National Assembly for Wales

Galw’r Cynulliad Cenedlaethol i drefn.

Cyn inni ddechrau ar fusnes heddiw, rwyf i eisiau gwneud datganiad byr. Rwyf wedi rhoi ystyriaeth i Gyfarfod Llawn ddoe, ac, yn wir, i amryw o Gyfarfodydd Llawn diweddar. Yn anffodus, mae pethau anaddas ac annifyr wedi cael eu dweud yma.

Rwyf wedi dweud o’r blaen fy mod am annog trafodaeth ddemocrataidd sy’n rymus a chadarn. Fodd bynnag, dylai Aelodau allu anghytuno ar faterion heb sarhau unigolion. Rwy’n disgwyl i Aelodau ddangos parch priodol tuag at y Cynulliad a chwrteisi at Aelodau eraill bob amser. Mae hyn yn berthnasol inni i gyd, gan gynnwys Gweinidogion—ni ddylai craffu priodol gael ei ateb gydag ymosodiadau personol.

Felly, nid wyf am glywed rhagor o heclo Aelodau cyn gynted ag y maent yn codi ar eu traed, dim mwy o sarhau gan rai yn eu seddi, a dim mwy o ymosodiadau ar gymeriad unigolion. Mae cynnal integriti y lle hwn o’r pwys mwyaf, a byddwn yn llwyddo i wneud hynny os byddwn yn gwrando’n ystyriol ac yn caniatáu i bawb fynegi eu barn—dyna yw hanfod trafodaeth ddemocrataidd.

Mae copi o’r datganiad yma wedi cael ei anfon yn ysgrifenedig at bob Aelod.

Yr eitem gyntaf, felly, ar yr agenda yw’r cwestiynau i Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Addysg, ac fe dynnwyd y cwestiwn cyntaf, [AQ(5)0050(EDU)], yn ôl. Yr ail gwestiwn, felly—Neil Hamilton.

Diolch, Lywydd. I’m most grateful to you for your statement.

The new Tenby Church in Wales primary school opened in September this year, in what the headteacher has described as a state-of-the-art new building. I look forward to seeing the school for myself and speaking to those benefiting from this investment, when I officially open it tomorrow.

I’m grateful to the Cabinet Secretary for that response. Mr Palmer, the headteacher, also said, in addition to welcoming the state-of-the-art school that he heads, that he is trying to build on a blank canvas and that there are insufficient funds for outdoor play equipment and for furniture, that several rooms remain unfurnished, including the meeting room, IT suite, foyer and additional learning areas, and that they have no PE equipment. He also wants planting boxes, raised planting beds, and plants to go in them, and a school that tells people what the institution is and is attractive and welcoming. Perhaps the Cabinet Secretary can tell us what she might be able to do to help them obtain all those essential items.

Can I thank the Member for his supplementary question? Together with the Welsh medium school, Ysgol Hafan y Môr, Tenby Church in Wales primary school has seen an investment of over £8.5 million, supported by £4.8 million from our twenty-first century schools programme. Tenby Church in Wales primary school has been provided with, as the headteacher says, a state-of-the-art building and suitable equipment. This includes the most up-to-date LED touchscreens in the county, Wi-Fi provision throughout, a state-of-the-art sound system, and comprehensive CCTV coverage. I understand that the local authority is keen to work with the school, and its school governing body, to resolve any concerns that they may have regarding equipment in the school. And, as I said, I will be able to see for myself tomorrow, when I visit the school.

When you visit the school tomorrow, I’m sure that you’ll be very impressed with the new additional learning needs dedicated classrooms, which are an enormous step forward for the provision of services and support to children with additional learning needs in south Pembrokeshire. However, the school next door, the Welsh medium school, doesn’t have quite such up-to-date facilities, and I wonder whether you would be able to discuss with those who will be meeting you to talk about the new schools, and the £8.5 million that’s been so welcomingly spent, will you actually talk to them about how we’re going to be able to provide, in the south of the county, additional learning needs support for children who come from a Welsh-speaking home and Welsh-speaking background? Because it will be very distressful for them to be able to only get support through English-speaking medium.

Can I thank Angela for that question? As you’ve said, the new Church in Wales Tenby school does have excellent special educational needs provision within the school. The establishment of a stand-alone Welsh medium primary school in Tenby is a welcome development. It meets the growing demand for Welsh medium education in that part of the world, and I’m very pleased that Pembrokeshire have invested in that school. It is my ambition that we have equality running through everything that we do in education, and access to support for additional learning needs through the medium of Welsh is crucial in establishing that. You will know that I and the Minister for the Welsh Language and Lifelong Learning, do intend to publish an ALN Bill before Christmas, and ensuring there is equitable provision for those students who study through the medium of Welsh will be crucial.

I thank the Cabinet Secretary for the replies she’s given so far. This is one of the first twenty-first century schools in Pembrokeshire, of course, so we need to learn from this experience, which hasn’t been perfect, but that’s a learning process. And I agree with the Cabinet Secretary that, really, it’s now down to the county council to negotiate properly with the school governors, on the provision of the additional facilities, or the facilities that some people feel are missing from a twenty-first century school. And that’s already been raised by my Plaid Cymru colleague, Michael Williams, with Pembrokeshire directly. So, when you go tomorrow, Minister, will you be in a position to view all these facilities for yourself—I’m sure you will—but, in particular, if you do find, and if you do hear, that there’s still an ongoing issue there, will you take the opportunity to talk directly to the county council in order to resolve these issues as soon as possible?

Simon, my officials have already been in touch with Pembrokeshire County Council concerning the statements made with regard to the facilities within the school. The county council do dispute some of the statements that have been made, but acknowledge that in other areas, such as, for instance, the reuse of school furniture from the previous schools, that is indeed a fact. Now, when developing a new school, the county council would usually liaise with the governing body over a period of time to address these particular concerns. Because this is a new school, those usual arrangements were not in place, and Pembrokeshire have assured my officials that they do indeed intend to work collaboratively with the governing body and the head to address any outstanding concerns. I will see for myself the facilities tomorrow, and my officials will continue to work with Pembrokeshire and the school to make sure that the children have what they need.

Thank you, Hannah. Citizenship and political education are important parts of the curriculum and will be central to the new curriculum. One of the four curriculum purposes is that all pupils become ethical and informed citizens. In the current curriculum, learners study citizenship and politics through personal and social education, as well as the Welsh baccalaureate.

Thank you. I welcome the opportunities that the Welsh baccalaureate and the wholesale review of the curriculum gives to embed action and programmes that enable and empower our young people to become active citizens and, ultimately, hold people like us to account. There’s so many good examples out there. In my own constituency alone, there is the eco committee at Ysgol Croes Atti in Flint, which raises awareness of environmental issues locally and encourages learners to promote a healthier and greener future. And, of course, the Ysgol Merllyn school parliament that I was pleased to welcome here a couple of weeks ago, and I know that you actually met them. They actually have a proper election campaign and an election day, and the eligibility to vote is that you have to be for, and in, full-time education. And what that does is that it embeds with those children the importance of voting at a very young age, and being an active citizen. Will you, Cabinet Secretary, commit to visiting some of these examples, not just in my constituency, but across Wales, to help inform the provision of citizenship and political education in the future?

Thank you, Hannah. I did, indeed, have the opportunity to meet with some of the children from the school council. Indeed, I met my counterpart, the minister for education on the school council, and she had plenty of good ideas about how we can improve education not only in that school, but across Wales. As you say, currently, these issues are predominantly dealt with in the active citizenship theme in the existing personal and social education framework, as well as through the Welsh baccalaureate. At both key stage 4 and post 16, learners have the opportunity to develop their knowledge and understanding of society and the community in which they live, and an awareness of global issues through events and perspectives. The education service works very hard here at the National Assembly to provide opportunities under the Welsh baccalaureate for young people to come and use our facilities and to debate, and we will continue to look at examples of good practice as we develop this area of learning and experience for our new curriculum.

Cabinet Secretary, I was last week refused permission as an Assembly Member to hold a public meeting in the new Ysgol Bae Baglan in Port Talbot by the headteacher at the last moment, trying to discuss local parking issues and access to community facilities at the school. The reason given was that it was a political meeting, but it was not a political meeting because we had representatives from other parties and other AMs from other parties there at the meeting. I don’t expect you to comment on this particular example, but how can we expect pupils and students to engage in the political process if headteachers, locally, do not know what processes are and what is deemed political and what our role is as Assembly Members? What training will you therefore carry out for headteachers who may not know what those rules are?

The availability of school facilities for meetings of that nature are a matter for the individual headteacher and the governing body, and it would not be appropriate for me to comment.

I think the issue of political education in schools may be quite pertinent now that we have the local government Minister’s proposals for extending the vote to 16 and 17-year-olds possibly at some future date. So, I wondered how we ensure that political education is taught in a balanced way to represent different political viewpoints.

I am delighted that the Cabinet Secretary has signalled his early commitment to extend the franchise to 16 and 17-year-olds. Many of those 16 and 17-year-olds who I meet on my visits to schools and colleges are very anxious to be able to have a formal say in the political process. As I outlined in my answer to Hannah Blythyn, we have an extensive range of opportunities for children to learn about politics and the communities that they live in, and I believe in the professionalism of our teaching staff who deliver our curriculum to do that in a balanced and objective fashion.

Cwestiynau nawr gan lefarwyr y pleidiau. Llefarydd Plaid Cymru, Llyr Gruffydd.

Diolch, Lywydd. Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet, rŷm ni yn y broses o ddiwygio’r cwricwlwm yma yng Nghymru, gyda nifer o ysgolion yn edrych ar feysydd penodol, o’r cwricwlwm ei hun i ddatblygiad proffesiynol. Mae’r fframwaith cymhwysedd digidol, wrth gwrs, wedi gweld golau dydd. Mae gennym ni dros 100 o ysgolion arloesi yng Nghymru yn gweithredu mewn dulliau gwahanol drwy bedwar consortia gwahanol hefyd. Ond mae yna gonsýrn yn datblygu, o beth yr wyf fi’n ei glywed yn ôl o’r sector, fod yna berig bod rhai o’r rhain yn gweithio mewn rhigolau. Mae Cymdeithas Llywodraeth Leol Cymru ei hun wedi dweud bod yna gonsýrn eu bod nhw’n gweithio mewn paralel yn hytrach nag yn gweithio mewn ‘collaboration’. Mae yna alw wedi bod am oedi, am gymryd cam yn ôl, cymryd stoc, rhesymoli efallai, a thynnu’r cyfan at ei gilydd cyn symud ymlaen yn gryfach. A ydych chi’n cytuno mai gwneud hyn yn iawn sy’n bwysig ac nid o reidrwydd gwneud hyn yn gyflym?

Thank you, Llyr, for your question. I think it is true to say that, historically there has been some disconnect between the pioneer schools and different networks. That’s why we have brought them all together under a single network to try and ensure that there is greater collaborative working across the pioneer schools. We are also redoubling our efforts to ensure that those schools that are outside the pioneer network also feel part of this exciting process of co-developing the career curriculum with the teaching workforce themselves. I recently launched a new curriculum blog to allow us to directly communicate with all those in the field of education about these changes, and we will continue to review our progress to ensure that everybody feels that they are part of this important co-design of our new curriculum.

Rwy’n falch eich bod chi’n cydnabod bod rhai o’r ysgolion sydd ddim yn ysgolion arloesi yn teimlo efallai ychydig y tu fas i’r broses yma, oherwydd mae Cyngor y Gweithlu Addysg, er enghraifft, wedi rhybuddio bod yna berig bod yna system ddwy haen yn datblygu a allai fod yn achosi rhaniadau. Felly, rwy’n croesawi’r ffaith eich bod chi’n cydnabod hynny a’ch bod chi’n bwriadu gwneud rhywbeth ynglŷn â’r peth.

Wrth gwrs, mae angen wedyn y capasiti i allu gwneud y gwaith yma o ddatblygu cwricwlwm, mynychu cyfarfodydd, delio gyda’r ysgolion eraill a’r consortia ac yn y blaen wrth barhau i wneud eu gwaith o ddydd i ddydd, o safbwynt yr athrawon, sy’n dysgu mewn hinsawdd, sydd, y mae nifer yn cydnabod, eisoes yn hinsawdd heriol o safbwynt pwysau gwaith ac yn y blaen.

Mae nifer o athrawon yn ddiweddar wedi bod yn gweithio’n galed i ailysgrifennu cynlluniau gwaith yn sgil cyhoeddi manylebau newydd TGAU er enghraifft, ac mae honno wedi bod i rai yn broses weddol ddigalon o wybod, wrth gwrs, ei bod yn bosibl y bydd y gwaith hynny yn cael ei sgubo o’r neilltu gan y cwricwlwm newydd a allai fod yn cael ei gyflwyno o fewn 18 mis mewn rhai sefyllfaoedd. Er mor anodd yw hynny, a ydych chi yn hyderus bod y capasiti a’r adnoddau digonol allan yna, ymhlith y gweithlu yng Nghymru, i ddelifro’r rhaglen yma, sydd yn newid ac sydd yn mynd i fod yn rhywbeth sydd angen ei wneud i safon ac o fewn amserlen ddigon heriol.

I am absolutely confident in the profession to be able to develop the new curriculum in conjunction with the Welsh Government for teaching and learning in 2021. The Member, Presiding Officer, is absolutely right to say that this needs to be resourced. Therefore, there are resources in my education budget to ensure that those schools that are participating in this pioneering work are not disadvantaged and have the facilities and resources that they need, for instance, to backfill when teachers or headteachers are engaging in this activity. What we do know is that, whilst it presents challenges, there is also fantastic opportunity for school-to-school learning when schools participate in this work. The professionals that I have met—and I have addressed in the last few weeks over half the headteachers in Welsh schools—what they tell me is that being part of this process has led to benefits for their individual school because they have learned from others and they are taking those lessons back. So, as we move towards our curriculum, we are using that opportunity to improve on our self-improving schools system, which they very much welcome. But, it has to be resourced, and I am confident that the resources are there for them.

Mae hi’n mynd i fod yn dipyn o her hefyd, wrth gwrs, i sicrhau bod yr athrawon sydd gennym heddiw wedi’u harfogi ar gyfer delifro’r cwricwlwm newydd yma. Rwy’n gwybod bod bod yn rhan o ysgol arloesi, efallai, yn mynd i fod yn help i nifer i ddod drwy’r broses yna mewn modd mwy naturiol na fyddai’n digwydd mewn sefyllfa y tu hwnt i’r ysgolion arloesi. Ond, mae hefyd yn bwysig, wrth gwrs, bod yr athrawon newydd a fydd yn dod i mewn i’r gyfundrefn wedi’i diwygio yn barod ar gyfer y drefn honno. O feddwl y bydd rhai ysgolion, o bosib, yn cyflwyno’r cwricwlwm newydd yma yn 2018, pa mor hyderus ŷch chi bod y trefniadau yn eu lle i sicrhau bod athrawon newydd sydd yn dod drwy brosesau hyfforddi athrawon ar hyn o bryd yn mynd i fod yn barod ar gyfer y cwricwlwm newydd?

You will know, Llyr, that a school cannot be better than the teachers that are within it. Therefore, equipping our teachers—both those who are new to the profession and those teachers who are already in the profession—with the skills that they need to deliver the new curriculum is absolutely crucial. That’s why, you know, we are embarked on a radical reform of our initial teacher education programme. We are out to consultation as we speak on the new criteria for the new ITE courses. But I expect change now. I don’t expect higher education institutes to sit back and wait for those new courses. That’s why I am greatly encouraged by the conversations that I have had at the University of South Wales, Trinity Saint David, Aberystwyth and Cardiff Met about the changes that they are making now with local schools in their area to improve the offer for our initial teacher training. We need to get it right for them. Otherwise, the curriculum redesign will be for naught.

Llefarydd y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig, Darren Millar.

Cabinet Secretary, the Cymdeithas Ysgolion dros Addysg Gymraeg has warned that there may not be GCSE textbooks available for students and for staff by the time that they need to be developed in order that they can take advantage of preparing their pupils properly for the new GCSEs and A-levels that are going to be introduced from next year. What do you say to that?

Thank you, Darren. As I said to Angela earlier, equity in the education system in Wales is crucial to me. While I acknowledge that the WJEC publishes specs and sample papers in a bilingual area, there is a concern about the availability of Welsh textbooks. I do not expect children who do their exams through the medium of Welsh to be disadvantaged in any way, and I am not satisfied that the current situation does not provide a disadvantage for those children. Myself and the Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language have met to discuss this, as I have with my officials. It is my intention to set up a summit with all of those involved to look at ways in which we can address this concern, to see what we can do in Wales itself, with our universities and schools, our teaching profession, and the Welsh publishing sector to be able to address this failure in the market. It is clear to me that we cannot expect English publishers to put us at the top of the list. If they will not do so, we will need to do something different. If you would like to come along to the summit, Darren, you would be more than welcome.

I would be very happy to attend, Cabinet Secretary. I am grateful that you have taken such action to set one up. Of course, it is not just the publishers’ fault here. We have Qualifications Wales, which is yet to approve the details of the qualifications that those young people are going to have to sit. I am pleased to hear you refer to the fact that HE providers and further education providers will also be present at the summit. One of the great things that we have seen in Wales in recent years is the success of Coleg Cymraeg Cenedlaethol in terms of ensuring that HE providers are able to offer courses through the medium of Welsh for young people to study in. What consideration have you given to extending their remit into further education so that FE providers can also benefit from the expertise that the coleg Cymraeg has?

Thank you for that, Darren. As you will be aware, I recently established a task and finish group to look at the future arrangements for the coleg. They have done tremendous work in expanding the opportunities for students to study through the medium of Welsh at a higher level. I believe that there is capacity, potentially, to do that at an FE level, and I don’t want to prejudge the work of the task and finish group under the chairmanship of Delyth Evans, but I believe there is an opportunity to better enhance the opportunities for students to study through the medium of Welsh not only at HE, but at FE level.

Of course, we’re only going to be able to achieve these ambitious plans for the future if we’ve got a workforce that is fit to deliver these courses through the medium of Welsh. What consideration have you given to the warnings that you have been receiving from different organisations in the education field who have been saying that we do not have sufficient numbers of teachers who are proficient in the Welsh language to be able to deliver these ambitious plans, and what action are you taking in order to address that shortage of teachers in the Welsh language?

You’re absolutely right, Darren. We need to make sure, if we’re to achieve our ambitions for Welsh-medium education, and indeed for enhancing the learning of the Welsh language in English-medium schools—unless we have the workforce readily available to do it. You will be aware that, as I’ve said to Llyr Gruffydd, we are reforming our initial teacher training education offer. There are incentives for those with Welsh language skills to come into the teaching profession, and we provide resources to allow teachers who are already in the profession and who want to develop their Welsh skills to go on sabbaticals to allow them to do just that. The feedback I’ve had from that scheme is very positive indeed, and we need to do more to encourage teachers to take part in that sabbatical so that we can increase the availability of Welsh language skills within that teaching profession, and give them the confidence to use those skills in the classroom.

Llefarydd UKIP, Mark Reckless.

Diolch, Lywydd. Last week, ‘The Sunday Times’ published it’s ‘parent power’ tables, including the top 400 state secondary schools across the UK weighted by GCSE and A-level results. Is the Cabinet Secretary happy that the top Welsh school in that ranking was one hundred and eighty-second?

What is important to me is the progress that Welsh schools are making. Members should note that, last year, Welsh GCSE results were exactly the same as those of their counterparts across the border in England. But I’m not content to just benchmark our education system with that across the border. I want to benchmark our system with that that is the best in the world. That’s why we continue to work proactively with the OECD to ensure that the reforms that we are undertaking will allow us to reach those ambitions.

I thank the Cabinet Secretary for her answer, and of course next year and afterwards we may not have the opportunity to make such comparisons across the border because the GCSE grading system is changing in England from A to G to 9 to 1, and Wales is not taking that path. As a parent seeking to compare primary schools, and standards across different schools, I’ve found that a much greater challenge in Wales than I did in England, because the key stage 2 results do not appear to be published in a comparable form that allows easy comparison between schools. Is that the intention of the Welsh Government, and would it not make sense to publish such data in an easily comparable form so as to elucidate rather than obfuscate the differences between schools?

Presiding Officer, the Member has come across from a system that believed in competition. The Welsh education system is based on a system of collaboration and co-operation. It is by working together in a self-improving school system that we will deliver the education that our children need. The data that are available at the end of primary school are primarily there to inform teachers both in the primary sector and the high schools that those children will move on to how best we can support those individual children to meet their full potential. It is not there as a stick to beat the profession and beat individual schools; it is there as a diagnostic tool to assist the teaching of individual children. There is a plethora of information available to Welsh parents on the My Local School website. It looks at a complete picture of the performance of our schools. Data around achievements is one important area, but the well-being of the school, the value added in the school and the ethos in the school are equally important to the parents that I meet and talk to.

I note the Cabinet Secretary’s response, but the complete record is not available. I would quite like to look at what the key stage 2 results are for different schools across Wales, and to compare what the trend is in that and what improvements there have been, and to make comparisons, appropriately adjusted, between schools, as would many other parents. The system is set up for her and for the profession, yet somehow parents are not judged capable of making sensible and appropriate comparisons. Of course collaboration is important, as well as competition, but what on earth is served by suppressing data that should be available to allow people to make proper comparisons?

Can I also ask her, just before—because I’m not sure I’ll get very much in response to that—? When we move the GCSE results—. We’re having a new curriculum, yet we’ve chosen not to move to the 9-1 grading they have in England. Is she not concerned that Welsh students—if not now, down the road—may suffer disadvantage? Because many will seek jobs in London or elsewhere in England and, as happens now with Scottish highers, quite often even at quite significant sized companies, those results are not necessarily well understood. After the passage of years, or perhaps decades, if in Wales we have students who are graded A-G, when they are graded 9-1 in England, is she confident that that will not be a disbenefit to Welsh students?

I’m absolutely confident that the quality of the qualifications that we are offering our students in Wales is comparable with anybody’s—comparable with anybody’s. They are tough, they are stretching, they are robust and they equip our children with the skills that they need to succeed in the world of work and in further education.

Presiding Officer, the Member seems to suggest that there is no data available to parents. There is a plethora of information available to parents. There are the Estyn reports, which are publicly available for parents to look at. There is the school categorisation system, which is available for parents to look at. It is simply not true to suggest that parents have no access to information about the performance of their local school. It’s not the case. There is a wide range of information readily available to parents to see how their individual school is performing. Assessment and test results are there primarily as a teaching aid for the individual children. They are not there to provide false and competitive league tables for the Member. We believe in a self-improving school system, based on the principle of collaboration and co-operation, because we know, internationally, that is what works best.

Presiding Officer, prior to answering this question I would like to put on record an interest in this matter, in that I have a child attending a Welsh-medium primary school in mid Wales.

The national strategy for small and rural schools will provide support for schools to work together as well as a £2.5 million grant. This will support Welsh-medium and bilingual primary schools to work together and to share good practice. This will strengthen local authority Welsh in education strategic plans.

Thank you, Minister, for your answer. In spite of efforts from the headteacher and governors of Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant Primary School in my constituency, in order for them to achieve a balanced budget, they have to make reductions in staffing from five to four teachers. In doing that, this will lead to the combination of English and Welsh infant streams in the afternoons, compromising, of course, their bilingual status as a school. Do you recognise the higher cost that small rural dual-stream schools face, and what do you think is a solution in ensuring that bilingual schools are not compromised?

Many of the matters the Member has referred to in his question are, of course, matters for the local authority rather than matters for us here. But let me make a more general point in response—I think the general point does deserve a fuller response than that.

You’ll be aware that the Cabinet Secretary made a very comprehensive statement to the Chamber on the issue of rural schools. She emphasised, at that point, the importance of equity, which she has again referred to this afternoon, in terms of ensuring that people are able to access education in the Welsh and English languages equally. We continue to wish to ensure that rural schools and schools across the whole of Wales have the right framework available to them, plus the resources, to ensure that they are able to offer those educational opportunities. I will also repeat what I’ve said on previous occasions in this place—that we are anticipating the Welsh-medium strategic plans to be provided to us next month, and I will be taking a great interest in what all local authorities are proposing over the next strategic planning period.

Mae’n amlwg, y tu mewn i’r cynlluniau strategaeth yr iaith Gymraeg yma, y byddwch chi, gobeithio, yn chwilio i sicrhau nad yw ffrydiau iaith yn cael eu cymysgu. Dyna beth sy’n digwydd, rwy’n deall, nawr yn Llanrhaeadr-ym-Mochnant gyda’r toriadau presennol—bod y cyfnod sylfaen yn cael eu cymysgu gyda’i gilydd o ran iaith. Nid yw hynny’n briodol ac nid yw’n arfer da. Mae problemau tebyg yn Llanfyllin, a Llandrindod o bosibl, yn datblygu hefyd. Oes, mae’n fethiant ar ran y cyngor sir, a bu methiant ar ran y cyngor sir ers rhai blynyddoedd, i baratoi’n briodol ar gyfer twf addysg Gymraeg yn sir Powys, i ddweud y gwir. Ond, wrth edrych ar y cynlluniau strategol, a fyddwch chi’n gwneud yn siŵr nad ydych yn caniatáu i’r sefyllfa yma barhau ac nad oes cymysgu ffrydiau iaith, a’ch bod felly yn rhoi pwysau priodol ar y cyngor sir i ddarparu yn briodol i gadw’r iaith yn briodol y tu mewn i’r ysgolion hyn?

Llywydd, rŷm ni i gyd yn ymwybodol bod cynigion yn cael eu trafod ym Mhowys ar hyn o bryd. Mae’n bosibilrwydd y bydd y cynigion yna yn dod at Weinidogion Cymru ar gyfer rhywfaint o benderfyniadau. Felly, ni fydd yr Aelod yn gallu fy nhemptio i gynnig unrhyw sylw ar yr enghreifftiau penodol y mae wedi’u disgrifio ym Mhowys y prynhawn yma. Ond a gaf i ddweud hyn ar egwyddor y cwestiwn? Nid wyf eisiau creu un model ac un model yn unig ar gyfer y ddarpariaeth addysg drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg ac addysg yn y ddwy iaith. Rwyf eisiau clywed gan awdurdodau lleol am eu cynlluniau nhw, ac ar ôl i fi gael cyfle i ystyried y cynigion, mi fyddaf yn dod nôl i fan hyn ac yn gwneud datganiad ar hynny. Ond ar hyn o bryd nid wyf eisiau creu rhyw fath o ‘straitjacket’ ieithyddol a dweud mai un model ac un model yn unig sydd ar gyfer addysg drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg ar draws Cymru.

Thank you, Vikki. Educational attainment in the Cynon Valley broadly presents a gradually improving picture. Having reflected on the recent Estyn inspections of consortia, I am confident that, whilst there is definitely room for improvement, they continue to play an important role in delivering improved outcomes for learners.

I recently met with representatives of the Central South Consortium at Mountain Ash Comprehensive School in my constituency and was impressed to hear about the year-on-year improvement the consortium has seen across every performance indicator, from key stage 2 to key stage 5. Success in areas like Cardiff is often based on work with pupils drawn from a range of diverse backgrounds where English is often not the first language. What lessons does the Cabinet Secretary think could be drawn from work with these groups to improve the performance of children from more disadvantaged backgrounds, particularly in constituencies such as mine? How can the Welsh Government best support consortia in delivering such work?

Thank you for that. You’re quite right, within the Central South Consortium, we have a wide range of schools that the local education authority is operating. I recently visited Fitzalan High School here in Cardiff where there are 40 different languages spoken amongst the children in that school. I am very keen that each consortium develops a comprehensive plan for the effective use of the pupil deprivation grant, which is our primary tool aimed at ensuring that children from a poorer background attain their full potential. I am concerned, in some areas, that the use of PDG is not as effective as it could be. For instance, some schools do not follow the advice of the Sutton Trust toolkit, which has best practice and evidence-based interventions. I have asked, in my challenge-and-review meeting with Central South, that they ensure that there is best use of that significant resource that is going into our schools and that it is used to best effect.

Cabinet Secretary, the National Association of Head Teachers recently pointed the work of the consortia, praising some aspects of support, but made the point that there’s considerable challenge—and I’m the first one who would want challenge within a system, because, obviously, that progresses the system, hopefully, but they were pointing out a serious lack of support from the regional consortia when developing senior management teams and, in particular, pathways for headteachers to come through. Now, across the UK, there’s an issue about attracting people into the profession, in particular to become headteachers. Do you recognise the point that the National Association of Head Teachers makes about there not being enough support coming from the regional consortia to assist the development of the headteachers of the future?

Thank you, Andrew. I recently had the opportunity to address and meet with the National Association of Head Teachers at their conference in Newport. I think leadership is one area where we have not made as much progress as I would like to have seen across the country, and the consortia have a crucial role in identifying and supporting the continuous professional development needs of our future deputy heads, assistant heads and headteachers. You will be aware that I recently announced my intention to establish a national leadership academy. The shadow group, chaired by Ann Keane, is beginning their work in this particular area, and I would expect the consortia to be a crucial component in working alongside that body to look at opportunities to proactively seek out the next generation of leaders and provide them with the necessary support.

Local authorities are responsible for ensuring access to independent information, advice and advocacy services for children and young people with special educational needs. Where legal advice is sought, children, young people and their families can seek out private legal representation and, in some circumstances, may also be eligible for legal aid.

I thank the Minister for his answer. Following cuts to legal aid funding by the British state, there are now only three legal aid providers working in education law in Wales and England, and not one of them is based in this country. We know how hard parents of children with special educational needs sometimes have to fight to get the special education provision that their children are entitled to, and given the divergence increasingly in policy and in law between Wales and England in terms of education, the lack of a Wales-based legal aid provider is a real barrier to accessing legal advice for those parents. So, will the Welsh Government intervene urgently to secure equality of access to justice for parents of children with special educational needs?

I would prefer, actually, to remove the need for that sort of process at all. The Member will be aware from yesterday’s business statement that I will be introducing the additional learning needs Bill to this place before Christmas. We will be introducing a tribunal system as a part of that, and the rationale and the philosophical underpinning, if you like, of that legislation is to provide each individual learner with additional learning needs with an individual development plan that will take them from pre-school through beyond further and higher education, to the age of 25, and will provide a means for resolving those issues without, I hope, the need for recourse to legal aid or to any form of litigation. Our approach here is to ensure that we remove that pressure from parents within the system, although I accept and certainly agree with the criticisms he makes of the UK Government and their approach to this policy area.

One of the criticisms of the Welsh Government’s approach to this area, of course, is the fact that, if you’ve got a young person in further education, they don’t have the same rights to be able to challenge decisions made about them in terms of the support that they can receive. Is this something that we can hope to see addressed in your additional learning needs Bill?

Yes.

Tynnwyd cwestiwn 7 [OAQ(5)0059(EDU)] yn ôl.

All children in Wales are entitled to free foundation phase education from the term following their third birthday. We know the foundation phase works and that’s why I am committed to giving everybody, in our approach to learning, the best possible start in life.

Thank you for that answer. Almost three years ago, the then education Minister wrote to me confirming that local authorities can, and I quote, provide these places—education for three-year-olds—in a nursery school, a nursery class within a primary school, or non-maintained setting, such as a playgroup or a private day nursery. Now, three years on, Swansea council is still only funding education for three-year-olds in local authority settings, so there’s no parental choice there at all. As Welsh Government has now adopted a target of 1 million Welsh speakers by 2050, do you think that Swansea’s position, which does nothing to promote the growth of these places in Mudiad Meithrin settings, is one that you can support?

I’m grateful to the Member for her question and the way she has pursued this matter over a long period of time. I’m also aware of her view of the approach being pursued by Swansea council in these matters. I said in answer to an earlier question from Simon Thomas that I’m looking forward to receiving the Welsh in education strategic plans next month, and I will be looking towards how all local authorities in Wales will be seeking to plan for the growth of Welsh-medium education in their own areas and districts. I will expect that from all authorities equally. And in reviewing those plans, I will be looking at how they will be measuring future need, how we can stimulate future need and how we can develop to grow Welsh-medium education in order to deliver our vision and ambition for a bilingual Wales.

Sut yn union fydd y cynnydd mewn darpariaeth yn cyfrannu at y strategaeth 1 filiwn o siaradwyr gan y Llywodraeth felly? Hynny yw, a oes gennych chi darged penodol o fewn y maes addysg i blant tair i bedair oed ynglŷn â faint o weithlu sydd ei angen er mwyn darparu addysg ddwyieithog yn y dyfodol?

Mae gennym ni dargedau presennol—mae targedau yn bodoli ar hyn o bryd—ar gyfer faint o blant sydd gennym ni mewn addysg Gymraeg ym mhob un oedran. Rŷm ni hefyd yn gwybod nad ydym wedi llwyddo i gyrraedd y targedau hynny. Felly, yn ystod y cynllunio sy’n digwydd ar gyfer y strategaeth iaith Gymraeg newydd a fydd yn cael ei chyhoeddi fis Mawrth nesaf, mi fydd cynllunio gweithlu yn rhan hanfodol o hynny, yn rhan ganolog o’n cynlluniau ni. Mi fyddwch chi wedi clywed yr ateb gan Kirsty Williams i gwestiwn blaenorol gan Darren Millar am sut rŷm ni’n gallu ehangu addysg drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg, a hyfforddiant drwy gyfrwng y Gymraeg. Mae’r elfennau gwahanol yma yn mynd i fod yn rhan ganolog o sut ŷm ni’n llunio’r strategaeth iaith Gymraeg newydd.

We’ll be publishing the additional learning needs Bill before Christmas.

Minister, one of my constituents with additional learning needs has been waiting over seven months for an appointment with the child and adolescent mental health services, and in the interim has been receiving just a few hours of schooling each week. How can we expect young people like my constituent to reach their full potential if we are denying them a full and rich education? Minister, what steps are you taking to ensure that children and young people, like this six-year-old child, with additional learning needs get the full-time education they’re entitled to?

If the Member has individual cases, then clearly she can write to me and we’ll take those up with the appropriate authorities. But let me say this in terms of the overall vision: the additional learning needs Bill will be published before Christmas, and I’m looking forward to the debate and the conversation that we will have in this place and in committee, and the wider debate across Wales, during the parliamentary process of that Bill. I will be publishing the code of conduct, the statutory guidance, to deliver that Bill at the beginning of February, so Members will be able to review, study and scrutinise, not only the primary legislation but the secondary implementing legislation as well. But both these pieces of legislation form part of a much wider transformational programme that I launched some weeks ago with a written statement, pledging that we will ensure that all deliverers of additional learning needs have sufficient support and the training necessary. We will also be ensuring that resources are provided to enable local authorities and others to deliver the transformational programme as we envisage.

Hello. [Laughter.] Right. [Laughter.] We are all very much looking forward to the publication of this Bill. I am very grateful to you for meeting with me last week with the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and Diabetes UK and for listening to the concerns about the need to include a duty to meet the medical needs of children in school in this Bill. Can you update us on what your current thinking is on that?

It was more of a surprise to me than it was to other people. [Laughter.]

I’m grateful to Lynne Neagle for both the time last week in conversation on these matters, but also the work she’s been doing as Chair of this committee in preparing the committee to ensure that we have the widest possible scrutiny of this legislation. At the end of the day, I want to have a good Act rather than a fast Bill and I think it’s important that the committee plays an important role in that. In terms of the conversation that we had last week with Diabetes UK Cymru and with the royal college, I was very impressed with what they had to say. I thought they made a very strong and effective case for significant changes in the way that we bring forward this legislation and the way the transformation programme will work, and all of those points were noted and you will see them referred to as we proceed with the legislation.

Deaf people have a right to access education. I’ve had concerns brought to me by constituents that this isn’t really happening as it should and there are staff at only level 1 or level 2 signing. So, Cabinet Secretary, would you please engage with British Sign Language students who have passed level 6 to work in the education sector, so that we can try and improve matters of access?

I’ve already met on many occasions with deaf students, families, organisations and practitioners working with those people in order to ensure that this legislation reaches out to all parts of the educational community and that all parts of our community receive the education that they need and deserve. Deaf people will be an integral part of that and as part of the wider transformational programme—not simply the legislation, but the wider programme—we will ensure that education is delivered by people who have the appropriate training in all languages whether it’s BSL, English or Welsh.

Claiming that it will

‘Transform the education support for children and young people’

with autistic spectrum conditions, the ‘Refreshed Autistic Spectrum DisorderStrategic Action Plan’, published today, then only really refers to the Bill you’ve already referred to, the additional learning needs and education tribunal (Wales) Bill. How will you provide assurance to parents such as myself, who had to fight to get a statement for their children because it was being used as a rationing process, a certificate of entitlement, recognising, for example, that exclusions of children who didn’t get statemented, who went to school action and school action plus categories, short-term exclusions doubled when they reduced for children in the general population unstatemented children? Is it not a real concern that the individual development plans proposed will enable providers to ration provision in the way, in practice, parents have seen for too long in Wales and beyond?

I fully accept that, for too long, parents have had to struggle and have been through very difficult and emotional times struggling to get the educational provision that they require for their children, and a part of that is not simply statementing but diagnosis as well. There has been a wide number of issues there that refer to the journey of the child, in this instance through health and social services, sometimes educational institutions and organisations and structures. I accept that there have been significant difficulties and sometimes failures there in that system. The introduction of the individual development plan, of course, is a way of moving away from that. It does deliver, we hope and we anticipate, and this will be a matter for Members to test, of course, during the parliamentary process. We will introduce flexibility for each individual learner so that we have the capacity within the code of conduct to have an individual development plan that reflects the needs of that individual and not simply the needs of the people delivering the service. So, we will be focusing in on that individual, but also delivering portability of that individual development plan, so that they can access services and it will be recognised by professionals both in different services and in different areas. So we will, I hope, be striking the balance so that people do not have to struggle, fight and campaign, sometimes, for the services and the education that they fully deserve and should have without any of that struggle. But we will also be ensuring that we do this in a way that is tailored for the individual.

Diolch i’r Gweinidog.

Yr eitem nesaf yw cwestiynau i’r Cwnsler Cyffredinol a’r cwestiwn cyntaf, Lee Waters.

Thank you for the question. I’d refer the Member to the written statement published last Friday. This case raises profound issues about the United Kingdom’s constitutional arrangements and the framework for devolution, and it’s right that Wales should be heard on those issues, and we will be putting our case at next week’s hearing. Because this is a matter of considerable public interest and importance, I have been as open as possible in the statements that I’ve issued and the answers I have given in the various sessions, as well as choosing to publish in full, online, the full text of our written submission to the Supreme Court.

Thank you. Given that the case to exit the EU was based, in part, on the importance of returning powers to Parliament, is the Counsel General as perplexed as I am that the UK Government is challenging the view of the court that Parliament should have a role in triggering this? Would he agree that this is a matter for all the Parliaments of the UK, not just the Westminster Parliament? And has he been in contact with other law officers to make sure that our interests are safeguarded?

Well, I can’t say that I’m perplexed. The UK Government has obviously decided on its own course of action, which is to lodge an appeal against the decision of the High Court. The submission that I filed on behalf of the Welsh Government, as Counsel General, sets out very clearly the view that we have, which actually supports that decision that the prerogative is not the appropriate mechanism for making significant constitutional change, or, in fact, for overturning the legislation of the United Kingdom Government, and also in respect of the constitutional arrangements that exist.

I’d refer the Member, in fact, to one of the points that we make in the submission to the Supreme Court that if the UK Government’s position was, in fact, correct, if the logic employed in the UK Government’s case is correct, then, in actual fact, the Prime Minister could have revoked article 50 at any time, even without any authorisation in the form of a referendum. So, we say that that clearly would be a perverse analysis and is plainly wrong.

We don’t think it pays sufficient respect to the democratically elected institutions of Parliament, this place and the other devolved legislatures. So, we think that giving notification under article 50 will modify the competence of the Assembly and the functions of the Welsh Government, as set out under the Government of Wales Act 2006. We say that the prerogative cannot be used to dispense with the constitutional statute. We also say that any modification to the legislative competence of the Assembly, or indeed any modification of executive functions within devolved competence, will engage the Sewel convention and that this is a key constitutional practice that is vital to the proper functioning of the United Kingdom. It provides for a dialogue between democratically elected legislatures about changes to the devolution settlement. We say that the UK Government does not have the power to short-circuit it through the use of the prerogative, so we will therefore be arguing for the High Court’s clear decision in Miller to be upheld and for the UK Government’s appeal to be rejected.

Since yesterday, I’ve had the advantage of reading the Government’s printed case, which will be presented to the Supreme Court next week. Rather bizarrely, it seems to ignore the one crucial and fundamental point in this whole saga, which is that the Government seeks to trigger article 50 consequent upon a decision of the whole British people in a referendum. In all the long history of legal disputes with the King in the seventeenth century, culminating in article 1 of the Bill of Rights, and following legal cases that establish the limited power of the Crown in relation to the prerogative, Parliament was acting as a proxy for the people and to control the autocratic use of the prerogative by the King. This is completely different. The people themselves, all the people of the United Kingdom, have been asked for their view on whether we should stay in or leave the EU. They voted to leave. The mechanism for doing that is to trigger article 50. Parliament has no role to play in that in any further respect. The people have spoken. There will, of course, be plenty of opportunity to consider in Parliament all the consequential effects of triggering article 50 through the need to revise all the legislation that has been passed in relation to the European Union since 1973. So, far from ignoring Parliament, this is to give Parliament the opportunity to fulfil the wishes of the British people, as stated in a referendum where they said, without any condition or qualification, that we should leave the EU.

The Member seems to be saying different things. On the one hand, he says there’s been a referendum, and that authorises the Prime Minister to proceed and totally to bypass Parliament, and then, on the other one, he says it is about empowering Parliament. But the position is very clear: we have a constitution, we have arrangements between the devolved Governments that are set, and encompassing all of that, we have the question of the rule of law. What the Member is very clearly saying is that we should disregard the constitutional settlement. He is saying we should disregard the constitutional settlement, and he is also saying that the rule of law does not apply. I made the point very clearly yesterday that the reason we put this submission in was for two things. It is nothing to do with the issue of the merits or demerits of the referendum itself. It is about standing up for democracy, the constitution and the rule of law. It quite worries me that the Member consistently appears to want to bypass the rule of law. That road leads only in one direction.

The Member knows that this answer is subject to the established law officers’ convention. The Welsh Government is pressing for improvements to the Bill as it progresses in the House of Lords. You will understand the reasons behind the law officers’ convention, and, whereas the nature and content of such discussions remain confidential, I can inform the Member that I have visited Scotland and I have held a meeting with the Lord Advocate to discuss issues of mutual interest.

Diolch i’r Cwnsler Cyffredinol am ei ateb ac am wthio ffiniau’r confensiwn mor bell ag y mae’n gallu tu mewn i’r Siambr yma. Nid wyf i’n gwybod os yw’n gwneud gwialen i’w gefn ei hunan, ond mae lot mwy o gwestiynau yn cael eu gosod iddo fe nawr ei fod e’n ateb cwestiynau, so mae hwnnw’n rhywbeth i’w gofio. Un peth sydd yn wir am Fil Cymru, mae’n debyg, yw, yn anffodus, na fyddwn ni’n cael awdurdodaeth gyfreithiol ar wahân—rhywbeth sydd wedi cael ei ofyn amdano ers blynyddoedd gan Blaid Cymru a rhywbeth mae’r Prif Weinidog yn fwy diweddar wedi gofyn amdano hefyd. A derbyn, am y tro, nad yw e’n debyg o ddigwydd, fel prif swyddog y gyfraith yng Nghymru i bob pwrpas, beth mae fe’n ei wneud ar hyn o bryd i ddelio â’r ffaith na fydd awdurdodaeth gyfreithiol ar wahân ac mi fydd, felly, problemau ac anawsterau’n codi yn sgil hynny? Beth mae’n ei wneud hefyd i baratoi, gyda phroffesiwn y gyfraith yng Nghymru, dros y pump i 10 mlynedd nesaf, i adeiladu’r achos drachefn ar gyfer awdurdodaeth, achos fe ddaw cyn bo hir mewn Bil Cymru arall?

The Member raises an extremely important point, and I probably have to concede that, at this stage, we are not going to get the establishment of the distinct Welsh jurisdiction that I’ve always thought was a reasonable transitional process. It was very interesting hearing the Lord Chief Justice’s evidence to the Justice Committee in Parliament, where he was asked about this issue. And, quite rightly, he said this was a political matter, but he did refer very specifically to the fact that there is a growing body of Welsh law, with significant legislation, such as the Housing (Wales) Act 2014, and other legislation. The issue of the jurisdiction poses increasing challenges. And, again, I think the net effect of all this is that there will, inevitably, be a distinct Welsh jurisdiction; I think it will, inevitably, lead to a separate jurisdiction at some stage in the future. The systems we have we can manage, for the time being, but we are clearly on a path to significant jurisdictional change.

I would just make the point that I’ve made a number of times, that there is a sort of mythology in the sort of status that has developed around the concept of the jurisdiction, which really bypasses the fact that the reason for wanting to create a jurisdictional basis for Welsh law is that it is, ultimately, about the efficient administration of justice. And that is why I think, inevitably, we are on that path, and we will be there. I take some comfort in the possibility of the establishment of a justice commission of some sort in the Wales Bill, and I think that will enable us to continue to look at that.

I think, also, developments in respect of the appointment of a president of tribunals and so on also gives an indication of the way in which the Welsh legislation is going, the administration of justice is going, and the way in which, ultimately, the jurisdictional issue is developing, and going.

Heb geisio perswadio y Cwnsler Cyffredinol i fynd i faes gwleidyddol, a fyddai o’n cytuno mai un o’r gwendidau mawr yn yr holl drafodaethau yr ydym ni wedi bod yn eu canol, yn enwedig yn yr ail Dŷ, ynglŷn â Bil Cymru, ydy amharodrwydd swyddogion cyfraith a Gweinidogion y Deyrnas Unedig i gyfnerthu a chysoni cyfansoddiad Cymru yn gliriach, ar gyfer pobl Cymru, ac ar gyfer gwleidyddion Cymru, ac, yn wir, ar gyfer pawb o ddinasyddion Cymru? Ac, a oes modd iddo fo, fel ein prif gyfreithiwr ni yng Nghymru, gynnal trafodaethau uniongyrchol gyda swyddogion cyfraith yng ngweddill y Deyrnas Unedig, ynglŷn â’r angen difrifol i ddod â chyfansoddiad Cymru o leiaf ychydig bach yn debycach yn ei eglurder i gyfansoddiad Gogledd Iwerddon a’r Alban?

Thank you for that question. And, again, I suppose I ought to repeat that, although meetings with law officers do take place, the subject of those meetings, for obvious reasons, remains confidential, other than, obviously, there are matters of mutual interest to discuss.

He raises, certainly, a point that is raised in the Law Commission’s report, which very much deals with issues around codification, and, I think, deals with the points that you’re raising with regard to the need for a clear framework and accessibility in respect of Welsh legislation. That is something that is very much under review at the moment, and I would hope to be able to make a statement at some time in the future on this very point.

The Member will know that this question, again, engages the established law officers’ convention. Nevertheless, I can assure the Member that the Welsh Government will work tirelessly to ensure that Wales’s position is protected, and that will, of course, involve very careful consideration of the likely impact of the UK Government’s Great Repeal Bill on Welsh legislation, and whether legislation by this Assembly would be appropriate.

Diolch am yr ateb hwnnw. Pa gamau y mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn eu cymryd i sicrhau bod deddfwriaeth yr Undeb Ewropeaidd sy’n berthnasol i’r meysydd sydd wedi eu datganoli yn cael eu trosglwyddo i Gymru?

Well, the Member will probably be aware that there’s extensive work under way, across the Welsh Government, to ensure that we maximise our influence in the discussions with the UK and, in turn, in formal EU negotiations, and thereby to secure the best possible outcome for Wales. The Cabinet sub-committee on European transition is providing strategic direction to the Welsh Government’s work relating to the UK’s exit from the EU, and, of course, a European advisory group has been established, comprising business people, politicians and others with European expertise, and this will advise on the wide-ranging impact on Wales of the UK’s exit from the EU and how we can overcome challenges and take opportunities to secure a prosperous future and a continued positive relationship for Wales with Europe.

I think I would also refer the Member to paragraph 10 of the legal submissions, which are online and which have been filed with the Supreme Court, because that, I believe, actually sets out our position—the Welsh Government’s position—in respect of some of those issues. Paragraph 10 of that submission says that a large number of the devolved functions of the Welsh Government derive from EU law, and will therefore be lost upon the UK’s withdrawal from the EU treaties. We then list a number of examples: for example, the designation of special areas of conservation, designations for the natural resources body for Wales emissions trading scheme. Welsh Ministers have also been designated as a competent authority under the nutrition and health claims, and there’s a whole raft of these competencies that Welsh Government and Welsh Ministers actually have, and those will actually disappear.

These functions will, to the extent that they are maintained or modified, require a new legislative base after the EU treaties cease to apply. The difficulty we have with the great repeal Bill at the moment is that we have actually no indication as to precisely how it would operate, what it might contain, but I think what is very clear in terms of our position is that the UK Government must recognise that any powers in the devolved fields currently held at EU level must be exercised at a devolved level, unless there was a clear and agreed reason for them to be held by the UK Government. And, in that event, there must be a mechanism for co-decision making in these areas.

Well, it will come as no surprise to the Counsel General that, as a member of the UK Independence Party, I obviously welcome the fact that the Prime Minister is working on a new Act of Parliament to repeal the iniquitous 1972 European Communities Act. However, to set UKIP’s position with regard to this, whilst we support the Act, we’re also adamant that it in no way rolls back the competencies of this Government, and that we in Wales must be free to change or amend any part of the Act that affects those areas devolved to this Assembly. Does the Counsel General agree with me that it is vital that we not only retain those competencies given to us, but we shall also be able to amend the devolved areas covered in the Act to best serve the Welsh people?

It is certainly the Welsh Government’s case that there should be no rolling back of those devolved areas, and those powers currently residing in Europe that relate to those devolved areas should be dealt with as I have outlined. So, I welcome the comments that the Member has made. I would urge him to go one step forward and actually support the concept of the rule of law in respect of the matters that are before the Supreme Court as well.

Members will know my advice is legally privileged. However, Members will know that the Human Rights Act is embedded in the Government of Wales Act 2006 and consequently impacts on legislation made by the Assembly and Welsh Ministers.

Thank you. The UK Government has indicated that it plans to abolish the Human Rights Act, and, Counsel General, you’ll be aware of Amnesty International’s campaign against this. Far from what its detractors will you have believe, the Act protects ordinary people’s freedom, safety and dignity, and helps people hold authority to account when things go wrong. Indeed, the Act was instrumental in aiding families of Hillsborough victims in finally finding the truth. Will you, Counsel General, outline the implications of the abolition of the Human Rights Act for us in Wales?

Thank you for the question, and, as has previously been set out by the First Minister in his evidence to the House of Lords EU Select Committee, the Welsh Government is fundamentally opposed to the repeal of the Human Rights Act 1998, and, similarly, to any withdrawal from the European Convention on Human Rights. The Human Rights Act affects the Welsh Ministers and the Assembly in two very direct ways. Firstly, they are public authorities for the purpose of the Human Rights Act 1998, which means that they cannot act in a way that is incompatible with convention rights. And, secondly, the Welsh Ministers are under a statutory duty by virtue of the Government of Wales Act 2006 not to act or to legislate incompatibly with the convention rights, so that any Assembly Bill provision is outside the Assembly’s competence if it is incompatible with convention rights. It is almost certain that imposing compliance with a British Bill of Rights on the Assembly will require the Assembly’s consent by a legislative consent motion.

Can I refer specifically to the Amnesty International campaign, which is a campaign I very much endorse, because the Human Rights Act has been something that has been grossly misrepresented by certain political organisations and parties? For me, it is a jewel in our constitution, in our legislative framework. It is very interesting, some of the points that have arisen in the Amnesty International campaign, and I was very disappointed to see that the posters were subsequently banned by Network Rail. But, just referring to the comments that were made, for example, by Becky Shah, whose mother died at Hillsborough, she said that:

‘Without the Human Rights Act we would never, ever have had the second inquest. Without the Human Rights Act we would never, ever have got the verdicts of unlawfully killed against all the parties that were culpable. It was an absolutely imperative piece of legislation.’

Again, the parents of John Robinson, who died in 2006 from a ruptured spleen, where, again, the issue of second inquest arose, where the family said that it was

‘fundamental to everyone, in all walks of life. It opens access to justice for the man in the street. From the outset, all we wanted to know was the truth, and we were denied that by an inadequate first inquest. Using the Human Rights Act helped us achieve our goal.

For me, my personal view and the view of the Welsh Government is one of opposition to it. The idea of supplanting the excellent Human Rights Act and the European Convention on Human Rights with a Bill of Rights, in my view, could do nothing other than probably lower the standards of human rights, and what would that say about the standing of the United Kingdom in the world—at the time, with everything that is happening, to be saying that our objective now is to lower the standard of human rights?

I refer the Member to the written statement published last Friday, attaching my written submissions to the court. As I’ve previously said, this case raises profound issues about the United Kingdom’s constitutional arrangements, and the legal framework for devolution. It’s right that Wales should be heard on those issues, and we will be putting our case at next week’s hearing.

Diolch am yr ateb, a chytunaf gyda’r rheswm bod Llywodraeth Cymru yn rhan o’r achos yma. Os ydw i wedi darllen y cynnig i’r Goruchaf Lys yn iawn, mae Llywodraeth Cymru o’r farn y dylid ‘trigger-o’ erthygl 50 drwy Fil gerbron Tŷ’r Cyffredin—dim cynnig neu bleidlais yn Nhŷ’r Cyffredin, ond Bil. Os felly, a ydych chi wedi ystyried y math o Fil a fyddai’n addas ar gyfer y broses yna? A fyddai’r Bil, er enghraifft, yn cynnwys darn penodol yn ymwneud â Chymru a deddfwriaeth Ewropeaidd sydd yn weithredol yng Nghymru a pharhad y ddeddfwriaeth yna? Ac a ydych chi o gwbl wedi trafod gyda swyddogion y gyfraith eraill sut y byddai Bil o’r fath yn gallu neilltuo amser i barchu penderfyniad pobl Prydain gyfan yn y refferendwm tra’n parchu hefyd lle’r Cynulliad hwn yn y broses ddemocrataidd?

The Member raises a very, very important point in that we do actually also have to think beyond the ultimate judgment. If the judgment is upheld, and it is necessary for Parliament to legislate, then further issues arise: firstly, in respect of the Sewel convention, in that the Bill will inevitably impact on the devolution settlement and we would have a voice at that stage. What I would hope—and, again, I think it’s the same comments that have been made by the First Minister from time to time—is that, at that stage, the UK Government will work to seek consensus from all the devolved Governments of the United Kingdom to work collectively for a common objective, ensuring that the voices of all parts of the United Kingdom are heard.

I welcome the robust stance of the Counsel General in making sure that the voice of Wales is heard at the Supreme Court. That’s right and proper, I feel strongly. Would he recognise that, in those areas of competences that he’s referred to, of course, is the very prominent area of competence in Wales of agriculture and rural development? Whilst it’s right that whatever comes out of the appeal hearing and the subsequent repeal Act should recognise where the competences lie, they should also recognise where the funding paths lie. Any suggestion that competences could remain here, but funding—or under some framework, these competences of funding—disappears up to the end of the M4, is frankly misguided and very dangerous for Wales.

I would certainly agree with what the Member says. Any suggestion that, on the one hand, a competency is laid with the Assembly within our devolved area but that the funding is then removed to another body, whether it would be to Westminster or wherever, raises very serious issues in respect of the rolling back of devolution, and a significant change in direction of the devolution settlement, and certainly, the undermining of the referendum that took place within Wales and the parliamentary process in respect of the Government of Wales Act, and also in respect of the current discussions and legislation going through Parliament in respect of the Wales Bill. So, I would totally reject that approach, and I would affirm that, with the responsibilities that come to Wales within the devolved framework, they should also bring the capacity to being able to carry out those responsibilities, which means the funding for those areas.

Thank you for the question. We continue to make representations. The proposed changes to civil litigation and small claims are likely to have serious impacts on people across Wales, and we are continuing to challenge the UK Government on reforms that restrict access to justice.

Thank you for that response. Do you, Counsel General, agree with me that this is a further step in restricting ordinary people’s rights and access to justice through the courts system?

The simple answer to that is ‘yes’. I’ll elaborate on it to the extent that we continue to make representations to the Ministry of Justice about its raft of reforms to the justice system to ensure that access to justice is available for everyone in society, including the most vulnerable. We have serious concerns about the quality of the evidence provided by the Ministry of Justice in support of its proposals to reform the process for soft tissue injury whiplash claims, which it is currently consulting on. Of course, last week, ‘The Law Society Gazette’ reported that data in the consultation paper was, in fact, out of date and could be potentially open to judicial review. So, we are pressing the UK Government to emphasise to it the importance of ensuring that the rights of all people are protected.

One of our concerns is that the proposal to increase the small claims limit from £1,000 to £5,000 would prevent many people who have suffered injury, losing the right to free legal advice. We are concerned about how robust the supporting evidence is. We’re also concerned about the basis on which this is pressing ahead, because one of the objectives with regard to the whiplash soft tissue injury aspect is to provide a cap on damages of £450, which is well below the existing small claims limit. So, if that was the objective, one would ask why this is actually taking place. Well, you have to look at it to see a more general direction that’s being taken, and that is to increase the small claims limit. One would ask why that is taking place and for whose benefit. What seemed to me to be very clear is that the insurance industry lobby is extremely powerful and is effectively promoting a series of reforms. The UK Government is consulting on those reforms. I would have to say that this is a battle that has been going on for a number of decades. Every reform that takes place results in injured people receiving less access to justice and the insurance industry increasing their profits. I have not yet seen a situation where there has been a reform that has reduced damages and has actually led to any reductions in insurance industry premiums. I think that is a concern if that is the potential outcome of these reforms. So, as I say, there is a consultation under way. The Welsh Government will be responding and we will be giving considerable thought to the content of that response to the consultation process.

As Counsel General, I have not yet had any specific discussions regarding promoting gender equality within the legal profession in Wales. However, equality is an important aspect of my desire that the legal sector in Wales is to be cherished and nurtured, supported and encouraged to innovate and grow, but is also representative of the society in which it operates.

I thank the Counsel General for that response. Statistics from the Bar Standards Board show that, amongst barristers, the gender balance is almost equal in terms of barristers being called to the bar. But, by the time it comes to practising as a barrister, there is a huge difference, with almost twice as many men as women actually practising as barristers. What is the Counsel General’s view as to what can be done to tackle this issue in the legal profession?

Whilst not, perhaps, directly relevant to the question, the Welsh Government has made representations in these areas, in particular about the composition of the Supreme Court. The issue has also been raised by the Judicial Appointments Commission itself and by a number of justices themselves. The Member may well be aware of some of the comments made by Baroness Hale, the sole woman on the Supreme Court. There are some data that the Members may be interested in: there are 108 high court judges and, of them, 21 are women and three come from an ethnic minority background. In the Supreme Court, of 12, there is only one female, and that is Baroness Hale. They are predominantly white, male, privately educated and, in general, unrepresentative. Under way at the moment are considerations of appointments of a number of deputy High Court judges and High Court judges. There is one Supreme Court judge to be replaced, and five to be replaced in due course over the next couple of years due to retirements. Of course, Lady Justice Hale said that the UK Supreme Court should be ashamed if it doesn’t increase diversity. What she also said, of course, is that, of the 13 appointments over the decade that she has sat, all but two were from Oxford or Cambridge, and all but three went to boys boarding schools.

The point, I think, that the Member is making, of course, is that our judicial system, to have the confidence of the people, should be representative of the people. I think it is very clear that, not only in terms of the representations made by the Welsh Government, but within the Judicial Appointments Commission itself and within the legal sector itself, there is a recognition that there is a need for far greater diversity. The UK has one of the lowest proportions of female judges in Europe, and this is something that has to be addressed. We also have to pay some attention, I think, to the actual legal profession itself, because, from start to finish, the number of female lawyers is where the judges are ultimately selected from. So, we have to ask why the system has failed up to now. If we look at the Queen’s Counsel system, only 13 per cent of those are women. So, there are significant issues that, I think, have been recognised but are hopefully going to be addressed, and are very much in line with the thinking of Welsh Government and representations from Welsh Government itself.

Diolch i’r Cwnsler Cyffredinol.

Rwyf wedi derbyn tri cwestiwn brys o dan Reol Sefydlog 12.66, ac rwy’n galw ar Bethan Jenkins i ofyn y cwestiwn brys cyntaf.

Yes. I had a meeting today with the management team of Trinity Mirror South Wales, where I raised this worrying matter and expressed my concern at the proposal to close the Cardiff printing press.

Thank you. You’ll appreciate that, as Chair of the Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee, I have an interest in this particular area, given that we will be carrying out more work as a committee over the next five years into looking at the landscape of the media in Wales and the retention and development of journalists, and the work that surrounds journalists here in Wales. We were told when they opened this new printing press around 13 years ago that they would be able to secure more printing jobs as a result of this new set-up, as opposed to fewer possibilities for the future. So, can you tell me, as part of your discussions with them, why this turnaround has come about, how the staff in Cardiff will be supported, and where will those Welsh daily and weekly newspapers be printed in future? I would have thought, with the acquisition of Local World, which the ‘South Wales Evening Post’ is part of in my region, that there would be more of a case for that printing press to be retained and sustained in Wales so that we can see a future for journalism.

My final question in all of this is: what are your concerns, therefore, if this is a printing press that is leaving Wales, and how does this speak for the future of journalism in Wales when we are already suffering from a democratic deficit here?

Can I thank the Member for her questions and say that I couldn’t agree more with her concerns? I also recognise the important work of her committee and the increasing importance that it will take in the coming years in analysing the media landscape and the important role that the print media plays. This proposal is currently out to consultation and I will be responding formally.

Unfortunately, as the Member may be aware, it is not a decision that is being taken here in Wales locally or by the Media Wales team. Instead, it’s being taken by another company within the Trinity Mirror group. So, I’ll be making direct representation to that company, in which I’ll be seeking assurance over the future employment of those people who would be affected if closure goes ahead. It’s my understanding, based on the discussions that I had with the local team today, that printing would be concentrated and consolidated in three presses in England, those being Watford, Birmingham and Oxford, which is clearly unacceptable given the significance of the newspapers that are currently printed in Cardiff to south Wales.

Now, unfortunately, there is a trend in consolidating printing presses across the UK, and we’re witnessing this as sales of newspapers fall and activity instead moves towards an online presence. That said, it is absolutely essential—and the member will recognise that this is a long-standing argument—that the print media recognises a need to be realistic in the profits that it expects to return in the twenty-first century. In being more realistic, it should take greater account of those people who are employed in printing and in journalism within those newspaper groups, whether they are owned by Welsh companies or owned by British companies.

Diolch i’r Ysgrifennydd Cabinet.

Rydw i’n galw ar Adam Price i ofyn yr ail gwestiwn brys.

Yes, I firmly believe our steel industry has a sustainable future in Wales, and we are fully committed to doing all we can to achieve this. However, we will not respond to media speculation as Tata explores options for the future of the plants in Wales.

The Cabinet Secretary’s obviously referring to the very worrying report from Reuters yesterday based on an e-mail circulating among the trade unions and other sources. Could he say at what point he was aware of the possible proposal to close one of the two blast furnaces at Port Talbot and if he raised this in his letter to the new interim chair of Tata, Ratan Tata? Could he also say: the First Minister has previously indicated that, in the absence of sufficient long-term guarantees to primary steel production, the Welsh Government would ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to intervene to prevent a merger under his public interest powers—is that still the position of the Welsh Government? The Cabinet Secretary has previously referred to the need for a long-term guarantee. Can he state on the record that three years absolutely would not be a sufficient guarantee? The report referred to Tata and ThyssenKrupp taking a minority stake and the possibility of a third investor. Would the Welsh Government, in conjunction with the UK Government, be prepared to be that third investor, subject to appropriate guarantees? Finally, if all these avenues fail and acceptable guarantees are not forthcoming from Tata and ThyssenKrupp, would he, as a last resort, be prepared to temporarily nationalise Port Talbot, as the Welsh Government will be able to do, according to analysis by the House of Commons Library, under the terms of the Wales Bill currently before Parliament?

Can I thank the Member for his question and say that I do understand the concerns that will have been presented as a consequence of recent media reports? But there are many, many reports that are circulating at the moment, including some that are more positive. I reflect on one just on Friday, for example, in ‘The Guardian’ that suggested that Tata was looking imminently at announcing that all 11,000 jobs would be secure for at least a decade. I therefore think it’s not the role of Welsh Government to provide a running commentary on media speculation, but instead to stand firm in the position that we take in terms of potential intervention.

The Member is absolutely right to say that three years of guarantees would be insufficient. We share that view. We have been, as the Member is aware, in discussions with Tata for some time regarding a significant package of support that would be compliant with European state aid rules. That support would be conditional on Tata agreeing to certain criteria. It would go beyond three years, it would include at least two blast furnaces being operated, and it would also include local management control, which in turn would then enable the UK and Welsh steel interests in Tata to identify new market opportunities and also to develop new products and innovation that would put it on a sustainable footing for the future.

It’s my firm belief that the best assurance of sustainability for Tata is the development of a competitive business, which in turn requires investment in research and innovation and in modernisation of those plants that are contained within the UK Tata Steel family. The Member raises the question of actions that could be taken by the UK Government in regard to a potential merger and I would say that the UK Government should do all it can to secure the long-term production of steel in the UK. It is unfortunate that, in the autumn statement, insufficient regard was paid to immediate action and intervention that could be taken, but I think the Member is right to say that the UK Government should consider all of the levers at its disposal to ensure that there is security of employment at Tata Steel sites right across Wales and indeed the UK.

In terms of the support that we would offer, as I say, we would expect the conditions to include more than three years—as a very minimum, five years—but also the guarantee of at least two blast furnaces. I’m confident, as I say, that the direction of travel that’s been taken by the steel sector in Wales is one that we can be proud of in the last 12 months. All steel manufacturing sites are showing positive results but, within the Tata family, I think the journey that has been taken as part of the bridge has been incredibly impressive and bodes well for the future.

Can I thank the Cabinet Secretary for that set of answers, because I think it’s important that the steelworkers and people in my community understand the strong position the Welsh Government is taking on this position? Since the start of 2016, we’ve heard very bad news. It started with job losses, then the possible closures. Steelworkers in Port Talbot, their families and their whole communities have been living with a sword over their heads for this whole 12-month period. The speculation—from positive news on Friday to less positive news yesterday—is not doing any good to the morale of the workers or their families. It’s important we get clarity on the position of the steelworks and the future of our steelworks.

In that sense, can I join Adam Price in saying: will you be making strong representations to the UK Government to ensure they take positive action? I’ve yet to hear Theresa May actually say anything positive about steel making. It’s about time she did and about time she committed to the UK steel industry. That is important—and therefore Greg Clark similarly—to ensure that we have a strong voice here and the UK Government is prepared to back it up, because they control issues on pensions, and it’s been known that the Tata joint venture discussions with ThyssenKrupp are dependent on the pensions being resolved. So that’s an important area. It’s also about energy costs, to show that there is a future for steel making. But perhaps you can go a bit further than the UK Government and actually seek a meeting with Ratan Tata to actually say to him directly how this affects communities and the steelworkers, and the commitment they have given to the industry across recent months, and that they should be rewarded for that commitment and not punished through all this speculation.

I couldn’t agree more with the Member. I think he speaks eloquently about the need to capture security at a time when media speculation is causing something of a rollercoaster ride of emotions within many families and households that rely on the steel sector. And I will most certainly be requesting a meeting with Ratan Tata to follow up my letter to him, which was sent yesterday. The meeting that I had with the chief executive back at the end of September was very positive, but I do wish to ensure that our message is conveyed at every opportunity to the highest level of Tata management: that we are ready to support them if they are prepared and ready to make the right decision. I will be meeting tomorrow with the Secretary of State for Wales, where I will relay the message from both sides of the Chamber that it is essential the UK Government acts where it knows it can to secure the long-term sustainability of the steel sector in Great Britain, and especially in Wales.

Thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your answers to Adam Price and David Rees, and thank you also for what I’m now taking to be your definition of what a sustainable future for steel might mean, which includes the retaining of the two blast furnaces and longer than three years in terms of the support that you’re prepared to provide. If it emerges that a guarantee can’t be given to save both blast furnaces and won’t be given to secure more than three years’ sustained investment, does that mean that you will be reducing the support that you’ve already committed to giving Tata Steel? In your answer to me in questions in July, you indicated that any Welsh Government support to Tata was conditional on sustaining jobs and sustainable steel production for the short and long term, but also that you would work with any alternative buyer—and, of course, the potential of ThyssenKrupp isn’t one that appeals to all of us—but that you would work with them if they would guarantee a sustainable future for the Welsh steel industry. So, if that guarantee doesn’t end up being given, does that mean that existing support will be reduced?

Secondly, I appreciate what you say, that you don’t want to respond to every single press release, but I’m intrigued to know what’s the letter that which you wrote yesterday. Obviously, you’re seeking reassurances on what we’ve heard recently, but are you also seeking reassurances that the press speculation of a $500 million investment in the plant would be forthcoming?

And then, finally, as my other questions have already been answered, last week, or the week before, in response to the question raised by Bethan Jenkins, you indicated that the 49 new full-time job equivalents that had been announced for Tata were part of a strategic plan from Tata in terms of employment, rather than just doing a bit of backfilling or emergency cover. And I’m wondering whether the press speculation that we’ve heard today about job losses seems to contradict that comment. Perhaps you could just give us some clarification on that.

Well, it would seem to contradict it. What we do know—. The facts are that there is a strategic plan at the Port Talbot site and, as a consequence, a significant—more than four-dozen people were, or are, in the process of being recruited directly by Tata in Port Talbot. I am happy to publish my letter to Ratan Tata once he has received it, and I would hope that it will be received, if not today, then in the coming days, so that Members are aware of the assurance that I have given him of our position in being willing and ready and determined to work with Tata to secure the long-term future of Port Talbot and the other steel sites in Wales.

The Member raises a question about hypothetical scenarios whereby Tata might seek only three years of conditions. We’ve said our minimum is five years. That is an absolute minimum. And we are still in contact with other potential interests, including, for example, Excalibur. And our position is: we will work with others if others can secure the long-term future of Port Talbot and the other steel facilities across Wales.

Thank you, Cabinet Secretary. I’m particularly concerned about the pension scheme, as has been mentioned previously in this debate. Tata bought Corus, as you will know, for more than it was worth and just before a recession, and it should have done the due diligence and known the liabilities, although those of us who have been involved in other pension issues such as the Visteon pensioner campaign will know that even a £700 million deficit in a scheme with obligations of £15 billion is really not all that great, and less so now that it is claimed to be just £50 million. Do you agree with me, then, that this is what makes ThyssenKrupp’s involvement so galling? Here is a company where a €9.7 billion pension scheme is two thirds wholly underfunded. That’s according to Bloomberg, which also said that the German group

‘makes more money with elevators than it does selling steel.’

Does the Welsh Government really want a company with a pension underfunding of more than €6 billion and such weak growth attaching itself to Welsh steel, and has it spoken to Tata Steel specifically about these issues?

I thank the Member for the question. I’ll say my concern is the long-term employment of the people who work in the steel sector, and as far as pensions are concerned, Tata has restated that it is seeking a solution for the British Steel pension scheme. Again, we’d urge all parties towards achieving a satisfactory solution that is in the best interest of all members of the scheme.

Diolch i’r Ysgrifennydd Cabinet.

Cyn i mi alw am y trydydd cwestiwn brys, rwyf eisiau atgoffa Aelodau o’r rheol sub judice. Os oes achos troseddol neu achos ger bron rheithgor ar waith, yna mae Rheol Sefydlog 13.15 yn gwahardd trafodaeth yn y Siambr yma. Rhaid i Aelodau felly sicrhau eu hunain cyn siarad na fyddant yn mynd ar ôl materion a fyddai’n tramgwyddo’r Rheol Sefydlog yma. Rwy’n galw nawr, felly, ar Russell George i ofyn y trydydd cwestiwn brys.

I thank the Member for his question. North Wales Police issued a statement about historical sex abuse within football. They confirmed they are working with the ongoing Operation Hydrant. I would encourage members of the public who have any knowledge of abuse of children or young people to contact the police.

Can I thank you, Cabinet Secretary, for your response? At the moment, of course, this is very much commenting on historical cases of abuse, and it’s clear today that most people involved—the majority of people involved—in football coaching are there for the right reasons, and do a great job with young people and society as a whole. I think it’s important that we say that today. I would ask the Cabinet Secretary what enquiries he has made in discussions he has held with the football governing body in Wales since the scandal first emerged two weeks ago, and what measures, investigations and support will be offered by the Government and the various football bodies in Wales to support any individuals involved, and ensure that justice is delivered.

Thank you for your question. My officials are in contact with the Football Association of Wales and football in the community trusts to ensure action can be taken as and when required. Whilst policing is a non-devolved matter, the Welsh Government is determined to learn lessons and prevent a further repeat of any child sexual abuse, and we applaud the courage of players who’ve come forward to expose the harrowing acts committed against them and acknowledge how difficult this was for them and their families. The Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 will help ensure that local safeguarding partners are supported by more robust leadership and a stronger, more effective framework for multi-agency co-operation in this space.

Rwy’n cytuno ei bod hi’n bwysig ein bod ni’n canmol dewrder yr unigolion sydd yn siarad mas yn yr achosion yma ac, wrth gwrs, mi ddangosodd ymchwiliad Waterhouse i ni yn y flwyddyn 2000 nad oedd plant bryd hynny wedi cael eu credu, ac nad oedd pobl wedi gwrando arnyn nhw. Beth wnaeth hynny, wrth gwrs, oedd gosod chwyddwydr ar wasanaethau eiriolaeth yma yng Nghymru, sydd yn rhan bwysig iawn, iawn o’r ddarpariaeth yn y cyd-destun yma. Ers hynny, rydym wedi cael llu o adroddiadau—tri gan bwyllgorau blaenorol yn y Cynulliad yma, pedwar gan gomisiynwyr plant blaenorol hefyd—yn mynegi gofid am wasanaethau eiriolaeth yma yng Nghymru. Ond rŷm ni nawr, wrth gwrs, fel rwy’n gwybod y bydd yr Ysgrifennydd Cabinet yn cytuno, yn edrych ymlaen ac yn gobeithio’n fawr y bydd yr ‘approach’ cenedlaethol yma i wasanaethau eiriolaeth statudol yn dod i’w le y flwyddyn nesaf. Ond a fyddech chi yn cydnabod, serch hynny, nad ŷm ni wedi cael yr arweiniad strategol angenrheidiol gan Lywodraethau olynol yma yng Nghymru ar hyn? Oherwydd mae aros dros 10 mlynedd i gyrraedd y pwynt lle rŷm ni wedi cyrraedd—ac nid ydym yn dal, wrth gwrs, mewn sefyllfa lle mae’r ‘approach’ cenedlaethol yma yn ei le—yn annerbyniol.

I thank the Member for his question. I have recently met with the children’s commissioner and with the WLGA and the director of social services to discuss the issue of the advocacy service. I am aware of the Assembly committee doing an inquiry into this and I have been given confidence by those authorities that they will have a service of advocacy in place by the end of June next year.

Diolch i’r Ysgrifennydd Cabinet.

Yr eitem nesaf ar ein hagenda ni yw’r datganiadau 90 eiliad. Steffan Lewis.

Diolch, Lywydd. I thought it fitting in the week when Wales hosted the British-Irish Parliamentary Assembly that this National Assembly take a moment to recognise the bond between Wales and Ireland, and the significant contribution made to Welsh life by Irish people. The flow of people between Wales and Ireland spans millennia and, of course, led to a Welshman becoming their patron saint. Of course, not all visits over the years from across the Irish sea were of a friendly nature, and not all were universally welcomed here. Indeed, notable Welsh figures such as Iolo Morganwg lamented the arrival of Irish people to the shores of Pembrokeshire and Anglesey following the rebellion of 1798.

The most notable migration of Irish people to Wales, of course, occurred in the context of the horrors of the great famine, ‘an gorta mór’, where the hungry came for food and for life itself. A memorial stands in Cathays cemetery today, recognising those who fled that famine and as a mark of remembrance to the hundreds of thousands who perished.

The Irish community have enriched Welsh life, providing us with sportspeople, artists, workers, friends, and even a health Minister, and 2016 marks the centenary of the Irish proclamation of independence, a period and an event in which Wales featured. Irish prisoners of war were held at Frongoch camp, and it is said that two Welsh soldiers facilitated the escape of Irish rebels, Ernie O’Malley, Frank Teeling and Simon Donnelly from Kilmainham gaol in 1920. As their centenary year comes to its end, it is fitting, Llywydd, that we recognise the contribution of Irish people to our nation, and commit ourselves to strengthen the bonds between our two countries in the years to come. Diolch.

Janet Finch-Saunders.

Diolch, Lywydd. Tinnitus—not often mentioned here in the Senedd. Its impact debilitating, and the consequences can be devastating. Last year, James Ivor Jones, a much-loved member of my local community, took his own life in a tragic way after struggling with tinnitus for six months. His son describes his suffering as unbearable, and he sadly now suffers with the condition.

It is, though, often unrecognised, undiagnosed and underestimated. Often described as a ringing in the ears, sounds heard can include buzzing, humming, grinding, hissing, whistling and sizzling, and in some cases actually beating in time with a person’s heart, having a significant negative impact on day-to-day life, leading to sleeping problems and severe depression to 60 per cent of sufferers. Treatment, when available, includes sound therapy, counselling, cognitive behavioural therapy, and tinnitus retraining therapy. There is no single treatment that works for everyone, and diagnosis at a very early stage is considered crucial.

Action on Hearing Loss Cymru have highlighted that there is a postcode lottery for diagnosis and treatment here in Wales. I am speaking up today to call on the Welsh Government and all Assembly Members to become more aware of this illness, and would ask you to commit to an increased awareness, focus, and support early access to early diagnostics intervention and help for those suffering. Thank you.

Eluned Morgan.

All around Wales there are care homes, hospital wards and communities where people live without creativity, inspiration or hope for the future. Reported levels of loneliness and mental health are spiralling. I was the former chair of Live Music Now in Wales, a role now undertaken by the former Presiding Officer, Rosemary Butler. This is a charity that sends and funds high-quality musicians to play to people who don’t usually have access to live music. The organisation focuses in particular on working in care and nursing homes and in special schools, and I can testify to the fact that the experience of being exposed to the arts for residents is truly transformational.

The Welsh Assembly’s new cross-party arts and health working group, in collaboration, where appropriate, with the Arts Council of Wales, is in a unique position to bring these two worlds of the arts and health together. The group has written to both the health Secretary and the culture Secretary to ask for help in funding a study to prepare an evidence-based report where efforts would be made to collate the information and great work that’s already being undertaken in Wales to help justify a shift of funding from health to the arts and, where necessary, to do more pointed research in order to harden the evidence needed.

In care homes, the value of creative interaction is underrated, in particular in fields like dementia. Participation in the arts and music by older people can significantly improve their quality of life and mental health, and we believe that providing exposure to the arts is more cost-effective than popping pills. We hope that a dedicated piece of work commissioned on the subject will justify our position and help to make the case for shifting a proportion of that funding from health to the arts with a view to improving health and well-being outcomes for the people of Wales.

Thank you for your 120-second statement. [Laughter.] Diolch.

Yr eitem nesaf ar yr agenda yw’r datganiad gan Gadeirydd y Pwyllgor Safonau Ymddygiad, ac rwy’n galw ar Gadeirydd y pwyllgor, Jayne Bryant.

Diolch, Lywydd. Today is Gerard Elias QC’s last day in office as the commissioner for standards. I would like to thank him for all his hard work in establishing this landmark role over the last six years and welcome his successor, Sir Roderick Evans QC, to the position of commissioner for standards.

Gerard Elias was appointed in 2010 following the passing of the National Assembly for Wales Commissioner for Standards Measure 2009. He was an excellent appointment for the Assembly, bringing his wide range of experience, having worked in the legal profession for over 40 years. His strong commitment to public service led him to having held a number of public appointments. These include a deputy High Court judge, recorder and former leader of the Wales and Chester circuit, chancellor of the diocese of Swansea and Brecon, chairman of the England and Wales Cricket Board’s Cricket Discipline Commission and chairman of Sports Resolutions UK.

The Measure of 2009 sought to ensure the National Assembly for Wales had a commissioner for standards able to promote high standards in public life among Assembly Members; had the powers to establish him or her to investigate complaints rigorously; and, finally, a commissioner who was clearly independent of the Assembly and therefore able to act with complete objectivity. These are all matters of great significance to ensure that the people of Wales have confidence in their elected Members.

During his tenure, Gerard Elias has aspired to and achieved the aim of the Assembly being a beacon of standards in public life. He’s established a well-respected, independent office and shaped his role to ensure that there is confidence in the standards of the Assembly. I believe he has taken a measured and balanced attitude to managing complaints and engaged in constructive conversations across the board, from Assembly Members to the wider public, about reasoning for his decisions and those who brought forward complaints.

This pragmatic and approachable style has been valued by Assembly Members and all those who have worked with him. Alongside his work on complaints, he’s been a source of salient advice to the standards committee, particularly during the fourth Assembly’s review of the code of conduct and associated guidance, which culminated in the compendium document that was issued to all Members at the beginning of the fifth Assembly. Of particular note was his work to ensure that the Assembly had adequate sanctions and appropriate sanctions if a transgression by a Member occurs and his updating of the requirements for the declaration and registration of interests, which has brought more clarity and transparency to the system.

These changes made here have helped to ensure that the rules governing the Assembly standards are fit for purpose in the changing context of devolution. Furthermore, Gerard Elias instituted the biennial standards commissioner lecture on standards in public life, which broadcast to Wales that standards in public life do matter. Having secured two Lord Chief Justices in office to attend was a real achievement and an excellent innovation for the Assembly. This is an initiative I understand the new commissioner intends to continue.

I’m also delighted to take this opportunity to welcome Sir Roderick Evans QC to the role of commissioner for standards. I’m sure Members will agree that he’s an excellent appointment. Sir Roderick is a retired High Court judge and, in addition to a distinguished legal career, is also a fellow of Aberystwyth, Swansea and Bangor universities, a fellow of the Learned Society of Wales and was welcomed into the Gorsedd of the Bards in 2002. During his comprehensive recruitment procedure, Sir Roderick attended a public confirmation hearing at a meeting of the fourth Assembly. At this hearing, he comprehensively set out his vision for the future of standards in the Assembly and his approach to the potential challenges during this Assembly and beyond. His appointment was unanimously confirmed by the fourth Assembly.

The role that Sir Roderick is taking on is still relatively new and continually evolving. Undoubtedly, there will be challenges to ensure that the Assembly maintains the high levels of standards achieved thus far, not least as the committee starts its review of lobbying and identifies those areas that need further guidance and advice. The committee is looking forward to working with Sir Roderick to support him in building the office of commissioner for standards further, and to uphold the high standards of the National Assembly for Wales.

I’m sure all Members will join me in welcoming Sir Roderick to the post and thanking Gerard Elias for all the hard work he’s done in developing the role of commissioner and upholding the standards of the Assembly. [Assembly Members: ‘Hear, hear.’]

A gaf i ddiolch i’r Cadeirydd am ei datganiad a’i chroesawu hi, wrth gwrs, i’w rôl? Dyma’i datganiad ffurfiol cyntaf i’r Cynulliad yma ac rwy’n diolch iddi am hynny ac yn edrych ymlaen at gydweithio â hi fel aelod o’r pwyllgor. A gaf innau hefyd ategu’r diolch i Gerard Elias QC, fel y clywsom ni wedi’i benodi yn 2010? Fel aelod o bwyllgor safonau’r Cynulliad diwethaf, mi allaf i dystiolaethu i’r ffaith ei fod e wedi bod yn hyrwyddo’r safonau uchel rŷm ni i gyd yn ymgyrraedd tuag atyn nhw. Y mae wedi bod yn ffigwr annibynnol ei feddwl, wrth gwrs, ond hefyd yn gwbl wrthrychol ei ystyriaethau o’r achosion sydd wedi bod ger ein bron ni, ac mae’n dyled ni, fel Aelodau ac, yn wir, fel cymdeithas yn ehangach, iddo fe yn fawr iawn yn hynny o beth.

Mi gyfeirioch chi at adolygiad y pedwerydd Cynulliad o’r cod ymddygiad a’r canllawiau cysylltiedig â hynny, a, do, mi arweiniodd hynny at ddogfen grynodeb sydd wedi cael ei chyflwyno i bob Aelod o’r pumed Cynulliad yma. Mae hynny’n gyfraniad gwerthfawr, rwy’n meddwl, i sicrhau’r ymddygiad a’r safonau uchel y mae pawb yn eu disgwyl, ond yn gwneud hynny, wrth gwrs—ie, mewn modd cyhyrog, ond heb fod yn anymarferol na’n afresymol o feichus. Mi fyddwn i’n gofyn ichi, Gadeirydd, wrth edrych ymlaen, mai taro’r cydbwysedd yna sydd yn bwysig, hynny yw bod disgwyliadau o ran safonau’n gymesur, wrth gwrs, i’r lefel o risg sydd yna, a bod angen cyfundrefn sydd yn effeithiol ac yn gyhyrog, ond ar yr un pryd, wrth gwrs, yn ymarferol ac yn un sydd yn rhesymol i’w gweithredu.

Mi fyddwn i hefyd yn ategu’ch croeso chi i Syr Roderick Evans QC i’w rôl ef. Cefais gyfle i’w holi e fel rhan o’r broses o gadarnhau’r penodiad, ac rwy’n gwbl hyderus y bydd e nid yn unig yn parhau â’r gwaith da sydd wedi cael ei wneud yn y blynyddoedd diwethaf, ond wrth gwrs yn adeiladu ar waith ei ragflaenydd.

Mae’r rôl, fel y dywedoch chi, yn dal i esblygu, fel y mae’r sefydliad yma, wrth gwrs, yn dal i esblygu, ac mi fydd yna heriau o’n blaenau ni ac mae’n rhaid inni beidio â llaesu dwylo. Rwy’n siŵr y byddwch chi’n cytuno â fi mai proses barhaus yw gwarchod safonau mewn sefydliad fel hwn. A gaf i, efallai, ofyn i chi os ydych chi’n cytuno y bydd datganoli pwerau ychwanegol, yn enwedig, efallai, pwerau’n ymwneud â threthu, yn tanlinellu ymhellach yr angen i barhau â’r gwaith yma o warchod safonau yn wyneb beth ddaw, mae’n debyg, yn sgil mwy o bwerau, mwy o ddiddordebau a dylanwadau allanol a mwy o lobïo, a’i bod yn bwysig ein bod yn parhau i sicrhau bod y safonau uchaf yn cael eu gosod o dan y comisiynydd newydd, wrth i ni symud yn ein blaenau?

Thank you very much, Llyr. I really appreciate your kind words as well at the start, so thank you very much. I think the commissioner, Gerard Elias, has sort of got into me straight away about the need for vigilance, but also proportionality, so I think the committee hears that loud and clear. And, as you quite rightly say, with the new powers that are coming to the Assembly, those key words are really important—that we continue to be vigilant always, and to be proportionate.

Can I also welcome the statement from the Chair of the Standards of Conduct Committee on the incoming standards commissioner? The commissioner plays, of course, a very key role in aspiring to achieve the highest possible standards from us as Assembly Members, so that the public can have confidence in their elected representatives. I think we’ve been fortunate to have had an excellent standards commissioner in Gerard Elias QC, and I think he’s done an exceptional job, always thoroughly objective and independent in the way that he’s conducted himself as well. I’ve no doubt whatsoever that Sir Roderick Evans QC will continue in that vein, and I want to, on behalf of the Welsh Conservatives, also welcome his appointment. I’ve no doubt that he will be also very exceptional.

I think it is crucial that the new commissioner’s remit is firmly established in order for him to fully understand the breadth of his role, and so I would appreciate knowing whether you as Chair of the committee feel that it is time, perhaps, to reflect on the scope of the role of the commissioner to see whether, because of the changing arrangements in this Assembly, there may be an opportunity to refresh that in some way.

Of course, the standards committee is also there to hold the commissioner to account, and we all have an opportunity to have a look at the commissioner’s annual report. But I wonder whether there might be additional opportunities to monitor the work of the commissioner and his office in the future, and whether the standards committee may have some additional opportunities to be able to do that, perhaps in a little more depth.

I’m sure the Chair will agree with me that it’s important that the new commissioner has a strong engagement with Assembly Members from the very start. Obviously, none of us in this Chamber want to see him too often, I’m sure, for all sorts of reasons. But, it is important to have a good rapport and an understanding of each other’s respective roles, and I wonder whether there might be an opportunity for the Chair of the committee to arrange for Assembly Members to be able to do just that in the future.

We’ve also got to make sure, of course, that there’s transparency in the work of the commissioner, and that the regulations and the code of conduct are constantly under review, and that they are understandable by Assembly Members, the commissioner and, indeed, members of the public. I wonder whether there may be, again, an opportunity for the committee to look at these things in the round, particularly in terms of public engagement and understanding the role of the commissioner, if they want to make complaints, for example.

I think that the way that Assembly Members, at all levels, engage with their constituents continues to change. There’s far more done by social media, for example, now than there was 10 years ago when I was first elected to this institution. And, as a result of that, I think it’s very wise that we constantly keep things under review. But I do very much hope that the new commissioner, in undertaking his role, will consider that part of our work, in particular going forward, to see whether there may be any changes necessary to the code of conduct in order that they can reflect the new landscape of communications, if you like. But just to put on record again my thanks to Gerard Elias, and the warm welcome that we want to give to Sir Roderick Evans.

Thank you very much for the warm welcome to Sir Roderick, and your kind words again about Gerard Elias, because I think it’s great to have all parties on the same page on this, because he has done a fantastic job.

I think you raise a really interesting point about the need to look at the role in the future, and I’m happy, along with colleagues on the standards committee, that we can have a discussion about that. I’m keen that we do keep up to date and follow things through appropriately. Your point about transparency is absolutely crucial, and, again, that’s an area where we feel strongly that we have to be vigilant. And the point again about social media: as you said, this role has changed incredibly over the last few years, and it is really important that we uphold those standards through social media as well.

Can I also add my congratulations to the Chair of the standards committee on the excellent way that you delivered your first statement to the Chamber? That also reflects the way that you’re running the committee in general anyway. Okay. Being new to the standards committee, I had little time to get to know Gerard Elias personally. However, I’m very aware of the legacy he’s left from his time in office, not least in his input into the compilation of Standing Orders—the Standing Orders rulebook. This is, of course, an invaluable asset to any newcomer to the Assembly, as well as giving first-class guidance to established AMs and Assembly staff. In my short time as an Assembly Member, I have come to realise the high regard in which Gerard Elias is held by all those involved in the Welsh Assembly. His legacy is sure to be a lasting one.

Can I also now turn to Gerard Elias’s successor, Sir Roderick Evans? It shows the growing stature of this Assembly that we’ve been able to secure the services of a person of such high standing. I’m sure he will bring as many attributes to the role, with an independence and authority that is so important to our democracy. I am equally sure that all in the Assembly, and particularly those of us in the standards committee, welcome him wholeheartedly to his new role. I know that the role of the standards committee will change over the coming years, but I’m equally satisfied that the Chair will lead us very competently in that role.

Thank you very much, again, for your kind words on that as well. And, like you, I’d like to echo the points about the compendium, because as a new Member myself, I’m very grateful to have everything in one place. So, we’re looking forward to working with the new commissioner. He’s already come to the committee on a number of occasions, so he’s going to ensure a smooth transition as well. So, thanks very much.

Thank you to the Chair. I see Gerard Elias in the public gallery. You’re too far away from me for me to work out whether you’ve been blushing at all the praise bestowed on you. But if I may echo the thanks that have been expressed this afternoon from all parts of the Chamber, on behalf of all of us, for the quality of the work that you’ve undertaken on our behalf, and wish you well for the future. Diolch yn fawr. [Applause.]

Ac rydym yn awr yn symud ymlaen i ddadl Plaid Cymru, ac rwy’n galw ar Adam Price i wneud y cynnig.