Government has given in terms of supporting those particular landowners.
Diolch i chi, Prif Weinidog, am eich ateb. Byddwch yn gwybod fy mod i wedi codi materion gyda chi a Gweinidogion eraill yn rheolaidd o ran llifogydd tir ar draws y canolbarth. Efallai eich bod yn cofio'r mater o lifogydd mewn cartrefi yn Llandinam a godais gyda chi fis Chwefror diwethaf, ac yn wir ardaloedd eraill. Wrth gwrs, mae pryder a phryder mawr, fel y byddwch chi'n gwybod, gan bobl y mae eu cartrefi wedi dioddef llifogydd, ond maen nhw'n poeni y gallai eu cartrefi ddioddef llifogydd hefyd. Ar hyn o bryd rydym ni mewn sefyllfa yn y canolbarth lle mae afonydd yn gorlifo. Mae disgwyl rhagor o lifogydd ar dir isel heddiw o ganlyniad i lefelau yn Afon Efyrnwy ac Afon Hafren. Ar hyn o bryd, mae nifer o rybuddion y Swyddfa Dywydd mewn grym.
Un o'r prif ysgogiadau o ran atal a lleihau'r risg o lifogydd yw gwell rheolaeth dros gronfeydd dŵr Clywedog ac Efyrnwy. Tybed a allwch chi ddarparu diweddariad, Prif Weinidog, ynglŷn â'r gweithiau yr wyf yn gwybod eich bod chi a CNC yn ymwneud â nhw, yn enwedig o ran y posibilrwydd o wella argae Clywedog i ddarparu mwy o gydnerthedd. Fy marn i hefyd, ers blynyddoedd lawer, yw bod angen archwilio rheolau gweithredu'r ddau argae ac edrych arnyn nhw er mwyn caniatáu mwy o gapasiti storio ym misoedd y gaeaf. Rwy'n gwybod mai'r hyn sy'n gwrthbwyso hynny yw bod angen cadw'r argaeau hynny'n uchel mewn cyfnodau o sychder, ond rwy'n sicr o'r farn bod y rheolau hynny'n hen ac mae angen eu harchwilio. Tybed a allech chi roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i mi, Prif Weinidog ynghylch yr hyn y mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn ei wneud o ran rheolau gweithredu'r ddau argae a'r trafodaethau a gawsoch.
Ac yn olaf, iawndal i dirfeddianwyr pan fo tir tirfeddianwyr dan ddŵr, weithiau mewn ffordd a gynlluniwyd, er mwyn osgoi llifogydd mewn cartrefi i fyny'r afon. Bydd y tirfeddianwyr penodol hynny dan anfantais sylweddol. Tybed pa ystyriaethau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi eu rhoi o ran cefnogi'r tirfeddianwyr penodol hynny.
Llywydd, I thank Russell George for the number of important questions that he has raised. He is right to draw attention to the fact that, across Wales today, with the amount of rain that we've had in recent weeks and with the volume of rain that is forecast for today and for Thursday and into the weekend as well, there will be communities anxious about what this will mean for them. There is good advice for individuals available through NRW—its own website and other sources of information. Russell George has, as he said, Llywydd, regularly raised issues of concern in communities in his own constituency. He will know that there was a recent public meeting in Llandinam, and I know that he himself has been involved in further discussions with NRW on measures that could be put in place in that village. Purely by chance, Llywydd, I was travelling from south to north Wales at the start of last week and stopped off in Llandinam, partly to have a look at some of the things we had talked about here. It's very easy to see for yourself, if you're there, how close the River Severn comes to the village and the flat nature of the agricultural land that separates the river from people's homes.
The point the Member makes about the Vyrnwy and the Clywedog reservoirs is a really important one, because some people's concern, further downstream, is that water released from the reservoirs adds to the risk of flooding, particularly at points of high rainfall. The Environment Agency is responsible for managing the releases and the water levels in those reservoirs, and it has been releasing water out of both reservoirs at the start of this year. We have an assurance that they will be stepping back from that in the light of the weather forecast this week. But officials of the Welsh Government do remain in regular discussions with the Environment Agency about the operating arrangements it has for both reservoirs, and I'm very happy to make sure that the points made by the Member this afternoon are taken up further in those discussions.
Llywydd, Diolch i Russell George am y nifer o gwestiynau pwysig y mae wedi'u codi. Mae'n iawn i dynnu sylw at y ffaith, ar draws Cymru heddiw, gyda maint y glaw yr ydym ni wedi'i gael yn ystod yr wythnosau diwethaf a gyda maint y glaw sy'n cael ei ragweld ar gyfer heddiw ac ar gyfer dydd Iau ac i mewn i'r penwythnos hefyd, bydd cymunedau'n bryderus ynghylch beth fydd hyn yn ei olygu iddyn nhw. Mae cyngor da i unigolion ar gael drwy CNC—ei wefan ei hun a ffynonellau gwybodaeth eraill. Mae Russell George, fel y dywedodd, Llywydd, wedi codi materion sy'n peri pryder yn rheolaidd mewn cymunedau yn ei etholaeth ei hun. Bydd yn gwybod y bu cyfarfod cyhoeddus diweddar yn Llandinam, a gwn ei fod ef ei hun wedi bod yn rhan o drafodaethau pellach gyda CNC ynglŷn â mesurau y gellid eu rhoi ar waith yn y pentref hwnnw. Ar hap a damwain, Llywydd, roeddwn i'n teithio o'r de i'r gogledd ddechrau'r wythnos diwethaf ac wedi stopio yn Llandinam, yn rhannol er mwyn cael golwg ar rai o'r pethau yr oeddem wedi'u trafod yma. Mae'n hawdd iawn gweld drosoch eich hun, os ydych chi yno, pa mor agos mae Afon Hafren yn dod i'r pentref a natur gwastad y tir amaethyddol sy'n gwahanu'r afon a chartrefi pobl.
Mae'r pwynt y mae'r Aelod yn ei wneud am gronfeydd dŵr Efyrnwy a Clywedog yn un pwysig iawn, oherwydd pryder rhai pobl, ymhellach i lawr yr afon, yw bod dŵr sy'n cael ei ollwng o'r cronfeydd dŵr yn ychwanegu at y risg o lifogydd, yn enwedig ar adegau o law mawr. Asiantaeth yr Amgylchedd sy'n gyfrifol am reoli'r gollyngiadau a lefelau'r dŵr yn y cronfeydd dŵr hynny, ac mae wedi bod yn gollwng dŵr allan o'r ddwy gronfa ddŵr ddechrau eleni. Mae gennym sicrwydd y byddant yn camu'n ôl o hynny yn sgil rhagolygon y tywydd yr wythnos hon. Ond mae swyddogion Llywodraeth Cymru yn parhau i fod mewn trafodaethau rheolaidd gydag Asiantaeth yr Amgylchedd ynglŷn â'r trefniadau gweithredu sydd ganddi ar gyfer y ddwy gronfa ddŵr, ac rwy'n hapus iawn i wneud yn siŵr bod y pwyntiau a wnaed gan yr Aelod y prynhawn yma yn cael sylw ymhellach yn y trafodaethau hynny.
I think it might be worth, First Minister, encouraging people to look at the map of flood and coastal capital investment that is available online. You have already mentioned that there has been Welsh Government investment of £71 million for this financial year. I understand that an interactive map providing more detail on these schemes will soon be published. I'd welcome, if you're able to provide it, any update on that, because it would be very useful, particularly for owners and residents of the additional 45,000 properties that the Welsh Government has committed to protecting over this coming term.
Rwy'n credu y gallai fod yn werth, Prif Weinidog, annog pobl i edrych ar y map o fuddsoddiad cyfalaf llifogydd ac arfordirol sydd ar gael ar-lein. Rydych eisoes wedi crybwyll y bu buddsoddiad o £71 miliwn gan Lywodraeth Cymru ar gyfer y flwyddyn ariannol hon. Rwy'n deall y bydd map rhyngweithiol sy'n darparu mwy o fanylion am y cynlluniau hyn yn cael ei gyhoeddi cyn bo hir. Byddwn yn croesawu, os ydych chi'n gallu ei ddarparu, unrhyw ddiweddariad ar hynny, oherwydd byddai'n ddefnyddiol iawn, yn enwedig i berchnogion a thrigolion y 45,000 eiddo ychwanegol y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi ymrwymo i'w diogelu dros y tymor nesaf hwn.
I thank Joyce Watson for that important point, Llywydd. We are committed, alongside our partners, to making more information available to residents in Wales so that, if people are anxious about the state of the rivers or the risk of flooding, they know where to go to get that information. Lots of it, inevitably, these days, Llywydd, is online information and we know that that is not equally available to everybody. It's why the consultation that we're involved in currently is important, to make sure that information is available in a way that is accessible to all. The eight properties that were flooded in Llandinam, in Russell George's constituency, all turned out to be occupied by people who were quite late on in life and where access to online forms of warning and information probably weren't the best way of reaching them. So, the consultation, which will be live on 23 January, is a way in which we will be able to make sure not simply that the new forms of information to which Joyce Watson has drawn attention can be put in place but that we make sure that there are ways of reaching others for whom more conventional ways of receiving information might be necessary.
Diolch i Joyce Watson am y pwynt pwysig yna, Llywydd. Rydym wedi ymrwymo, ochr yn ochr â'n partneriaid, i sicrhau bod mwy o wybodaeth ar gael i drigolion yng Nghymru fel eu bod, os yw pobl yn bryderus am gyflwr yr afonydd neu'r perygl o lifogydd, yn gwybod ble i fynd i gael yr wybodaeth honno. Mae llawer ohoni, yn anochel, y dyddiau hyn, Llywydd, yn wybodaeth ar-lein ac fe wyddom nad yw hynny ar gael i bawb yn yr un modd. Dyna pam mae'r ymgynghoriad yr ydym yn rhan ohono ar hyn o bryd yn bwysig, i sicrhau bod gwybodaeth ar gael mewn ffordd sy'n hygyrch i bawb. Roedd yr wyth eiddo a orlifwyd yn Llandinam, yn etholaeth Russell George, fel mae'n digwydd wedi eu meddiannu gan bobl a oedd yn eithaf oedrannus ac mae'n debyg nad oedd mynediad at mathau o rybuddion a gwybodaeth ar-lein y ffordd orau o'u cyrraedd nhw. Felly, mae'r ymgynghoriad, a fydd yn fyw ar 23 Ionawr, yn ffordd i ni sicrhau nid yn unig y gellir rhoi'r mathau newydd o wybodaeth y mae Joyce Watson wedi tynnu sylw atynt ar waith ond ein bod yn sicrhau bod ffyrdd o gyrraedd eraill y gallai ffyrdd mwy confensiynol o dderbyn gwybodaeth fod yn angenrheidiol ar eu cyfer nhw.
Happy new year, First Minister.
Blwyddyn newydd dda, Prif Weinidog.
4. A yw Llywodraeth Cymru'n bwriadu dilyn ôl traed Llywodraeth yr Alban gyda Bil diwygio cydnabod rhywedd? OQ58937
4. Does the Welsh Government intend to follow in the footsteps of the Scottish Government with a gender recognition reform Bill? OQ58937
The powers available in Scotland are not currently devolved to Wales. We will seek those powers, as set out in the programme for government. Legislative use of any new competence will, of course, be for the Senedd itself to determine.
Nid yw'r pwerau sydd ar gael yn Yr Alban wedi'u datganoli i Gymru ar hyn o bryd. Byddwn ni'n ceisio'r pwerau hynny, fel y nodir yn y rhaglen lywodraethu. Wrth gwrs, bydd defnydd deddfwriaethol o unrhyw gymhwysedd newydd yn rhywbeth i'r Senedd ei hun ei bennu.
Thank you, First Minister. There are obvious, justified concerns following the Scottish legislation being rushed through and, due to the nature of the United Kingdom, how it will impact women here in Wales, particularly with regard to 16 and 17-year-olds and sex offenders now being allowed to self-ID without medical diagnosis, and the clear and obvious risks that come with that. What conversations have you had with the Scottish and UK Governments on how this legislation will affect us, and will you therefore rule out such legislation in Wales?
Diolch Prif Weinidog. Mae pryderon amlwg, cyfiawn yn dilyn rhuthro'r ddeddfwriaeth yn yr Alban drwodd ac, oherwydd natur y Deyrnas Unedig, sut y bydd yn effeithio ar fenywod yma yng Nghymru, yn enwedig o ran pobl ifanc 16 ac 17 oed a throseddwyr rhyw sydd bellach yn cael hunan-ddiffinio heb ddiagnosis meddygol, a'r risgiau clir ac amlwg a ddaw gyda hynny. Pa sgyrsiau ydych chi wedi eu cael gyda Llywodraethau'r Alban a'r DU ynghylch sut bydd y ddeddfwriaeth hon yn effeithio arnom ni, ac a fyddwch felly yn diystyru deddfwriaeth o'r fath yng Nghymru?
Well, I'll certainly not rule out any such legislation, Llywydd, nor do I accept that the Scottish Bill was rushed through the Scottish Parliament. I have indeed had an opportunity to hear directly from the Scottish First Minister about the passage of that Bill, and it was very thoroughly and very carefully debated through the Scottish Parliament's own procedures. It was supported, in the end, by Members from all political parties in the Scottish Parliament, including Members of the Conservative Party, and I just don't accept the characterisation that the Member has made. We will do as I've said, Llywydd: we will seek the powers. If we obtain those powers, we will put them to work here in Wales, and we will put proposals in front of this Welsh Parliament, so that those people seeking gender recognition are able to do so in a way that is not stigmatised and does not involve them having to go through a lengthy medicalised route in order to establish themselves in the way they themselves would wish to see established.
Wel, yn sicr ni fyddaf yn diystyru unrhyw ddeddfwriaeth o'r fath, Llywydd, nac ychwaith yn derbyn bod Bil yr Alban wedi'i ruthro drwy Senedd yr Alban. Rwy'n wir wedi cael cyfle i glywed yn uniongyrchol gan Brif Weinidog yr Alban am hynt y Bil hwnnw, ac fe'i trafodwyd yn drylwyr iawn ac yn ofalus iawn trwy weithdrefnau Senedd yr Alban ei hun. Cafodd ei gefnogi, yn y diwedd, gan Aelodau o bob plaid wleidyddol yn Senedd yr Alban, gan gynnwys Aelodau'r blaid Geidwadol, ac nid wyf yn derbyn y cymeriadu mae'r Aelod wedi'i wneud. Byddwn yn gwneud fel yr wyf wedi dweud, Llywydd: byddwn yn ceisio'r pwerau. Os cawn ni'r pwerau hynny, byddwn ni'n eu rhoi nhw ar waith yma yng Nghymru, a byddwn ni'n rhoi cynigion ger bron Senedd Cymru, fel bod y bobl hynny sy'n chwilio am gydnabod rhywedd yn gallu gwneud hynny mewn ffordd nad yw wedi'i stigmateiddio ac nad yw'n golygu eu bod yn gorfod mynd ar hyd lwybr meddygol hir er mwyn sefydlu eu hunain yn y ffordd y bydden nhw eu hunain yn dymuno.
First Minister, would you agree that discourse on sensitive matters such as gender recognition should be conducted with respect and compassion? It really doesn't help when anonymous groups and intolerant keyboard warriors inflame discussion with untruths and intolerant language. First Minister, I'd be really interested in your view on the UK Government's immediate response of threatening to block the law from gaining Royal Assent.
Prif Weinidog, a fyddech chi'n cytuno y dylid cynnal sgyrsiau ar faterion sensitif fel cydnabod rhywedd gyda pharch a thosturi? Nid yw'n helpu o gwbl pan fydd grwpiau dienw a rhyfelwyr bysellfwrdd anoddefgar yn ymfflamychu trafodaeth gydag anwireddau ac iaith anoddefgar. Prif Weinidog, byddwn â diddordeb mawr yn eich barn am ymateb uniongyrchol Llywodraeth y DU gan fygwth rhwystro'r gyfraith rhag cael Cydsyniad Brenhinol.
I entirely agree with what Ken Skates has said. This has been a deeply polarising debate. The proper role for elected politicians, I believe, is to promote dialogue, rather than to seek to deepen conflict. I was surprised by the UK Government's reaction. They are threatening to use a power that has never been used in the whole history of devolution. They appear to say that they will not accept a gender recognition certificate obtained in Scotland, when they already recognise such certificates that are obtained in Belgium, Denmark, Iceland, Luxembourg, Malta, Norway, New Zealand and Switzerland. A number of those countries use the same self-declaration process to be used in Scotland. When we have a system that recognises certificates from other parts of the world, it seems very odd indeed that the UK Government is not prepared to recognise a certificate that is created in another part of the United Kingdom. I will say this to be absolutely clear, Llywydd: if anybody obtains a gender recognition certificate in Scotland and then comes to Wales, that certificate will be recognised here for all the purposes that you would expect it to be recognised for.
Rwy'n cytuno'n llwyr â'r hyn mae Ken Skates wedi ei ddweud. Mae hon wedi bod yn ddadl sydd wedi polareiddio tu hwnt. Y swyddogaeth briodol i wleidyddion etholedig, rwy'n credu, yw annog deialog, yn hytrach na cheisio dwysáu gwrthdaro. Cefais fy synnu gan ymateb Llywodraeth y DU. Maen nhw'n bygwth defnyddio grym sydd erioed wedi cael ei ddefnyddio yn holl hanes datganoli. Mae'n ymddangos eu bod yn dweud na fyddan nhw'n derbyn tystysgrif cydnabod rhywedd a gafwyd yn yr Alban a hwythau eisoes yn cydnabod tystysgrifau o'r fath sydd i'w cael yng Ngwlad Belg, Denmarc, Gwlad yr Iâ, Lwcsembwrg, Malta, Norwy, Seland Newydd a'r Swistir. Mae nifer o'r gwledydd hynny'n defnyddio'r un broses hunanddatgan sydd i'w defnyddio yn yr Alban. Pan fo gennym system sy'n cydnabod tystysgrifau o rannau eraill o'r byd, mae'n ymddangos yn od iawn yn wir nad yw Llywodraeth y DU yn barod i gydnabod tystysgrif sydd wedi ei chreu mewn rhan arall o'r Deyrnas Unedig. Dywedaf hyn er mwyn bod yn gwbl glir, Llywydd: os oes unrhyw un yn cael tystysgrif cydnabod rhywedd yn yr Alban ac yna'n dod i Gymru, bydd y dystysgrif honno yn cael ei chydnabod yma ar gyfer yr holl ddibenion y byddech yn disgwyl iddi gael ei chydnabod ar eu cyfer.
5. Beth mae Llywodraeth Cymru’n ei wneud i gwtogi amseroedd aros yn y gwasanaeth iechyd yng Ngorllewin De Cymru? OQ58932
5. What is the Welsh Government doing to shorten waiting times in the health service in South Wales West? OQ58932
We are committed to reducing waiting times across the whole of Wales, investing £170 million recurrently to support improvement, and £15 million to support transformation of services. October data demonstrates that waits over two years have reduced by 26 per cent since March 2022 at the Swansea Bay health board.
Rydym wedi ymrwymo i leihau amseroedd aros ledled Cymru gyfan, gan fuddsoddi £170 miliwn yn rheolaidd i gefnogi gwelliant, a £15 miliwn i gefnogi trawsnewid gwasanaethau. Mae data mis Hydref yn dangos bod nifer yr arosiadau dros ddwy flynedd wedi gostwng 26 y cant ers mis Mawrth 2022, ym mwrdd iechyd Bae Abertawe.
Diolch, Brif Weinidog. A constituent of mine from Morriston has been suffering with knee problems for 15 years, and has been waiting for five years, almost to the day, for two partial knee replacements, being in constant pain the whole time, and having had to give up her pub as a result. When I highlighted my constituent's case in a letter to Swansea Bay University Health Board, they said that waiting times for orthopaedic surgery in Swansea are now in excess of four years. I'm sorry it doesn't fit in with your understanding of the situation, but they also pointed to historic under-resourcing of orthopaedic surgery. The fact that there have been two questions this afternoon on the same issue from Members in South Wales West shows how full our inboxes are of these cases.
Yes, Westminster's underfunding of Wales and Tory cuts to public services are obviously a massive part of the problem here, but health is a Welsh Government responsibility. So, will the First Minister pledge in 2023 to acknowledge his own Government's agency and responsibility, and tell us what he's going to do to ensure the people of Wales, including my constituent, are properly looked after from cradle to grave and not left in pain and despair for years?
Diolch, Prif Weinidog. Mae etholwr i mi o Dreforys wedi bod yn dioddef problemau gyda'i phen-glin ers 15 mlynedd, ac wedi bod yn aros ers pum mlynedd, bron i'r diwrnod, am driniaeth i ailosod dau ben-glin yn rhannol, ac wedi bod mewn poen cyson yr holl amser, ac wedi gorfod rhoi'r gorau i'w thafarn o ganlyniad. Pan dynnais sylw at achos fy etholwr mewn llythyr at Fwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Bae Abertawe, fe ddywedon nhw fod amseroedd aros am lawdriniaethau orthopedig yn Abertawe bellach yn fwy na phedair blynedd. Mae'n ddrwg gennyf nad yw'n cyd-fynd â'ch dealltwriaeth chi o'r sefyllfa, ond fe wnaethon nhw hefyd gyfeirio at ddiffyg adnoddau hanesyddol ar gyfer llawdriniaeth orthopedig. Mae'r ffaith bod dau gwestiwn wedi eu gofyn y prynhawn yma ynghylch yr un mater gan Aelodau yng Ngorllewin De Cymru yn dangos pa mor llawn yw ein mewnflwch o'r achosion hyn.
Ydy, mae tanariannu Cymru gan San Steffan a thoriadau gan y Torïaid i wasanaethau cyhoeddus yn amlwg yn rhan enfawr o'r broblem yma, ond cyfrifoldeb Llywodraeth Cymru yw iechyd. Felly, a fydd y Prif Weinidog yn addo yn 2023 i gydnabod gallu i weithredu a chyfrifoldeb ei Lywodraeth ei hun, a dweud wrthym beth y mae'n mynd i'w wneud i sicrhau bod pobl Cymru, gan gynnwys fy etholwr, yn derbyn gofal priodol o'r crud i'r bedd a pheidio â chael ei gadael mewn poen ac anobaith am flynyddoedd?
I've already set out this afternoon a series of things that the Welsh Government is doing to make sure that the health service is in a position to treat people in a timely way. That is our ambition, and I'm sure it's the ambition of Members across the Chamber. As I've said, two-year waits in the Swansea Bay health board were 26 per cent lower at the end of October than they were at the end of March last year. That does demonstrate that progress is being made, albeit that there are people waiting longer than we would wish. I pointed out in my answer to Altaf Hussain that the board itself has a plan to concentrate planned orthopaedic surgery in Port Talbot hospital, being able to protect that capacity for that purpose, while retaining 10 beds at Morriston for those more complex cases. That separation of planned and emergency care is something that we've talked about regularly on the floor of the Senedd, and this is an example, and there are other examples in other parts of Wales, of the effort that the health service is making to separate those two streams in its work to be able to protect elective capacity and therefore to be able to make progress on those long waits in a way that will, I hope, bring relief to Sioned Williams's constituent.
Rwyf eisoes wedi nodi y prynhawn yma gyfres o bethau mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn ei wneud i sicrhau bod y gwasanaeth iechyd mewn sefyllfa i drin pobl yn amserol. Dyna ein huchelgais, ac rwy'n siŵr mai dyna uchelgais Aelodau ar draws y Siambr. Fel yr wyf wedi dweud, roedd arosiadau dwy flynedd ym mwrdd iechyd Bae Abertawe 26 y cant yn is ar ddiwedd mis Hydref nag yr oedden nhw ddiwedd Mawrth y llynedd. Mae hynny'n dangos bod cynnydd yn cael ei wneud, er bod yna bobl yn aros yn hwy na fyddem ni'n ei ddymuno. Tynnais sylw yn fy ateb i Altaf Hussain bod gan y bwrdd ei hun gynllun i ganolbwyntio llawdriniaethau orthopedig a gynlluniwyd yn ysbyty Port Talbot, gan allu amddiffyn y capasiti hwnnw at y diben hwnnw, gan gadw 10 gwely yn Nhreforys ar gyfer yr achosion mwy cymhleth hynny. Mae gwahanu gofal a gynlluniwyd ac argyfwng yn rhywbeth yr ydym wedi siarad amdano'n rheolaidd ar lawr y Senedd, ac mae hon yn enghraifft, ac mae enghreifftiau eraill mewn rhannau eraill o Gymru, o'r ymdrech y mae'r gwasanaeth iechyd yn ei gwneud i wahanu'r ddwy ffrwd hynny yn ei waith i allu diogelu capasiti dewisol ac felly gallu gwneud cynnydd o ran yr arosiadau hir hynny mewn ffordd rwy'n gobeithio, y bydd yn dod â rhyddhad i etholwr Sioned Williams.
6. Pa gefnogaeth fydd y Llywodraeth yn ei chynnig i allforwyr nwyddau o Gymru yn 2023? OQ58935
6. What support will the Government offer the exporters of Welsh goods in 2023? OQ58935
I thank Joyce Watson, Llywydd. Global trading conditions remain unpredictable as we enter 2023. In addition to the turbulence created by Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Welsh exporters face new barriers to trade with our nearest and most important market. We offer practical assistance to partners to adapt to new trading environments and find new opportunities for the future.
Diolch i Joyce Watson, Llywydd. Mae amodau masnachu byd-eang yn parhau i fod yn anrhagweladwy wrth i ni fynd i mewn i 2023. Yn ogystal â'r cythrwfl a grëwyd gan ymosodiad Rwsia ar Wcráin, mae allforwyr o Gymru yn wynebu rhwystrau newydd rhag masnachu gyda'n marchnad agosaf a phwysicaf. Rydym yn cynnig cymorth ymarferol i bartneriaid i addasu i amgylcheddau masnachu newydd a dod o hyd i gyfleoedd newydd ar gyfer y dyfodol.
Thank you for that answer, First Minister. This time last year, the Counsel General told this Senedd that the Welsh Government would maintain or improve EU standards. That commitment is imperative if we are going to erase the continued Brexit burden facing Welsh exporters. At the UK level, we must make Brexit work, and some sort of regulatory alignment for food products and sorting out the Northern Ireland protocol is urgently necessary. The Labour Party has set out how it would do that. But, today, could you comment on the positive news that export values by Welsh businesses have recovered beyond pre-pandemic levels, and indicate how the Welsh Government will help exporters to continue in that vein this year?
Diolch am yr ateb yna, Prif Weinidog. Yr adeg yma y llynedd, dywedodd y Cwnsler Cyffredinol wrth y Senedd hon y byddai Llywodraeth Cymru'n cynnal neu'n gwella safonau'r UE. Mae'r ymrwymiad hwnnw'n hanfodol os ydym am ddileu'r baich Brexit parhaus sy'n wynebu allforwyr o Gymru. Ar lefel y DU, mae'n rhaid i ni wneud i Brexit weithio, ac mae rhyw fath o aliniad rheoleiddio ar gyfer cynhyrchion bwyd a rhoi trefn ar brotocol Gogledd Iwerddon yn angenrheidiol ar frys. Mae'r Blaid Lafur wedi nodi sut y byddai'n gwneud hynny. Ond heddiw, a wnewch chi roi sylwadau ar y newyddion cadarnhaol bod gwerthoedd allforio gan fusnesau Cymru wedi adfer y tu hwnt i lefelau cyn y pandemig, a nodi sut bydd Llywodraeth Cymru yn helpu allforwyr i barhau yn yr un modd eleni?
Llywydd, can I begin by welcoming the reports that have been seen today of progress in discussions between the UK Government and the European Commission on the Northern Ireland protocol matter? At the heart of that will be the issue of regulatory alignment, to which Joyce Watson has referred. In order to be able to make sure that Welsh exports get unfettered access to the European Union market, our European Union neighbours will need to know that the standards of those goods do not undermine the rest of the single market. So, if progress has been made in the way that's been reported, I certainly welcome that, and it would, I hope, prefigure a different approach to the whole relationship that the United Kingdom needs to have with our nearest and most important market.
As far as Welsh exports are concerned, I thank Joyce Watson for drawing attention to the fact that the value of Welsh exports has recovered beyond pandemic levels. It's a real tribute to the activity of those who work in this field, because the barriers have been real and the barriers continue to exist. Just one word of caution on the figures themselves, Llywydd, which, of course, is that the cash value of exports has been driven up by inflation as well as by the volume of exports. So, there may be a small amount of gloss on those figures that we will need to take into account.
The Welsh Government will go on supporting our exporters in the first half of this year; there are 15 different trade missions planned between now and the end of June. Some of those will be sector specific; there are food trade missions, there are trade missions in the field of games development, which has become such an important part of the UK economy, there are trade missions in the field of aerospace as well as multisector missions. They will go to Dubai, to the United States, to South America, to Japan, to South Korea and to a series of destinations in Europe. And the Welsh Government's support to our exporters will be there to make sure that the success to which Joyce Watson has drawn our attention can be continued from last year into the first half of this.
Llywydd, a gaf i ddechrau drwy groesawu'r adroddiadau a welwyd heddiw o gynnydd mewn trafodaethau rhwng Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Unedig a'r Comisiwn Ewropeaidd ar fater protocol Gogledd Iwerddon? Wrth wraidd hynny bydd mater aliniad rheoleiddiol, y mae Joyce Watson wedi cyfeirio ato. Er mwyn gallu gwneud yn siŵr bod allforion Cymru'n cael mynediad dilyffethair i farchnad yr Undeb Ewropeaidd, bydd angen i'n cymdogion ni yn yr Undeb Ewropeaidd wybod nad yw safonau'r nwyddau hynny'n tanseilio gweddill y farchnad sengl. Felly, os yw cynnydd wedi'i wneud yn y ffordd sydd wedi'i adrodd, rwy'n sicr yn croesawu hynny, a byddai, gobeithio, yn rhagddarlunio ymagwedd wahanol at yr holl berthynas y mae angen i'r Deyrnas Unedig ei chael gyda'n marchnad agosaf a phwysicaf.
O ran allforion Cymru, diolch i Joyce Watson am dynnu sylw at y ffaith bod gwerth allforion Cymreig wedi adfer y tu hwnt i lefelau'r pandemig. Mae'n deyrnged go iawn i weithgaredd y rhai sy'n gweithio yn y maes hwn, oherwydd mae'r rhwystrau wedi bod yn rhai go iawn ac mae'r rhwystrau'n parhau i fodoli. Un gair o rybudd yn unig ynghylch y ffigurau eu hunain, Llywydd, sef, wrth gwrs, mae gwerth arian allforion wedi ei ysgogi gan chwyddiant yn ogystal â maint yr allforion. Felly, efallai y bydd angen i ni ystyried bod ychydig o sglein ar y ffigurau hynny.
Bydd Llywodraeth Cymru yn parhau i gefnogi ein hallforwyr yn hanner cyntaf eleni; mae 15 o deithiau masnach gwahanol wedi'u cynllunio rhwng nawr a diwedd Mehefin. Bydd rhai o'r rheiny ar gyfer sectorau penodol; mae teithiau masnach bwyd, mae teithiau masnach ym maes datblygu gemau, sydd wedi dod yn rhan mor bwysig o economi'r DU, mae teithiau masnach ym maes awyrofod yn ogystal â theithiau aml-sector. Byddant yn mynd i Dubai, i'r Unol Daleithiau, i Dde America, i Japan, i Dde Corea ac i gyfres o gyrchfannau yn Ewrop. A bydd cefnogaeth Llywodraeth Cymru i'n hallforwyr yno i wneud yn siŵr bod modd parhau â'r llwyddiant y mae Joyce Watson wedi tynnu ein sylw ato o'r llynedd i mewn i hanner cyntaf eleni.
7. A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf am y camau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru'n eu cymryd i wella cysylltedd trafnidiaeth gyhoeddus o Abertawe? OQ58897
7. Will the First Minister provide an update on Welsh Government action to improve public transport connectivity from Swansea? OQ58897
I thank Mike Hedges, Llywydd. The creation of the South West Wales Corporate Joint Committee is key to improving public transport connectivity between Swansea and its partner authorities. That committee has met regularly in 2022, and Welsh Government officials will meet leaders of the CJC next week to take forward development of a regional transport plan.
Diolch i Mike Hedges, Llywydd. Mae creu Cyd-bwyllgor Corfforedig y De-orllewin yn allweddol er mwyn gwella cysylltedd trafnidiaeth gyhoeddus rhwng Abertawe a'i hawdurdodau partner. Mae'r pwyllgor hwnnw wedi cwrdd yn rheolaidd yn 2022, a bydd swyddogion Llywodraeth Cymru'n cwrdd ag arweinwyr y pwyllgor yr wythnos nesaf i fwrw ymlaen â datblygu cynllun trafnidiaeth rhanbarthol.
I thank the First Minister for that response. The published rail timetable for December 2022 didn't have the 15:12 service from Llansamlet— this was added after I raised concerns under business questions. An issue I've raised previously is that First Cymru terminated the 33 bus in Frederick Place, which is 300 yd from Llansamlet station, which, in Swansea, can be a long way in the rain. What discussion has the Welsh Government had on the reintroduction of the X10 Swansea to Cardiff bus service and on an integrated train and bus service with one ticket for bus and train transport?
Diolch i'r Prif Weinidog am yr ymateb yna. Nid oedd y gwasanaeth 15:12 o Lansamlet yn yr amserlen reilffordd a gyhoeddwyd ar gyfer Rhagfyr 2022—ychwanegwyd hwn ar ôl i mi godi pryderon o dan gwestiynau busnes. Un mater yr wyf wedi'i godi'n flaenorol yw bod First Cymru wedi trefnu bod y bws 33 yn terfynu yn Frederick Place, sy'n 300 llath o orsaf Llansamlet, sydd, yn Abertawe, yn gallu bod yn bell yn y glaw. Pa drafodaeth mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi ei chael ar ailgyflwyno gwasanaeth bws X10 Abertawe i Gaerdydd ac ar wasanaeth trên a bws integredig gydag un tocyn ar gyfer trafnidiaeth bysiau a threnau?
Well, Llywydd, first of all, I congratulate Mike Hedges on the success of his lobbying efforts on behalf of his constituents in Llansamlet. I know that Transport for Wales, who are responsible for the rail service, of course, that he mentioned, are working hard to try to make sure that there is an increased range and availability of integrated tickets to make it easier for people to make journeys by public transport. In the end, individual bus services under the current system remain the responsibility of individual operators. We know that the system, over many years, has put profitability before passenger need, and that is why this Government will bring forward a bus Bill in front of the Senedd to make sure that we have a different approach to the organisation of bus services in Wales, one that allows us to put people before profit and make sure that the extensive sums of money that the public invest in bus services in Wales reflect the public interest. Then we may see fewer of the sorts of difficulties that Mike Hedges has drawn our attention to this afternoon.
Wel, Llywydd, yn gyntaf oll, rwy'n llongyfarch Mike Hedges ar lwyddiant ei ymdrechion lobïo ar ran ei etholwyr yn Llansamlet. Rwy'n gwybod bod Trafnidiaeth Cymru, sy'n gyfrifol am y gwasanaeth rheilffyrdd, wrth gwrs, yn gweithio'n galed i geisio sicrhau bod yna ystod uwch a mwy o docynnau integredig ar gael i'w gwneud hi'n haws i bobl deithio ar drafnidiaeth gyhoeddus. Yn y pen draw, gweithredwyr unigol sy'n gyfrifol am wasanaethau bysiau unigol o dan y system bresennol. Gwyddom fod y system, dros nifer o flynyddoedd, wedi rhoi elw o flaen angen teithwyr, a dyna pam y bydd y Llywodraeth hon yn cyflwyno Bil bysiau ger bron y Senedd i wneud yn siŵr bod gennym ddull gwahanol i drefnu gwasanaethau bysiau yng Nghymru, un sy'n caniatáu i ni roi pobl o flaen elw a gwneud yn siŵr bod y symiau helaeth o arian y mae'r cyhoedd yn eu buddsoddi mewn gwasanaethau bysiau yng Nghymru yn adlewyrchu budd y cyhoedd. Yna, efallai y gwelwn ni lai o'r mathau o anawsterau y mae Mike Hedges wedi tynnu ein sylw atyn nhw y prynhawn yma.
Yn olaf, cwestiwn 8, Rhun ap Iorwerth.
Finally, question 8, Rhun ap Iorwerth.
8. A wnaiff y Prif Weinidog ddatganiad am y digwyddiad mewnol difrifol ym Mwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr? OQ58933
8. Will the First Minister make a statement on the critical internal incident within Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board? OQ58933
Ar 19 Rhagfyr, cafodd digwyddiad mewnol difrifol ei ddatgan yn y bwrdd. Roedd hyn oherwydd pwysau cynyddol COVID, cynnydd mewn achosion o ffliw, pryder y cyhoedd am strep A, streic nyrsys ar 20 Rhagfyr a streic ambiwlans ar 21 Rhagfyr. Mae datgan digwyddiad fel hyn yn arwain at gamau i leihau'r pwysau ar y system, fel y gwelwyd mewn mannau eraill yng Nghymru ac ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig.
On 19 December, an internal critical incident was declared at the board in the face of rising COVID pressures, rising flu numbers, public concern about strep A, a nurses strike on 20 December and an ambulance strike on 21 December. Declaring an incident of this kind triggers actions designed to reduce the pressures on the system, as seen elsewhere in Wales and across the United Kingdom.
Rydyn ni wedi cael dau ddigwyddiad o'r math yma mewn pythefnos yn y gogledd—dau ddigwyddiad mewnol critigol. Ac mi allaf roi sicrwydd i'r Prif Weinidog ei bod hi'n teimlo ei bod hi'n gritigol ym mwrdd iechyd Betsi Cadwaladr ddydd ar ôl dydd, i gleifion sy'n aros yn hir am driniaeth, i staff sydd yn gweithio dan bwysau rhyfeddol ac i weithwyr ambiwlans sydd wedi cael llond bol ar aros tu allan i'n hysbytai ni. Ac os mai'r amddiffyniad gan y Prif Weinidog ydy bod y rhain yn broblemau sydd i'w cael ym mhob rhan o Gymru, gadewch inni atgoffa'r Senedd fod y bwrdd iechyd penodol yma wedi bod mewn rhyw lefel o ymyrraeth uwch ers bron wyth mlynedd. Rŵan, oes, mae angen mynd i'r afael â phroblemau'r NHS ar draws Cymru, ond dwi'n gofyn eto i'r Prif Weinidog, tra'i fod o'n trio gwneud hynny ar y cyd efo'i Weinidog iechyd, a wnaiff o edrych ar batrwm newydd o ddelifro gofal iechyd yn y gogledd? Mae'r bwrdd yn rhy fawr, mae o'n rhy anhylaw; mae pobl wedi colli ffydd yn y bwrdd, ac mae angen pwyso reset er mwyn gallu darparu gofal iechyd mewn ffordd dwi'n ofni na all bwrdd iechyd Betsi Cadwaladr fel y mae o ei wneud.
We've had two incidents of this kind in the space of a fortnight in north Wales—two internal critical incidents. And I can give the First Minister an assurance that it does feel to be critical within Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board day upon day, for patients waiting a long time for treatment, for staff who are working under huge pressures and for ambulance workers who've had enough of queuing outside of hospitals. And if the First Minister's defence is that these are problems that exist in all parts of Wales, then let us remind the Senedd that this particular health board has been in some level of raised intervention for almost eight years. Now, yes, we need to tackle NHS problems across Wales, but I again ask the First Minister, whilst he's trying to do that with his health Minister, will he look at a new pattern of delivering healthcare in north Wales? The board is too large, it is too unwieldy, people have lost faith in the board, and we need to press the reset button in order to provide healthcare in a way that I'm afraid Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board cannot currently do.
Wel, dwi'n clywed beth mae'r Aelod yn ei ddweud, wrth gwrs. Yr unig bwynt sydd gyda fi i’w ddweud yw’r unig bwynt rydw i wedi’i wneud pan dwi wedi ymateb i’r awgrym yn ôl yn y flwyddyn ddiwethaf. I ailystyried popeth yn y gogledd, i roi y gogledd i mewn i gyfnod o amser pan fydd ansicrwydd am bopeth sydd y tu ôl i’r gwasanaeth iechyd—dydw i ddim yn meddwl bod hynny’n mynd i helpu unrhyw berson sy’n gyrru ambiwlans neu unrhyw berson sy’n aros am driniaeth yn y gogledd.
Well, I hear what the Member says, of course. The only point that I have to make is the point that I have made when I have responded to the suggestion last year. To reconsider everything in north Wales, to put north Wales into a situation where there is uncertainty in everything that lies behind the health service—I don't think that that is going to help anyone who drives an ambulance or anyone who is waiting for treatment in north Wales.
There are important things that need to be done in the north of Wales. I don’t disagree with that. I don’t disagree that that might involve greater responsibilities being discharged at the different locality levels within the north. But the idea that a wholesale reorganisation is what health services in the north of Wales require, and that that would lead to a solution to the problems that the Member outlined in his supplementary question—. I think that that is guaranteed to make things more difficult, rather than to solve those problems, and it’s not a course of action on which we will embark.
Mae yna bethau pwysig sydd angen eu gwneud yn y gogledd. Nid ydw i'n anghytuno â hynny. Nid ydw i'n anghytuno y gallai hynny olygu bod mwy o gyfrifoldebau'n cael eu cyflawni ar y gwahanol lefelau bro yn y gogledd. Ond y syniad mai ad-drefnu llwyr yw'r hyn sydd ei angen ar wasanaethau iechyd yn y gogledd, ac y byddai hynny'n arwain at ddatrys y problemau yr amlinellodd yr Aelod yn ei gwestiwn atodol—. Rwy'n credu bod hynny'n sicr o wneud pethau'n anoddach, yn hytrach na datrys y problemau hynny, ac nid yw'n llwybr y byddwn i'n cychwyn arno.
Diolch i'r Prif Weinidog.
I thank the First Minister.
Yr eitem nesaf, felly, yw'r datganiad a chyhoeddiad busnes. Dwi'n galw ar y Trefnydd i wneud y datganiad hwnnw, Lesley Griffiths.
The next item is the business statement and announcement. I call on the Trefnydd to make the statement, Lesley Griffiths.
Diolch, Llywydd. There is one change to this week's business. I have extended the time allocated to the statement on NHS winter pressures to 45 minutes. Draft business for the next three weeks is set out on the business statement and announcement, which can be found among the meeting papers available to Members electronically.
Diolch, Llywydd. Mae un newid i'r busnes yr wythnos hon. Rwyf i wedi ymestyn yr amser sydd wedi'i ddyrannu i'r datganiad ar bwysau'r gaeaf ar y GIG i 45 munud. Mae'r busnes drafft ar gyfer y tair wythnos nesaf wedi'i nodi ar y datganiad busnes a'r cyhoeddiad, sydd i'w weld ymhlith y papurau cyfarfod sydd ar gael i Aelodau yn electronig.
Trefnydd, can I call for a statement from your colleague, the Minister for Health and Social Services, in relation to the situation at the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board? Members will be aware that there was some discussion in the media about a £122 million fraud investigation that is being undertaken by NHS counter-fraud at the moment, alongside a review by Audit Wales—a high-level review—of board effectiveness. Now, clearly, these are matters of concern for a health board that we know was already struggling to perform and deliver its services at a standard that the people of north Wales deserve, and I do think that we need an opportunity to question in this Chamber the Minister on the action that is being taken, in order that we can be confident that it is appropriate.
Can I also call for a statement from an appropriate Minister in relation to the Welsh space industry? I was very pleased yesterday to see Wales’s first satellite launched into the air, at least. It didn’t quite get into space. [Laughter.] It didn’t quite get into space, but there was a successful launch from Cornwall of a rocket from the bottom of an aircraft, which got into the outer atmosphere. As I say, it wasn’t quite met with the success that we had all hoped for, in terms of ForgeStar-0 actually being released, but I do think that there is a growing interest in space as an opportunity for our economy here in Wales. We know that there are plans in Llanbedr in north Wales with Spaceport Snowdonia as well, and I think that this growing interest is something that Wales should capitalise on as soon as possible in order to make sure that our economy benefits from it. I do think that it’s time that we had, given the events of last night, an opportunity to consider it further in the Chamber.
I should note that I saw a meteor in the sky last night as well, over Cardiff, which was quite exciting. I don’t know if anybody else noticed it, but if you get on to Twitter and put 'meteor Cardiff', you will see, on people’s ring doorbells and the like, that many people had been able to witness this ball of fire in the sky, which was quite exciting to witness on my way to Wetherspoon’s last night, at about 8 p.m. [Laughter.]
Trefnydd, a gaf i alw am ddatganiad gan eich cyd-Weinidog, y Gweinidog Iechyd a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol, o ran y sefyllfa ym Mwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr? Bydd yr aelodau'n ymwybodol bod rhywfaint o drafodaeth yn y cyfryngau ynglŷn ag ymchwiliad i dwyll gwerth £122 miliwn sy'n cael ei gynnal gan wasanaeth wrth-dwyll y GIG ar hyn o bryd, ochr yn ochr ag adolygiad gan Archwilio Cymru—adolygiad lefel uchel—o effeithiolrwydd y bwrdd. Nawr, yn amlwg, mae'r rhain yn faterion o bryder i fwrdd iechyd yr ydym ni'n gwybod ei fod eisoes yn ei chael hi'n anodd perfformio a darparu ei wasanaethau o safon y mae pobl y gogledd yn ei haeddu, ac rwy'n credu bod angen cyfle i holi'r Gweinidog yn y Siambr hon am y camau sy'n cael eu cymryd, er mwyn i ni fod yn hyderus ei fod yn briodol.
A gaf i hefyd alw am ddatganiad gan Weinidog priodol o ran diwydiant gofod Cymru? Roeddwn i'n falch iawn ddoe o weld lloeren gyntaf Cymru yn cael ei lansio i'r awyr, o leiaf. Ond ni lwyddodd yn llwyr i fynd i'r gofod. [Chwerthin.] Ni lwyddodd yn llwyr i fynd i'r gofod, ond roedd yna lansiad llwyddiannus o Gernyw o roced o waelod awyren, a aeth i'r atmosffer allanol. Fel y dywedais i, nid y llwyddiant ysgubol yr oeddem ni i gyd wedi gobeithio amdano, o ran ForgeStar-0 wir yn cael ei rhyddhau, ond rwy'n credu bod diddordeb cynyddol yn y gofod fel cyfle i'n heconomi ni yma yng Nghymru. Rydym ni'n gwybod bod cynlluniau ar y gweill yn Llanbedr yn y gogledd gyda Spaceport Snowdonia hefyd, ac rwy'n credu bod y diddordeb cynyddol hwn yn rhywbeth y dylai Cymru fanteisio arno cyn gynted â phosibl er mwyn gwneud yn siŵr bod ein heconomi ni'n elwa arni. Rwy'n meddwl ei bod hi'n bryd i ni gael, o ystyried digwyddiadau neithiwr, cyfle i'w ystyried ymhellach yn y Siambr.
Dylwn i nodi i mi weld meteor yn yr awyr neithiwr hefyd, dros Gaerdydd, a oedd yn eithaf cyffrous. Dydw i ddim yn gwybod a wnaeth unrhyw un arall sylwi arno, ond os ydych chi'n mynd ar Twitter ac yn rhoi 'meteor Cardiff', fe welwch chi, ar glychau drysau pobl a thebyg, bod llawer o bobl wedi gallu bod yn dyst i'r bêl yma o dân yn yr awyr, a oedd yn eithaf cyffrous i mi ei dystio ar fy ffordd i Wetherspoon's neithiwr, tua 8 p.m. [Chwerthin.]
Thank you, Darren Millar. In relation to the first issue that you referred to, with Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board, you will be aware that there is a process to go through, and I'm sure that the Minister for Health and Social Services will update us at the most appropriate time, but I do not think that that will be before next month.
In relation to your second request, it would be from the Minister for Economy. I will certainly ask him if there is anything that he thinks is worthy of an oral statement to update us on the Welsh space issue. You are quite right—I didn't see the meteor because I was actually watching the news, where a lot of people in Cornwall were getting incredibly excited about this rocket going up. As you say, it didn't end in the way that we would have wished.
Diolch, Darren Millar. O ran y mater cyntaf y cyfeirioch chi ato, gyda Bwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr, byddwch chi'n ymwybodol bod proses i fynd drwyddi, ac rwy'n siŵr y bydd y Gweinidog Iechyd a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol yn rhoi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i ni ar yr adeg fwyaf priodol, ond nid wyf i'n credu y bydd hynny cyn mis nesaf.
O ran eich ail gais, byddai'n dod gan Weinidog yr Economi. Yn sicr, gwnaf i ofyn iddo a oes unrhyw beth sy'n deilwng, yn ei farn ef, datganiad llafar i roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i ni ar fater gofod Cymru. Rydych chi'n hollol gywir—ni welais i'r meteor oherwydd roeddwn i'n gwylio'r newyddion, lle'r oedd llawer o bobl yng Nghernyw wedi'u cynhyrfu'n lân am y roced yma'n mynd i fyny. Fel y dywedwch chi, ni aeth pethau fel y byddem ni wedi'i ddymuno.
I was just thinking, what did you see on your way back from Wetherspoon's if you managed to see a meteor on your way to Wetherspoon's? [Laughter.] Anyway, I'll leave that to the imagination. Delyth Jewell.
Meddwl oeddwn i, beth welsoch chi ar eich ffordd yn ôl o Wetherspoon's os oeddech chi wedi llwyddo i weld meteor ar eich ffordd i Wetherspoon's? [Chwerthin.] Beth bynnag, fe wnaf i adael hynny i'r dychymyg. Delyth Jewell.
Diolch, Llywydd. I'd like to request a statement, please, outlining whether legislation in Wales covering homelessness is sufficiently compassionate. Just after Christmas, I was made aware of a homeless man who'd sought help from a Catholic church in my region. The man had been released from prison and he'd lost his flat. He'd approached social services and Cornerstone, and he was given a tent and a sleeping bag and told that they would see him after the Christmas break. The parish priest housed him over Christmas in a hotel at his own expense before the man came back to stay in the church shed. Now, the priest, I know, asked the authorities whether a tent over Christmas really fulfils society's duty of care for the vulnerable, and I have to say I share his alarm. Is that really the society that we are? Can a statement please outline what support is expected to be given to everyone presenting as homeless and set out what would need to be done to raise awareness and to remind local authorities and support services across Wales of those responsibilities please, and to ensure that more desperate people, in the depths of winter, aren't left to just make do with a tent?
Diolch, Llywydd. Hoffwn i ofyn am ddatganiad, os gwelwch chi'n dda, yn amlinellu a yw deddfwriaeth yng Nghymru sy'n ymdrin â digartrefedd yn ddigon tosturiol. Ychydig ar ôl y Nadolig, cefais wybod am ddyn digartref a oedd wedi gofyn am gymorth gan eglwys Gatholig yn fy rhanbarth i. Roedd y dyn wedi'i ryddhau o'r carchar ac roedd wedi colli ei fflat. Roedd wedi cysylltu â'r gwasanaethau cymdeithasol a Cornerstone, ac fe gafodd babell a sach gysgu gan ddweud wrtho y bydden nhw'n ei weld ef ar ôl gwyliau'r Nadolig. Rhoddodd offeiriad y plwyf gartref iddo dros y Nadolig mewn gwesty ar draul ei hun cyn i'r dyn ddod yn ôl i aros yn sied yr eglwys. Nawr, gofynnodd yr offeiriad, rwy'n gwybod, i'r awdurdodau a yw pabell dros y Nadolig wir yn cyflawni dyletswydd gofal cymdeithas ar gyfer y rhai agored i niwed, ac mae'n rhaid i mi ddweud fy mod i'n rhannu ei fraw. Ai dyna'r gymdeithas yr ydym ni mewn gwirionedd? A oes modd i ddatganiad amlinellu pa gefnogaeth y mae disgwyl ei rhoi i bawb sy'n cyflwyno eu hunain yn ddigartref ac yn nodi'r hyn y byddai angen ei wneud i godi ymwybyddiaeth ac i atgoffa awdurdodau lleol a chefnogi gwasanaethau ledled Cymru o'r cyfrifoldebau hynny os gwelwch yn dda, ac i sicrhau nad oes mwy o bobl ddiobaith, yn nyfnderoedd y gaeaf, yn cael eu gadael i ymdopi â dim ond pabell?
Thank you. I think you raise a very important point about compassion. And I too attended, in my own constituency, a group of homeless people who were very worried that they would be given a tent. And I was very pleased to be assured that would not happen, but, clearly, you give an example of when that has happened. Obviously, the legislation around homelessness, particularly in relation to people coming out of prison, has been updated over the years. I don't think there is anything new for the Minister to give us an update on, but I will certainly ask if that is the current position.
Diolch. Rwy'n credu eich bod chi'n codi pwynt pwysig iawn am dosturi. Ac fe wnes i hefyd, yn fy etholaeth fy hun, fynd at grŵp o bobl ddigartref a oedd yn poeni'n fawr y bydden nhw'n cael pabell. Ac roeddwn i'n falch iawn o gael fy sicrhau na fyddai hynny'n digwydd, ond, yn amlwg, rydych chi'n rhoi enghraifft o bryd mae hynny wedi digwydd. Yn amlwg, mae'r ddeddfwriaeth ynghylch digartrefedd, yn enwedig o ran pobl sy'n gadael y carchar, wedi'i cael ei diwygio dros y blynyddoedd. Nid wyf i'n credu bod unrhyw beth newydd i'r Gweinidog roi gwybodaeth i ni arno, ond fe wnaf i, yn sicr, ofyn os mai dyna'r sefyllfa bresennol.
Trefnydd, I'd like to hear from the education Minister about what is being done to address misogynistic ideology in the classroom. The case of Andrew Tate has lifted the lid on a pervasive, toxic and dangerous culture that is targeting vulnerable boys in particular. And it's endemic. I must confess I'd not heard of him until the current legal case, because I'm not on the platforms or algorithms that promote his hate speech. But his influence among younger men and boys is astonishing. He was the third most searched person online last year, after the late Queen and Donald Trump. His videos have gained more than 12 billion views on TikTok. I'm extremely anxious to know what is being done in our schools to safeguard girls and to encourage all students to question and challenge the misogynistic content that they're being exposed to. Because if society doesn't address the problems facing boys and young men today and help them answer the questions of what it means to be a good man, then predatory people like Andrew Tate will.
Trefnydd, hoffwn i glywed gan y Gweinidog addysg am yr hyn sy'n cael ei wneud i fynd i'r afael ag ideoleg casineb at fenywod yn yr ystafell ddosbarth. Mae achos Andrew Tate wedi amlygu diwylliant treiddiol, gwenwynig a pheryglus sy'n targedu bechgyn agored i niwed yn arbennig. Ac mae'n rhemp. Rhaid i mi gyfaddef nad oeddwn i wedi clywed amdano tan yr achos cyfreithiol presennol, oherwydd nid wyf i ar y llwyfannau na'r algorithmau sy'n hyrwyddo ei iaith casineb. Ond mae ei ddylanwad ymhlith dynion a bechgyn iau yn syfrdanol. Ef oedd y trydydd person y cafodd ei chwilio fwyaf amdano ar-lein y llynedd, ar ôl y diweddar Frenhines a Donald Trump. Mae ei fideos wedi cael eu gweld mwy na 12 biliwn o weithiau ar TikTok. Rwy'n hynod bryderus o wybod beth sy'n cael ei wneud yn ein hysgolion i ddiogelu merched ac annog pob myfyriwr i gwestiynu a herio'r cynnwys casineb at fenywod y maen nhw'n dod i gysylltiad ag ef. Oherwydd os nad yw cymdeithas yn ymdrin â'r problemau sy'n wynebu bechgyn a dynion ifanc heddiw a'u helpu nhw i ateb cwestiynau o ran beth mae'n ei olygu i fod yn ddyn da, yna bydd pobl rheibus fel Andrew Tate yn gwneud hynny.
Thank you. I think you raise a very important point, and, like you, I had not heard of this man. It was absolutely horrific what was coming out in the news at the time this story did hit the media. I think we need to be very, very clear that we need to ensure that we protect all children and young people, and, in particular, boys, from harm and influence from individuals on abusive and unhealthy relationships. All education settings in Wales have a legal duty to ensure that children have access to a safe learning environment, and I know the Minister for education expects those safeguarding responsibilities to be taken very seriously. You'll be aware of Hwb's dedicated 'Keeping safe online' area, and the guidance and the tools and the training on a range of online safety issues are available for schools to access.
Diolch. Rwy'n credu eich bod chi'n codi pwynt pwysig iawn, ac, fel chi, nid oeddwn i wedi clywed am y dyn hwn. Roedd yr hyn a oedd i'w weld yn y newyddion ar yr adeg y gwnaeth y stori hon daro'r cyfryngau yn hollol erchyll. Rwy'n credu bod angen i ni fod yn glir iawn, iawn bod angen i ni sicrhau ein bod ni'n amddiffyn pob plentyn a pherson ifanc, ac, yn arbennig, bechgyn, rhag niwed a dylanwad gan unigolion o ran perthynas ymosodol ac afiach. Mae dyletswydd gyfreithiol ar bob lleoliad addysg yng Nghymru i sicrhau bod gan blant fynediad at amgylchedd dysgu diogel, ac rwy'n gwybod bod y Gweinidog addysg yn disgwyl i'r cyfrifoldebau diogelu hynny gael eu cymryd o ddifrif. Byddwch chi'n ymwybodol o ardal bwrpasol Hwb 'Cadw'n ddiogel ar-lein', ac mae'r canllawiau a'r adnoddau a'r hyfforddiant ar amrywiaeth o faterion diogelwch ar-lein ar gael i ysgolion gael mynd atyn nhw.
Samuel Kurtz.
Samuel Kurtz.
Diolch, Llywydd. Blwyddyn newydd dda i chi ac i bawb.
Thank you, Llywydd. Happy new year, everyone.
Two statements, if I may, Llywydd. Further to written correspondence from yourself, Minister, I request a statement on Natural Resources Wales's astonishing increases in regulatory fees and charges. As you will know, the proposed charge for the disposal of sheep dip is set to rise tenfold, with NRW providing no evidence to underpin this increase. Also, the charge for standard rules permits for on-farm anaerobic digestion is set to double, and water resources fees are set to increase from £135 to over £6,000—a percentage increase of over 4,500 per cent.
What is missing from these price increases is transparency as to how these figures were calculated. Is NRW looking to make a profit from fees and charges, or are they cost-neutral? The unintended consequences of these charges will curb the advancement of new tech, hinder the industry's delivery of net zero and significantly impact animal health. Given these concerns and those of the agricultural sector, an oral or written statement on this matter would be much appreciated.
Secondly, noting Welsh Government business tabled up until February 7, the annual bovine TB eradication statement still has yet to be tabled. Therefore, I would like to reiterate my call from November for an updated statement on the Welsh Government's bovine TB eradication programme. Diolch.
Dau ddatganiad, os caf i, Llywydd. Yn dilyn gohebiaeth ysgrifenedig gennych chi'ch hun, Gweinidog, rwy'n gofyn am ddatganiad am gynnydd syfrdanol mewn ffioedd a thaliadau rheoleiddiol Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru. Fel y gwyddoch chi, bydd y tâl arfaethedig ar gyfer gwaredu dip defaid yn codi deg gwaith, gydag CNC yn darparu dim tystiolaeth yn sail i'r cynnydd hwn. Hefyd, bydd y tâl am drwyddedau rheolau safonol ar gyfer treulio anaerobig ar y fferm yn dyblu, a bydd ffioedd adnoddau dŵr yn cynyddu o £135 i dros £6,000—cynnydd canran o dros 4,500 y cant.
Yr hyn sydd ar goll o'r cynnydd mewn prisiau hyn yw tryloywder ynglŷn â sut y cyfrifwyd y ffigurau hyn. Ydy CNC yn ceisio gwneud elw o ffioedd a thaliadau, neu ydyn nhw'n gost-niwtral? Bydd canlyniadau anfwriadol y taliadau hyn yn ffrwyno datblygiad technoleg newydd, yn rhwystro darpariaeth sero net y diwydiant ac yn effeithio'n sylweddol ar iechyd anifeiliaid. O ystyried y pryderon hyn a rhai'r sector amaethyddol, byddai datganiad llafar neu ysgrifenedig ar y mater hwn yn cael ei werthfawrogi'n fawr.
Yn ail, gan nodi busnes Llywodraeth Cymru a gafodd ei gyflwyno hyd at 7 Chwefror, mae'r datganiad dileu TB mewn gwartheg yn dal heb ei gyflwyno. Felly, hoffwn i ailadrodd fy ngalwad o fis Tachwedd am ddatganiad wedi'i ddiweddaru ar raglen dileu TB mewn gwartheg Llywodraeth Cymru. Diolch.
Thank you. I haven't seen your correspondence, but that could be because NRW falls within the portfolio of my colleague the Minister for Climate Change, Julie James, so it may have been transferred over to her. But obviously I'm very aware of the ongoing Natural Resources Wales consultation regarding their regulatory fees and charges for 2023-24. I think the whole aim of that review is to ensure that NRW achieves full cost recovery, with some of the current charges having not been reviewed for many years. But obviously I fully appreciate this is a very challenging time for all our farmers and I'm aware of the concerns within the agricultural sector. So, what will happen after the consultation is that those proposals will go in front of the Minister for Climate Change prior to implementation. But it is the responsibility of NRW to recommend the appropriate fee structure to Welsh Ministers.
In relation to the TB eradication programme, I actually have a meeting tomorrow, and I will be tabling a statement as soon as possible.
Diolch. Nid ydw i wedi gweld eich gohebiaeth, ond fe allai hynny fod oherwydd bod CNC yn dod o fewn portffolio fy nghyd-Aelod y Gweinidog Newid Hinsawdd, Julie James, felly efallai ei fod wedi cael ei drosglwyddo draw ati hi. Ond yn amlwg rwy'n ymwybodol iawn o'r ymgynghoriad parhaus gan Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru ynghylch eu ffioedd rheoleiddio a thaliadau ar gyfer 2023-24. Rwy'n credu mai holl nod yr adolygiad hwnnw yw sicrhau bod CNC yn llwyddo i adfer costau llawn, gan nad yw rhai o'r taliadau presennol wedi cael eu hadolygu ers blynyddoedd lawer. Ond yn amlwg, rwy'n llwyr werthfawrogi bod hwn yn gyfnod heriol iawn i'n ffermwyr i gyd ac rwy'n ymwybodol o'r pryderon yn y sector amaethyddol. Felly, yr hyn a fydd yn digwydd ar ôl yr ymgynghoriad yw y bydd y cynigion hynny yn mynd o flaen y Gweinidog Newid Hinsawdd cyn eu gweithredu. Ond cyfrifoldeb CNC yw argymell y strwythur ffioedd priodol i Weinidogion Cymru.
O ran y rhaglen dileu TB, a dweud y gwir, mae gennyf i gyfarfod yfory, a byddaf i'n cyflwyno datganiad cyn gynted â phosibl.
Trefnydd, as you will be aware, next month will mark three years since the devastating flooding as a result of storm Dennis, which particularly affected South Wales Central. The subsequent report by Natural Resources Wales outlined that one of the biggest challenges they were facing in responding to flooding was capacity, due to being under-resourced in terms of staff. A report published by Audit Wales just before Christmas outlined that this was a continued problem, and stated that greater urgency is needed to deal with the challenges facing flood risk management. I'd therefore like to request a statement from the Minister for Climate Change, responding to Audit Wales's report, outlining how the Welsh Government will be taking forward the recommendations made.
Trefnydd, fel y gwyddoch chi, fis nesaf bydd yn nodi tair blynedd ers y llifogydd dinistriol o ganlyniad i storm Dennis, a effeithiodd yn arbennig ar Ganol De Cymru. Roedd yr adroddiad dilynol gan Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru yn amlinellu mai un o'r heriau mwyaf iddyn nhw eu hwynebu wrth ymateb i lifogydd oedd gallu, a hynny oherwydd nad oedd ganddyn nhw ddigon o adnoddau o ran staff. Roedd adroddiad a gafodd ei gyhoeddi gan Archwilio Cymru ychydig cyn y Nadolig yn amlinellu bod hyn yn broblem barhaus, a nododd bod angen mwy o frys i ymdrin â'r heriau sy'n wynebu rheoli perygl llifogydd. Felly, hoffwn i ofyn am ddatganiad gan y Gweinidog Newid Hinsawdd, yn ymateb i adroddiad Archwilio Cymru, yn amlinellu sut y bydd Llywodraeth Cymru yn gweithredu ar yr argymhellion sydd wedi'u gwneud.
Thank you. I'm assuming that the Minister will be currently considering the report that you refer to. You will have heard the First Minister say in his question and answer session that we've put significant funding once again into our flood risk management programmes, and it is really important that our local authorities and NRW have the staff to be able to implement all schemes.
Diolch. Rwy'n tybio y bydd y Gweinidog yn ystyried yr adroddiad yr ydych chi'n cyfeirio ato ar hyn o bryd. Byddwch chi wedi clywed y Prif Weinidog yn dweud yn ei sesiwn holi ac ateb ein bod ni wedi rhoi arian sylweddol unwaith eto yn ein rhaglenni rheoli risg llifogydd, ac mae'n hynod bwysig bod gan ein hawdurdodau lleol a CNC y staff i allu gweithredu pob cynllun.
Good afternoon, Minister. And also
Prynhawn da, Gweinidog. A hefyd
pen blwydd hapus i chi hefyd.
happy birthday to you too.
Just to embarrass you. [Laughter.]
Could I please ask for a statement from the Minister for Climate Change regarding the measures being taken to reduce pollution in the River Wye, and what the Welsh Government's position is on calling in decisions on intensive poultry units? As a resident of Hay-on-Wye, as you will know, I'm very passionate about the river, as I know many other people are as well. We know that there are three reasons for the pollution in the Wye. They are farming and agriculture, industrial pollution and the issues around storm overflows. Whilst I support farms and farmers to diversify, in Powys, there is certainly a growing concern around the intensive poultry units and those growing in terms of numbers. And there is one that is being proposed, as I understand, now in Builth Wells, for 100,000 chickens. So, therefore, I would be very interested in what the processes are around planning and also around the calling in of decisions by the Welsh Government. Thank you. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Dim ond i godi cywilydd arnoch chi. [Chwerthin.]
A gaf i ofyn am ddatganiad gan y Gweinidog Newid Hinsawdd ynglŷn â'r mesurau sy'n cael eu cymryd i leihau llygredd yn Afon Gwy, a beth yw safbwynt Llywodraeth Cymru ar alw i mewn penderfyniadau ar unedau dofednod dwys? Fel un o drigolion Y Gelli Gandryll, fel y gwyddoch chi, rwy'n angerddol iawn am yr afon, ac rwy'n gwybod bod llawer o bobl eraill hefyd. Rydym ni'n gwybod bod tri rheswm dros y llygredd yn Afon Gwy. Ffermio ac amaethyddiaeth, llygredd diwydiannol a'r materion yn ymwneud â gorlifoedd storm ydyn nhw. Er fy mod i'n cefnogi ffermydd a ffermwyr i arallgyfeirio, ym Mhowys, yn sicr mae pryder cynyddol ynghylch yr unedau dofednod dwys a'r rhai sy'n tyfu o ran niferoedd. Ac mae un sy'n cael ei gynnig, fel rwy'n deall, nawr yn Llanfair-ym-Muallt, ar gyfer 100,000 o ieir. Felly, byddai gennyf i ddiddordeb mawr o ran y prosesau yn ymwneud â chynllunio a hefyd ynghylch y galw am benderfyniadau gan Lywodraeth Cymru. Diolch. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Diolch. As you're aware, Welsh Ministers did issue a direction on 5 January in relation to a specific planning application on a poultry farm, and that direction does prevent the granting of planning permission until Welsh Ministers have been able to assess whether or not the planning application should be called in or not, and such directions, as you know, are issued routinely where a Welsh Minister does consider a call-in. At the moment, obviously, nothing further can be said about that specific one, but I know this is an issue that the Minister is looking at very closely, in particular to Powys.
Diolch. Fel y gwyddoch chi, fe wnaeth Gweinidogion Cymru roi cyfarwyddyd ar 5 Ionawr yn gysylltiedig â chais cynllunio penodol ar fferm ddofednod, ac mae'r cyfarwyddyd hwnnw yn atal rhoi caniatâd cynllunio tan y bydd Gweinidogion Cymru wedi gallu asesu a ddylai cais cynllunio gael ei alw i mewn ai peidio, a chyfarwyddiadau o'r fath, fel y gwyddoch chi, yn cael eu cyhoeddi'n rheolaidd pan fo Gweinidog Cymru yn ystyried galw i mewn. Ar hyn o bryd, yn amlwg, nid oes modd dweud dim byd arall am yr un penodol hwnnw, ond rwy'n gwybod bod hwn yn fater y mae'r Gweinidog yn ei ystyried yn fanwl iawn, yn benodol ar gyfer Powys.
Trefnydd, I'd like to ask for two statements—one from yourself, on the defective regulations that we put through here on 13 December, the Trade in Animals and Related Products (Amendment and Legislative Functions) and Animal Health (Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) (EU Exit) Regulations 2022. You stated on 13 December that you'd come forward as soon as possible to amend those to make sure we get good legislation on the statute book. Could you please update us as to when you intend to do that?
My second Welsh Government statement that I'd like to ask for is from the Deputy Minister for Climate Change on the shambolic home to school transport changes in the south of my constituency by Powys County Council. Children have been left in the rain, left on the side of the road, told to catch service buses that arrive late or arrive too early. We've had young children told to hang around outside the school for an hour and just to get on with it, and in some cases they've been put on service buses that are going completely the wrong way to where they're supposed to go home because of poor timetabling. Trefnydd, the Liberal Democrats in Powys County Council have lost control, so I would like to ask for a Welsh Government statement on what Welsh Government can do to get control of Powys County Council to make sure that no more young children are left on the side of the road in my constituency.
Trefnydd, hoffwn i ofyn am ddau ddatganiad—un gennych chi'ch hun, ar y rheoliadau diffygiol y gwnaethom ni eu cyflwyno yma ar 13 Rhagfyr, Rheoliadau Masnach mewn Anifeiliaid a Chynhyrchion Cysylltiedig (Diwygio a Swyddogaethau Deddfwriaethol) ac Iechyd Anifeiliaid (Diwygiadau Amrywiol) (Cymru) (Ymadael a'r UE) 2022. Dywedoch chi ar 13 Rhagfyr y byddech chi'n dod ymlaen cyn gynted â phosibl i ddiwygio'r rheiny i wneud yn siŵr ein bod ni'n cael deddfwriaeth dda ar y llyfr statud. Allech chi roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i ni o ran pryd yr ydych chi'n bwriadu gwneud hynny?
Fy ail ddatganiad Llywodraeth Cymru yr hoffwn i ofyn amdano yw gan y Dirprwy Weinidog Newid Hinsawdd ar y newidiadau anhrefnus ar gyfer trafnidiaeth cartref i ysgol yn ne fy etholaeth gan Gyngor Sir Powys. Mae plant wedi'u gadael yn y glaw, wedi'u gadael ar ochr y ffordd, wedi cael gwybod i ddal bysiau gwasanaeth sy'n cyrraedd yn hwyr neu'n rhy gynnar. Rydym ni wedi bod â phlant ifanc yn cael gwybod i aros y tu allan i'r ysgol am awr ac i wneud y gorau ohoni, ac mewn rhai achosion maen nhw wedi cael eu rhoi ar fysiau gwasanaeth sy'n mynd y ffordd anghywir i ble maen nhw i fod i fynd adref oherwydd amserlenni gwael. Trefnydd, mae y Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol yng Nghyngor Sir Powys wedi colli rheolaeth, felly hoffwn i ofyn am ddatganiad gan Lywodraeth Cymru ar beth all Llywodraeth Cymru ei wneud i gael rheolaeth dros Gyngor Sir Powys i wneud yn siŵr nad oes mwy o blant ifanc yn cael eu gadael ar ochr y ffordd yn fy etholaeth i.
In relation to your first point, I will be amending the legislation as soon as possible. You'll appreciate this is the first week we are back after the Christmas break, but I do intend to continue to bring forward that amended legislation as soon as possible.
I certainly don't think that is the case with Powys County Council, but I do suggest you write to them around your specific point.
O ran eich pwynt cyntaf, byddaf i'n diwygio'r ddeddfwriaeth cyn gynted â phosibl. Byddwch chi'n gwerthfawrogi mai dyma'r wythnos gyntaf yr ydym ni nôl ar ôl gwyliau'r Nadolig, ond rwy'n bwriadu parhau i gyflwyno'r ddeddfwriaeth ddiwygiedig honno cyn gynted â phosibl.
Yn sicr, nid ydw i'n credu bod hynny'n wir am Gyngor Sir Powys, ond rwy'n awgrymu eich bod chi'n ysgrifennu atyn nhw ynghylch eich pwynt penodol chi.
This morning, the weather was atrocious. In the downpour, I walked to the train station. Luckily, it's only five minutes away from my house. But, in other parts of Bridgend county, too many kids had to walk over an hour to get to school, no doubt arriving soaking wet. I first raised this in September 2021. Nothing has changed. This barrier to education in still in place. So, I would like to ask for an urgent statement from the Government outlining their plans to tackle this. The Government has discretionary powers it can use. Parents are simply fed up.
Bore 'ma, roedd y tywydd yn erchyll. Yn y gawod fawr, cerddais i'r orsaf drenau. Yn ffodus, dim ond ryw bum munud i ffwrdd o fy nhŷ i. Ond, mewn rhannau eraill o sir Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr, bu'n rhaid i ormod o blant gerdded dros awr i fynd i'r ysgol, gan gyrraedd, mae'n siŵr wedi'u gwlychu'n llwyr. Gwnes i godi hwn gyntaf ym mis Medi 2021. Nid oes unrhyw beth wedi newid. Mae'r rhwystr hwn i addysg yn dal ar waith. Felly, hoffwn i ofyn am ddatganiad brys gan y Llywodraeth yn amlinellu eu cynlluniau i ymdrin â hyn. Mae gan y Llywodraeth bwerau dewisol y gall eu defnyddio. Yn syml, mae rhieni wedi cael llond bol.
Thank you. As I say, this is a matter for local authorities. I don't see that this is an issue for Welsh Government. I would give you the same advice as I've just given to James Evans; I think it's really important you raise it with your local authority.
Diolch. Fel y dywedais i, mater i awdurdodau lleol yw hwn. Nid ydw i'n gweld bod hwn yn fater i Lywodraeth Cymru. Byddwn i'n rhoi'r un cyngor i chi ag yr wyf newydd ei roi i James Evans; rwy'n credu ei bod yn bwysig iawn eich bod chi'n ei godi gyda'ch awdurdod lleol.
Gaf i ofyn i'r Gweinidog addysg a'r iaith Gymraeg ddod â datganiad ger ein bron ynghylch sut mae'r Llywodraeth yn bwriadu sicrhau asesiadau cyfrwng Cymraeg amserol i blant sydd angen asesiad awtistiaeth? Mae gen i ambell i achos yn fy etholaeth o blant sydd angen asesiadau awtistiaeth cyfrwng Cymraeg ond yn gorfod aros blynyddoedd. Er enghraifft, cafodd Rhodri—nid ei enw iawn— sy'n wyth oed ei gyfeirio ym mis Chwefror am asesiad awtistiaeth. Rhoddwyd yr opsiwn o wneud yr asesiad ar-lein gyda chwmni Healios, a ddoe cynhaliwyd yr asesiad cyntaf. Cymraeg yw mamiaith y plentyn a barnodd yr aseswyr y dylid cynnal yr asesiad yn Gymraeg er mwyn cael canlyniad teg ac y byddai modd trefnu hynny yn fuan. Heddiw, fodd bynnag, deallaf fod yr unig asesydd oedd ar gael i wneud y gwaith i ffwrdd ar famolaeth, ac ailgyfeiriwyd yr achos i'r gwasanaeth niwroddatblygol lleol. Canlyniad hyn yw y bydd e'n rhaid aros am ddwy neu hyd yn oed dair blynedd i gael asesiad wyneb yn wyneb yn Gymraeg. Mae'r gwahaniaeth yn y gwasanaeth a gynigir i bobl sy'n dymuno gwasanaeth Cymraeg yn gwbl annerbyniol. Felly, mi fyddwn yn ddiolchgar am ddatganiad ar sut mae'r Gweinidog am wella'r sefyllfa mor fuan â phosib, os gwelwch yn dda.
May I ask the Minister for Education and Welsh Language to make a statement on how the Government intends to ensure timely Welsh-medium assessments for children who require an autism assessment? I have a few cases in my constituency of children who require Welsh-medium autism assessments but who are having to wait years. For example, Rhodri—not his real name—who is eight years old was referred in February for an autism assessment. The option of an online assessment with the Healios company was offered, and the first assessment was held yesterday. Welsh is his mother tongue, and the assessor decided that the next assessment should be undertaken in Welsh to ensure the fairness of the result and that such an assessment could be swiftly arranged. Today, however, I understand that the only assessor available to do this work is away on maternity leave, and the case was referred to the local neurodevelopmental service. The result of all this is a wait of two or even three years for a face-to-face assessment in Welsh. The difference in the service offered to those who wish to access a service in Welsh is wholly unacceptable. So, I'd be grateful for a statement on how the Minister intends to remedy the situation as soon as possible, please.
Thank you. I think the situation you set out is indeed wholly unacceptable. If there's only one member of staff who's then on maternity leave, then obviously I appreciate they can't just get somebody in at very short notice. However, a wait of two to three years for such an important assessment is clearly too long. I will certainly ask the Minister if he's aware of the issue that you raise—I'm assuming it's up in Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board—and have a discussion with the Minister for health to see if there's anything further we can do.FootnoteLink
Diolch. Rwy'n credu bod y sefyllfa yr ydych chi'n ei nodi yn wir yn gwbl annerbyniol. Os mai dim ond un aelod o staff sydd, a'i bod ar gyfnod mamolaeth, yna yn amlwg rwy'n gwerthfawrogi na allan nhw gael rhywun i mewn ar fyr rybudd. Fodd bynnag, mae aros am ddwy i dair blynedd am asesiad mor bwysig yn amlwg yn rhy hir. Yn sicr, fe wnaf i ofyn i'r Gweinidog os yw'n ymwybodol o'r mater yr ydych chi'n ei godi—rwy'n tybio ei bod i fyny ym Mwrdd Iechyd Prifysgol Betsi Cadwaladr—a chael trafodaeth gyda'r Gweinidog iechyd i weld a oes unrhyw beth arall y gallwn ni ei wneud.FootnoteLink
A gawn ni ddatganiad, os gwelwch yn dda, gan y Gweinidog Newid Hinsawdd i'n diweddaru ni ynglŷn â ffordd osgoi arfaethedig a hir-ddisgwyliedig Llandeilo? Mi oedd y dudalen sydd yn crynhoi statws y prosiect ar wefan y Llywodraeth yn addo y byddai'r Llywodraeth yn argymell opsiwn a ffafrir o blith y pedwar opsiwn oedd yn weddill fel rhan o ymgynghoriad WelTAG cam 2 erbyn gaeaf y llynedd. Ond, ddydd Gwener, fe newidiwyd hyn i gwanwyn eleni. Mae'r oedi pellach yma o rai misoedd yn dod ar ôl oedi ar ôl oedi. Hynny yw, mae'r broses WelTAG cam 2 i edrych mewn i bedwar opsiwn yn unig wedi cymryd pedair blynedd. Mi oedd yr addewid cychwynnol, gwreiddiol, i adeiladu ffordd osgoi yn mynd yn ôl saith mlynedd, ac mae pobl Llandeilo nawr wedi colli pob ffydd ac ymddiriedaeth yn yr addewid hynny. Felly, a gawn ni ddatganiad ar fyrder gan y Gweinidog gyda rheswm am yr oedi pellach yma?
Can we please have a statement from the Minister for Climate Change to update us on the proposed and long-awaited bypass for Llandeilo? The page summarising the status of the project on the Welsh Government website did pledge that the Government would recommend a favoured option from the four options remaining as part of the WelTAG stage 2 consultation by the winter of last year. But, on Friday, this was changed to the spring of this year. This further delay of some months comes after delay upon delay. The WelTAG stage 2 process looking into just four options has taken four years. The original pledge to build the bypass goes back seven years, and the people of Llandeilo have lost all faith and trust in that pledge. So, can we have a statement as a matter of urgency from the Minister to inform us of the reasons for these further delays?
Thank you. Well, that would be for the Deputy Minister for Climate Change, and, as you know, the whole road review and road building programmes have been looked at very closely, but I will ask the Minister—Deputy Minister, sorry—to issue a written statement.
Diolch i chi. Wel, mater i'r Dirprwy Weinidog Newid Hinsawdd fyddai hwnnw, ac, fel gwyddoch chi, fe roddwyd ystyriaeth fanwl iawn i'r adolygiad ffyrdd yn ei gyfanrwydd a'r rhaglenni adeiladu ffyrdd, ond fe wnaf i ofyn i'r Gweinidog—y Dirprwy Weinidog, mae'n ddrwg gennyf—i roi datganiad ysgrifenedig.
Diolch i'r Trefnydd.
I thank the Trefnydd.
Yr eitem nesaf, felly, yw eitem 3. Yr eitem honno yw'r datganiad gan y Gweinidog Iechyd a Gwasanaethau Cymdeithasol ar y pwysau gaeaf ar y gwasanaeth iechyd, a dwi'n galw ar y Gweinidog i wneud ei datganiad—Eluned Morgan.
The next item, therefore, is item 3. That's a statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services on winter pressures on the NHS, and I call on the Minister to make her statement—Eluned Morgan.
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Thank you for the opportunity to update Members on NHS winter pressures. Members will appreciate this winter is proving to be particularly challenging for health and care services across the United Kingdom. This is our third winter of living with COVID. While we knew respiratory viruses would become more prevalent this year, the disruption of seasonal patterns has made the likely impact of these viruses much more difficult to predict. Despite this, we are still delivering around 376,000 consultations and procedures a month in secondary care, in hospitals. In December, we reached about 400,000 contacts in GP and primary care services. So, every single day, every week, there are thousands of people receiving excellent care in the NHS in Wales, but what we do accept is that there are many others who are not receiving the care that they deserve.
We have asked a lot of our staff over the last two and a half years, and we know pressures have meant staff have often not been able to consistently provide the level of care that they want. We also recognise the strength of feeling amongst our workforce, as reflected in the announcement of further planned strike action amongst ambulance unions, as well as the continuing action by the Royal College of Nursing. It's important to note the impact on capacity as a result of recent industrial action, and that has placed additional pressures on our systems due to reduced staffing and, in some cases, limited or no availability of certain services during these periods.
We are dealing with an increasingly complex case mix of patients. We have more than 500 confirmed patients with COVID in our hospitals and we're seeing rapid increases in other respiratory viruses. In addition, other groups of patients are presenting with increased levels of serious illness, and, while the position has improved since Christmas, there are still over 900 people in hospital beds who are ready to leave but have had their discharge delayed for various reasons. Sickness absence rates among staff have also increased to 6.9 per cent. The result is greater prevalence of long delays for people trying to access care, and the risks of harm we know are associated with such delays. As a consequence, the experiences of people seeking urgent and emergency care across Wales have not always been to the standard that they deserve, and for that I am truly sorry.
We went into the winter having seen record levels of demand on the 111 and ambulance services in October and November, with every expectation that these pressures would increase further throughout the winter. But let me give you an example of the extreme pressure that we saw on our services on 27 December: the 111 telephone service received the highest number of calls ever reported for a single day; the ambulance service received 210 immediately life-threatening calls, amongst the highest daily figures on record. We think 100 is high, and we had 210 on that particular day. As the First Minister said earlier, over 550 people were admitted to hospital in one day. That's the equivalent of around 5 per cent of the available bed capacity in Wales. There were 551 COVID patients in acute hospital beds, which is over 5 per cent of total bed capacity, and around a further 3 per cent of beds were occupied by patients in hospital with influenza. There was also the equivalent of 12 per cent of the total bed capacity in Wales taken up due to delayed discharges.
Now, this level of pressure, at a time when staff illness and absence have had a significant impact, has created massive challenges for the system. Planning for winter started as early as April. We’ve worked hard, every fortnight meeting with local authorities to secure over 500 extra community beds for step-down care, and we’re working towards more over the coming months, which will help improve flow throughout the health system.
We must learn from the recent weeks and months, and we are committed to working with clinical leaders and professional bodies to support meaningful service redesign. We know one of the biggest challenges the health system faces is helping people to leave hospital as soon as it's safe for them to do so. Last month, I launched a new discharge planning guidance report, which sets clear expectations for health boards and regional partnership boards, and that is supported by a national flow programme. In April, we made a five-year commitment of £145 million through the regional integration fund to enable regional partnership boards to build on models of care developed to support rapid discharge and admission avoidance.
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Diolch i chi am y cyfle i roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i Aelodau am bwysau gaeaf y GIG. Mae Aelodau yn debyg iawn o fod yn deall yr her benodol sydd ar wasanaethau iechyd a gofal ledled y Deyrnas Unedig y gaeaf hwn. Hwn yw'r trydydd gaeaf y buom ni'n byw gyda COVID. Er ein bod ni'n gwybod y byddai firysau anadlol yn dod yn fwy cyffredin eleni, mae'r amharu a fu ar batrymau tymhorol wedi gwneud effaith debygol y firysau hyn yn llawer anos i'w rhagweld. Er hynny, rydym ni'n parhau i ddarparu tua 376,000 o ymgynghoriadau a gweithdrefnau bob mis o ran gofal eilaidd, mewn ysbytai. Ym mis Rhagfyr, fe gyrhaeddom ni tua 400,000 o gysylltiadau â gwasanaethau meddygon teulu a gofal sylfaenol. Felly, bob dydd, bob wythnos, mae yna filoedd o bobl yn cael gofal ardderchog yn y GIG yng Nghymru, ond yr hyn yr ydym ni'n ei dderbyn yw bod llawer o bobl eraill nad ydyn nhw'n cael y gofal y maen nhw'n ei haeddu.
Rydym ni wedi gofyn llawer oddi wrth ein staff dros y ddwy flynedd a hanner diwethaf, ac rydym ni'n gwybod bod pwysau yn aml wedi golygu nad yw staff wedi gallu darparu'r lefel o ofal y bydden nhw wedi dymuno trwy'r amser. Rydym ni'n cydnabod maint yr angerdd ymhlith ein gweithlu ni hefyd, fel mae cyhoeddi rhagor o streiciau arfaethedig ymhlith yr undebau ambiwlans yn ei ddangos hefyd, yn ogystal â'r camau gweithredu parhaus gan y Coleg Nyrsio Brenhinol. Mae hi'n bwysig nodi'r effaith ar allu'r Gwasanaeth o ganlyniad i weithredu diwydiannol diweddar, ac mae hynny wedi rhoi pwysau ychwanegol ar ein systemau ni oherwydd llai o staffio ac, mewn rhai achosion, roedd gwasanaethau penodol yn ystod y cyfnodau hyn yn gyfyngedig neu ddim ar gael o gwbl.
Rydym ni'n ymdrin â chymysgedd o achosion cynyddol gymhleth o ran y cleifion. Mae gennym ni fwy na 500 o gleifion y cadarnhawyd bod COVID arnyn nhw yn ein hysbytai ni ac rydym ni'n gweld cynnydd sydyn mewn feirysau anadlol eraill. Yn ogystal â hynny, mae grwpiau eraill o gleifion yn ymgyflwyno gyda lefelau uwch o salwch difrifol, ac, er bod y sefyllfa wedi gwella ers y Nadolig, mae dros 900 o bobl o hyd mewn gwelyau ysbyty sy'n barod i adael ond yn profi oedi cyn eu rhyddhau am wahanol resymau. Mae cyfraddau absenoldeb salwch ymhlith staff wedi cynyddu hyd at 6.9 y cant hefyd. Y canlyniad yw fwy o achosion o oedi hir i bobl sy'n ceisio cael gofal, ac mae'r risgiau o niwed rydym ni'n gwybod yn gysylltiedig ag oedi o'r fath. O ganlyniad, nid yw profiadau pobl sy'n ceisio gofal brys ac argyfwng ledled Cymru bob amser wedi bod i'r safon y maen nhw'n ei haeddu, ac am hynny mae'n wirioneddol ddrwg gennyf i.
Fe aethom ni i mewn i'r gaeaf wedi gweld y cyfraddau uchaf erioed o alw ar y gwasanaethau 111 ac ambiwlans ym misoedd Hydref a mis Tachwedd, gyda phob disgwyliad y byddai'r pwysau hyn yn cynyddu eto trwy gydol y gaeaf. Ond gadewch i mi roi enghraifft i chi o'r pwysau eithafol a welsom ni ar ein gwasanaethau ar 27 o fis Rhagfyr: derbyniodd y gwasanaeth ffôn 111 y nifer uchaf o alwadau ar gofnod erioed ar gyfer un diwrnod; derbyniodd y gwasanaeth ambiwlans 210 o alwadau gyda pherygl einioes uniongyrchol, rhai o'r ffigyrau dyddiol uchaf ar gofnod. Rydym ni'n ystyried 100 yn rhif mawr, ac fe gawsom ni 210 ar y diwrnod arbennig hwnnw. Fel dywedodd y Prif Weinidog yn gynharach, cafodd dros 550 o bobl eu derbyn i'r ysbyty mewn un diwrnod. Mae hynny'n cyfateb i tua 5 y cant o nifer y gwelyau sydd ar gael yng Nghymru. Roedd 551 o gleifion COVID mewn gwelyau acíwt mewn ysbytai, sef dros 5 y cant o gyfanswm nifer y gwelyau, ac roedd tua 3 y cant o welyau eto yn cael eu meddiannu gan gleifion yn yr ysbyty a oedd â'r ffliw. Roedd cyfwerth â 12 y cant o gyfanswm y gwelyau yng Nghymru hefyd yn cael eu defnyddio oherwydd oediadau cyn rhyddhau cleifion.
Nawr, mae pwysau o'r fath, mewn cyfnod o effaith sylweddol oherwydd salwch ac absenoldeb staff, wedi creu heriau enfawr i'r system. Dechreuodd y cynllunio ar gyfer y gaeaf mor gynnar â mis Ebrill. Rydym ni wedi gweithio yn galed, yn cyfarfod bob pythefnos ag awdurdodau lleol i sicrhau dros 500 o welyau cymunedol ychwanegol ar gyfer gofal cam-i-lawr, ac rydym ni'n gweithio tuag at fwy dros y misoedd nesaf, a fydd yn helpu i wella'r llif trwy'r system iechyd yn ei chyfanrwydd.
Rhaid i ni ddysgu o'r wythnosau a'r misoedd diwethaf, ac rydym ni wedi ymrwymo i weithio gydag arweinwyr clinigol a chyrff proffesiynol i gefnogi ailgynllunio gwasanaethau ystyrlon. Fe wyddom ni mai un o'r heriau mwyaf y mae'r system iechyd yn ei wynebu yw helpu pobl i adael yr ysbyty cyn gynted ag y bydd hi'n ddiogel iddyn nhw wneud felly. Fis diwethaf, fe wnes i lansio adroddiad newydd ar gyfer y canllawiau cynllunio rhyddhau, sy'n pennu disgwyliadau eglur i fyrddau iechyd a byrddau partneriaeth rhanbarthol, ac fe gefnogir hynny gan raglen lif genedlaethol. Ym mis Ebrill, fe wnaethom ni ymrwymiad pum mlynedd o £145 miliwn drwy'r gronfa integreiddio rhanbarthol i alluogi byrddau partneriaeth rhanbarthol i adeiladu ar fodelau gofal a ddatblygwyd i gefnogi rhyddhau cyflym ac osgoi derbyniadau.
Rŷn ni hefyd wedi buddsoddi yn sylweddol mewn gofal brys ac argyfwng eleni—os na fyddem ni wedi gwneud hynny, fe fyddai’r sefyllfa wedi bod lawer yn waeth. Diolch i fuddsoddiad cynnar a oedd ar gael ym mis Mehefin, mae gwasanaeth ambiwlans Cymru wedi gallu rhoi nifer o gamau ar waith i gynyddu capasiti cyn y gaeaf. Mae hyn yn cynnwys recriwtio 100 o staff rheng flaen ychwanegol, a fydd yn ymateb i alwadau o fewn y pythefnos nesaf; trefniadau rota newydd fydd y cyfateb i 72 o staff cyfwerth ag amser cyflawn; a buddsoddiad mewn technoleg triage ac ymgynghori fideo i helpu i wneud penderfyniadau mwy hyderus ynglŷn â’r angen i fynd â’r claf i’r ysbyty.
Rŷn ni hefyd wedi buddsoddi i gynyddu capasiti mewn canolfannau gofal sylfaenol brys, urgent primary care centres, ac i ehangu’r gwasanaethau gofal brys yn yr un diwrnod, same-day emergency care services. Mae hyn yn rhoi dewis arall i bobl yn lle mynd i adrannau brys prysur neu gael eu derbyn i’r ysbyty. Mae’r camau hyn wedi helpu tua 7,000 o bobl bob mis i gael gwasanaethau gofal brys heb fynd i adran brys ac wedi helpu i leihau a sefydlogi derbyniadau brys.
Rŷn ni’n gwybod bod llawer mwy i’w wneud ac nad oes datrysiadau cyflym i hyn. Rŷn ni’n rhannu pryder y cyhoedd bod ein gwasanaethau dan straen eithriadol a pharhaus. Dyna pam rŷn ni’n sefydlu rhaglen bum-mlynedd i drawsnewid gwasanaethau gofal brys a gofal mewn argyfwng gyda chymorth £25 miliwn y flwyddyn, ac mi gafodd y byrddau iechyd £3 miliwn o hynny ym mis Ebrill. Yn ogystal â’r camau gweithredu hyn, ac wrth i’r gaeaf fynd yn ei flaen, rŷn ni wedi darparu canllawiau pellach i’r byrddau iechyd drwy fframwaith opsiynau lleol wedi’i ddiwygio, sy’n debyg i’r dull a ddefnyddion ni pan oedd achosion COVID ar eu hanterth. Rŷn ni hefyd wedi ysgrifennu at arweinwyr clinigol y byrddau iechyd i’w hannog i wneud pob ymdrech i gadw pobl gartref a pheidio â derbyn pobl i’r ysbyty oni bai bod hynny’n hollol angenrheidiol. Wythnos diwethaf, fe gynhalion ni gynhadledd genedlaethol ar ryddhau cleifion. Rŷn ni hefyd wedi gofyn i dimau clinigol fynd â phobl sydd yn yr ysbyty nôl i’w cartrefi neu i le diogel arall cyn gynted ag sy’n bosibl, i helpu i gadw capasiti yn ein hysbytai ar gyfer y rhai sydd mewn mwy o risg, ac sydd â’r siawns fwyaf o gael budd.
Gallwn ni ddisgwyl i'r misoedd nesaf fod yn rhai caled dros ben, ond dwi eisiau pwysleisio pa mor ddiolchgar ydw i i’r staff am eu hymdrechion cyson yn ystod yr hyn sy’n dal i fod yn gyfnod anodd iawn. Diolch yn fawr hefyd i’r teuluoedd sydd wedi cefnogi eu perthnasau i gael eu rhyddhau o'r ysbyty. Mae hyn yn mynd i’n helpu ni i ryddhau gwelyau i bobl sydd angen y gofal arbenigol sydd dim ond yn gallu cael ei ddarparu gan ysbytai.
Rŷm ni wedi gwneud paratoadau helaeth ar gyfer y gaeaf, ac er ein bod wedi gweld pwysau aruthrol dros yr wythnosau diwethaf, ar lefelau na welon ni erioed o'r blaen, mae'r camau gweithredu sydd wedi eu rhoi ar waith wedi galluogi'r sefyllfa i sefydlogi'n fras ers cyfnod y Nadolig. Rŷm ni bellach yn paratoi ar gyfer cam nesaf y pwysau wrth i blant ddychwelyd i'r ysgol a bywyd yn dechrau dychwelyd i normal ar ôl gwyliau'r Nadolig, yn ogystal â newidiadau yn y tywydd. Rŷm ni'n ymwybodol iawn ein bod yn aml yn gweld ymchwydd newydd yn y galw yn ystod y cyfnod yma o'r flwyddyn. Diolch.
We’ve also made significant investments in urgent and emergency care this year, and if we hadn’t, the situation would be a great deal worse. Thanks to early investment made available in June, the Welsh ambulance service has been able to deliver a range of actions to increase capacity ahead of the winter. This includes recruitment of 100 additional front-line staff, who will be responding to calls within the next two weeks; new rota arrangements, which will equate to 72 whole-time equivalent staff; and new investment in triage and video consultation technology to support more confident decision making about whether a patient needs to be taken to hospital.
We have also invested in increasing capacity in urgent primary care centres and in expanding same-day emergency care services to provide people with alternatives to attending busy emergency departments, or admission to hospital. These interventions have supported around 7,000 people a month to access urgent care services away from the emergency department, and have helped to reduce and stabilise emergency admissions.
We know there is a lot more to do and there are no quick fixes. We share the public’s concern that our services remain under extreme and persistent strain. This is why we have established a five-year programme to transform urgent and emergency care services, which is supported by £25 million per annum, of which health boards received £3 million each in April. In addition to these interventions, and as the winter has progressed, we’ve issued further guidance to health boards through a revised local options framework similar to the approach we took at the peak of the COVID outbreak. We’ve also written to health board clinical leaders urging them to make every effort to keep people at home, and not to admit people to hospital unless absolutely necessary. Last week, we held a national discharge summit, and we have also asked clinical teams to return those in hospital to their homes or to an alternative place of safety as quickly as possible to help preserve our hospital capacity for those at greatest risk, and with the greatest chance of benefit.
We can expect the next few months to be really tough, but I really want to express my thanks and gratitude to staff for their continued efforts during what continues to be a really difficult time. Thanks also to families who have supported the discharge of their loved ones; this is going to really help us free up hospital beds for people who need the specialist care that only our hospitals can provide.
We’ve made extensive preparations for the winter, and whilst we have seen tremendous pressure over recent weeks, at levels we've never seen before, the actions that have been put in place have enabled us to broadly stabilise the position since the festive period. We’re now preparing for the next phase of pressure as children return to school and as life begins to go back to normal after the Christmas break, as well as changes in the weather, which we know often bring a new surge in the demand during this time of year. Thank you very much.
Happy new year, Minister, to you and thank you for your statement today, and I'd like to start by adding my own thanks and appreciation to our incredibly dedicated and hard-working Welsh NHS staff and professionals. Minister, over the last decade, your Government has failed to invest more than £400 million in the Welsh NHS compared to other Governments across the UK. Whilst COVID has caused significant harm to our NHS, your Government, of course, has been responsible for the Welsh NHS for nearly 25 years. So, do you accept that if you had used the funding correctly, we'd be in a better position than we are in now? And, to use a cliché that I don't like using, but I shall say it in this regard, why didn't you fix the roof whilst the sun was shining?
Minister, you claim that planning for winter pressures started in—[Interruption.] I can hear the First Minister talking away. It was the First Minister in his statement yesterday to the press who told us that the first 10 years of devolution were wonderful under a Labour UK Government. So, if that's the case, why didn't you fix the roof then? Why have we got these problems that exist now?
Minister, you claim that planning for winter pressures started in April, but I'm concerned, as I relayed at the time, that the publication of the plan to tackle these pressures was late in coming forward. And it is clear that the process, I would suggest, isn't working. So, can I ask you what is it going to take for health boards and your Government to review the impact of winter pressures, and what immediate action can you take to fully utilise the summer months to prepare for another winter?
Minister, I do welcome your points on the ambulance service—that's very welcome—but I do feel that they don't go far enough. In your last update, you told me that you will be making sure ambulance handover delays are reduced, but the chief executive of the Wales ambulance service, Jason Killens, said it is now not uncommon for in excess of 30 per cent of our available crews to be tied up outside hospital waiting to hand over patients to care, which means that they're unable, of course, to go back to support patients in the community, resulting in longer waiting times for them to arrive. So, what progress have you made in this area, Minister, because Wales continues to have, as we know, the slowest ambulance response times on record and the worst A&E waits, and the longest NHS treatment lists in Britain?
I have given you a number of suggestions, Minister, for developing different areas. One is winter war rooms, and I would suggest we need winter war rooms that have 24/7 data-driven control centres to provide accurate information on bed capacity in hospitals and care homes, run by clinicians and experts who can identify pressure points and act to reduce deadly ambulance delays and lengthy waits in A&E. I wonder what consideration you've given to this policy, Minister.
You talk about a five-year transformation plan. I kind of sigh when I hear about transformation plans. It's not that I disagree with transformation plans, but, since I've been here, I've heard about transformation plans over the past 10 years, but then we don't see the outcomes that are delivered from those transformation plans. I do wonder whether there's a lack of cultural change within the Welsh Government and a lack of trust in innovation that will only further add to the issues that we face within the Welsh NHS.
Minister, you know I've constantly called for surgical hubs. We've got more than 50 further hubs in England coming, in addition to the 91 that are already in place. We're falling further behind in this regard. I welcome the addition in your statement, that you apologise to patients for the quality of service that they are receiving, however, I can't help thinking that we should have just been preparing—you should have been preparing—during the course of the pandemic for post-pandemic progress, and I wonder if you could update us, Minister, on your plans in terms of starting to build the hubs that I and my colleagues have been calling for. It's not just me saying that; the Royal College of Surgeons welcome the announcement of those surgical hubs to end the limbo that patients face. Minister, I'll end my questions there.
Blwyddyn newydd dda i chi, Gweinidog, a diolch i chi am eich datganiad heddiw, ac fe hoffwn i ddechrau drwy ategu'r diolch a'r gwerthfawrogiad o'r staff a gweithwyr proffesiynol hynod ymroddedig a gweithgar sydd yn y GIG yng Nghymru. Gweinidog, dros y degawd diwethaf mae eich Llywodraeth wedi methu â buddsoddi mwy na £400 miliwn yn GIG Cymru o gymharu â Llywodraethau eraill ledled y DU. Tra bod COVID wedi achosi difrod sylweddol i'n GIG ni, eich Llywodraeth chi, wrth gwrs, sydd wedi bod yn gyfrifol am y GIG yng Nghymru ers bron i 25 mlynedd. Felly, a ydych chi'n derbyn, pe byddech chi wedi defnyddio'r cyllid yn briodol, y byddem ni mewn sefyllfa well nag yr ydym ni ynddi hi nawr? A chan ddefnyddio ystrydeb nad wyf i'n hoff o'i defnyddio, ond fe ddefnyddiaf i hi yn hyn o beth, pam na wnaethoch chi drwsio'r to tra oedd yr haul yn tywynnu?
Gweinidog, rydych chi'n honni bod cynllunio ar gyfer pwysau'r gaeaf wedi dechrau—[Torri ar draws.] Rwy'n gallu clywed y Prif Weinidog yn clebran. Y Prif Weinidog a ddywedodd wrthym ni yn ei ddatganiad i'r wasg ddoe pa mor wych fu 10 mlynedd gyntaf datganoli dan Lywodraeth Lafur y DU. Felly, os dyna'r achos, pam na wnaethoch chi drwsio'r to bryd hynny? Pam ydym ni'n gweld y problemau hyn sy'n bodoli nawr?
Gweinidog, rydych chi'n honni bod cynllunio ar gyfer pwysau'r gaeaf wedi dechrau ym mis Ebrill, ond rwy'n bryderus, fel mynegais i ar y pryd, y bu cyhoeddi'r cynllun hwn i fynd i'r afael â'r pwysau yn hwyr yn dod. Ac mae hi'n amlwg nad yw'r broses, fe fyddwn i'n awgrymu, yn gweithio. Felly, a gaf i ofyn i chi beth fydd hi'n ei gymryd i fyrddau iechyd a'ch Llywodraeth chi adolygu effaith pwysau'r gaeaf, a pha gamau allwch chi eu cymryd ar unwaith ar gyfer defnydd llawn o fisoedd yr haf i baratoi am aeaf arall?
Gweinidog, rwy'n croesawu eich pwyntiau chi ynglŷn â'r gwasanaeth ambiwlans—mae hynny i'w groesawu yn fawr—ond rwy'n teimlo nad ydyn nhw'n mynd yn ddigon pell. Yn eich diweddariad diwethaf chi, roeddech chi'n dweud wrthyf i y byddwch chi'n sicrhau y bydd yr oedi o ran trosglwyddiadau o ambiwlans yn cael ei leihau, ond fe ddywedodd prif weithredwr gwasanaeth ambiwlans Cymru, Jason Killens, nad yw hi'n anghyffredin erbyn hyn i fwy na 30 y cant o'r criwiau sydd ar gael gennym ni orfod aros tu allan i ysbyty cyn trosglwyddo cleifion i ofal, sy'n golygu nad ydyn nhw'n gallu mynd yn ôl allan i gynorthwyo cleifion yn y gymuned, sy'n arwain at amseroedd hwy wrth aros iddyn nhw gyrraedd. Felly, pa gynnydd a wnaethoch chi yn y maes hwn, Gweinidog, oherwydd mae Cymru yn dal i weld, fel gwyddom ni, yr amseroedd ymateb ambiwlansys arafaf erioed a'r arosiadau hwyaf o ran adrannau damweiniau ac achosion brys, a'r rhestrau triniaeth hwyaf yn y GIG drwy Brydain?
Fe awgrymais i nifer o bethau i chi, Gweinidog, o ran datblygu gwahanol feysydd. Mae bod ag ystafelloedd rhyfel y gaeaf yn un ohonyn nhw, ac fe fyddwn i'n awgrymu ein bod angen ystafelloedd rhyfel y gaeaf sydd â chanolfannau rheoli 24/7 ar sail data ar gyfer darparu gwybodaeth gywir ynglŷn â niferoedd y gwelyau sydd ar gael mewn ysbytai a chartrefi gofal, i'w rhedeg gan glinigwyr ac arbenigwyr sy'n gallu nodi gwasgfeydd a gweithredu i leihau'r perygl oherwydd oediadau ambiwlans ac arosiadau hir yn yr adran damweiniau ac achosion brys. Pa ystyriaeth, tybed, a wnaethoch chi ei rhoi i'r polisi hwn, Gweinidog.
Rydych chi'n sôn am gynllun trawsnewid pum mlynedd. Mae hynny'n gwneud i mi ochneidio i ryw raddau pan fyddaf i'n clywed am gynlluniau trawsnewid. Nid fy mod i'n anghytuno â chynlluniau ar gyfer trawsnewid, ond, ers i mi fod yn y fan hon, rwyf i wedi clywed am gynlluniau trawsnewid dros y 10 mlynedd diwethaf, ond nid ydym ni'n gweld y canlyniadau a ddaw oherwydd y cynlluniau trawsnewid hynny wedyn. Tybed a oes diffyg newid diwylliannol yn Llywodraeth Cymru a diffyg ymddiriedaeth mewn arloesedd ac ni wnaiff hynny ddim ond ychwanegu eto at y problemau yr ydym yn eu hwynebu yn GIG Cymru.
Gweinidog, fe wyddoch chi fy mod wedi galw yn gyson am ganolfannau llawfeddygol. Mae gennym ni dros 50 o ganolfannau i ddod eto yn Lloegr, yn ogystal â'r 91 sydd ar waith eisoes. Rydym ni'n cwympo ymhellach ar ei hôl hi yn hyn o beth. Rwy'n croesawu'r ychwanegiad yn eich datganiad chi, eich bod chi'n ymddiheuro i gleifion am ansawdd y gwasanaeth y maen nhw'n ei dderbyn, serch hynny, nid wyf i'n gallu peidio â meddwl y dylem ni fod yn paratoi—fe ddylech chi fod yn paratoi—yn ystod y pandemig ar gyfer cynnydd ar ôl y pandemig, ac a wnewch chi, tybed, roi'r wybodaeth ddiweddaraf i ni, Gweinidog, am eich cynlluniau chi i ddechrau adeiladu'r canolfannau y bu fy ngyd-Aelodau a minnau'n galw amdanyn nhw. Nid dim ond fi sy'n dweud hynny; mae Coleg Brenhinol y Llawfeddygon yn croesawu cyhoeddi'r canolfannau llawfeddygol hynny i roi terfyn ar yr ansicrwydd y mae cleifion yn ei wynebu. Gweinidog, rwyf i am orffen fy nghwestiynau i yn fanna.
Well, thanks very much, Russell, and a happy new year to you as well. Just in terms of how we compare to England, and I think it's really important, let's look at the figures here, because the Nuffield Trust—this is not us as a Welsh Government—the Nuffield Trust tells us that we spend more on health and care than they do in England, okay? So, if you look at the figures in Wales, we are spending 5 per cent more than England—that was pre COVID—and 30 per cent more than England if you include social care. So, don't talk to us about spending more compared to England. We are doing that; we do need to do that because we've got an older and sicker population. But the fact is it's really important that we talk, not just in general terms, but let's look at the facts, not produced by us but by an independent, acknowledged expert group. Part of the reason we're in this situation—and if you want to start playing politics, I'll play politics as well—is that we have had 10 years of austerity and that has starved us, compared to what was going on previous to that under Labour. It was a policy. It was a deliberate policy. Austerity was a policy. And do you know what, the real frustration of those people who are on the front line today—[Interruption.] The real frustration is that they were promised, they were told, 'Take a dose of austerity, but it'll be okay at the end of that', and the problem is that that bargain has just been broken, and that is part of the reason we're in the situation we're in today. And if you look at the number of GPs we have in Wales, we have more. According to the Nuffield Trust, we have 63 per 100,000 compared to 57 per 100,000 in England.
And you talk about preparing. My God did we prepare for this winter. We spent months and months and months preparing for this. And you talk about planning: we have planned. We had a transformation plan, we had the six goals for urgent and emergency care, and as a result of that, we now have the 111 service that has been rolled out across the whole of Wales, diverting only 20 per cent of the people who call to emergency services. Just imagine how many of them would have gone directly to A&E before. We have urgent primary care centres across the whole of Wales, we have same-day emergency care centres, we have pharmacies and we have—. And we've done this week after week. Every fortnight, Julie Morgan and I have been meeting with the leaders of local authorities to prepare for these 500 additional beds that are in the community. This is not something we've thought up now. They made an announcement yesterday in England on this. Yesterday. That's not going to be ready for months, because I can tell you that we have worked really, really hard to make this happen. They are in place in Wales. Proportionately, they're not nearly as ambitious as we have been in Wales. Not just ambition, but we've already delivered them and we are going to be delivering more. And do you know what's more? Do you know what's more is that, actually, we've now got health trusts in England asking to come and see and to learn from our six goals for urgent and emergency care? That is the reality in terms of us being prepared, and we have got a transformation plan. It's not going to be switched overnight, but it is already making a difference.
And you ask about waiting lists: well, just before Christmas, I'm sure you were as pleased as I was that, at last, the waiting lists are going down in Wales. They had gone down for the first time since the pandemic, and they're going up in England. Let's just be absolutely clear—[Interruption.] Let's just look at the facts—and I'd suggest that you go and do that.
You talk about winter war rooms, well, I can tell you, I feel like I'm in a constant winter war room when it comes to the NHS. Every fortnight we've been meeting to identify where exactly in the system the blockages are, what are we going to do about it, what do we put in place. I spent the day in the Heath hospital last Friday. It was fascinating to watch them identify exactly, 'Right, where is the problem, how do we get these people out, what is the blockage?' So, there's a lot of that that's already going on, and I can tell you that there is very sophisticated data that is being used to make sure that we improve the situation.
You keep on banging on about surgical hubs. I've been to the surgical hub that already exists in Abergele; I've been to the surgical hub that already exists in Llanelli; and I've been to the surgical hub that already exists in Cardiff, in the Vanguard hub where they're doing ophthalmology. They're happening, they exist, and they're seeing patients already. So, we are on it; it is happening. There's a long way to go, but it's really important, I think, for people to understand that we are getting through these waiting lists, and ours are going down while they're going up in England.
Wel, diolch yn fawr, Russell, a blwyddyn newydd dda i chwithau hefyd. O ran sut yr ydym ni'n cymharu â Lloegr, ac rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn, gadewch i ni edrych ar y ffigurau yma, oherwydd mae Ymddiriedolaeth Nuffield—nid ni yn Llywodraeth Cymru sy'n dweud hyn—mae Ymddiriedolaeth Nuffield yn dweud wrthym ni ein bod ni'n gwario mwy ar iechyd a gofal nag y maen nhw yn Lloegr, iawn? Felly, os edrychwch chi ar y ffigurau yng Nghymru, rydym ni'n gwario 5 y cant yn fwy na Lloegr—cyn COVID oedd hynny—a 30 y cant yn fwy na Lloegr os ydych chi'n cynnwys gofal cymdeithasol. Felly, peidiwch â dechrau sôn wrthym ni am wario mwy o gymharu â Lloegr. Rydym ni'n gwneud hynny; ac mae angen i ni wneud hynny oherwydd mae gennym ni boblogaeth sy'n hŷn ac yn waeth ei hiechyd. Ond y ffaith yw ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn ein bod ni'n siarad, nid yn unig yn gyffredinol, ond gadewch i ni edrych ar y ffeithiau, nid ni a'u cynhyrchodd nhw ond grŵp arbenigol annibynnol, cydnabyddedig. Rhan o'r rheswm yr ydym ni yn y sefyllfa hon—ac os ydych chi am ddechrau chwarae gemau gwleidyddol, fe chwaraeaf innau hefyd—yw ein bod ni wedi gweld 10 mlynedd o gyni ac mae hynny wedi ein llwgu ni, o'i gymharu â'r hyn oedd yn digwydd cyn hynny dan Lywodraeth Lafur. Polisi oedd hwnnw. Polisi bwriadol oedd hwnnw. Polisi oedd cyni. A wyddoch chi beth, y rhwystredigaeth wirioneddol y mae'r bobl sydd ar y rheng flaen yn ei theimlo heddiw—[Torri ar draws.] Y rhwystredigaeth mewn gwirionedd yw iddyn nhw gael adduned, fe ddywedwyd wrthyn nhw, 'Cymerwch ddos o gyni, ond fe fydd hi'n iawn ar ôl hynny', a'r broblem yw i'r fargen honno gael ei thorri yn ddiweddar, a dyna ran o'r rheswm pam yr ydym ni yn y sefyllfa yr ydym ni ynddi hi heddiw. Ac os edrychwch chi ar nifer y meddygon teulu sydd gennym ni yng Nghymru, mae gennym ni fwy. Yn ôl Ymddiriedolaeth Nuffield, mae gennym ni 63 fesul 100,000 o'i gymharu â 57 fesul 100,000 yn Lloegr.
Ac roeddech chi'n sôn am baratoi. Bobl annwyl, fe wnaethom ni baratoi ar gyfer y gaeaf hwn. Fe wnaethom ni dreulio misoedd ar fisoedd yn paratoi ar gyfer hyn. Ac rydych chi'n sôn am gynllunio: rydym ni wedi cynllunio. Roedd gennym ni gynllun trawsnewid, roedd gennym ni'r chwe nod ar gyfer gofal brys ac argyfwng, ac o ganlyniad i hynny, mae gennym ni wasanaeth 111 a gyflwynwyd ledled Cymru erbyn hyn, sy'n dargyfeirio 20 y cant yn unig o'r bobl sy'n galw am wasanaethau brys. Dychmygwch chi faint ohonyn nhw a fyddai wedi mynd yn uniongyrchol i adrannau damweiniau ac achosion brys cyn hynny. Mae gennym ni ganolfannau gofal sylfaenol brys ledled Cymru, mae gennym ni ganolfannau gofal brys un diwrnod, mae gennym ni fferyllfeydd ac mae gennym ni—. Ac rydym ni wedi gwneud hyn wythnos ar ôl wythnos. Bob pythefnos, mae Julie Morgan a minnau wedi bod yn cwrdd ag arweinwyr yr awdurdodau lleol i baratoi ar gyfer y 500 o welyau ychwanegol hyn sydd yn y gymuned. Nid rhywbeth yr ydym ni newydd ddechrau meddwl amdano nawr yw hwn. Fe wnaethon nhw gyhoeddiad ddoe yn Lloegr ynglŷn â hyn. Ddoe. Ni fydd hynny'n barod am fisoedd, oherwydd fe allaf i ddweud wrthych chi ein bod wedi gweithio yn wirioneddol galed iawn i beri i hyn ddigwydd. Mae'r pethau hyn ar waith yng Nghymru. Yn gymesur, nid ydyn nhw'n agos at fod yr un mor uchelgeisiol ag y buom ni yng Nghymru. Nid dim ond o ran uchelgais ychwaith, ond rydym ni wedi eu cyflawni nhw eisoes ac fe fyddwn ni'n cyflawni mwy eto. A wyddoch chi beth arall? A wyddoch chi beth sy'n fwy na hynny, mewn gwirionedd, fe welwn ni ymddiriedolaethau iechyd yn Lloegr yn gofyn erbyn hyn am gael dod i weld a dysgu o'n chwe nod ni ar gyfer gofal brys ac argyfwng? Dyna'r sefyllfa wirioneddol o ran ein paratoadau ni, ac mae gennym ni gynllun trawsnewid. Ni fydd hwnnw'n cychwyn dros nos, ond mae'n gwneud gwahaniaeth yn barod.
Ac rydych chi'n holi ynglŷn â rhestrau aros: wel, yn union cyn y Nadolig, rwy'n siŵr eich bod chwithau'r un mor falch ag yr oeddwn i oherwydd bod y rhestrau aros yn byrhau yng Nghymru, o'r diwedd. Roedden nhw wedi byrhau am y tro cyntaf ers y pandemig, ac maen nhw'n ymestyn yn Lloegr. Gadewch i ni fod yn hollol eglur—[Torri ar draws.] Gadewch i ni edrych ar y ffeithiau—ac fe fyddwn i'n awgrymu i chi fynd i wneud hynny.
Rydych chi'n sôn am ystafelloedd rhyfel y gaeaf, wel, fe ddywedaf i wrthych chi, rwy'n teimlo fy mod i mewn ystafell ryfel y gaeaf bob amser o ran y GIG. Rydym ni wedi bod yn cwrdd bob pythefnos i nodi ble yn union yn y system y ceir y rhwystrau, beth ydym ni am ei wneud ynghylch hynny, a beth ydym ni am ei roi ar waith. Fe wnes i dreulio'r diwrnod yn Ysbyty Athrofaol Cymru ddydd Gwener diwethaf. Roedd hi'n hynod ddiddorol eu gwylio nhw'n nodi yn union, 'Iawn, lle mae'r broblem, sut mae cael y bobl yma allan, beth sy'n rhwystro hynny?' Felly, mae yna lawer o hynny'n digwydd eisoes, ac rwy'n gallu dweud wrthych chi fod data soffistigedig iawn yn cael eu defnyddio i wneud yn siŵr ein bod ni'n gwella'r sefyllfa.
Rydych chi'n dal ati i refru am ganolfannau llawfeddygol. Fe fûm i yn y ganolfan lawfeddygol sydd eisoes yn bodoli yn Abergele; bûm yn y ganolfan lawfeddygol sydd eisoes yn bodoli yn Llanelli; a bûm yn y ganolfan lawfeddygol sydd eisoes yn bodoli yng Nghaerdydd, yng nghanolfan Vanguard lle maen nhw'n cynnig offthalmoleg. Mae'r rhain yn cael eu sefydlu, maen nhw'n bodoli, ac maen nhw'n trin cleifion yn barod. Felly, rydym ni ar gerdded; mae hynny'n digwydd. Mae 'na ffordd bell i fynd eto, ond mae hi'n bwysig iawn, yn fy marn i, fod pobl yn deall ein bod ni'n mynd trwy'r rhestrau aros hyn, ac mae ein rhai ni'n byrhau wrth i rai Lloegr ymestyn.
Blwyddyn newydd dda i bawb. Yn amlwg, dydy hi ddim wedi bod yn ddechrau da i'r flwyddyn i'r NHS. Does gen i ond diolch i'r staff am eu gwaith nhw mewn amgylchiadau sy'n mynd yn fwy a mwy amhosib.
A very happy new year to you all. Clearly, it hasn't been a good start to the year for the NHS. I can only thank the staff for their work in circumstances that are becoming more and more impossible.
This is not the statement that I had expected today; it's not the statement that I think the people of Wales needed to hear. This isn't a plan; this is a status report. It's a report on what Government has been doing to try to get the NHS ready for winter, to try to deal with current pressures, but frankly we know that what this Labour Government has done hasn't worked. What we want to know is what they're going to do differently. The results of the crisis are plain to see for patients; they're plain to see for staff. But where's the change of direction? In fact, where's the kind of action that shows that the Government is in genuine crisis mode here? Because this was only going to be a half-hour discussion—a half hour on what's clear from my postbag, and, I'm sure, everybody else's here, is no doubt the biggest health crisis, other than COVID itself, of course, that we have witnessed.
What I'm seeing is a Labour Minister finding blame for the crisis rather than suggesting new solutions to it. She has the audacity, frankly, to appear to blame the nurses, saying that their industrial action has placed additional pressure on systems, when it's pressure on them, on the nurses and others, together with a decade-long pay squeeze, that led them to vote to strike. And whilst I absolutely agree with the Minister on the injustice of the Conservative years of austerity, she has to recognise that this is Welsh Government's fault. Does the Minister recognise that the failure to support staff in particular is Welsh Labour Government's fault?
She points to the delayed transfer of care figures as a cause of lost capacity in the system, but it's her job to create that capacity. What we need is a more ambitious plan, frankly, to speed up patient flow through the health and care system. She mentioned today the creation of 500 extra community beds. That's positive, but we've lost thousands of beds. I wrote to her some weeks ago, asking for work to be done on the possibility of setting up COVID-style temporary community step-down facilities. The First Minister—rather patronisingly, I thought—said yesterday that those suggesting that are well-meaning, but that the problem is a lack of staff, not beds. Well, (a), it's both, and, (b), Welsh Government is responsible for both: both bed numbers and staffing capacity. And, frankly, woeful workforce planning, plus of course the current lack of meaningful engagement on resolving industrial disputes, is making staff shortages worse. Does the Minister recognise that the failure to resolve delayed transfers of care is the Labour Government's fault?
Nid hwn oedd y datganiad yr oeddwn i'n ei ddisgwyl heddiw; nid hwn oedd y datganiad yr oedd angen i bobl Cymru ei glywed yn fy marn i. Nid cynllun yw hwn; adroddiad ar sefyllfa yw hwn. Adroddiad yw hwn ar yr hyn y mae'r Llywodraeth wedi bod yn ei wneud i geisio paratoi'r GIG ar gyfer y gaeaf, i geisio ymdrin â'r pwysau presennol, ond a dweud y gwir rydym ni'n gwybod nad yw'r hyn a wnaeth y Llywodraeth Lafur hon wedi gweithio. Yr hyn yr ydym ni eisiau ei wybod yw beth fyddan nhw'n ei wneud yn wahanol. Mae canlyniadau'r argyfwng i'w gweld yn eglur i gleifion; maen nhw i'w gweld yn eglur i staff. Ond ble mae'r newid cyfeiriad? Mewn gwirionedd, ble mae'r math o weithredu sy'n dangos bod y Llywodraeth yn ceisio ymdrin yn wirioneddol â'r argyfwng hwn? Oherwydd trafodaeth o hanner awr yn unig oedd hon am fod—hanner awr ynglŷn â'r hyn sy'n amlwg o fy ngohebiaethau i, ac, rwy'n siŵr, o rai pawb arall sydd yma, yr argyfwng iechyd mwyaf yn ddiamau, heblaw am COVID ei hun, wrth gwrs, a welsom ni.
Yr hyn yr wyf i'n ei weld yw Gweinidog Llafur yn chwilio am rywun i'w feio am yr argyfwng yn hytrach nag awgrymu datrysiadau newydd. Mae hi'n ddigon digywilydd, a dweud y gwir, i weld bai ar y nyrsys, mae'n ymddangos, wrth ddweud bod eu gweithredu diwydiannol nhw wedi rhoi pwysau ychwanegol ar systemau, er bod y pwysau sydd arnyn nhw, ar y nyrsys a rhai eraill, ynghyd â degawd o wasgfa ar gyflogau, sydd wedi arwain at eu pleidlais nhw i streicio. Ac er fy mod i'n cytuno yn llwyr â'r Gweinidog ar yr anghyfiawnder yn sgil blynyddoedd o gyni'r Ceidwadwyr, mae'n rhaid iddi hi gydnabod mai ar Lywodraeth Cymru y mae'r bai am hyn. A yw'r Gweinidog yn cydnabod mai diffyg Llywodraeth Lafur Cymru o ran cefnogi staff yn arbennig felly sydd ar fai yn hyn o beth?
Mae hi'n cyfeirio at ffigurau oedi wrth drosglwyddo i ofal fel rhywbeth sy'n achosi colli capasiti yn y system, ond ei gwaith hi yw creu'r capasiti hwnnw. Yr hyn sydd ei angen arnom ni yw cynllun mwy uchelgeisiol, a dweud y gwir, i gyflymu llif cleifion drwy'r system iechyd a gofal. Roedd hi'n sôn heddiw am greu 500 o welyau cymunedol ychwanegol. Mae hwnnw'n rhywbeth cadarnhaol, ond rydym ni wedi colli miloedd o welyau. Fe ysgrifennais i ati hi rai wythnosau yn ôl, gan ofyn am waith i'w wneud ynglŷn â'r posibilrwydd o sefydlu cyfleusterau cam-i-lawr cymunedol dros dro ar ddull a welsom ni gyda COVID. Fe ddywedodd y Prif Weinidog ddoe—braidd yn nawddoglyd, yn fy marn i—fod gan y rhai sy'n awgrymu hynny fwriadau da, ond mai diffyg staff yw'r broblem, nid diffyg gwelyau. Wel, (a), mae'r ddau beth yn wir, a (b), Llywodraeth Cymru sy'n gyfrifol am y ddau beth: niferoedd y gwelyau a niferoedd y gweithwyr. Ac, a dweud y gwir, mae'r cynllunio wedi bod yn druenus o ran y gweithlu, ynghyd â'r diffyg o ran ymgysylltu ystyrlon ar hyn o bryd i ddatrys yr anghydfodau diwydiannol, sy'n gwaethygu prinder staff. A yw'r Gweinidog yn cydnabod mai ar y Llywodraeth Lafur y mae'r bai am y methiant i ddatrys yr oedi wrth drosglwyddo i ofal?
Mae gen i ambell i bwynt arall dwi angen gofyn amdanyn nhw'n sydyn. Mae hi'n amlwg bod y cyfuniad o COVID a'r ffliw yn achosi problemau. Mae yna darged o frechu 75 y cant o bawb sy'n cael cynnig y brechiad. Dim ond rhyw 41 y cant, dwi'n deall, o staff gofal iechyd sydd wedi derbyn y brechiad—41 y cant o'r rhai sydd fwyaf agored i niwed. Ydy'r Gweinidog yn derbyn bod y Llywodraeth yn methu o bell ffordd â chyrraedd eu targedau ar faint o bobl sydd angen cael eu brechu ar gyfer COVID a'r ffliw?
Mae'n rhaid i fi droi at yr ataliol eto. Mae'r Gweinidog yn cyfeirio eto at waith sy'n cael ei wneud ar hyn: £145 miliwn, rhaglen pum mlynedd er mwyn ceisio osgoi pobl yn gorfod mynd i'r ysbyty. Ond, y ffordd o osgoi hynny yn yr hir dymor, wrth gwrs, ydy ein gwneud ni'n genedl fwy iach. Ble mae'r buddsoddiad? A thra rydw i, wrth gwrs, yn gwerthfawrogi bod arian yn dynn heddiw, ble mae'r cynlluniau i wneud y buddsoddiad mawr yna er mwyn trawsnewid ein hagwedd ni tuag at yr ataliol a thynnu'r pwysau oddi ar y gwasanaeth iechyd yn y ffordd honno?
Ac yn olaf, Llywydd, er mai pwysau gaeaf ydy testun y datganiad yma heddiw, rydym ni'n gwybod bellach, onid ydym, mai pwysau cydol y flwyddyn ydy hyn bellach. Mae'n rhaid sicrhau bod yna le o fewn y gwasanaeth iechyd i 'flex-io', os liciwch chi. Mi ddylai'r gwasanaeth iechyd fod yn rhedeg ar rywbeth fel 85 y cant o gapasiti. Mae o fel petai'n rhedeg ar 100 y cant, 110 y cant, 120 y cant o'i gapasiti drwy'r amser. A all y Gweinidog ddweud wrthym ni pa bryd oedd yr NHS yng Nghymru yn rhedeg ar tua 85 y cant o'i gapasiti ddiwethaf? Ac ydy hi yn derbyn mai bai Llywodraeth Lafur Cymru ydy'r methiant i greu y capasiti yna o fewn y system?
I have a few other points that I want to question you on briefly. It's clear that the combination of COVID and flu is causing problems. There's a target of vaccinating 75 per cent of everyone offered a vaccination. Only some 41 per cent, as I understand it, of healthcare staff have been vaccinated—41 per cent of those who are most vulnerable. Does the Minister accept that the Government is failing by a distance in reaching its targets in terms of the numbers that need to be vaccinated for COVID and flu?
I have to turn to preventative measures again. The Minister again refers to work that is being done in this area: £145 million, a five-year programme in order to actually avoid people having to go to hospital. But, the way of doing that in the long term is to make us a healthier nation. Where is the investment? And whilst I, of course, appreciate that funding is tight today, where are the plans to make that major investment in order to transform our attitude towards preventative and to take pressure off our health service in that way?
And finally, Llywydd, although winter pressures is the subject of this statement today, we now know, don't we, that there are pressures throughout the year; that's the case now. We must ensure that there is scope within the health service to flex, if you like. The health service should be running at something around 85 per cent of capacity. It seems to be running at 100 per cent, 110 per cent and 120 per cent of its capacity all the time. Can the Minister tell us when the NHS in Wales was running at around 85 per cent of its capacity last? And does she accept that it's the fault of the Welsh Labour Government in terms of failing to generate that capacity within the system?
Thank you very much. First of all, I think it is important to recognise not just what we've done, but what we intend to do. And you're quite right, just to give you some ideas of where we're going to be going next, we're going to be making sure that we try and expand the number of hours that those urgent primary care centres are open, so that will divert more people out of those normal hours. Certainly, what I was hearing from people in A&E last week is that, actually, the difficult time is when everything else is shut. So, opening those primary care centres for longer hours would be important. The same thing in relation to same-day emergency care centres. So, that's something else that we're working on.
We have those 100 new ambulance workers that are coming on stream this week and next week. So, that will make a big difference. And, of course, we will be pushing ahead to try and create more of those community beds on top of the 500 that we've already delivered. This is not easy stuff, because you still have to find people. Staffing is the big challenge, particularly when it comes to care, and that's why we have committed to making sure that we keep up with the real living wage as the No. 1 priority in our budget when it comes to health and social care.
Industrial action. Let's be clear: industrial action is going to lead to pressure on the NHS. That's the purpose of a strike, to make sure that people feel a bit of tension and to make their voices heard. So, I don't think I should apologise for that—I think they'd be a bit worried if they didn't think it was having an impact. I think it's really important that one of the issues that we will be discussing, I hope, with the unions later this week is a discussion around the pay review body, the independence of the pay review body, and what we can do to build more confidence into that. We've got to be very careful with this, because if we go away from that, then you're going to get into regional pay and that may not work out the way that some people would like to see in Wales. But I do recognise, I think, there are some issues that we need to look at in relation to the pay review body: when you take the temperature of inflation, for example. So, we saw inflation shoot up after the Ukraine war, and that didn't happen until about February. The temperature was taken of the NHS in terms of pay, inflation, in March/April, and that was at about 6 per cent. Well, now, of course, we know it's well over 10 per cent, so I think there are issues there where we need to see what more can be done in relation to the pay review body.
When it comes to beds, step-down facilities, I'm afraid I'm in the same place as the First Minister: there's no point in creating beds if you can't create the staffing that goes alongside them. One of the real challenges we've had in delivering these 500 extra beds is that, as soon as we're appointing people, some of them are leaving. So, we're losing people before they actually get to the job. This is the challenge. So, this is why I find it fascinating that, only today or yesterday, the UK Government think they're going to fix this for winter. That's not going to happen, because we have found this incredibly challenging, even to deliver on those 500 additional beds.
But there are other things that we can do, and one of the things, I think, we can learn from is the models that are happening in terms of hospital at home. So, it's great to see that's already happening in Cardiff: monitoring 60 people at home who would otherwise be in hospital, making sure that everything is available to them and, if there is an issue, that you can send somebody out to them. We're going to have to embrace new technology. We're going to have to do things differently as we become an ageing population with more complex needs.
We are employing more staff than we've ever employed in the NHS before. We employ now 105,000 people in the NHS in Wales. We are employing more nurses than ever before, so we are recruiting more than we're losing. I think it's really important for people to recognise that: that actually we are recruiting more than we're losing, which is not enough. We know it's not enough, and we know we need to do more, which is why we've seen a huge, huge increase in the number of people we are training with Health Education and Improvement Wales and others. And that's why we've given an additional sum to HEIW in the budget: £265 million to train the next generation of health workers.
When it comes to the targets in relation to vaccination, I'm very pleased. We had a target to reach 75 per cent when it came to COVID and the over-65s. We've reached 80 per cent. On flu, we're at 74.6 per cent, so we're nearly there, and we're very confident that we'll get to 75 per cent in the next few days. It is disappointing to see how few NHS and care workers have taken up the opportunity, and in particular for the flu vaccine. This is something that I have asked over and over again of the health boards to really promote with their members. It's very, very disappointing that that is the case, and again we would keep on asking them to take up that opportunity.
You talked about prevention. I think it's really important that we all understand that we have a role to play when it comes to prevention. We can all do what we can to keep ourselves fit, to eat healthily, to take exercise, to not smoke. All of those things are things that actually will make a big difference to our ability to provide what we can in the NHS in the future. We all know there's an obesity crisis, and it's something that we really need to address, because actually it will translate into complex care necessary in things like type 2 diabetes.
The other thing, I think, just to be clear, is that I have set out some very clear guidelines in terms of what I'm expecting from the NHS next year, and priorities. They are going to be far more targeted priorities to make sure that we focus our attention on the things that I think matter most to the people of Wales. One of those things that we've made very clear in our report and in our strategy, 'A Healthier Wales', is that actually we need to see more care in the community. We need to get more support out from our hospitals into our communities. When we're talking about discharge from hospitals, for example, a lot of those assessments at the moment are being done in hospitals. The clinical evidence suggests that you should be doing it in people's homes. So, that shift is something that again we'll be pushing the NHS hard on when it comes to them developing their strategies for the future.
Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi. Yn gyntaf i gyd, rwyf i o'r farn ei bod hi'n bwysig i ni gydnabod nid yn unig yr hyn a wnaethom ni, ond yr hyn yr ydym ni'n bwriadu ei wneud. Ac rydych chi'n hollol iawn, dim ond er mwyn rhoi rhai syniadau i chi o'n camau nesaf ni, fe fyddwn ni'n sicrhau ein bod ni'n ceisio ehangu nifer yr oriau y mae'r canolfannau gofal sylfaenol brys hynny ar agor, felly fe all hynny ddargyfeirio mwy o bobl o'r oriau sy'n arferol yn y cyswllt hwn. Yn sicr, yr hyn yr oeddwn i'n ei glywed gan bobl mewn adrannau damweiniau ac achosion brys wythnos diwethaf yw mai'r amser anodd, mewn gwirionedd, yw pan fydd popeth arall ar gau. Felly, fe fyddai agor y canolfannau gofal sylfaenol hynny am oriau hwy yn beth pwysig. Yr un peth o ran canolfannau gofal mewn argyfwng ar yr un diwrnod. Felly, dyna rywbeth arall yr ydym ni'n gweithio arno.
Mae gennym ni 100 o weithwyr ambiwlans newydd ar ddod yr wythnos hon a'r wythnos nesaf. Felly, fe fydd hynny'n gwneud gwahaniaeth mawr. Ac, wrth gwrs, fe fyddwn ni'n bwrw ymlaen â cheisio creu mwy o'r gwelyau cymunedol hynny ar ben y 500 a gawsom ni eisoes. Nid pethau rhwydd mohonyn nhw, oherwydd mae'n rhaid i chi barhau i ddod o hyd i bobl. Staffio yw'r her fawr, yn enwedig o ran gofal, a dyna pam yr ydym ni wedi ymrwymo i sicrhau ein bod ni'n cadw i fyny â'r cyflog byw gwirioneddol fel prif flaenoriaeth yn ein cyllideb ni o ran iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol.
Gweithredu diwydiannol. Gadewch i ni fod yn eglur: fe fydd gweithredu diwydiannol yn arwain at bwysau ar y GIG. Dyna bwrpas unrhyw streic, gwneud yn siŵr bod pobl yn teimlo ychydig o densiwn ac yn lleisio barn. Felly, nid wyf i o'r farn y dylwn i ymddiheuro am hynny—rwy'n credu y bydden nhw braidd yn anfodlon pe bydden nhw'n teimlo nad oedden nhw'n cael unrhyw effaith. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn mai un o'r materion y byddwn ni'n eu trafod, rwy'n gobeithio, gyda'r undebau yn ddiweddarach yr wythnos hon yw'r drafodaeth ynghylch y corff adolygu cyflogau, annibyniaeth y corff adolygu cyflogau, a'r hyn y gallwn ni ei wneud i fagu mwy o ffydd yn hwnnw. Mae'n rhaid i ni fod yn ofalus iawn yn hyn o beth, oherwydd os byddwn ni'n gwyro oddi wrth hynny, yna fe fyddwch chi'n gweld cyflogau rhanbarthol ac efallai na fyddai hynny'n gweithio allan yn y ffordd y byddai rhai pobl yn dymuno yng Nghymru. Ond rwy'n cydnabod, rwy'n credu bod rhai materion y mae angen i ni edrych arnyn nhw o ran y corff adolygu cyflogau: o ystyried cyfradd bresennol chwyddiant, er enghraifft. Felly, fe welsom ni chwyddiant yn saethu i fyny ar ôl rhyfel Wcráin, a ni ddigwyddodd hynny tan tua mis Chwefror. Ystyriwyd sefyllfa gyfredol y GIG o ran cyflogau a chwyddiant, ym mis Mawrth/Ebrill, a thua 6 y cant oedd hi bryd hynny. Wel, nawr, wrth gwrs, rydym ni'n gwybod bod chwyddiant wedi codi ymhell dros 10 y cant, ac felly rwy'n credu bod problemau i'w cael pryd y mae angen i ni weld beth arall y gellir ei wneud o ran y corff adolygu cyflogau.
O ran gwelyau, cyfleusterau cam-i-lawr, mae arnaf ofn fy mod i o'r un farn â'r Prif Weinidog: nid oes unrhyw ddiben creu gwelyau os nad oes gennych chi ddigon o staff i fod wrth erchwyn y gwelyau. Un o'r heriau gwirioneddol a welsom ni wrth ddarparu'r 500 o welyau ychwanegol hyn yw, cyn gynted ag y byddwn ni'n penodi pobl, mae rhai ohonyn nhw'n gadael. Felly, rydym ni'n colli pobl cyn iddyn nhw gyrraedd y swydd mewn gwirionedd. Honno yw'r her. Felly, dyma pam rwy'n ei chael hi'n hynod ddiddorol, ddoe neu heddiw yn unig, bod Llywodraeth y DU yn credu eu bod nhw am adfer y sefyllfa hon ar gyfer y gaeaf. Ni fydd hynny'n digwydd, oherwydd rydym ni wedi gweld hynny'n heriol tu hwnt, o ran cyflawni'r 500 o welyau ychwanegol hynny, hyd yn oed.
Ond fe geir pethau eraill y gallwn ni eu gwneud, ac un o'r pethau, rwy'n credu, y gallwn ni ddysgu oddi wrthyn nhw yw'r modelau sy'n digwydd ynglŷn ag ysbyty yn y cartref. Felly, mae hi'n wych gweld bod hynny'n digwydd eisoes yng Nghaerdydd: monitro 60 o bobl yn eu cartrefi a fyddai mewn ysbyty fel arall, a gwneud yn siŵr bod popeth ar gael iddyn nhw ac, os oes problem, rydych chi'n gallu anfon rhywun allan atyn nhw. Fe fydd rhaid i ni gofleidio technoleg newydd. Fe fydd rhaid i ni wneud pethau yn wahanol wrth i ni fynd yn boblogaeth sy'n heneiddio gydag anghenion mwy cymhleth.
Rydym ni'n cyflogi mwy o staff nag a gyflogwyd erioed o'r blaen yn y GIG. Erbyn hyn rydym ni'n cyflogi 105,000 o bobl yn y GIG yng Nghymru. Rydym ni'n cyflogi mwy o nyrsys nag erioed o'r blaen, ac felly rydym ni'n recriwtio mwy nag yr ydym yn eu colli. Rwyf i o'r farn ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn i bobl gydnabod: ein bod ni mewn gwirionedd yn recriwtio mwy na'r hyn yr ydym yn eu colli, ond nid yw hynny'n ddigonol. Rydym ni'n gwybod nad yw hynny'n ddigonol, ac rydym ni'n gwybod bod angen i ni wneud mwy, a dyna pam rydym ni wedi gweld cynnydd aruthrol yn nifer y bobl yr ydym ni'n eu hyfforddi gydag Addysg a Gwella Iechyd Cymru ac eraill. A dyna pam rydym ni wedi rhoi swm ychwanegol i AaGIC yn y gyllideb: £265 miliwn i hyfforddi'r genhedlaeth nesaf o weithwyr iechyd.
O ran y nodau brechu, rwy'n falch iawn. Roedd gennym ni nod o gyrraedd 75 y cant o ran COVID a rhai dros 65 oed. Rydym ni wedi cyrraedd 80 y cant. O ran ffliw, rydym ni ar 74.6 y cant, felly rydym ni bron â chyrraedd, ac rydym ni'n ffyddiog iawn y byddwn ni'n cyrraedd 75 y cant yn ystod y dyddiau nesaf. Mae hi'n siomedig gweld cyn lleied o weithwyr y GIG a gweithwyr gofal sydd wedi manteisio ar y cyfle hwn, ac o ran y brechlyn ffliw yn arbennig felly. Mae hwnnw'n rhywbeth yr wyf i wedi holi droeon yn ei gylch er mwyn i'r byrddau iechyd hybu hyn yn wirioneddol gyda'u haelodau nhw. Mae hi'n siomedig eithriadol fod hynny'n wir, ac unwaith eto fe fyddem ni'n dal ati i'w holi nhw ynglŷn â manteisio ar y cyfle hwn.
Roeddech chi'n sôn am atal. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn ein bod ni i gyd yn deall bod gennym ni i gyd ran i'w chwarae o ran atal. Fe all pawb ohonom ni wneud yr hyn a allwn ni i gadw'n heini, a bwyta'n iach, ymarfer corff, a rhoi'r gorau i ysmygu. Mae'r holl bethau hyn yn bethau sy'n gwneud gwahaniaeth gwirioneddol i'n gallu ni i ddarparu'r hyn a allwn ni yn y GIG i'r dyfodol. Rydym ni i gyd yn gwybod am argyfwng gordewdra, ac mae hyn yn rhywbeth y mae gwir angen i ni fynd i'r afael ag ef, oherwydd mewn gwirionedd fe fydd yn trosi i ofal cymhleth sy'n angenrheidiol mewn pethau fel diabetes math 2.
Y peth arall, rwy'n credu, dim ond i fod yn eglur, yw fy mod i wedi gosod canllawiau eglur iawn o ran yr hyn yr wyf i'n ei ddisgwyl gan y GIG y flwyddyn nesaf, a blaenoriaethau hefyd. Fe fyddan nhw'n flaenoriaethau llawer mwy penodol ar gyfer gwneud yn siŵr ein bod yn canolbwyntio ein sylw ni ar y pethau pwysicaf i bobl Cymru, yn fy marn i. Un o'r pethau a wnaethom ni'n eglur iawn yn ein hadroddiad ac yn ein strategaeth ni, 'Cymru Iachach', yw bod angen i ni weld mwy o ofal yn y gymuned mewn gwirionedd. Mae angen i ni fod â rhagor o gymorth ar gael y tu allan i'n hysbytai ni ac yn ein cymunedau ni. Pan ydym ni'n sôn am ryddhau cleifion o ysbytai, er enghraifft, mae llawer o'r asesiadau hynny ar hyn o bryd yn cael eu gwneud mewn ysbytai. Mae'r dystiolaeth glinigol yn awgrymu y dylech chi fod yn gwneud hyn yng nghartrefi pobl. Felly, mae'r newid hwnnw'n rhywbeth y byddwn ni'n rhoi pwyslais mawr arno gyda'r GIG o ran datblygu eu strategaethau nhw i'r dyfodol.
I'm grateful to the Minister for her full statement this afternoon. I think all of us, on all sides of the Chamber and whatever our political differences may be, have a great well of gratitude to everybody who's working in the current circumstances across the national health service and in local government providing social care as well. I think we all recognise the enormous pressures that are on the national health service. We debated earlier, during First Minister's questions, the impact of austerity on the national health service and the ability of the service to respond, given successive issues around funding in the last decade or so. But you also said, in answer to, I think, Rhun ap Iorwerth, that the service itself has got to change to reflect changes in society and changes in need. I'd be interested, at the height of this winter crisis, if you could identify the issues that you're dealing with today that are long-term issues and aren't the short-term issues that we see creating the headlines, and how you believe we should be addressing those fundamental structural issues in the national health service as it approaches its seventy-fifth birthday.
Rwy'n ddiolchgar i'r Gweinidog am ei datganiad llawn y prynhawn yma. Rwy'n credu bod pob un ohonom ni, ar bob ochr i'r Siambr a beth bynnag fo ein gwahaniaethau gwleidyddol ni, yn ddiolchgar iawn i bawb sy'n gweithio yn yr amgylchiadau presennol ledled y gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol ac mewn llywodraeth leol wrth ddarparu gofal cymdeithasol hefyd. Rwy'n credu ein bod ni i gyd yn cydnabod y pwysau enfawr sydd ar y gwasanaeth iechyd cenedlaethol. Fe fuom ni'n trafod yn gynharach, yn ystod cwestiynau'r Prif Weinidog, effaith cyni ar y gwasanaeth iechyd gwladol a gallu'r gwasanaeth i ymateb, o ystyried materion olynol yn ymwneud â chyllid yn ystod y degawd diwethaf. Ond roeddech chi'n dweud hefyd, wrth ateb Rhun ap Iorwerth, rwy'n credu, bod y gwasanaeth ei hun wedi gorfod newid i adlewyrchu newidiadau yn y gymdeithas a newidiadau o ran anghenion. Fe fyddai hi'n dda gennyf i wybod, ym mhenllanw'r argyfwng gaeaf hwn, pe gallech nodi'r materion yr ydych chi'n ymdrin â nhw heddiw sy'n faterion hirdymor hir ac nid y materion byrdymor yr ydym ni'n eu gweld yn y penawdau, a sut rydych chi'n credu y dylem ni fod yn mynd i'r afael â'r materion strwythurol sylfaenol hynny yn y gwasanaeth iechyd cenedlaethol wrth iddo nesáu at ei ben-blwydd yn saith deg pump oed.
Thanks very much, Alun. Certainly, I think there are major, major challenges for the NHS. It's important that we recognise and talk about them and that that's a conversation we need with the public. This is not something that should remain in this Chamber, because these are going to be really tough decisions that everyone's going to have to live with. So, if you think about the opportunities that are available to us today that weren't available in the past, which are incredible, I saw a baby in the Heath last Friday who was born at 21 weeks—an absolute miracle. And there's no question that that baby would have died in the past. We've got to understand that that's a miracle, it's wonderful, it's because the NHS works that that baby is alive today, but that comes with some choices that we have to make. And so I think we have to have a conversation about where our priorities are within the NHS.
There are also, of course, new developments all of the time. Some of that will be really helpful to us. Digital remote consultations I think are really positive things that have already happened and have transformed the way we deliver care already. But I think the key thing in terms of where the challenges are in future—. I think there are some issues around capital that we're going to have to deal with, how are we going to deliver with the facilities that we've got, but also I think we do have to have that conversation about changes in society. When Aneurin Bevan set up the NHS in 1948, people worked until they were about 65 and they died when they were about 68. And that's the reality. It's great that people live for much, much longer than that, but our structure has not fundamentally changed to reflect that difference.
The missing gap is what do we do within that care space. Obviously, local authorities are doing their very best in that space, but obviously they have limitations also on their economic abilities. So, that is the space, I think, that we need a very challenging conversation with the Welsh public around: what we're going to do to support people in an ageing population with more complex care needs. Because along with an ageing population comes a more challenging situation in relation to what kind of complex cases you're having to deal with. So, we're not just dealing with someone going into hospital, say, with cancer; they might have cancer and diabetes and a bad ear, or lots of things at the same time. And we just have to understand that those are the kind of challenges that we're facing in future.
Diolch yn fawr iawn, Alun. Yn sicr, rwy'n credu bod heriau anferthol i'r GIG. Mae hi'n bwysig ein bod ni'n cydnabod ac yn siarad amdanyn nhw a bod honno'n sgwrs y mae angen i ni ei chynnal â'r cyhoedd. Nid rhywbeth a ddylai aros yn y Siambr hon mohono, oherwydd fe fydd y rhain yn benderfyniadau anodd iawn y bydd yn rhaid i bawb fyw gyda nhw. Felly, os meddyliwch chi am y cyfleoedd sydd ar gael i ni heddiw nad oedden nhw ar gael yn y gorffennol, sy'n anhygoel, fe welais i faban yn Ysbyty Athrofaol Cymru ddydd Gwener diwethaf a aned ar ôl 21 wythnos—cwbl wyrthiol. Ac nid oes unrhyw amheuaeth y byddai baban o'r oedran hwnnw wedi trengi yn y gorffennol. Mae'n rhaid i ni ddeall bod honno'n wyrth, yn wych, oherwydd y gwaith a wna'r GIG y mae'r baban hwnnw'n fyw heddiw, ond fe ddaw rhai dewisiadau gyda hynny y mae'n rhaid i ni eu gwneud. Ac felly rwyf i o'r farn bod rhaid i ni gynnal sgwrs o ran ein blaenoriaethau ni yn y GIG.
Fe geir datblygiadau newydd drwy'r amser hefyd. Fe fydd rhan o hynny o gymorth mawr i ni. Mae ymgynghoriadau o bell digidol yn bethau cadarnhaol iawn yn fy marn i sydd eisoes wedi digwydd ac wedi trawsnewid y ffordd yr ydym ni'n darparu gofal eisoes. Ond rwy'n credu mai'r peth allweddol o ran lle bydd heriau yn y dyfodol—. Rwy'n credu bod rhai materion yn ymwneud â chyfalaf ac fe fydd yn rhaid i ni ymdrin â nhw, yn ogystal â'n dulliau ni o gyflawni gyda'r cyfleusterau sydd gennym ni, ond rwy'n credu hefyd y bydd rhaid i ni gael y drafodaeth hon am newidiadau yn y gymdeithas. Pan sefydlodd Aneurin Bevan y GIG yn 1948, roedd pobl yn gweithio tan eu bod tua 65 oed ac yn marw pan oedden nhw tua 68 oed. A dyna'r sefyllfa wirioneddol. Mae'r ffaith fod pobl yn byw'n hŷn o lawer erbyn hyn yn beth rhagorol, ond nid yw ein strwythur ni wedi newid yn sylfaenol i adlewyrchu'r gwahaniaeth hwnnw.
Y bwlch coll yw'r hyn yr ydym ni'n ei wneud yn y maes hwn o ofal. Yn amlwg, mae awdurdodau lleol yn gwneud eu gorau glas yn y maes hwnnw, ond yn amlwg mae cyfyngiadau arnyn nhw hefyd o ran eu gallu economaidd. Felly, hwnnw yw'r maes, yn fy marn i, y mae angen sgwrs heriol iawn gyda'r cyhoedd yng Nghymru amdano: beth ydym ni am ei wneud i gefnogi pobl mewn poblogaeth sy'n heneiddio gydag anghenion gofal mwy cymhleth. Oherwydd ynghyd â phoblogaeth sy'n heneiddio fe ddaw sefyllfa fwy heriol o ran pa fath o achosion cymhleth sydd raid i chi ymdrin â nhw. Felly, nid ymdrin yn unig â rhywun yn mynd i'r ysbyty yr ydym ni gyda chanser, dyweder; efallai bod ganddyn nhw ganser a diabetes a chlust dost, neu lawer o bethau ar yr un pryd. Ac mae'n rhaid i ni ddeall mai dyna'r math o heriau y byddwn ni'n eu hwynebu yn y dyfodol.
I have a number of Members who wish to question the Minister on this statement. If you keep your questions succinct and effective, then that will enable me to call other Members in your groups later on as well. So, I'll start with you, Gareth Davies, and see if you can do succinct and effective for me.
Mae gennyf nifer o Aelodau sy'n awyddus i holi'r Gweinidog am y datganiad hwn. Pe byddech chi'n cadw eich cwestiynau yn gryno ac yn effeithiol, fe fyddai hynny'n fy ngalluogi i alw Aelodau eraill yn eich grwpiau yn nes ymlaen hefyd. Felly, rwyf i am ddechrau gyda chi, Gareth Davies, i mi weld a allwch chi fod yn gryno ac yn effeithiol.
As ever. Diolch yn fawr iawn, Llywydd, and thank you for your statement this afternoon, Minister. I wish you a happy new year, and to all Members of the Senedd. Yet again, we're—
Fel pob amser. Diolch yn fawr iawn, Llywydd, a diolch i chi am eich datganiad y prynhawn yma, Gweinidog. Fe hoffwn i ddymuno blwyddyn newydd dda i chi, a Aelodau'r Senedd i gyd. Unwaith eto, rydym ni—
Just one thing: thank you for wishing us all a happy new year; that's the last time we need to be wished it. Thank you very much for doing that, but we'll save on time if we all wish each other now a happy new year, smile at each other, be kind to each other, as Jack Sargeant always reminds us in this place, and carry on with our questions. Don't worry, I won't include that 30 seconds in your time allocation. Carry on, Gareth.
Un peth yn unig: diolch i chi am ddymuno blwyddyn newydd dda i ni gyd; dyna'r tro olaf y mae angen i ni glywed hynny. Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi am wneud, ond fe arbedwn ni amser pe bawn ni i gyd yn dymuno blwyddyn newydd dda i'n gilydd nawr, a gwenu ar ein gilydd, a bod yn garedig â'n gilydd, chwedl Jack Sargeant bob amser yn y lle hwn, a bwrw ymlaen gyda'n cwestiynau ni. Peidiwch â phoeni, ni wnaf i gynnwys y 30 eiliad yna yn eich dyraniad amser chi. Ymlaen â chi, Gareth.
I was just trying to be nice.
Dim ond ceisio bod yn gwrtais oeddwn i.
Yes, you were.
Oeddech, roeddech yn gwrtais
Yet again, we're in a situation of talking about winter pressures when we're in the full throes of wintertime, which is a reactive measure rather than a proactive measure, Minister. Any prudent Government would be making this type of statement when the sun shines, when we're wearing shorts and sandals. But I want to focus my question on how winter pressures reflect on care homes. I visited Sandford Care Home in Prestatyn last Friday, where Sean, Nicky and the team do a fantastic job of caring for our most vulnerable and elderly people. But many of the problems they face are as a result of NHS pressures—long ambulance waiting times, delays in discharge—and not being able to fill their maximum capacity of 40 beds because of staff shortages, with the recruitment and retention issues that we're all too familiar with. So, will the Minister outline this afternoon what steps the Welsh Government is taking to address the knock-on effects of NHS pressures on the social care system and ensure that our most vulnerable people in society aren't left behind? Thank you.
Unwaith eto, rydym ni mewn sefyllfa o fod yn siarad am bwysau'r gaeaf yng nghanol gaeaf noethlwm, sef ymagwedd adweithiol yn hytrach na bod yn rhagweithiol, Gweinidog. Fe fyddai unrhyw Lywodraeth ddoeth yn gwneud y math yma o ddatganiad pan fo'r haul yn tywynnu, pryd maen nhw yn eu siorts a'u sandalau. Ond rwyf i eisiau canolbwyntio fy nghwestiwn ar sut mae pwysau'r gaeaf yn effeithio ar gartrefi gofal. Bûm yn ymweld â Chartref Gofal Sandford ym Mhrestatyn ddydd Gwener diwethaf, lle mae Sean, Nicky a'r tîm yn gwneud gwaith rhagorol o ofalu am ein pobl fwyaf agored i niwed a'r rhai hynaf un. Ond mae llawer o'r problemau y maen nhw'n eu hwynebu o ganlyniad i bwysau'r GIG—amseroedd aros hir am ambiwlans, oedi wrth gael eu rhyddhau—a methu llenwi eu nifer llawn nhw o 40 gwely oherwydd prinder staff, gyda'r problemau recriwtio a chadw staff yr ydym ni i gyd yn rhy gyfarwydd â nhw. Felly, a wnaiff y Gweinidog amlinellu'r prynhawn yma pa gamau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn eu cymryd i fynd i'r afael â sgil-effeithiau pwysau'r GIG ar y system gofal cymdeithasol a sicrhau nad yw ein pobl fwyaf agored i niwed yn ein cymdeithas yn cael eu gadael ar ôl? Diolch i chi.
Excellent.
Ardderchog.
Thank you very much. That was excellent; well done. I think it is important. I hope you have listened to the speech, which demonstrates that we have indeed been very proactive during the summer months in preparing. Obviously, we've never seen anything like the demand that we've encountered over this winter.
When it comes to care homes, I think it is important that we pay tribute to the incredible work that they do in looking after our elderly. Obviously, they're also in a situation where they're encountering long ambulance waiting times. I think it's important for us to recognise that there are times actually where we will need to try and support people in the homes. I've seen some fascinating statistics about, once you go into hospital for a period of more than a certain number of days, how likely you are to die if you're over a certain age. I think it's really, really important that people understand that, actually—. And most people don't want to die in hospital; it's not because they're going into hospital they're dying, it's because they were going to die anyway. So, I think it's really important that we try and understand what is it that matters to the patient, where is it that they'd like to have that compassionate care. Very often, that is in their homes.
I understand, and I know my colleague Julie Morgan understands very clearly, the difficulties in recruiting people in care homes, which is why we have once again acknowledged that we will be honouring the real living wage in the budget in April. That's really important, I think, for us to understand that there is an issue there that needs to be addressed. It's not going to be easy, because there's a lot of competition out there when it comes to jobs, but I think that is an area where we need to work very, very closely with our local government partners to make sure that we are making the very best possible offer, and that we look not just at pay, but also look at conditions around pay as well.
Diolch yn fawr iawn i chi. Roedd hynny'n ardderchog; da iawn. Rwy'n credu bod hyn yn bwysig. Rwy'n gobeithio eich bod chi wedi gwrando ar yr araith, sy'n dangos ein bod ni wir wedi bod yn rhagweithiol iawn yn ystod misoedd yr haf o ran y paratoi. Yn amlwg, mae'r galw a welsom ni dros y gaeaf hwn wedi bod yn ddigynsail.
O ran cartrefi gofal, rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig ein bod ni'n rhoi teyrnged i'r gwaith anhygoel y maen nhw'n ei wneud wrth ofalu am ein henoed. Yn amlwg, maen nhw mewn sefyllfa hefyd o fod yn wynebu amseroedd aros hir am ambiwlansys. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig i ni gydnabod y bydd adegau mewn gwirionedd pan fydd angen i ni geisio cefnogi pobl yn y cartrefi. Rydw i wedi gweld rhai ystadegau diddorol ynghylch hyn, er enghraifft, wedi i chi fynd i'r ysbyty am gyfnod o fwy na nifer arbennig o ddyddiau, pa mor debygol ydych chi o farw os ydych chi dros oedran arbennig. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn, iawn fod pobl yn deall hynny, mewn gwirionedd—. Ac nid yw'r rhan fwyaf yn dymuno marw mewn ysbyty; nid oherwydd eu bod nhw'n mynd i'r ysbyty y maen nhw'n marw, mae hynny oherwydd yr oedden nhw'n mynd i farw beth bynnag. Felly, rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn ein bod ni'n ceisio deall yr hyn sy'n bwysig i'r claf, ymhle bydden nhw'n dymuno cael y gofal tosturiol hwnnw. Yn aml iawn, yn eu cartrefi eu hunain fyddai hynny.
Rwy'n deall, ac rwy'n gwybod bod fy nghyd-Weinidog Julie Morgan yn deall yn dda iawn, yr anawsterau o ran recriwtio pobl mewn cartrefi gofal, a dyna pam yr ydym ni wedi cydnabod unwaith eto y byddwn ni'n anrhydeddu'r cyflog byw gwirioneddol yn y gyllideb ym mis Ebrill. Mae hynny'n bwysig iawn, rwy'n credu, i ni ddeall bod problem yn hyn o beth y mae angen i ni fynd i'r afael â hi. Ni fydd hi'n hawdd, oherwydd mae llawer o gystadleuaeth yn y gymdeithas gyfan o ran swyddi, ond rwy'n credu bod hwnnw'n faes y mae angen i ni weithio yn agos dros ben ynddo gyda'n partneriaid llywodraeth leol ni i wneud yn siŵr ein bod ni'n rhoi'r cynnig gorau posibl, a'n bod ni'n ystyried nid yn unig y cyflogau, ond yr amodau ynghylch cyflogau hefyd.
Rŷch chi'n dweud yn eich datganiad, Weinidog, bod 12 y cant o gapasiti gwelyau yr NHS nawr wedi ei lenwi oherwydd delayed discharges, ac mewn ymateb i hynny, wrth gwrs, rŷch chi'n dweud eich bod chi wedi sicrhau 500 gwely cymunedol ar gyfer step-down care. Yn amlwg, mae hynny i'w groesawu. Mi fyddai'n dda gwybod ble mae'r rheini, gyda llaw. Fel Aelod yn y gogledd, mi fyddwn i â diddordeb mewn gwybod faint o'r rheini sydd yn y gogledd. Ond wrth gwrs, mi oedd gennym ni rwydwaith o ysbytai cymunedol a oedd yn arfer darparu'r union wasanaeth step-down yna ar draws Cymru. Mi gollwyd y capasiti yna—capasiti ŷch chi nawr yn trio ail-greu ac ailadeiladu—pan gaewyd ysbyty cymunedol y Fflint, pan gaewyd ysbyty cymunedol Blaenau Ffestiniog, ysbyty Prestatyn, ysbyty Llangollen, ac yn y blaen.
Fe wnaeth nifer ohonom ni eich rhybuddio ar y pryd y byddech chi'n difaru gwneud hynny, oherwydd mae wastad angen y ddarpariaeth step-down yna o fewn y system, neu—fel ŷn ni'n gweld—mae'r system yn mynd i flocio, ac ŷn ni'n mynd i orffen lan mewn sefyllfa lle mae 12 y cant o gapasiti gwelyau wedi dioddef oherwydd delayed discharge. Felly, ydych chi'n derbyn mai camgymeriad oedd cau’r ysbytai cymunedol yna, yn enwedig y rhai ar draws y gogledd? Ydych chi'n difaru bod hynny wedi digwydd? Oherwydd does dim amheuaeth bod hynny o leiaf yn cyfrannu peth tuag at y crisis mae ysbytai cyffredinol nawr yn ei wynebu.
You say in your statement, Minister, that 12 per cent of bed capacity in the NHS is now full as a result of delayed discharges, and in response to that, of course, you say that you've secured an additional 500 community beds for step-down care. Clearly, that is to be welcomed. It would be good to hear where they are. As a Member in north Wales, I would be interested in hearing how many of those are in north Wales. But of course, we had a network of community hospitals that used to provide exactly this step-down service across Wales. That capacity was lost—the capacity that you are now trying to recreate and rebuild—when community hospitals were closed in Flint, Blaenau Ffestiniog, Prestatyn, Llangollen, and so on.
A number of us warned you at the time that you would regret doing that, because there's always a need for that step-down provision within the system, or—as we're currently seeing—the system is going to have blockages and we're going to end up with a situation where 12 per cent of the bed capacity has suffered as a result of delayed discharges. So, do you accept that it was a mistake to close those community hospitals, particularly those across north Wales? Do you regret that that happened? Because there's no doubt that that's contributing at least a little to the crisis that general hospitals are now facing.
Diolch yn fawr. Dwi'n barod i roi rhestr ichi ynglŷn â ble yn union ŷn ni wedi ffeindio'r capasiti yna. Mae'r capasiti, wrth gwrs, yn ddibynnol ar ein gallu ni i gydweithio gyda llywodraeth leol yn yr ardal, felly dyna pam ŷn ni wedi bod yn gweithio gyda nhw yn ddiwyd, a gyda'r NHS yn yr ardal hefyd. Pan fo'n dod i step-down facilities, dwi'n meddwl yn gyffredinol mae'n well gan bobl gael y gofal maen nhw eisiau ac angen yn eu cartrefi nhw, a dyna ble ŷn ni'n ceisio mynd. Mae'n rhaid cofio hefyd, pan fo'n dod at ysbytai cymunedol, maen nhw'n ddrud tu hwnt i'w rhedeg. Mae hynny'n rhywbeth dwi wedi'i ddysgu. Ac os ŷch chi'n edrych ar faint o ysbytai sydd gyda ni yng Nghymru yn gymharol i'r boblogaeth, dwi'n meddwl ei bod hi'n bwysig ein bod ni'n deall ein bod ni mewn sefyllfa lle mae’n ddrud iawn i ni redeg ysbytai, a dyna pam mae camu i mewn i’n cymunedau ni yn rhywbeth ŷn ni'n ceisio cael yr NHS i'w wneud, i wneud lot mwy o ddarpariaeth yn ein cymunedau, yng nghartrefi pobl, lle mae'r rhan fwyaf o bobl eisiau cael y gofal yna.
Thank you very much. I'm happy to give you a list of where we found that capacity. The capacity of course is reliant on our ability to collaborate with local authorities in the area, and that's where we've been working with them closely, as well as with the NHS in those areas, too. When it comes to step-down facilities, I do think that generally speaking, people prefer to get the care that they need in their homes, and that's the direction of travel. We must also bear in mind that when it comes to community hospitals, they are very expensive to run. That's something that I've learnt. And if you look at how many hospitals we have in Wales in relation to our population, then I think it's important that we understand that we are in a situation where it is very expensive for us to run hospitals, and that is why stepping into our communities is something that we're trying to get the NHS to do, to provide far more within communities and in people's homes, where most people want to access that care.
Diolch, Minister, for your statement. And as you've already alluded to, there is a role for all citizens to play a part in alleviating the pressure on the NHS, whether it's in terms of our own health management or accessing appropriate services. But what is the Welsh Government doing to support citizens in doing this, and what more could we do as Members of the Senedd in our own constituencies to encourage people to take more responsibility for their own health outcomes?
Diolch, Gweinidog, am eich datganiad chi. Ac fel gwnaethoch chi gyfeirio ato eisoes, mae gan bob dinesydd ran i'w chwarae wrth ysgafnu'r pwysau sydd ar y GIG, boed hynny o ran ein rheolaeth ar ein hiechyd ni ein hunain neu wrth geisio'r gwasanaethau sy'n briodol. Ond beth mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn ei wneud i gefnogi dinasyddion yn hynny o beth, a beth allem ni Aelodau'r Senedd ei wneud yn ein hetholaethau ni ein hunain i annog pobl i gymryd mwy o gyfrifoldeb am eu canlyniadau nhw eu hunain o ran eu hiechyd?
Thanks very much. Well, this is an area where my colleague, Lynne Neagle, takes a leading role in terms of public health. We have, of course, got a very clear programme of activity—'Healthy Weight: Healthy Wales'—where we try and encourage people to make sure that they participate, and they understand what healthy food is and how they use it and how they cook it. We've put a lot of support, of course, into our schools. So free school meals have now gone into primary schools; making sure that that is the right kind of food is really important.
So, there's a huge amount that people can do, and, of course, we also give a significant amount of money to Sport Wales to make sure that they are helping in our communities, especially with young people, to get that idea of exercise in as early as possible. And it's great now that we have a relationship with the Football Association of Wales to make sure that we can roll that out across the whole of Wales, making sure that people understand their responsibilities when it comes to health as well.
Diolch yn fawr. Wel, mae hwn yn faes lle mae fy nghydweithiwr, Lynne Neagle, yn cymryd rhan flaenllaw o ran iechyd y cyhoedd. Wrth gwrs, mae gennym raglen o weithgarwch clir iawn—'Pwysau Iach: Cymru Iach'—lle rydyn ni'n ceisio annog pobl i sicrhau eu bod yn cymryd rhan, ac maen nhw'n deall beth yw bwyd iach a sut maen nhw'n ei ddefnyddio a sut maen nhw'n ei goginio. Rydyn ni wedi rhoi llawer o gefnogaeth, wrth gwrs, yn ein hysgolion. Felly mae prydau ysgol am ddim bellach wedi mynd i ysgolion cynradd; mae gwneud yn siŵr mai dyna'r math cywir o fwyd yn bwysig iawn.
Felly, mae yna lawer iawn y gall pobl ei wneud ac, wrth gwrs, rydyn ni hefyd yn rhoi swm sylweddol o arian i Chwaraeon Cymru i wneud yn siŵr ei fod yn helpu yn ein cymunedau, yn enwedig gyda phobl ifanc, i fabwysiadu'r syniad hwnnw o ymarfer corff mor fuan â phosib. Ac mae'n wych nawr fod gennym ni berthynas â Chymdeithas Bêl-droed Cymru i wneud yn siŵr ein bod ni'n gallu cyflwyno hynny ledled Cymru gyfan, gan sicrhau bod pobl yn deall eu cyfrifoldebau o ran iechyd hefyd.
Thank you for your statement, Minister. I appreciate that these are challenging times, and, of course, we all thank the wonderful NHS staff who are working so tirelessly. However, Minister, seven health boards in Wales have nearly 1,800 patients medically well enough to be discharged from hospital. The Aneurin Bevan health board in my constituency have said that they have around 400 patients who could be discharged, but they are unable to. This is the second highest amount of the seven health boards. It's becoming clear that the only way that we're going to stop this crisis upon crisis is to reform and drastically improve social care in Wales.
Minister, the UK Government health secretary has announced a winter package that will allow thousands of NHS patients to be moved into care homes, to enable the release of hospital beds for emergency patients. I understand that £250 million has been allocated to upgrade these hospitals and buy beds in care homes for patients medically sound enough to be discharged. Is this something that you'll look to do in Wales? And, at the end of your statement, you were talking about prevention and you recognised that there might be increased pressures now that schools have returned. From what I understand today, from what I've heard, there are already high levels of staff and pupil absences in Bridgend schools because of contagious illnesses. How are you working with the education Minister and local authorities to perhaps adopt local authority advice for schools to ensure that pupils stay at home when they have contagious illnesses? Thank you.
Diolch am eich datganiad, Gweinidog. Rwy'n gwerthfawrogi bod hwn yn gyfnod heriol ac, wrth gwrs, mae pob un ohonom ni yn diolch i staff gwych y GIG sy'n gweithio mor ddiflino. Fodd bynnag, Gweinidog, mae gan saith bwrdd iechyd yng Nghymru bron i 1,800 o gleifion sydd, yn feddygol, yn ddigon iach i gael eu rhyddhau o'r ysbyty. Mae Bwrdd Iechyd Aneurin Bevan yn fy etholaeth i wedi dweud bod ganddo tua 400 o gleifion a allai gael eu rhyddhau, ond na all wneud hynny. Dyma'r nifer uchaf ond un o'r saith bwrdd iechyd. Mae'n dod yn amlwg mai'r unig ffordd rydym yn mynd i atal un argyfwng ar ôl y llall yw diwygio a gwella gofal cymdeithasol yng Nghymru yn sylweddol.
Gweinidog, mae ysgrifennydd iechyd Llywodraeth y DU wedi cyhoeddi pecyn gaeaf a fydd yn caniatáu symud miloedd o gleifion y GIG i gartrefi gofal, er mwyn galluogi rhyddhau gwelyau ysbyty ar gyfer cleifion brys. Rwy'n deall bod £250 miliwn wedi'i ddyrannu i uwchraddio'r ysbytai hyn a phrynu gwelyau mewn cartrefi gofal i gleifion sy'n ddigon cadarn yn feddygol i gael eu rhyddhau. Ydy hwn yn rhywbeth y byddwch chi'n ystyried ei wneud yng Nghymru? Ac, ar ddiwedd eich datganiad, roeddech chi'n sôn am atal ac roeddech chi'n cydnabod y gallai fod mwy o bwysau nawr bod ysgolion wedi dychwelyd. O'r hyn rwy'n ei ddeall heddiw, o'r hyn rydw i wedi'i glywed, mae nifer uchel o absenoldebau ymhlith staff a disgyblion yn ysgolion Pen-y-bont ar Ogwr eisoes oherwydd salwch heintus. Sut ydych chi'n gweithio gyda'r Gweinidog addysg ac awdurdodau lleol i fabwysiadu cyngor awdurdodau lleol ar gyfer ysgolion o bosibl, er mwyn sicrhau bod disgyblion yn aros gartref pan fyddant yn dioddef o salwch heintus? Diolch.
Thanks very much. Well, I'm glad that you recognise that there are lots of people who are ready for discharge. It's very interesting that your leader earlier was saying, 'Actually, just be very careful about when you do ask people to leave who are medically fit for discharge.' So, it's about risk, isn't it? It's about where the risk is, and what's important for us is that we do get people out who are ready for discharge and who do have that support at home, so that we can get people who are in urgent need of support in through the front door. And, of, course, I think we all recognise that there is a need for fundamental reform when it comes to social care.
When it comes to winter packages, well, welcome to the party, UK Government. We've been doing this for months—we've been doing this for months. We put £25 million on the table last April to prepare for this, because what we were told time and again was: 'Don't give us that money—' . What usually happens is that it's given in September, which is too late—September is too late. They put that money on the table yesterday. There is no way that they're going to get people—. And you try and find those beds, because, I tell you what, we've been doing it week after week after week. We have been buying up that capacity in care already, in care homes. That's what we've been doing—these 500 beds in the community. That is precisely what we've been doing. So, it's a lovely idea; it's a shame that they didn't think about it earlier, because we are on it, we're delivering it, and I think it's going to take a lot longer—. In fact, they made an announcement in September that they were going to produce 7,000 of these. They've hardly scratched the surface of that, so this is really a rehash of a UK Government announcement that they made in September.
Diolch yn fawr. Wel, rwy'n falch eich bod yn cydnabod bod llawer o bobl sy'n barod i'w rhyddhau. Mae'n ddiddorol iawn bod eich arweinydd yn dweud yn gynharach, 'A dweud y gwir, byddwch yn ofalus iawn ynghylch pryd rydych chi'n gofyn i bobl sy'n iach yn feddygol i'w rhyddhau adael.' Felly, mae'n ymwneud â risg, onid yw? Mae'n ymwneud â lle mae'r risg, a beth sy'n bwysig i ni yw ein bod ni'n cael pobl allan sy'n barod i'w rhyddhau ac sydd â'r gefnogaeth honno gartref, fel y gallwn ni gael pobl sydd angen cymorth ar frys i mewn drwy'r drws ffrynt. Ac, wrth gwrs, rwy'n credu bod pob un ohonom ni yn cydnabod bod angen diwygio sylfaenol o ran gofal cymdeithasol.
O ran pecynnau gaeaf, wel, croeso i'r parti, Llywodraeth y DU. Rydyn ni wedi bod yn gwneud hyn ers misoedd—rydyn ni wedi bod yn gwneud hyn ers misoedd. Gwnaethon ni roi £25 miliwn ar y bwrdd fis Ebrill diwethaf i baratoi ar gyfer hyn, oherwydd yr hyn a ddywedwyd wrthym dro ar ôl tro oedd: 'Peidiwch â rhoi'r arian hwnnw inni—' . Yr hyn sy'n digwydd fel arfer yw ei fod yn cael ei roi ym mis Medi, sy'n rhy hwyr—mae mis Medi yn rhy hwyr. Rhoddwyd yr arian hwnnw ar y bwrdd ddoe. Does dim ffordd ei bod yn mynd i gael pobl—. Ac rydych chi'n ceisio dod o hyd i'r gwelyau yna, achos, clywch, rydyn ni wedi bod yn ei wneud wythnos ar ôl wythnos ar ôl wythnos. Rydyn ni wedi bod yn prynu'r capasiti hwnnw mewn gofal yn barod, mewn cartrefi gofal. Dyna beth rydyn ni wedi bod yn ei wneud—y 500 o welyau hyn yn y gymuned. Dyna'n union beth rydyn ni wedi bod yn ei wneud. Felly, mae'n syniad hyfryd; mae'n drueni nad oedd wedi meddwl amdano'n gynharach, oherwydd rydyn ni'n effro, rydyn ni'n ei gyflawni, ac rwy'n credu ei bod yn mynd i gymryd llawer mwy o amser—. Mewn gwirionedd, gwnaeth gyhoeddiad ym mis Medi ei fod yn mynd i gynhyrchu 7,000 o'r rhain. Go brin ei bod wedi crafu wyneb hynny, felly mae hwn wir yn ailwampiad o gyhoeddiad gan Lywodraeth y DU a wnaeth ym mis Medi.
A constituent of mine fell and broke her ankle recently, and she lives near a large A&E unit in Morriston Hospital and a minor injuries unit in Neath Port Talbot hospital. She went to MIU, thinking that the waiting times would be less. That's something that is guidance on many websites, but it was appointment only. She was told she'd have to go to Morriston and the wait for an x-ray, she was told, would be 48 to 72 hours. She's immunosuppressed, so she knew that waiting in a crowded A&E department in flu season wouldn't be a very good idea and would actually be dangerous for her health. She is now going to have her ankle re-broken and operated on—a problem that could probably have been fixed with a cast. So it's plain to see that the plan hasn't worked. You mentioned in your statement that you will learn the lessons of the past weeks and months. So, what are the lessons for Welsh Government?
Syrthiodd un o fy etholwr yn ddiweddar a thorrodd ei migwrn, ac mae hi'n byw ger uned ddamweiniau ac achosion brys mawr yn Ysbyty Treforys ac uned mân anafiadau yn ysbyty Castell-nedd Port Talbot. Aeth i Uned Mân Anafiadau, gan feddwl y byddai'r amseroedd aros yn llai. Dyna yw'r canllawiau ar nifer o wefannau, ond apwyntiad yn unig ydoedd. Dywedwyd wrthi y byddai'n rhaid iddi fynd i Dreforys a dywedwyd wrthi y byddai'r amser aros am belydr-x rhwng 48 a 72 awr. Mae ganddi imiwnedd ataliedig, felly roedd hi'n gwybod na fyddai aros mewn adran damweiniau ac achosion brys orlawn yn nhymor y ffliw yn syniad da iawn ac y byddai'n beryglus i'w hiechyd mewn gwirionedd. Mae hi nawr yn mynd i gael ei migwrn wedi'i dorri unwaith eto a chael llawdriniaeth arno—problem a allai fod wedi'i datrys gyda chast, mae'n debyg. Felly, mae'n amlwg nad yw'r cynllun wedi gweithio. Gwnaethoch chi sôn yn eich datganiad y byddwch chi'n dysgu gwersi'r wythnosau a'r misoedd diwethaf. Felly, beth yw'r gwersi i Lywodraeth Cymru?
Thanks very much. Well, I'm very sorry, of course, to hear about that individual case. There are examples where people are getting the support in some of our same-day emergency care centres, where they go in, they get an appointment, they know when they're going in, they get the cast done on the same day. I'm sorry that that hasn't happened in this case, but I can assure you that it is happening all over different parts of Wales.
Certainly, I think it is important that we learn lessons. Starting early was a good idea. I think we have to understand that our profiling of our expectations in relation to demand, after the pandemic, we probably didn't organise for quite as many people as we thought may become sick as a result of the flu. It came earlier than we expected, so we probably have to be ready a little bit earlier. And we got our 100 ambulance workers out, and they're ready, but they're ready this week—it would have been great if we had them ready just before Christmas. So all of those things would have been good to have had, to have been brought forward a little bit, but that modelling, it will be interesting, when we have time, to look back on where our modelling went wrong and what is it that's happening. Again, though, we've just come out of a pandemic, we've never been here before, so obviously people's immunity systems are down after a couple of years of not being exposed. And I guess none of us really knew quite how many people would get sick over this particular period. I don't know about you, but almost everybody I know has had some form of flu over Christmas—it's really affected huge, huge numbers of people. And obviously, whilst people like me have managed to get through it, just about, there are people who are much older who have really suffered and have finished up in our hospitals.
Diolch yn fawr. Wel, wrth gwrs, mae'n ddrwg iawn gen i glywed am yr achos unigol yna. Mae yna enghreifftiau lle mae pobl yn cael y gefnogaeth yn rhai o'n canolfannau gofal brys un diwrnod, lle maen nhw'n mynd i mewn, maen nhw'n cael apwyntiad, maen nhw'n gwybod pryd maen nhw'n mynd i mewn, maen nhw'n cael y cast ar yr un diwrnod. Mae'n ddrwg gen i nad yw hynny wedi digwydd yn yr achos hwn, ond gallaf eich sicrhau chi ei fod yn digwydd dros wahanol rannau o Gymru.
Yn sicr, rwy'n meddwl ei bod hi'n bwysig ein bod ni'n dysgu gwersi. Roedd dechrau'n gynnar yn syniad da. Rwy'n credu bod yn rhaid i ni ddeall bod ein proffilio o'n disgwyliadau mewn perthynas â'r galw, ar ôl y pandemig, mae'n debyg nad oedden ni wedi trefnu i gynifer o bobl ag yr oedden ni'n meddwl fynd yn sâl o ganlyniad i'r ffliw. Daeth yn gynt nag oedden ni'n ei ddisgwyl, felly mae'n debyg bod yn rhaid i ni fod yn barod ychydig yn gynt. A gwnaethom ni gael ein 100 o weithwyr ambiwlans allan, ac maen nhw'n barod, ond maen nhw'n barod yr wythnos hon—byddai wedi bod yn wych pe bydden ni wedi eu cael nhw'n barod ychydig cyn y Nadolig. Felly, byddai wedi bod yn dda cael yr holl bethau hynny, i fod wedi cael eu cyflwyno ychydig yn gynt, ond y modelu hwnnw, bydd yn ddiddorol, pan fydd gennym amser, i edrych yn ôl ar ble aeth ein modelu o'i le a beth sy'n digwydd. Eto, er hynny, rydym ni newydd ddod allan o bandemig, dydyn ni erioed wedi bod yma o'r blaen, felly yn amlwg mae systemau imiwnedd pobl i lawr ar ôl cwpl o flynyddoedd o beidio â chael eu hamlygu. Ac mae'n debyg nad oedd yr un ohonom yn gwybod yn iawn faint o bobl fyddai'n mynd yn sâl dros y cyfnod penodol hwn. Wn i ddim amdanoch chi, ond mae bron pawb rwy'n ei adnabod wedi cael rhyw fath o ffliw dros y Nadolig—mae wedi effeithio'n fawr ar niferoedd fawr iawn o bobl. Ac yn amlwg, er bod pobl fel fi wedi llwyddo i ddod drwyddi, fwy neu lai, mae yna bobl sy'n llawer hŷn sydd wedi dioddef go iawn ac wedi cael eu hunain yn ein hysbytai.
Thank you, Minister, for your statement. Every year, we have winter, every year, we have winter pressures, and we've not learned any lessons. The announcement made last week, which stated that patients could be discharged without the need for a care package, raises serious ethical, equalities and human rights concerns. Doctors have rightly condemned this policy as dangerous. What rights impact assessments were made prior to this new policy change? Minister, the Equality and Human Rights Commission made a string of recommendations in its 'Equality and human rights in residential care in Wales during coronavirus' report. Why have you ignored those recommendations and put the lives of older people and disabled people at risk?
Finally, Minister, what steps will you take to ensure that this and any future policy decisions regarding social care are fully assessed in terms of their impact upon the human rights of Welsh patients, and measures put in place to prevent any breaches? Thank you.
Diolch, Gweinidog, am eich datganiad. Bob blwyddyn, mae'r gaeaf yn dod, bob blwyddyn, mae pwysau'r gaeaf arnom, a dydyn ni ddim wedi dysgu unrhyw wersi. Mae'r cyhoeddiad a wnaed yr wythnos ddiwethaf, a oedd yn dweud y gallai cleifion gael eu rhyddhau heb fod angen pecyn gofal arnynt, yn codi pryderon moesegol, cydraddoldeb a hawliau dynol difrifol. Mae meddygon wedi condemnio'r polisi hwn fel un peryglus, ac nid oes rhyfedd. Pa asesiadau o'r effaith ar hawliau a wnaed cyn y newid polisi newydd hwn? Gweinidog, gwnaeth y Comisiwn Cydraddoldeb a Hawliau Dynol gyfres o argymhellion yn ei adroddiad 'Cydraddoldeb a Hawliau Dynol mewn gofal preswyl yng Nghymru yn ystod y coronafeirws'. Pam ydych chi wedi anwybyddu'r argymhellion hynny ac wedi peryglu bywydau pobl hŷn a phobl anabl?
Yn olaf, Gweinidog, pa gamau fyddwch chi'n eu cymryd i sicrhau bod hyn ac unrhyw benderfyniadau polisi yn y dyfodol ynglŷn â gofal cymdeithasol yn cael eu hasesu'n llawn o ran eu heffaith ar hawliau dynol cleifion yng Nghymru, a mesurau a roddwyd ar waith i atal unrhyw achos o dorri'r rheolau? Diolch.
Thanks very much. Well, as I say, I think we've learned lots of lessons in the past, which is why we did all that preparation work much, much earlier. And I think the situation would have been a lot worse had we not had those urgent primary care centres, had we not had the 111 service, had we not had SDEC, had we not had pharmacies helping people out, had we not had those 500 extra beds in the community. So, we did do a huge amount of preparation; the demand was much greater than we expected.
When it comes to care packages, I think it's really important, if you look at the academic and the clinical evidence, it suggests that those assessments, in terms of care packages, should be made in people's homes, not in hospitals. It's not me saying this—this is clinical evidence. And so, what's important is that people understand that this is not trying to get a problem off our system into somewhere else, it's actually better for the patient. And on top of that, let's not forget that there's a lot of flu in our hospitals at the moment. People who are old and vulnerable are in hospital, and some of them are catching flu in hospital. We need to get them out so that they don't catch flu. So, all of these things are really important.
When you talk about human rights, I think we've got to talk about the human rights of those people who are having difficulty in getting an ambulance to them. A lot of those people are old, let's not forget. The people who are calling ambulances and who are not getting the service that they should be getting within a required time are old people as well. So, there's no discrimination here. The people who are suffering mostly are older people. So, I think it's really important that people understand that this is about the risk across the whole system. And getting that balance of risk a bit more shared out across the whole system, I think, makes sense.
Diolch yn fawr. Wel, fel rwy'n dweud, rwy'n meddwl ein bod ni wedi dysgu llawer o wersi yn y gorffennol, a dyna pam y gwnaethom ni'r holl waith paratoi hwnnw llawer yn gynharach. Ac rwy'n credu y byddai'r sefyllfa wedi bod yn llawer gwaeth pe na fyddai'r canolfannau gofal sylfaenol brys ar gael i ni, pe na fyddai'r gwasanaeth 111 ar gael i ni, pe na fyddai'r SDEC ar gael i ni, pe na fyddai'r fferyllfeydd ar gael i helpu pobl, pe na fyddem ni wedi bod â'r 500 o welyau ychwanegol yna yn y gymuned. Felly, gwnaethom ni wneud llawer iawn o waith paratoi; roedd y galw lawer yn fwy nag yr oeddem ni'n ei ddisgwyl.
O ran pecynnau gofal, rwy'n credu ei bod yn bwysig iawn, os edrychwch chi ar y dystiolaeth academaidd a chlinigol, mae'n awgrymu y dylid gwneud yr asesiadau hynny, o ran pecynnau gofal, yng nghartrefi pobl, nid mewn ysbytai. Nid fi sy'n dweud hyn—mae'n dystiolaeth glinigol. Ac felly, yr hyn sy'n bwysig yw bod pobl yn deall nad yw hyn yn ceisio symud problem oddi ar ein system i rywle arall, mae'n well i'r claf mewn gwirionedd. Ac ar ben hynny, gadewch i ni gofio bod llawer o achosion o'r ffliw yn ein hysbytai ar hyn o bryd. Mae pobl hen a bregus yn yr ysbyty, ac mae rhai ohonyn nhw'n dal y ffliw yn yr ysbyty. Mae angen i ni eu rhyddhau fel nad ydyn nhw'n dal y ffliw. Felly, mae'r pethau hyn i gyd yn bwysig iawn.
Pan ydych chi'n siarad am hawliau dynol, rwy'n credu bod rhaid i ni siarad am hawliau dynol y bobl hynny sy'n cael trafferth cael ambiwlans. Mae llawer o'r bobl hynny'n hen, cofiwch. Mae'r bobl sy'n ffonio am ambiwlansys ac sydd ddim yn cael y gwasanaeth y dylen nhw fod yn ei gael o fewn amser priodol yn hen bobl hefyd. Felly, does dim gwahaniaethu yma. Pobl hŷn yw'r bobl sy'n dioddef gan amlaf. Felly, rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn bod pobl yn deall bod hyn yn ymwneud â'r risg ar draws y system gyfan. Ac mae sicrhau'r cydbwysedd yna o risg ychydig yn fwy wedi'i rannu ar draws y system gyfan, rwy'n meddwl, yn gwneud synnwyr.
Dwi am wneud dau bwynt a gofyn dau gwestiwn, os yn bosib. Fe ddaru'r Gweinidog ddweud ynghynt fod gan Gymru fwy o feddygon teulu yng Nghymru nag yn Lloegr. Dwi'n ofni bod hyn yn dangos diffyg dealltwriaeth, mewn gwirionedd, o'r sefyllfa rydyn ni'n wynebu. Hynny ydy, mae dwysedd poblogaeth Lloegr yn llawer iawn fwy dwys na Chymru. Mae'n haws iawn cael access i feddyg pan fo gennych chi 1,000 o bobl y filltir sgwâr nag yn ne Meirionnydd, er enghraifft, pan fo gennych chi ddim ond 20 o bobl y filltir sgwâr ac mae'n anos cael mynediad i'r gwasanaethau hynny. Felly, dyna'r pwynt dwi am ei godi a gofyn i chi, felly: ydych chi'n derbyn bod angen fwy o fuddsoddiad mewn gwasanaethau iechyd yn ein hardaloedd gwledig er mwyn i bobl gael mynediad i'r gwasanaethau hynny?
Hefyd, dwi'n nodi eich bod chi wedi sôn ambell i waith erbyn hyn am y ffaith bod ffliw a COVID yn yr ysbytai. Ond, fel ddaru Rhun ddweud ynghynt, os ydy cyfradd deiliadaeth gwelyau ysbytai yn mynd dros 82 y cant, yna, mae'r hospital-acquired infections yma, fel ffliw, fel COVID, yn mynd i gael eu rhannu. Ond, mae deiliadaeth yn ein hysbytai ni bellach dros 100 y cant; wrth gwrs eu bod nhw'n mynd i gael eu rhannu, felly. Wrth gwrs fod pobl yn dioddef, ac mae hynny oherwydd eich bod chi heb fuddsoddi yn y nyrsys ac wedi torri ar y gwelyau. Mae'n ymddangos fel bod y gwersi ddim yn cael eu dysgu. Un ffordd amlwg o ddysgu'r gwersi yma ydy drwy gynnal ymchwiliad swyddogol i COVID yng Nghymru er mwyn i ni wybod y ffordd ymlaen a sut mae peidio â gwneud pethau yn y dyfodol. A wnewch chi rŵan dderbyn bod yna angen ddi-wad am ymchwiliad o'r fath yma yng Nghymru?
I want to make two points and ask two questions, if possible. The Minister said earlier that Wales has more GPs than England. But, I'm concerned that this shows a lack of understanding of the situation that we're facing. The population density of England is far greater than Wales's is. It's far easier to access a doctor when you have 1,000 people per square mile than in south Meirionnydd, for example, when you only have 20 people per square mile and it's harder to access those services. So, that's the first point that I want to raise, and I want to ask whether you accept that there is a need for more investment in health services in our rural areas so that people can access those services they need.
I also note that you've said several times so far that flu and COVID are present in our hospitals. But, as Rhun said earlier, if the hospital bed occupancy rate goes above 82 per cent then these hospital-acquired infections, such as flu, such as COVID, are going to spread. But, occupancy in our hospitals is now over 100 per cent; of course those infections are going to be spread. Of course people are going to suffer, and that's because you haven't invested in the nurses and you've cut the number of beds. It appears that lessons aren't being learnt. One clear way of learning these lessons is by holding an official inquiry into COVID in Wales so that we can know the way forward and how not to make those mistakes in future. Will you now accept that there is an undeniable need for an inquiry of this kind in Wales?
Diolch yn fawr. Jest i'w wneud yn glir, beth rŷn ni'n ceisio'i wneud pan fo'n dod i GPs yw gwneud yn siŵr ein bod ni'n deall bod yna lot o bobl sy'n gallu helpu, nid jest GPs. Felly, mae cynyddu'r niferoedd o bobl sy'n ffisiotherapyddion, sy'n fferyllwyr yn ein cymunedau ni, a mwy o advanced nurse practitioners—. Dwi'n gwybod bod enghreifftiau da iawn ym Mhen Llŷn, er enghraifft, o advanced ambulance practitioners yn helpu yn ein cymunedau ni fan yna. Felly, does dim angen wastad—. Er ein bod ni'n gwneud yn well o ran niferoedd y GPs na Lloegr, dwi'n meddwl ei fod e'n bwysig ein bod ni'n deall ein bod ni'n ceisio creu system lle rŷn ni'n defnyddio sgiliau pob un yn y tîm. Dwi'n meddwl ei fod yn rili bwysig fy mod i'n gwneud yn glir, dydyn ni ddim wedi torri ar niferoedd y nyrsys; mae mwy o nyrsys gyda ni nag erioed o'r blaen, ac rŷn ni dal yn recriwtio mwy nag ydyn ni'n colli. Felly, dyw hynny jest ddim yn wir. O ran yr ymchwiliad, wel, rŷch chi'n gwybod ein hateb ni i hynny.
Thank you very much. Just to make it clear, what we're trying to do when it comes to GPs is to ensure that we understand that there are many people who can help, not only GPs. So, increasing the numbers of physiotherapists, of pharmacists in our communities, more advanced nurse practitioners—. I know that there are some excellent examples on the Llŷn Peninsula, for example, of advanced ambulance practitioners helping in our communities there. So, there's no need to always—. Although we are doing better in terms of the number of GPs than England, I think it's important that we understand that we are trying to create a system where we use the skills of the whole team. I think it's very important that I make clear that we haven't cut the number of nurses; we have more nurses than ever before, and we are still recruiting more than we are losing. So, that simply isn't the case. In terms of an inquiry, well, you know our response to that.
I feel compelled to tell you a story that's positive. I live in a very rural area. On 17 December, I had to attend to a lady who'd fallen and had a serious head injury. We called the ambulance service. We were told it would be a two-hour wait. So, imagine our surprise when one turned up within 15 minutes. We must talk about those positive stories as well, and there are many. I do want to thank everybody who works in the health service.
I also just want to talk about a high-risk issue as well, that our UK Conservative Government are about to impose on our health workers: the shameful anti-strike legislation, which portrays our health workers as uncaring. That will do nothing to help them feel valued. Potentially, if I was them, I would leave. I would think, 'I am not being valued in my role'.
The one issue I would like to raise with you, if I may, Minister, is about the pooling of budgets within health services and social care. We've heard a lot about the social care issues that are facing our health services, and I'd just like to say to you that, in Powys, we have a coterminous local authority with the health authority. I'm just wondering if you're able to think further and give us some information around how we could be looking at those, possibly piloting some really good initiatives in Powys, for example. Thank you. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Rwy'n teimlo rheidrwydd i ddweud stori wrthych chi sy'n gadarnhaol. Rwy'n byw mewn ardal wledig iawn. Ar 17 Rhagfyr, bu'n rhaid i mi roi fynd at fenyw a oedd wedi syrthio a chael anaf difrifol i'w phen. Gwnaethon ni ffonio'r gwasanaeth ambiwlans. Cawson ni wybod y byddai'n rhaid aros am ddwy awr. Felly, dychmygwch ein syndod pan drodd un i fyny o fewn 15 munud. Mae'n rhaid siarad am y straeon cadarnhaol hynny hefyd, ac mae yna lawer. Hoffwn i ddiolch i bawb sy'n gweithio yn y gwasanaeth iechyd.
Hoffwn hefyd siarad am fater risg uchel, y mae ein Llywodraeth Geidwadol yn y DU ar fin ei orfodi ar ein gweithwyr iechyd: y ddeddfwriaeth gwrth-streic gywilyddus, sy'n portreadu ein gweithwyr iechyd fel rhai esgeulus. Ni fydd hynny'n gwneud dim i'w helpu i deimlo eu bod yn cael eu gwerthfawrogi. O bosibl, pe bawn i yn eu sefyllfa nhw, byddwn i'n gadael. Buaswn i'n meddwl, 'Dydw i ddim yn cael fy ngwerthfawrogi yn fy rôl'.
Mae mater yr hoffwn ei godi gyda chi, os caf i, Gweinidog, yn ymwneud â chyfuno cyllidebau o fewn gwasanaethau iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol. Rydyn ni wedi clywed llawer am y materion gofal cymdeithasol sy'n wynebu ein gwasanaethau iechyd, a hoffwn ddweud wrthoch chi bod gennym awdurdod lleol cydffiniol gyda'r awdurdod iechyd, ym Mhowys. Meddwl ydw i, os ydych chi'n gallu meddwl ymhellach a rhoi ychydig o wybodaeth i ni ynghylch sut y gallen ni fod yn edrych ar y rheini, o bosibl yn treialu mentrau da iawn ym Mhowys, er enghraifft. Diolch. Diolch yn fawr iawn.
Diolch yn fawr. Thanks for that, because I think it's really important that people understand that, although there are some examples of not great things happening in the NHS at the moment, there are also hundreds of thousands of great things happening in our NHS, and 376,000 consultations a month is a pretty good figure; 400,000 contacts in general medical services in a week. These are incredible figures, and certainly when I go around, very often what I get is people saying, 'Well, personally, I've had a great service', and I think it's really important that we do talk up that great service, because, frankly, it must be very demoralising, obviously not just for me, but for people working in the NHS, if all you hear is negativity.
In terms of the unions, I couldn't agree with you more. I think the anti-strike legislation that is being introduced is wholly unnecessary, and I think it was very provocative, the discussion yesterday, when they talked about productivity. You just think, 'My God, what world are these people living in?' Have they no idea how exhausted these people are? It was, I think, a huge insult, in particular, to start off negotiations with that. But, when you're talking about pooling budgets, well, you'll be aware, we've already pooled £144 million a year through the regional integration fund, which people can't access unless health and social care are working together, also with the voluntary sector. So, already we have that ring-fenced. I think we can and I think we should go further, and certainly my No. 1 priority, in terms of my guidance to the NHS for what they should be doing next year, is that they should be looking at what we can do in the space of working together in relation to care, with local authorities, and making sure we put more support from the NHS back into our communities.
Diolch yn fawr. Diolch am hynny, achos rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn fod pobl yn deall, er bod yna rai enghreifftiau o bethau nad ydynt yn wych yn digwydd yn y GIG ar hyn o bryd, mae yna gannoedd ar filoedd o bethau gwych yn digwydd yn ein GIG ni hefyd, ac mae 376,000 o ymgynghoriadau'r mis yn ffigwr eithaf da; 400,000 o gysylltiadau mewn gwasanaethau meddygol cyffredinol mewn wythnos. Mae'r rhain yn ffigyrau anhygoel, ac yn sicr pan wy'n mynd yma ac acw, yn aml iawn rwy'n clywed pobl yn dweud, 'Wel, yn bersonol, dwi wedi cael gwasanaeth gwych', ac rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn ein bod ni'n sôn am y gwasanaeth gwych yna, oherwydd, a dweud y gwir, mae'n rhaid ei bod hi'n dorcalonnus iawn, yn amlwg nid yn unig i mi, ond i'r bobl sy'n gweithio yn y GIG, os mai'r cyfan a glywch yw negyddoldeb.
O ran yr undebau, rwy'n cytuno'n llwyr â chi. Rwy'n credu bod y ddeddfwriaeth gwrth-streic sy'n cael ei chyflwyno yn gwbl ddiangen, ac rwy'n credu ei fod yn bryfoclyd iawn, y drafodaeth ddoe, pan oedden nhw'n sôn am gynhyrchiant. Rydych chi'n meddwl, 'Mawredd mawr, pa blaned y mae'r bobl yma'n byw arni?' Oes ganddyn nhw unrhyw syniad pa mor flinedig yw'r bobl yma? Yn fy marn i, roedd yn sarhad enfawr, yn arbennig, i ddechrau trafodaethau gyda hynny. Fodd bynnag, pan fyddwch chi'n siarad am gyfuno cyllidebau, wel, byddwch chi'n ymwybodol, rydyn ni eisoes wedi cyfuno £144 miliwn y flwyddyn drwy'r gronfa integreiddio rhanbarthol, na all pobl ei defnyddio oni bai bod iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol yn gweithio gyda'i gilydd, hefyd gyda'r sector gwirfoddol. Felly, mae hwnnw wedi'i glustnodi gennym yn barod. Rwy'n credu y gallwn ni ac rwy'n credu y dylen ni fynd ymhellach, ac yn sicr fy mlaenoriaeth gyntaf, o ran fy nghanllawiau i'r GIG am yr hyn y dylai fod yn ei wneud y flwyddyn nesaf, yw y dylai fod yn ystyried yr hyn y gallwn ni ei wneud wrth weithio gyda'n gilydd mewn perthynas â gofal, gydag awdurdodau lleol, a sicrhau ein bod ni'n rhoi mwy o gefnogaeth gan y GIG yn ôl yn ein cymunedau.
Minister, thank you so much for your statement this afternoon. Now, technology, without a doubt, is advancing at a rapid speed, with companies coming out with major developments to improve health outcomes. So, I'd be interested to know, Minister, what, if any, tech devices the Welsh Government is looking into to alleviate pressure on our health service this winter and going forward. The reason why I'm specifically asking this question is because I attended CES, the world's biggest tech conference, and managed to see some of these huge developments taking place in medical technology. Now, without sounding like a medical rep who's come back from the States, one company that really stood out was one called MedWand Solutions, which actually has recently launched its MedWand device, no bigger than a mouse, linked to your computer. But this handy device actually provides a ready-to-use system, which includes a tool that allows you to link a laptop to, in fact, a small device, which has sensors that can listen to your heart, measure heart rate, perform an electrocardiogram, listen to your lungs, measure blood pressure, oxygen levels, check temperature, and even listen to your abdomen. It can even look into your nose, throat, mouth and ears, as well as inspect your skin. Now, just this one device alone, Minister, has the potential to seriously change the landscape when it comes to providing healthcare from up close and afar, as well as alleviating pressure on our hardworking staff across the sector, including within hospitals, doctors' surgeries, and even make life easier for paramedics as well.
Now, patients with multiple health issues, the elderly, those with disabilities, alongside those who struggle to get out and about, would really benefit from this. I'm sure it's obviously a lot more intricate than what I've described here in front of you all today, but the main point I'm trying to make, Minister—. And I may be sounding, like I said, like a medical rep now, but similar devices to this would not only improve outcomes for patients across Wales, but would also alleviate pressure on our NHS, which is something you want to do and we want to see as well, not just for winter, but all year round as well.
As you've said, Minister, our health staff are under immense pressure, and it's going to keep on getting more challenging for us all. So, it might be a long and complicated process to get something like this rolled out here in Wales, but, Minister, will you commit to looking into this product and similar? And as I asked earlier, please can you kindly outline what other devices or tech solutions the Welsh Government is looking into to alleviate pressure on the NHS? And I'd really welcome the opportunity to talk with you further about this in more detail and provide you with contact details, if you so wish. Thank you.
Gweinidog, diolch yn fawr am eich datganiad y prynhawn yma. Nawr, heb os, mae technoleg yn datblygu'n gyflym iawn, gyda chwmnïau'n cyflwyno datblygiadau mawr i wella canlyniadau iechyd. Felly, byddai gen i ddiddordeb gwybod, Gweinidog, pa ddyfeisiau technoleg, os o gwbl, y mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn ymchwilio iddynt i leddfu'r pwysau ar ein gwasanaeth iechyd y gaeaf yma ac wrth symud ymlaen. Y rheswm pam fy mod i'n gofyn y cwestiwn hwn yn benodol yw oherwydd i mi fynd i CES, sef cynhadledd dechnoleg fwyaf y byd, a llwyddais i weld rhai o'r datblygiadau enfawr hyn yn digwydd mewn technoleg feddygol. Nawr, heb swnio fel cynrychiolydd meddygol sydd wedi dod yn ôl o'r Unol Daleithiau, un cwmni a oedd wir yn sefyll allan oddi wrth y gweddill oedd cwmni o'r enw MedWand Solutions, sydd wedi lansio ei ddyfais MedWand yn ddiweddar, dim mwy na maint llygoden, sydd wedi'i chysylltu â'ch cyfrifiadur. Fodd bynnag, mewn gwirionedd, mae'r ddyfais ddefnyddiol hon yn darparu system barod ei defnyddio, sy'n cynnwys teclyn sy'n eich galluogi i gysylltu gliniadur â, mewn gwirionedd, dyfais fach, gyda synwyryddion a all wrando ar eich calon, mesur cyfradd curiad y galon, perfformio electrocardiogram, gwrando ar eich ysgyfaint, mesur pwysedd gwaed, lefelau ocsigen, cadarnhau tymheredd, a hyd yn oed gwrando ar eich abdomen. Gall hyd yn oed edrych i mewn i'ch trwyn, eich gwddf, eich ceg a'ch clustiau, yn ogystal ag archwilio'ch croen. Nawr, mae gan y ddyfais hon ei hun, Gweinidog, y potensial i newid y dirwedd o ddifrif o ran darparu gofal iechyd yn agos ac yn bell, yn ogystal â lleddfu'r pwysau ar ein staff sy'n gweithio'n galed ar draws y sector, gan gynnwys mewn ysbytai, meddygfeydd, a hyd yn oed gwneud bywyd yn haws i barafeddygon hefyd.
Nawr, byddai hwn wir o fudd i gleifion sydd â phroblemau iechyd lluosog, yr henoed, y rhai sydd ag anableddau, ochr yn ochr â'r rhai sy'n ei chael hi'n anodd mynd allan. Rwy'n siŵr ei fod yn amlwg yn llawer mwy cywrain na'r hyn rydw i wedi'i ddisgrifio yma o'ch blaen chi i gyd heddiw, ond y prif bwynt rwy'n ceisio ei wneud, Gweinidog—. Ac efallai fy mod i'n swnio, fel dywedais i, fel cynrychiolydd meddygol nawr, ond byddai dyfeisiau tebyg i hyn nid yn unig yn gwella canlyniadau i gleifion ledled Cymru, ond hefyd yn lleddfu'r pwysau ar ein GIG, sy'n rhywbeth rydych chi eisiau ei wneud ac rydyn ni eisiau ei weld hefyd, nid dim ond ar gyfer y gaeaf, ond drwy gydol y flwyddyn hefyd.
Fel rydych chi wedi dweud, Gweinidog, mae ein staff iechyd o dan bwysau aruthrol, ac mae'n mynd i barhau i fod yn fwy heriol i bob un ohonom. Felly, gallai fod yn broses hir a chymhleth i gyflwyno rhywbeth o'r fath yma yng Nghymru, ond, Gweinidog, a fyddwch chi'n ymrwymo i ymchwilio i'r cynnyrch hwn a chynnyrch tebyg? Ac fel y gofynnais ynghynt, fyddech chi mor garedig ag amlinellu pa ddyfeisiau neu atebion technolegol eraill y mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn eu hystyried i leddfu'r pwysau ar y GIG? A byddwn i wir yn croesawu'r cyfle i siarad â chi eto am hyn yn fanylach a rhoi manylion cyswllt i chi, os ydych chi'n dymuno hynny. Diolch.
Thanks very much, Natasha, because I am absolutely wedded to the idea that, if we are going to transform the way we do, in particular, care, then we're going to have to rely more on technology, and I'm very much looking forward to going to see how the Delta system works in Hywel Dda next week. So, already some of this technology is being used in our communities, and certainly, when it comes to care in future and doing care in the community, I think we've got to start by saying it's digital by default, and if you can't do it with digital then you move into other areas. So, I think it's really important. None of this stuff is cheap, none of it is easy, but I'm absolutely committed to this.
If you look at digital, then we are investing more per head compared to England. We're investing £18 per head compared to £11.50 per head in England. So, we've got the digital priorities investment fund, which is £60 million. We have a digital medicines transformation portfolio as well, and that's going to make sure that we have roll-out of transformation in relation to prescription of medicine in primary care by the summer of 2023. We've got secondary care—amazing work being done already, but that needs to be rolled out, and then we'll have a central repository for all prescriptions, so that everybody can know what's happening across the service. We have the Wales community care information system. That has been rolled out in most health boards now, and that was one of the objectives that I set for the chairs of the health boards. We have the national data resource, we have the digital maternity record, we have the Welsh nursing care record. Technology Enabled Care, TEC, Cymru give us advice on all of this. We've got the national video consultation service that we've given money to. We've got the Welsh emergency department system, we have the cancer informatics programme—the list goes on and on and on. So, we are absolutely all over this space. One of the restrictions is that everybody wants these technicians, so we are competing in a very difficult market when it comes to this, because everybody wants these digital experts, and the NHS is having to compete in that space.
Diolch yn fawr, Natasha, oherwydd rwy'n gwbl argyhoeddedig, os ydyn ni'n mynd i drawsnewid y ffordd rydyn ni'n darparu gofal, yn benodol, yna rydyn ni'n mynd i orfod dibynnu mwy ar dechnoleg, ac rwy'n edrych ymlaen yn fawr at fynd i weld sut mae'r system Delta'n gweithio yn Hywel Dda wythnos nesaf. Felly, mae rhywfaint o'r dechnoleg hon eisoes yn cael ei defnyddio yn ein cymunedau, ac yn sicr, o ran gofal yn y dyfodol a darparu gofal yn y gymuned, rwy'n credu bod rhaid i ni ddechrau drwy ddweud ei fod yn ddigidol yn ddiofyn, ac os na allwch chi ei wneud gyda thechnoleg ddigidol yna rydych chi'n symud i feysydd eraill. Felly, rwy'n credu ei fod yn bwysig iawn. Nid yw dim o hyn yn rhad, nac yn hawdd, ond rydw i wedi ymrwymo'n llwyr i hyn.
Os edrychwch chi ar dechnoleg ddigidol, yna rydyn ni'n buddsoddi mwy y pen o'i gymharu â Lloegr. Rydyn ni'n buddsoddi £18 y pen o'i gymharu â £11.50 y pen yn Lloegr. Felly, mae gennym ni'r gronfa buddsoddi mewn blaenoriaethau digidol, sef £60 miliwn. Mae gennym bortffolio trawsnewid meddyginiaethau digidol hefyd, ac mae hynny'n mynd i sicrhau ein bod wedi cyflwyno trawsnewid mewn perthynas â phresgripsiwn meddygaeth mewn gofal sylfaenol erbyn haf 2023. Mae gennym ni ofal eilaidd—gwaith anhygoel yn cael ei wneud yn barod, ond mae angen cyflwyno hynny, ac yna bydd gennym storfa ganolog ar gyfer pob presgripsiwn, fel bod pawb yn gallu gwybod beth sy'n digwydd ar draws y gwasanaeth. Mae gennym system gwybodaeth gofal cymunedol Cymru. Mae hynny wedi ei chyflwyno yn y rhan fwyaf o fyrddau iechyd erbyn hyn, a dyna oedd un o'r amcanion a osodais ar gyfer cadeiryddion y byrddau iechyd. Mae gennym yr adnodd data cenedlaethol, mae gennym gofnod mamolaeth ddigidol, mae gennym gofnod gofal nyrsio Cymru. Mae Technology Enabled Care, TEC, Cymru yn rhoi cyngor i ni ar hyn i gyd. Mae gennym ni'r gwasanaeth ymgynghori fideo cenedlaethol rydyn ni wedi rhoi arian iddo. Mae gennym ni system adrannau brys Cymru, mae gennym ni'r rhaglen gwybodeg canser—mae'r rhestr yn ddiddiwedd. Felly, mae pob un ohonom yn effro i'r mater. Un o'r cyfyngiadau yw bod pawb eisiau'r technegwyr hyn, felly rydyn ni'n cystadlu mewn marchnad anodd iawn o ran hyn, oherwydd mae pawb eisiau'r arbenigwyr digidol hyn, ac mae'r GIG yn gorfod cystadlu yn y maes hwnnw.
Diolch i'r Gweinidog am ei datganiad heddiw. Wrth gwrs, mae yna waith rhagorol yn digwydd bob diwrnod gan y gwasanaeth iechyd, ond mae'n bwysig inni gydnabod heddiw y pwysau aruthrol sydd ar staff. Dwi wedi derbyn cymaint o ohebiaeth torcalonnus dros y Nadolig, fel pawb yma dwi'n siŵr, gan etholwyr sydd yn gleifion, yn aelodau o deulu cleifion, ond hefyd gan weithwyr sy'n dweud, 'Fedrwn ni ddim ymdopi. Ydyn, dŷn ni'n gwneud ein gorau, ond dydyn ni ddim yn gallu parhau ar y lefel yma', ac yn sôn am adael y gwasanaeth iechyd, a fedrwn ni ddim fforddio eu colli nhw. Hefyd, mae'r straeon torcalonnus am y bobl sydd yn marw wrth aros am ambiwlans, neu'r rheini sydd yn derbyn eich cyngor chi, fel y sonioch chi ar Radio Cymru, o ran cymryd cyfrifoldeb dros eu hiechyd eu hunain, ond sydd yn anwybyddu wedyn symptomau sydd yn ddifrifol dros ben ac yn cyrraedd y pwynt wedyn o farw yn eu cartrefi neu farw pan fyddan nhw ar y pwynt o greisis. Felly, gawn ni hefyd sicrhau ein bod ni'n gyrru neges i bobl i fod yn parhau i gysylltu pan fo angen hynny?
Y pwynt arall hoffwn i ei wneud—mi wnaethoch chi gyfeirio hefyd ar Radio Cymru y bore yma ynglŷn â diabetes. Mae'n rhaid inni gydnabod hefyd fod y cyswllt cryf yna rhwng tlodi a diabetes. Os ydych chi'n dlawd, dŷch chi dwywaith yn fwy tebygol o fod gyda diabetes, felly mae'r hyn yr oedd Rhun yn cyfeirio ato fo, o ran yr ochr ataliol mor, mor bwysig. Ond sut ydyn ni'n mynd i fod yn cefnogi pobl sydd rŵan efo'r argyfwng costau byw, yn methu â fforddio bwyta'n iach, yn methu â fforddio ymarfer corff ac ati? Sut ydyn ni'n mynd i fod yn sicrhau—? Mae hon yn broblem i'r holl Lywodraeth, ac mae'r cyfrifoldeb ar y Llywodraeth Lafur. Chi sy'n rheoli iechyd, chi sydd efo'r cyfrifoldeb. Mae'n rhaid inni weld gweithredu.
Thank you, Minister, for today's statement. Of course, there is excellent work happening every day in our NHS, but it's important that we all recognise today the huge pressures facing staff. I've received so much correspondence that has been heartbreaking over Christmas—and I'm sure everyone else has—from constituents who are patients, members of patients' families, but also from workers who say, 'We simply can't cope. Yes, we're doing our best, but we can't continue to work at this level', and they are talking about leaving the NHS, and we can't afford to lose these people. Also, there are heartbreaking stories about people who are dying whilst waiting for ambulances, or those who are taking your advice, as you mentioned on Radio Cymru, and taking responsibility for their own health, but who then ignore symptoms that are very serious indeed and reach that point of dying at home or dying when they're at crisis point. So, can we have an assurance too that we send a message to people that they should continue to contact the NHS when they need to?
Another point I'd like to make—you also referred on Radio Cymru this morning to diabetes. Now, we must also recognise that there is that strong link between poverty and diabetes. If you're poor, then you're twice as likely to have diabetes, so what Rhun mentioned in terms of prevention is so very important. But how will we support people who now are facing the cost-of-living crisis and can't afford to eat healthily, can't afford to exercise? So, how will we ensure—? This is a problem for the whole of Government, and there is a responsibility on the Labour Government. You are in charge of health and you have that responsibility. We have to see some action.
Os yw'r cyfrifoldeb yn llwyr arnom ni ac mae yna ddisgwyl inni ofalu am bopeth, heb fod pobl yn cymryd cyfrifoldeb drostyn nhw eu hunain, dŷn ni ddim yn mynd i ymdopi. Os ŷch chi'n edrych ar y sefyllfa—[Torri ar draws.] Os ŷch chi'n edrych ar y sefyllfa o ran heneiddio yn y boblogaeth, fydd hi ddim yn bosibl yn y dyfodol inni roi'r ddarpariaeth sydd ei hangen. Felly, mae'n rhaid i ni ofyn i bobl Cymru i'n helpu ni yn fan hyn.
Ac rŷn ni wedi rhoi pethau mewn lle, fel yr help rŷn ni'n ei roi gyda Help us Help you, fel yr help rŷn ni wedi ei roi trwy 'Healthy Weight: Healthy Wales'. Mae lot o arian wedi mynd i mewn i'r rhain, fel yr arian pre-diabetes rŷn ni wedi ei roi i mewn i'r system, sydd yn gwneud gwahaniaeth. Felly, rŷn ni yn ceisio sicrhau ein bod ni'n rhoi'r help lle rŷn ni'n gallu. Rŷn ni'n deall bod y problemau costau byw yn mynd i effeithio ar bobl, ac rŷn ni'n ymwybodol mai'r bobl sy'n mynd i dalu'r pris mwyaf yw'r bobl tlotaf yn ein cymdeithas. Dyna pam rŷn ni wedi bod yn anelu ein harian ni tuag at y rheini. Rŷn ni wedi rhoi lot fawr o arian mewn lle i helpu pobl trwy'r cresis yma ac, mewn gwirionedd, cyfrifoldeb San Steffan yw hi i roi'r arian yna, ac i gynnig yr arian, ond rŷn ni wedi camu i mewn i'r twll yna achos bod y Llywodraeth yn San Steffan heb wneud eu gwaith nhw.
If the responsibility is entirely on our shoulders, and we are expected to care for everything without people taking responsibility for their own actions, then we're not going to cope. If you look at the situation—[Interruption.] If you look at the situation in terms of an ageing population, it won't be possible in future for us to provide the services that are required. So, we need to ask the Welsh people to help us in this.
We have put things in place, such as the help that we are offering in terms of Help us Help you, the help that we have provided through 'Healthy Weight: Healthy Wales'. A great deal of funding has gone into these schemes, and also the pre-diabetes funding that we've put into the system, which is making a difference. So, we are trying to ensure that we are providing the help where we can. We understand that the cost-of-living problems are going to have an impact on people, and we are aware that the people who are going to pay the greatest price are the poorest people in our society. That's why we've been targeting our funding towards those people. We have allocated a great deal of funding to help people through this crisis and, truth be told, it's the responsibility of Westminster to give us that funding, and to provide that funding, but we have stepped into the breach because the Westminster Government hasn't done its work.
Yn olaf, Darren Millar.
Finally, Darren Millar.
Diolch, Llywydd. Minister, you've told us that we have a problem with not being able to attract sufficient staff—I accept that—but you don't seem to acknowledge that we do have a problem with having insufficient numbers of beds. Now, I've raised this issue a few times in the Senedd before, but I'm going to do so again. When will north Denbighshire get its promised community hospital? We saw beds axed in Rhyl, in Prestatyn, in St Asaph and in nearby Denbigh—scores of beds. And as a result of a loss of those beds, there is now extra pressure on Ysbyty Glan Clwyd. There's no denying that. That is a fact. Now, you tell us that we've got more staff working in the NHS than ever before. So, if we've got more staff and fewer beds, why can't we have some extra beds put in?
Now, I heard the First Minister's response to me, and I've heard your responses to me on this issue before. You say that you don't have the capital to be able to invest and that there have been rising costs on that particular project. Now, I've checked the figures, okay. I've checked the figures. Within the period that you announced that you would deliver that hospital, which was back in 2013, nearly a decade ago, you did build a hospital, but you built one in south Wales, the Grange hospital, okay. The cost of that hospital was £360 million. It's original budget was £172 million, okay. So, a massive additional cost, in the order of £188 million. Now, I do not begrudge the delivery of that hospital for the people that it serves in Gwent; it's an important investment. But where is the investment in north Wales? You've closed hospital after hospital after hospital, and we still haven't seen our hospital. Its current estimated cost is £64 million—that's a fraction of the investment that you've spent in the south. When will we see our hospital in order that we can deliver the sorts of improvements in access to care that people in north Denbighshire require?
Diolch, Llywydd. Gweinidog, rydych chi wedi dweud wrthym ni fod gennym ni broblem gyda pheidio â gallu denu digon o staff—rwy'n derbyn hynny—ond nid yw'n ymddangos eich bod yn cydnabod bod gennym ni broblem gyda bod â digon o welyau. Nawr, rwyf wedi codi'r mater yma ambell waith yn y Senedd o'r blaen, ond rwy'n mynd i wneud hynny eto. Pryd gaiff gogledd sir Ddinbych yr ysbyty cymunedol yr addawyd iddi? Gwelsom welyau yn cael eu dileu yn y Rhyl, ym Mhrestatyn, yn Llanelwy ac yn Ninbych gerllaw—ugeiniau o welyau. Ac o ganlyniad i golli'r gwelyau hynny, erbyn hyn mae yna bwysau ychwanegol ar Ysbyty Glan Clwyd. Does dim gwadu hynny. Mae hynny'n ffaith. Nawr, rydych chi'n dweud wrthym ni fod gennym ni fwy o staff yn gweithio yn y GIG nag erioed o'r blaen. Felly, os oes gennym ni fwy o staff a llai o welyau, pam na allwn ni gael rhai gwelyau ychwanegol?
Nawr, clywais i ymateb y Prif Weinidog i mi, ac rwyf wedi clywed eich ymatebion i mi ar y mater hwn o'r blaen. Rydych chi'n dweud nad oes gennych chi'r cyfalaf i allu buddsoddi ac y bu costau cynyddol ar y prosiect penodol hwnnw. Nawr, rwyf wedi gwirio'r ffigyrau, iawn. Rwyf wedi gwirio'r ffigyrau. Yn y cyfnod y gwnaethoch chi gyhoeddi y byddech chi'n darparu'r ysbyty hwnnw, oedd yn ôl yn 2013, bron i ddegawd yn ôl, fe wnaethoch chi adeiladu ysbyty, ond fe wnaethoch chi adeiladu un yn y de, ysbyty'r Faenor, iawn. Cost yr ysbyty hwnnw oedd £360 miliwn. Roedd y gyllideb wreiddiol yn £172 miliwn, iawn. Felly, cost ychwanegol enfawr o £188 miliwn. Nawr, nid wyf yn gwarafun darparu'r ysbyty hwnnw i'r bobl y mae'n eu gwasanaethu yng Ngwent; mae'n fuddsoddiad pwysig. Ond ble mae'r buddsoddiad yn y gogledd? Rydych chi wedi cau ysbyty ar ôl ysbyty ar ôl ysbyty, a dydym ni'n dal heb weld ein hysbyty ni. Amcangyfrifir bod y gost ar hyn o bryd yn £64 miliwn—mae hynny'n ffracsiwn o'r buddsoddiad rydych chi wedi'i wario yn y de. Pryd welwn ni ein hysbyty ni er mwyn i ni allu darparu'r mathau o welliannau o ran mynediad at ofal y mae ar bobl yng ngogledd sir Ddinbych ei angen?
Can we finish the question now, and can we ask the Minister to respond?
A allwn ni orffen y cwestiwn nawr, ac a allwn ni ofyn i'r Gweinidog ymateb?
Diolch yn fawr. I think it's really important that we recognise that the staffing challenge when it comes to healthcare is a global challenge, so people all over the world are looking for the same people, especially people like anaesthetists. So, we are in a very difficult and competitive environment.
When it comes to investment in north Wales, I think it's really important that you understand that, actually, we have made investments in north Wales. Ysbyty Gwynedd has had that accident and emergency department. I've recently signed off £70 million for a new mental health unit in north Wales. That's despite the fact that the capital challenges, in particular for us in health, are extremely difficult at the moment. But, obviously, if we see some proposals where we will see transformation—. Because that's what we need to look for now, transformation. More of the same is just not going to cut it any longer. What is important is that we look for transformation when it comes to capital investment in the NHS in future.
Diolch yn fawr. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn ein bod yn cydnabod bod yr her staffio o ran gofal iechyd yn her fyd-eang, felly mae pobl ledled y byd yn chwilio am yr un bobl, yn enwedig pobl fel anesthetyddion. Felly, rydym ni mewn amgylchedd anodd a chystadleuol iawn.
O ran buddsoddi yn y gogledd, rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig iawn eich bod chi'n deall ein bod ni, mewn gwirionedd, wedi buddsoddi yn y gogledd. Mae Ysbyty Gwynedd wedi cael yr adran damweiniau ac achosion brys yna. Rwyf wedi cadarnhau £70 miliwn yn ddiweddar ar gyfer uned iechyd meddwl newydd yn y gogledd. Mae hynny er gwaetha'r ffaith bod yr heriau cyfalaf, yn enwedig i ni ym maes iechyd, yn anodd iawn ar hyn o bryd. Ond, yn amlwg, os ydym ni'n gweld rhai cynigion lle byddwn ni'n gweld trawsnewid—. Oherwydd dyna sydd angen i ni chwilio amdano nawr, trawsnewid. Nid yw mwy o'r un peth yn mynd i wneud y tro mwyach. Yr hyn sy'n bwysig yw ein bod yn edrych am drawsnewid o ran buddsoddiad cyfalaf yn y GIG yn y dyfodol.
Diolch i'r Gweinidog.
I thank the Minister.
Yr eitem nesaf, felly, yw'r datganiad gan Weinidog yr Economi ar ddatblygu clystyrau technolegol. Dwi'n galw ar y Gweinidog i wneud ei ddatganiad—Vaughan Gething.
The next item, therefore, is a statement by the Minister for Economy on developing technological clusters in Wales. I call on the Minister to make his statement—Vaughan Gething.
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. The Welsh Government has consistently highlighted the importance of harnessing science, research and innovation to address societal challenges. To meet these and capitalise on opportunities, we need a coherent, co-ordinated and collaborative approach.
A new innovation strategy for Wales is being developed in line with our commitments in the co-operation agreement and programme for government. We plan to publish in early 2023. It will provide a vision for innovation that can help to draw together our areas of strength and opportunity. We know that there are clear, transferable benefits for the economy from developing clusters of research expertise and capitalising on commercialisation and skills that arise from research.
Since 2012, the Sêr Cymru programme has helped to develop and sustain Wales's research capacity and capability. We've recently finished a consultation on the next phase. Previously, we used EU structural funds to significantly help to support research and innovation. Sadly, the UK Government has broken its promise that Wales would not receive a penny less in replacement funds. The undeniable reality is that we do not have the funds to support the next stage with the same level of public funding as before. We need to focus and theme future research calls. I expect to make a further announcement on the future of Sêr Cymru shortly.
Diolch yn fawr, Llywydd. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi tynnu sylw yn gyson at bwysigrwydd manteisio ar wyddoniaeth, ymchwil ac arloesedd i fynd i'r afael â heriau cymdeithasol. Er mwyn bodloni'r rhain a manteisio ar gyfleoedd, mae angen dull cydlynol, cydgysylltiedig a chydweithredol.
Mae strategaeth arloesi newydd i Gymru yn cael ei datblygu yn unol â'n hymrwymiadau yn y cytundeb cydweithredu a'r rhaglen lywodraethu. Rydym yn bwriadu cyhoeddi yn gynnar yn 2023. Bydd yn cynnig gweledigaeth ar gyfer arloesi a all helpu i dynnu ein meysydd o gryfderau a chyfleoedd at ei gilydd. Gwyddom fod manteision clir, trosglwyddadwy i'r economi o ddatblygu clystyrau o arbenigedd ymchwil a manteisio ar fasnacheiddio a sgiliau sy'n deillio o ymchwil.
Ers 2012, mae rhaglen Sêr Cymru wedi helpu i ddatblygu a chynnal gallu ymchwil Cymru. Rydym yn ddiweddar wedi gorffen ymgynghoriad ar y cam nesaf. O'r blaen, defnyddiwyd cronfeydd strwythurol yr UE i helpu'n sylweddol i gefnogi ymchwil ac arloesi. Yn anffodus, mae Llywodraeth y DU wedi torri ei haddewid na fyddai Cymru'n derbyn ceiniog yn llai mewn cronfeydd newydd yn eu lle. Y gwir plaen amdani yw nad oes gennym ni'r arian i gefnogi'r cam nesaf gyda'r un faint o gyllid cyhoeddus ag o'r blaen. Mae angen i geisiadau ymchwil yn y dyfodol fod yn benodol ac yn ymwneud â themâu priodol. Rwy'n disgwyl gwneud cyhoeddiad pellach ar ddyfodol Sêr Cymru cyn bo hir.
Daeth y Dirprwy Lywydd (David Rees) i’r Gadair.
The Deputy Presiding Officer (David Rees) took the Chair.
Critically, a small nation cannot have strength in depth right across the board. We can, however, point to clusters of technology in Wales that lead their field. The south Wales compound semi-conductor cluster is one. Combining industrial excellence and world-leading research, this cluster delivers the components that make our modern world work.
Today, I confirm our clear ambition for Wales to grow another technology cluster, while also tackling a fast-approaching challenge for medical treatment around the world. This concerns the continued production of medical radioisotopes, critical to cancer diagnosis and treatment. The equipment in facilities making these lifesaving radioactive substances is coming to the end of its useful life and being closed down. Without action, we face a real prospect in the medium-term future of not having medical radioisotopes, or the ethical nightmare of having to ration them.
The vision that we have is the creation of a critical mass of nuclear science—research, development, and innovation. Not only can Wales become the leading place in the UK for medical radioisotope production, but, with this, we can attract higher skilled jobs; create a surrounding infrastructure; support local communities; and build localised supply chains. Employment from delivering this project would cover a variety of skills and occupations: drivers, operations, production, technical staff, office staff, research scientists and engineers. It could provide well-paid, sustainable and attractive employment during both construction and operation.
As with our compound semi-conductor cluster, Sêr Cymru has already pump-primed the process, through funding a nuclear technology research chair at Bangor University’s Nuclear Futures Institute. This, and a past legacy of working with nuclear energy technologies, show north Wales as the most suitable place to develop such a cluster. Complementary research, industry expertise and activity in Wales and the wider UK will contribute and play their part in creating this new cluster.
Our initial aim is to secure the supply of medical radioisotopes for Wales and the UK through an advanced radioisotopes technology for health utility reactor, which I will now refer to as ARTHUR. The pilot project ARTHUR contributes to several aspects of the current programme for government. It reflects our commitment to build our research, development and innovation capacity in health and life sciences, while ensuring that Wales is a full partner in deli