Contributions

157 contributions on record, and 7 chaired, counted apart. Newest first, by sitting day. Page 3 of 4. Counted by Siambr

  1. on the clip

    9. Debate: The First Supplementary Budget 2026-27

    Welsh Cabinet Minister for Finance

    Lywydd, dwi'n cyflwyno'r cynnig ac agor y ddadl ar gyllideb atodol gyntaf Llywodraeth Cymru ar gyfer 2026-27. Y gyllideb atodol yma yw ein cyfle cyntaf i gynnig newidiadau i gyllideb lawn y flwyddyn hon a dechrau'r broses bwysig o sicrhau bod y gwariant yn cyd-fynd â'n blaenoriaethau fel Llywodraeth newydd. Rŷn ni'n canolbwyntio, felly, ar gyfres wedi'i thargedu o ddyraniadau adnoddau a chyfalaf ychwanegol. Bydd hyn yn ein galluogi i wneud cynnydd cyflym ar ein blaenoriaethau pwysicaf fel Llywodraeth, gan ddangos hefyd fod arian yn cael ei reoli'n ddarbodus a bod yna sefydlogrwydd i wasanaethau cyhoeddus a phartneriaid. Law yn llaw â hyn, fel sy'n arferol mewn cyllidebau atodol, mae'r gyllideb yn gwneud addasiadau ffurfiol i'r lefel gyffredinol o adnoddau sydd ar gael i Gymru yn sgil datganiad y gwanwyn a phrif amcanion Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol ar gyfer y flwyddyn ariannol yma. Mae hefyd yn cynnwys ail ddatganiad o gyllideb derfynol eleni i adlewyrchu'r portffolios gweinidogol newydd. Mae cynnig cyllideb atodol gyntaf yn fecanwaith cynnar yn y flwyddyn ariannol i osod yn ffurfiol newidiadau i'r gyllideb flynyddol. Yr ail gyllideb atodol yw'r cyfle olaf i ffurfioli yn derfynol y dyraniadau cyllideb tuag at ddiwedd blwyddyn ariannol. Mae'r gyllideb atodol gyntaf yma felly'n gwneud £433 miliwn o ddyraniadau ychwanegol. Mae hyn yn cynnwys £294 miliwn ar gyfer blaenoriaethau Llywodraeth Cymru, a £139 miliwn ar gyfer trosglwyddiadau cyfrifoldeb cyllidebol. Mae balans o £246 miliwn o adnoddau heb eu dyrannu a £29,000 o gyfalaf cyffredinol wedi cael eu cadw wrth gefn yn y gyllideb atodol gyntaf er mwyn rheoli pwysau yn ystod y flwyddyn ac ymateb i flaenoriaethau. Y cyllid hwn heb ei ddyrannu yw ein hamddiffyniad yn erbyn y sefyllfa ariannol rŷn ni wedi ei hetifeddu ac yn erbyn y pwysau ariannol sylweddol sydd heb ei ariannu o fewn y flwyddyn, gan gynnwys cyfanswm o dros £300 miliwn o droswariant y mae'r gwasanaeth iechyd yn ei adrodd ar hyn o bryd. Mae rheoli'r pwysau hyn yn ystod y flwyddyn ariannol yn her sylweddol, ac mae'r her hon yn anoddach fyth oherwydd y fframwaith ariannol caeth ŷn ni'n gweithredu oddi mewn iddo. Mae'r cyllid adnoddau heb eu dyrannu yna fel arian wrth gefn i'w ddyrannu'n ddiweddarach i helpu i reoli'r pwysau presennol yn y system, os oes angen. Allwn ni ddim dyrannu'r cyllid yna'n gyfan mor gynnar yn y flwyddyn ariannol. Fe wnaeth y Llywodraeth flaenorol ddyraniadau tebyg i'r NHS mewn cyllidebau atodol diwedd blwyddyn: £200 miliwn yn 2025-26, £424 miliwn yn 2023-24.  Mae setliad Llywodraeth Cymru wedi ei gysylltu yn uniongyrchol, fel ŷn ni'n gwybod, gyda phenderfyniadau Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol. Mae'n gallu newid, hyd yn oed o fewn blwyddyn, i fyny ac i lawr. Dim ond ychydig ddyddiau ar ôl i fi ymddangos gerbron y Pwyllgor Cyllid, fe wnaeth Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol gyhoeddi ei chynllun buddsoddi mewn amddiffyn. Mae disgwyl i hynny arwain at ganlyniad negyddol uniongyrchol i'n cyllideb gyfalaf eleni. Os bydd y toriad o 1 y cant a ragwelir yn taro pob adran Lywodraeth yn gyfartal, bydd hynny'n golygu colli rhwng £25 miliwn a £30 miliwn yn syth yn ystod y flwyddyn ariannol hon yn unig, ac mae mwy i ddod.  Cyllideb atodol yw hon.

    Official English translation

    Llywydd, I move the motion and open the debate on the Welsh Government's first supplementary budget for 2026-27. This supplementary budget is our first opportunity to propose changes to the full budget this year and to start the important process of ensuring that expenditure aligns with our priorities as a new Government. We are focusing, therefore, on a targeted allocation of resources and additional capital. This will enable us to make swift progress on our most important priorities as a Government, while also demonstrating that money is being managed prudently and that there is stability for public services and partners. Alongside this, as is usual in supplementary budgets, the budget makes formal adaptations to the general level of funds available to Wales in light of the spring statement and the main objectives of the UK Government for this financial year. It also includes a restatement of this year's final budget to reflect the new ministerial portfolios. Moving a first supplementary budget is an early mechanism in the financial year to set out formally changes to the annual budget. The second supplementary budget is the final opportunity to finally formalise the allocations towards the end of a financial year. This first supplementary budget therefore makes £433 million of additional allocations. This includes £294 million for Welsh Government priorities, and £139 million for budgetary responsibility transfers. The balance of £246 million in unallocated resources and £29,000 in general capital has been held in reserves in the first supplementary budget in order to manage in-year pressures and to respond to priorities. This unallocated funding is our protection against the financial position that we have inherited and against the significant financial pressures that are unfunded within the year, including a total of over £300 million of overspend that the health service is currently reporting. Managing these in-year pressures is a significant challenge, and that challenge is made more difficult because of the tight funding framework that we work within. The unallocated resources funding is there as reserves to be allocated later to help us manage the current pressures in the system, if necessary. We cannot allocate that funding in its entirety so early in the financial year. The previous Government made similar allocations to the NHS in supplementary budgets at the end of the financial year: £200 million in 2025-26, £424 million in 2023-24. The Welsh Government's settlement is directly linked, as we know, to decisions made by the UK Government. It can change, even in-year, up and down. Only a few days after I appeared before the Finance Committee, the UK Government announced its defence investment plan. That is expected to lead to a direct negative consequence for our capital budget this year. If the cut of 1 per cent anticipated hits all departments of Government equally, that will mean the loss of between £25 million and £30 million immediately during this financial year alone, and there is more to come. This is a supplementary budget.

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    Mae'n atodol i'r gyllideb a gyflwynwyd a phasiwyd gan y Llywodraeth Lafur flaenorol. Penderfyniad bwriadol y Llywodraeth yma oedd i anrhydeddu ymrwymiadau gwariant y Llywodraeth flaenorol, i beidio â gwneud newidiadau i benderfyniadau cyllidol Llafur. Yn y cyd-destun hwn, rwy'n deall yr hyn mae'r Torïaid wedi'i ddweud wrthyf, fod peidio â newid cyllideb Llafur yn ei gwneud yn amhosib iddyn nhw bleidleisio dros y gyllideb atodol yma heddiw. Dwi'n deall hynny. Yn ychwanegol, ein penderfyniad hefyd oedd i gychwyn gwneud rhai ymrwymiadau gwariant newydd i gyd-fynd â'r mandad gawsom gan bobl Cymru drwy etholiad cenedlaethol. Mae'r gyllideb hon felly yn dyrannu £294 miliwn, sef £164 miliwn o gyllid adnoddau a £130 miliwn o gyllid cyfalaf, i gefnogi blaenoriaethau ymarferol y gall pobl eu gweld a'u teimlo, fel y pleidleisiwyd amdanynt, fel lleihau amseroedd aros yn yr NHS, ehangu gofal plant wedi'i ariannu, sicrhau bod mwy o ddisgyblion yn cael prydau ysgol am ddim, mwy o dai cymdeithasol, cefnogi trafnidiaeth a gwaith cynnal a chadw hanfodol yn ein hysgolion a'n hysbytai. Ar sawl gwedd roedd y rhain yn flaenoriaethau oedd i'w gweld ym maniffestos pleidiau eraill yn ystod y cyfnod etholiadol. Ein bwriad yw buddsoddi £145 miliwn yn ein system iechyd i gyflymu mynediad at driniaeth a gwella canlyniadau i bobl Cymru. Rŷn ni'n rhoi blaenoriaeth i ddarparu arian ychwanegol i daclo tlodi plant a helpu pobl ledled Cymru gyda chostau byw cynyddol, ac yn dyrannu £55 miliwn ychwanegol hefyd i ddechrau gwireddu ein hymrwymiad i drawsnewid gofal plant. Mae'r gyllideb hon hefyd yn darparu £2 filiwn i ddechrau gweithredu'r peilot Cynnal. Mae hynny'n gam pwysig cyntaf yn ein cenhadaeth ehangach i daclo'r broblem ofnadwy tlodi plant. Rŷn ni'n buddsoddi £15 miliwn ychwanegol mewn prydau ysgol am ddim. Bydd hynny'n ein galluogi i ddechrau ymestyn y ddarpariaeth o fis Medi ymlaen i ddisgyblion mewn ysgolion uwchradd. Rŷn ni hefyd yn darparu £40 miliwn o gyfalaf ychwanegol i wella safon adeiladau ein hysgolion, a bydd swm cyfalaf pellach o £5 miliwn yn mynd tuag at y rhaglen cyfleusterau cymunedol. Mae'r gyllideb yn cynnwys £2 filiwn i helpu i gyflwyno'r rhaglen nofio a diogelwch dŵr newydd ar gyfer ysgolion, £8 miliwn ychwanegol i barhau i gynnig teithiau bws am £1 i blant a phobl ifanc, a hefyd £2 filiwn mewn gwasanaeth bysiau rhwng y gogledd a'r de ar hyd coridor y gorllewin, sydd heb linell trên. Mae pawb yng Nghymru yn haeddu cartref diogel y gallan nhw ei fforddio. Dyna pam rŷn ni'n buddsoddi £20 miliwn o gyllid cyfalaf i ddarparu dros 100 o gartrefi ychwanegol ar gyfer rhent cymdeithasol. Mae'r gyllideb atodol gyntaf yma yn rhan rwtîn o'r broses gyllidebol flynyddol. Mae'n rhoi sicrwydd i'n gwasanaethau cyhoeddus. Mae hefyd yn sicrhau bod aelodau pwyllgorau'r Senedd yma yn eu gwaith craffu yn gallu gweld yn glir y newidiadau i benderfyniadau'r Llywodraeth o ran gwariant ac incwm. Hoffwn i ddiolch ar y pwynt yma i'r Pwyllgor Cyllid am ystyried y gyllideb hon yn llawn ac am gyhoeddi ei adroddiad dros nos. Dwi wedi darllen yr adroddiad y bore yma a dwi'n gweld gwerth yn yr argymhellion a byddaf yn ceisio ymateb yn bositif iddyn nhw, ac yn edrych ymlaen at gydweithio gyda'r Pwyllgor Cyllid ar fireinio ein sgrwtini a phroses cyllid dros gyfnod y Senedd yma.

    Official English translation

    It is supplementary to the budget that was presented and passed by the previous Labour Government. It was the deliberate decision of this Government to honour the spending commitments made by the previous Government, not to make changes to funding decisions made by Labour. In that context, I understand what the Conservatives have told me, that not changing the Labour budget makes it impossible for them to vote in favour of this supplementary budget today. I fully understand that. In addition, our decision too was to start to make some new spending commitments to align with the mandate that we received from the people of Wales through a national election. This budget, therefore, allocates £294 million, which is £164 million in resources and £130 million in capital, to support practical priorities that people can see and feel, as was voted for, such as reducing waiting times in the NHS, expanding funded childcare, ensuring that more pupils receive free school meals, more social homes, supporting transport and crucial maintenance work in our schools and hospitals. In many respects, these were priorities that were seen in the manifestos of other parties during the election period. Our intention is to invest £145 million in our health system to speed up access to treatment and to improve outcomes for the people of Wales. We are giving priority to providing additional funding to tackle child poverty and to help people across Wales with increasing costs of living, and are allocating an additional £55 million to start to deliver our commitment to transform childcare. This budget also provides £2 million to start to implement the Cynnal pilot scheme. That's an important first step in our broader mission to tackle the terrible scourge of child poverty. We are investing an additional £15 million in free school meals. That will enable us to start to extend provision from September onwards to pupils in secondary schools. We are also providing £40 million in additional capital to improve the standard of school buildings, and a further capital sum of £5 million will be provided towards the community facilities programme. The budget includes £2 million to help to introduce the new swimming and water safety programme for schools, and another £8 million to continue to provide £1 transport on buses for children and young people, and also £2 million in a bus service between north and south Wales along the western corridor, which doesn't have a train line. Everyone in Wales deserves a safe home that they can afford. That is why we are investing £20 million in capital to provide over 100 additional homes for social rent. The first supplementary budget is a routine part of the annual budgetary process. It provides assurances to our public services. It also ensures that members of Senedd committees in their scrutiny work can see clearly the changes to Government decisions in terms of income and expenditure. At this point, I would like to thank the Finance Committee for considering this supplementary budget in full and for publishing its report overnight. I have read the report this morning and I see value in its recommendations and I will try to respond positively to them, and I look forward to collaborating with the Finance Committee on refining our scrutiny and the budgetary process over the period of this Senedd.

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  3. on the clip

    As I've said, this is a supplementary budget. It does exactly that: it supplements a budget. This Government has honoured the previous Government's budget to the decimal point in order to provide continuity of delivery for our public sector and other partners. We added to that budget, but took nothing away. As the people of Wales would have expected of us in this supplementary budget, we have sought to allocate funding available to us on the priorities they voted for in May's election—on reducing NHS waiting times, on increasing affordable childcare, on tackling child poverty, on transport initiatives, and on a capital programme to improve school and hospital buildings and build new homes. I understand that Members, during the scrutiny of this budget, have sought to pursue the allocation of £344 million consequential funding for the debt write-off to English local authorities as a result of ALN historical overspends in England. This Government has sought to engage constructively on that issue.

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  4. on the clip

    It's not a surprise to me that a new party to this Senedd, Reform, would question why consequential funding is not merely passed on to the equivalent recipient in Wales, that this Senedd is merely a go-between. It suits their politics to neutralise this institution. But those of us who are pro-devolution, pro-standing up for the independence of this Senedd and our democratic right to make our own choices, I would expect us all to agree that it is for Welsh Ministers in this Senedd to decide how the Welsh budget is spent, and nothing should be presumed for Wales from an allocation happening in England to deal with English matters. For Wales, do not see England. From those early days of Edwina Hart as finance Minister and Rhodri Morgan as First Minister until today, this principle has been upheld by all Welsh Ministers and Governments. Now, I accept that some of you here who have called for the allocation of extra money related to ALN in England to be allocated to ALN in Wales may still support the right of this Senedd to take its own decisions. But I do say in response to that: beware of blurring these lines and diluting this principle. It's been well defended up until now, by my predecessors and yours. As a Government, however, we have listened to the genuine calls made by parties in the Senedd, councils and schools to increase the allocation for ALN this year, and have been developing a strategic approach to tackle fundamental challenges, as well as responding to immediate pressures. On the table, in real time, in this Chamber, in this moment is £40 million this financial year of additional funding for additional learning needs, which focuses on activities that are deliverable, including direct funding to schools to stabilise and shore up current provision, and which establishes a coherent national model for local authorities and schools to develop local responses in a consistent way. This allocation will be followed by £40 million next year and the following year to provide some certainty to the sector—a £120 million total package for ALN to ease the pressure on schools and councils and to place ALN on a more sustainable footing for future years. Passing this supplementary budget today will enable us to have assurance over the allocations to the outlined priorities of £294 million. That will enable us as a Government to carry a smaller risk in committing to allocating £40 million additionally to ALN this year. We will regularise this allocation in our second supplementary budget and include the allocations of £80 million to future annual budgets. If Members vote against or abstain on this budget today and it doesn't pass, the Government will be able to press ahead with the majority of our work and spending on our priorities at our own risk. But, due to the inherited in-year pressures, we will be unable to add to it another risk of £40 million spend. We will then only be able to use the funding allocated by the previous Government in its budget to ALN this year, with no £40 million uplift. However, we will continue to prepare for better future provision for ALN as part of our next year's budget planning. I ask Members to think carefully, in casting your vote today, of what can be gained and what can be lost. There's £164 million new spend on the NHS, childcare and travel opportunities for your constituents. There's £130 million additional capital money into schools, hospitals and housing. There's a £120 million package for councils and schools for ALN uplift. And to Labour specifically, we offer all of this and your previous Government's budget inherited by Plaid Cymru, its allocations honoured and wholly untouched. This supplementary budget is a good deal for this Senedd and, more importantly, it's a good deal for the people of Wales.

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    9. Debate: The First Supplementary Budget 2026-27

    English Cabinet Minister for Finance

    Diolch, Lywydd. Thank you for the range of views on this supplementary budget from across the political parties, Members, and also for the questions and contributions from committee Chairs and committee members as well. To Reform, thank you for outlining your three red lines. We don't agree with your first red line, but we are working on your other two red lines. Part of that is in this budget and part of that is in the work that the health Minister is doing.  To the Conservatives, I can, as I said, see the logic to part of your reasoning in opposing the previous Government's budget, as restated in this budget. And just to Darren, I can count; a good state school education made sure of that.  I thank the Green Party for your support, unwhipped as it is, and your challenge to us in that contribution to do more on climate change.  To Labour—and I'll start by saying that you're lucky, Huw, that I'm old enough to pass over a slightly condescending comment on my influence in Government—however, I'm totally flabbergasted by Labour. Today, you have had the opportunity to support a £120 million ALN support package for our schools and councils. [Interruption.] You could have—[Interruption.] Did you put your name forward to speak in the debate? Go on, then, you're the leader of your group.

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  6. on the clip

    The ALN budget ask was brought to the negotiating table by Labour. I accept and respect that, Lynne. That's what a three-week scrutiny process allows to happen. Between a draft budget and the final vote on the budget, it can be improved. And we have moved and engaged on the detail of the proposal with you. And our education Minister was, as you know, keen to have your support to commence this additional budget for ALN as soon as possible. Schools would have returned in September with this new ALN funding ready to be rolled out—£40 million this year, followed by at least another £80 million over the next two years. Defeating this supplementary budget today will mean that this Government will continue without an early supplementary budget. We will carry on to spend in line with the annual budget passed in January. We will be able to continue to roll out the work on NHS waiting lists, increasing free childcare, free school meals and swimming lessons and £1 bus fares, and to boost capital spend on schools, hospitals, social housing and community facilities, all within the spending profiles already passed by this Senedd in the budget in January. But we will not be able to do that and add an in-year additional allocation of £40 million for additional learning needs, because we will not have an assurance of a supplementary budget. That's not spite, Lynne—that is prudent budget management within this financial year. But this Government is keen to improve on the previous Government's allocation to ALN and to work with schools and councils on a long-term stabilisation plan for ALN. We will now move on to this work in the context of our first annual budget. Somehow—[Interruption.] Ah, you're timing me now. You didn't time me in the first contribution, so I have no idea how much time I took.

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  7. on the clip

    To Labour Members, old and new, I know that you have recently been badly defeated in an election. I know it's painful and confusing. I have been there. But, ultimately, you will not be defined by that loss, but how you respond to it. It can make a party or break it. You've been lately quite keen, in this Chamber, to point us in Plaid Cymru to Scotland. Well, I point you to Scotland, too. Look at your sister party in permanent opposition since 2007. Today, you will not only vote against the retention, intact, of your own Welsh Labour Government budget, but also against new money to reduce NHS waiting lists, to provide more free childcare, to extend £1 bus travel for young people, to spend more on backlog maintenance for schools and hospitals. Last week, Labour, you voted with Reform to ensure that this Senedd voted against fair funding for Wales. Labour voted against fair funding for Wales. I shudder to think how successive successful previous Labour First Ministers would have viewed that. Today, you vote against £120 million for ALN provision in Wales, with Reform. You will be voting with parties of the right, who will welcome you. [Interruption.] Hear them. Hear them. They will welcome you with open arms, because you will give them their majority today. And you are doing so against a progressive budget that provides more support for those most in need in Wales. The fine statue of Rhodri Morgan is tonight watching its first vote in this Senedd since it was unveiled. I served as a Minister in his Government. He reflected the progressive co-operative values of the Labour Party in Wales. Today, Labour have abandoned those values. And in these final few moments before the vote, there is still time for you to reclaim them. Reclaim them.

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  1. on the clip

    Ddirprwy Lywydd, diolch am y cyfle i ymateb i'r ddadl yma. Mae'r rhain yn faterion pwysig i blant, teuluoedd ac ysgolion ledled Cymru. Dwi am ddechrau drwy fod yn glir: mae'r Llywodraeth hon wedi gwneud ymrwymiad i blant a phobl ifanc ag anghenion dysgu ychwanegol. Rŷn ni'n mabwysiadu dull strategol i wneud y system anghenion dysgu ychwanegol yn gynaliadwy, system sydd wir yn taclo'r heriau sylfaenol yn hytrach na jest ymateb i bwysau tymor byr. Mae ein maniffesto yn cynnwys cyfres o fesurau i'r perwyl yma, ac mae'r Gweinidog addysg eisoes yn gweithio ar flaenoriaethau anghenion dysgu ychwanegol, rhai ymarferol a chyllidebol. Mae hwn yn fater cymhleth ac mae angen cyfres o ymatebion cymhleth iddo, a dyna pam mae'r Llywodraeth wedi cyflwyno'r gwelliant heddiw. Yn gyntaf, dwi am ymdrin â'r dybiaeth sylfaenol sy'n sail i'r cynnig yma. Mae'n awgrymu y dylai'r cyllid sy'n dod i law o ganlyniad i benderfyniadau yn Lloegr gael ei drosglwyddo i'r un maes polisi yng Nghymru. Nid felly mae datganoli'n gweithio. Gweinidogion Cymru sy'n gyfrifol am benderfynu sut mae cyllid yn cael ei neilltuo. Dyma'n union sut roedd Llywodraeth flaenorol Cymru'n gweithio, a dyna sut bydd y Llywodraeth yma hefyd yn gweithredu. Yn ail, Ddirprwy Lywydd, mae'n rhaid i ni fod yn glir am natur y cyllid canlyniadol penodol yma. Dyw'r cyllid canlyniadol a ddaeth i law ddim yn adlewyrchu buddsoddiad newydd i wella gwasanaethau yn Lloegr. Mae'n gyllid y mae Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol wedi ei roi i ddileu diffygion ariannol hanesyddol oedd wedi cronni mewn awdurdodau lleol yn Lloegr mewn perthynas ag anghenion addysgol arbennig. Yn Lloegr, felly, dyw'r cyllid ychwanegol yma ddim yn mynd i gefnogi gwasanaethau addysg arbennig, a dyw'r cyllid canlyniadol ddim yn recurrent. Cyllid untro'n unig yw'r arian am y flwyddyn eleni, ac mae'r cyllid recurrent i gyrraedd yn 2028-29. Mae adroddiad Archwilio Cymru, sy'n cael ei grybwyll yn ein gwelliant ni, yn rhoi darlun clir o system sy'n rhoi straen gynyddol ar ein hawdurdodau lleol. Mae gwariant awdurdodau lleol ar ddarpariaeth anghenion dysgu ychwanegol bellach yn tynnu tuag at o leiaf £1 biliwn y flwyddyn. Ar ben hyn, yn ôl yr adroddiad, does gan y system ddim trefniadau cadarn ar gyfer casglu data, does gan gyrff cyhoeddus ddim dealltwriaeth iawn o'r costau, ac mae anghysondeb mawr o ran darpariaeth a mynediad teg. Mae gwaith mawr o flaen y Llywodraeth i daclo'r diffygion yma i gyd a chreu cyfundrefn llawer mwy effeithiol a chynaliadwy.

    Official English translation

    Dirprwy Lywydd, thank you for the opportunity to respond to this debate, as these are such important matters for children, families and schools across Wales. I want to begin by making it clear that this Government has made a commitment to children and young people with additional learning needs. We adopt a strategic approach to make the ALN system sustainable, a system that truly tackles the fundamental challenges rather than responding to short-term pressures. Our manifesto includes a suite of measures to this end, and the Cabinet Minister for education is already working on priorities for additional learning needs, practical and financial measures. This is a complex matter and it demands a series of complex responses, and that's why the Government has tabled its amendment today. First of all, I want to deal with the basic assumption that underpins this motion. It suggests that the funding that we receive as a result of decisions made in England should be allocated to the same policy area in Wales. That's not how devolution works. It's Welsh Ministers who are responsible for deciding how funding is earmarked. That's exactly how the previous Welsh Government worked, and that's how this Government will operate too. Secondly, Dirprwy Lywydd, we must be clear about the nature of this specific consequential funding. The consequential funding received does not reflect new investment to improve services in England. It's funding that the United Kingdom Government has allocated to tackle historical financial deficits that had accumulated in local authorities in England with regard to additional learning needs. In England, therefore, this additional funding is not going towards supporting special educational services, and the consequential is not recurrent. It's one-off funding for this financial year, and the recurrent funding is to arrive in 2028-29. The Audit Wales report, referred to in our amendment, provides a clear picture of a system that places increasing strain on our local authorities. Local authority expenditure on additional learning needs provision now approaches at least £1 billion per annum. Moreover, according to the report, the system does not have robust arrangements for gathering data, public bodies do not have a full understanding of the costs, and there are major inconsistencies when it comes to provision and fair access. There is a major task ahead for the Government to tackle these multiple deficiencies and to create a far more effective and sustainable system.

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  2. on the clip

    As a Government, we recognise and agree with the analysis outlined by Lynne Neagle in introducing this debate. You know better than most, Lynne, of the pressures within our schools and within additional learning needs in contributing to that. We agree that the solution needs to start this financial year, but it does not necessarily need a supplementary budget to start this work; it is already under way, as I said, by the Government Minister.  It is important at this point, I think, to rehearse again what the resource allocations proposed in this supplementary budget are. It is an addition of £164 million resource only within year, the largest part of which is the £100 million to the NHS to reduce waiting times. Whilst its use will be different to the previous Government's way of tackling waiting lists, it is inherently the same quantum as spent by the previous Labour Government on a waiting list initiative that was brought to an abrupt end just before the election. The second largest allocation is to childcare: £45 million. Let's break down this £45 million. It is made up of three parts: £18 million to fully fund the commitment made by the previous Government and unfunded in the budget passed on to us; another £7 million is for a workforce rates increase commitment made by the previous Government, but unfunded; and only a £20 million allocation to start the roll-out of Plaid Cymru's additional childcare provision. Next comes the transport resource allocation of £10 million: £8 million of this to extend the young person's £1 bus fare pilot until the end of March, which was started by the previous Labour Government, with Lib Dem support, and now continued by this Government; then, £2 million is for the north-south bus route—again, a plan started by the previous Government. Indeed, the eight buses for this route were purchased by the previous Government's transport Minister. Plaid Cymru's contribution in this supplementary budget is to allocate resource funding to put drivers in the buses. The final part of the supplementary budget is a £9 million allocation to priorities primarily identified as Plaid Cymru manifesto commitments: secondary school free school meals; Cynnal, the child poverty payment; and a school swimming programme. This only accounts for £9 million of the £164 million resource allocation. In voting for this motion today, are Members asking this Government only to reallocate this £9 million to ALN education, or the total of £344 million to ALN, as proposed by Mike Hedges? Or are you saying, as Members, that you do not want us to spend on reducing waiting lists at all, not to spend on childcare commitments made by Labour in Government, not to carry on the £1 bus fare for young people, for where else does the money come from? And here we come to the crux of this Government's financial position, as inherited from the previous Government. So, yes, when I became finance Minister, I was told that there was a one-off non-recurrent consequential of over £300 million to the Welsh budget as a result of local authority debt write-off in England. But, at the same time, I was told that there were unfunded in-year financial pressures in the budget that I inherited of over £300 million in the NHS and more elsewhere, including childcare, as I have already outlined. So, in one fell swoop, I was both up £300 million and down £300 million. This is why the supplementary budget includes £246 million of unallocated resource to deal with in-year pressures. Now, careful consideration will be given to the prioritisation of the unallocated funding over the next few months, but it is too early to do so yet, in this first supplementary budget, only two months into this new Government. And things can change over the next months. In fact, they've already changed since my appearance in front of the Finance Committee yesterday morning. Yesterday's UK defence investment plan by the Labour UK Government is to have a negative consequential on our capital budget. Our estimate of a 1 per cent cut in UK Government capital budgets, if it were applied evenly across all UK departments, would lead to a reduction of at least £25 million to £30 million in the Welsh Government's capital budget this financial year, with further similar reductions in future years up to 2029-30. This will cumulatively be significant for the Welsh Government's budget, not miniscule, as some have suggested, with a direct impact on schools, hospitals and transport investment. We also know that the UK Government has indicated there is a further £4.7 billion to be found at the autumn budget. So, this £25 million to £30 million is the minimum cut we can expect to face. It could be cut further within this financial year. I suspect that the die is already cast on the vote on this motion today. Over my time in this Senedd, I have seen many alliances and coalitions come and go. It seems today that we may well see the birth of a new grand alliance in this Senedd's seventh term: an alliance of right-left-right, a broader church alliance than ever seen before, an alliance forged from political opportunity for some behind me, rather than shared values. I urge all Members to support the Government amendment. I finish with a genuine offer to interested parties in this Chamber to use this moment, to use this focus on additional learning needs, and to work with us on these benches to design, with local authorities, a sustainable, affordable plan for additional learning needs that provides better outcomes for our young people, and to do so in a long-term, impactful way.

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  1. on the clip

    2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Finance

    Welsh Cabinet Minister for Finance

    Diolch, Lywydd, am roi cyfle i fi yn syth i gywiro'r Cofnod o'r datganiad ar y gyllideb atodol ddoe. Yn ystod y drafodaeth, defnyddiais ddau ffigur gwahanol mewn camgymeriad ar gyfer lefel y cyfalaf heb ei ddyrannu—yn gyntaf, yn gywir, y ffigur o £29,000, ac, yn ail, y ffigur o £29 miliwn. Y ffigur cywir, felly, yw £29,000. Yn ogystal, yr amcangyfrif presennol ar gyfer ffigur cyfalaf sy'n weddill yng nghronfa wrth gefn Cymru ar hyn o bryd yw £50 miliwn. Rwy'n gobeithio bydd y Senedd yn derbyn fy ymddiheuriad am y camgymeriad yna, ac rwy'n ysgrifennu atoch chi hefyd ar wahân, Lywydd, i sicrhau bod y cywiriad yn cael ei osod ochr yn ochr yn y Cofnod ddoe.

    Official English translation

    Thank you, Llywydd, for giving me an opportunity to correct the Record in terms of the statement on the supplementary budget yesterday. During the discussion, I used two different figures in error for the level of unallocated capital—the first, which was correct, a figure of £29,000, and, secondly, the figure of £29 million. The correct figure is £29,000. In addition, the current estimate for the capital remaining in the Welsh reserve is £50 million. So, I hope that the Senedd will accept my apology for that error, and I will write to you too, Llywydd, separately, to ensure that that correction is placed in the Record of Proceedings for yesterday.

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  2. on the clip

    Yn fy nghyfarfod cyntaf â Phrif Ysgrifennydd y Trysorlys yr wythnos diwethaf, fe wnes i bwysleisio bod diwygio cyllidol, gan gynnwys cyllid tecach, a diwygio'r fformiwla Barnett, yn flaenoriaethau allweddol. Fe gytunom y byddem yn gweithio gyda'n gilydd mewn ffordd adeiladol i sicrhau canlyniadau gwell i bobl Cymru.

    Official English translation

    During my first meeting with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury last week, I emphasised that fiscal reform, including fair funding and addressing the Barnett formula, are key priorities. We agreed that we would work constructively together to deliver better outcomes for the people of Wales.

    Watch in chamber Senedd TV Record

  3. on the clip

    Yes, and, as I said, I met with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury last week. She was even newer in her post than I am. I'm not sure how long, given possible Treasury reshuffles in the future, she will be in that post, but I wish her well. We had a positive discussion and I was able to outline this Government's position on a need to have a constructive conversation with the UK Government to ensure that we have a funding settlement for Wales that is fairer than we have at the moment, and that this judge, jury and executioner that you referred to is put right. The Barnett formula is opaque in nature, it lacks transparency, but, almost more than anything, when there are disputes—of which there have been many and may be many in the future—there is no dispute resolution mechanism that is independent of the UK Treasury. And this is nowhere more obvious than, of course, the UK Treasury's classification of HS2 as an England and Wales project. It decided that that was the case, despite there not being a single piece of track of HS2 in Wales, and it sticks to that position to this day. And it means that, in this current spending review period, Wales is short-changed by £850 million just in this one spending review period because of that classification of HS2, because of the UK Treasury acting as judge, jury and executioner.

    Watch in chamber Senedd TV Record

  4. on the clip

    You've almost answered your own question within your question. The difference for people in Flint and Wrexham that would be made by a fair funding settlement, by having that £850 million short-changed currently from the current spending review that I spoke of because of the classification, the wrong classification, of HS2 by the UK Treasury, that would actually have allowed the previous Government, as well as this Government, to be spending on that exact rail investment that you asked for in Flint and Wrexham. It would never be money for Cardiff Bay; it would always be money for the whole of Wales, fairly shared by this Government to every part of Wales.

    Watch in chamber Senedd TV Record

  5. on the clip

    Well, we know that as a result of the review of fairness and the needs-based analysis of the Barnett formula from 2016 onwards that that has been of benefit to the public purse in Wales. But, as I've said already, the analysis of this Government, as it was of the previous Government, is that, in this spending review period, we are short-changed on just the HS2 classification by £850 million. And I'm sure that you would want to see part of that funding spent in your constituency, just as I would like to see it spent in mine.

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  6. on the clip

    Cafodd asesiad effaith rheoleiddiol ac asesiad effaith integredig eu cyhoeddi ochr yn ochr â'r ddeddfwriaeth yn y Senedd ddiwethaf. Mater i'r awdurdodau lleol yw penderfynu nawr a ydyn nhw am gyflwyno ardoll yn eu hardaloedd, yn seiliedig ar eu hasesiadau eu hunain o'r effeithiau ac yn dilyn ymgynghori â'u cymunedau. Hyd yma, nid yw sir Gaerfyrddin wedi cynnal ymgynghoriad ynglŷn ag a ddylid cyflwyno’r ardoll yma.

    Official English translation

    A regulatory impact assessment and an integrated impact assessment were published alongside the legislation in the previous Senedd. It's a matter for local authorities to decide now whether they introduce the levy in their area, based on their own assessments of the impacts and following consultation with their communities. To date, Carmarthenshire has not consulted on whether to introduce this levy.

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  7. on the clip

    This policy is now passed over to local authorities. They have the discretion to introduce or not the visitor levy in their areas, and there are requirements of any local authority that's interested in introducing a visitor levy to undertake those assessments that she speaks of. If your constituents have views, negative or positive, about the visitor levy, should there be, at any time, a consultation in sir Gâr about the introduction of a visitor levy, I'm sure that it will be an active and engaged consultation. It is now over to local authorities to decide on whether this is a good thing or not for their local areas.

    Watch in chamber Senedd TV Record

  8. on the clip

    Now, you started well and then you posed me probably one of the most difficult questions I will get as Minister—to compare myself to Mark Drakeford. I have huge respect for him, as he knows, and as this Chamber will know. There is a level of truth in both our positions, I suspect. For clarity, therefore, Plaid Cymru's role in the decision and voting on the previous budget was to share a responsibility on part of the allocation of that budget. So, we were able to agree with Labour that a significant part of that allocation would go to local authorities to increase their ability to spend, and also to the NHS. What was unseen by me and fellow Members of Plaid Cymru at the time—and, in fact, all non-Government Members of the Senedd at the time—was the in-year pressures that even an allocation of that nature would lead to in terms of what the NHS and local authorities and other public sector organisations would need. That's what I'm looking at now, and that's what I can see now, is the level of in-year pressures that our NHS in particular is carrying and is reporting. If you look at local health boards in their monthly reports, the level of in-year pressures that they are working on, and how we as a Government are working with health boards to ensure that they are able to deliver the efficiencies in what they do in year, to mean that they are able to work within the budget that has been allocated to them.

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  9. on the clip

    I'm intrigued, and I think Mark Drakeford will be even more intrigued, to know that his chief cheerleaders in this Chamber, in the seventh Senedd, are Reform. I'm sure that he'll welcome that. We did not have full and open access to the books, and we probably—and I would expect that opposition parties here today—would not expect that. The detailed management, day to day, of the operation of the public budget in Wales is within the Government and scrutinised by the Senedd.

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  10. on the clip

    We want to see equality between ourselves and Scotland in the powers and levers that we have. Prudent borrowing for any country, for any company, is not a bad thing. It allows a Government to invest. Investment of that kind is a component of getting our economy going and also of improving our public services, our hospitals and our schools. Therefore, prudent borrowing is the right thing to do. What I don't want to see is that we are hampered unilaterally from doing that by UK Treasury rules that apply in an unequal way for us compared to other countries, or even other regions in England. I want that equality. It would be for the Government of the day to use that prudently and to be scrutinised here in the Chamber on its use.

    Watch in chamber Senedd TV Record

  11. on the clip

    No. From one supplementary budget, which is about part of the in-year adjustment of this Government's spending allocations, the people of Wales and nobody in this Chamber should, for one second, interpret that as a lack of commitment to climate change and to pursuing our net-zero objectives. We are clear that that is a cross-Government initiative and that we will work across Government on how we contribute to tackling climate change and to achieving net zero. In that respect, I accept that it didn't feature in any of our additional resources. It is, of course, funded within the budget that we are operating and that was inherited from the previous Senedd. We will look at this across Government properly in order to align our future years' budgets to progressing what remains one of our main manifesto commitments, and that is to achieve net zero and to ensure that we are able to contribute our bit as Wales in tackling climate change, which is affecting our everyday lives.

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  12. on the clip

    Cyn lleied â phosib, byddwn i'n dweud. Dwi eisiau gwario arian y Llywodraeth yma ar ganlyniadau sy'n deillio allan o'r gwaith paratoi yma. Dwi'n siŵr y byddwch chi'n rhannu gyda fi yr awydd, wrth i ni ddatblygu polisïau newydd neu weithredu polisïau presennol yn fwy effeithiol, ein bod ni'n gwneud hynny ar ôl ymgynghori a thrafod a derbyn y dystiolaeth fwyaf diweddar. I wneud hynny, mae'n rhaid i ni gymryd rhywfaint o amser a rhywfaint o waith i ddatblygu’r cynlluniau hynny. Felly, dwi ddim eisiau iddo fe gostio mwy o arian nag amser nag sydd yn rhaid iddo fe wneud, a'n bod ni yn symud yn gyflym i fedru gweithredu ar yr hyn sy'n bwysig o ran effeithiolrwydd y polisïau cyhoeddus hynny, a chyflwyno syniadau a momentwm newydd i bolisïau yn y sector cyhoeddus yng Nghymru.

    Official English translation

    As little as possible, I would say. I want to spend the Government's money on outcomes that stem from that preparatory work. I'm sure that you would share with me the desire, as we develop new policies or implement current policies more effectively, that we do that after consultation and discussion and receiving the most recent evidence. To do that, we have to take some time and we have to do some work to develop those plans. So, I don't want it to cost more money or time than it needs to, and I want us to move quickly to be able to take action on what's important in terms of the effectiveness of those public policies, and introducing new ideas and momentum to policies in the public sector in Wales.

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  13. on the clip

    Well, you've raised many of the considerations that the Government is looking at at this time, when it considers its position on the revaluation and any further changes to council tax. We are committed as a Government to look to see how council tax can be made fairer. It is not the most progressive of taxes that are raised in Wales, and we need to make sure that it is as fair as possible for the taxpayers in Wales. There is, in legislation, a revaluation that is planned for 2028, and if it's to be completed by 2028, then it would need to start pretty soon. So, there is some early work that we need to do in taking decisions on this. But I would see that any revaluation or council tax changes that happen in Wales are done so not on the basis that they need to be there to raise more revenue for the public purse in Wales, but that they are to make the council tax fairer in Wales. It's not a revenue-raising exercise. I would not see it as that, but it is about making the payment of taxes fairer for people in Wales. I agree also that if these changes are to happen, then they need to be done with caution, and with ensuring that people are consulted fully and are aware at all times of the implications of any changes to them directly. We know that council tax is a very immediate tax on people—it arrives on their doorstep every year—and we need to make sure that people are engaged early on, if there are to be changes to this tax.

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  14. on the clip

    Mae trethi lleol yn helpu i dalu am wasanaethau pwysig ledled Cymru, gan gynnwys yng Ngheredigion Penfro. Bydd y Llywodraeth hon hefyd yn diwygio ardrethi busnes i gefnogi busnesau'r stryd fawr yn well ac archwilio ffyrdd o wneud y dreth gyngor yn decach.

    Official English translation

    Local taxes help to pay for vital public services across Wales, including in Ceredigion Penfro. This Government will also reform business rates to better support high-street businesses and explore ways of making council tax fairer.

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  15. on the clip

    Un peth sy'n fantais o fod wedi sefyll etholiad yn yr un etholaeth â Paul Davies yw fy mod i hefyd wedi pigo lan yr un sylwadau hynny o'r sector lletygarwch a'r sector twristiaeth. Felly, mae yna nifer o agweddau ar waith y Llywodraeth yma—rhai dwi'n gyfrifol amdanynt—yn mynd i fynd ati nawr i edrych ar sut gallwn ni fod yn gwella'r amodau neu'r pwysau mae'r sectorau pwysig yma yn eu hwynebu. Byddwch chi'n gwybod bod yna ymrwymiad ym maniffesto Plaid Cymru i, er enghraifft, edrych ar y rheol 182 o ddyddiau sydd yn wynebu'r sector hunanddarpar ar hyn o bryd. A byddwn ni'n edrych i gymryd camau i asesu hwnnw ac i asesu a ydy hi'n bosib neu yn ddymunol nawr i fod yn cyflwyno eithriadau cenedlaethol ychwanegol. Byddwn ni'n symud ymlaen gyda'r gwaith yna, ac, fel y dywedais i yn fy ateb blaenorol, yn sicrhau ein bod ni hefyd yn edrych ar sut mae ardrethi busnes yn cael eu diwygio er mwyn gwella hinsawdd economaidd y sectorau yna rydych chi wedi eu hamlinellu a'r stryd fawr yn enwedig.

    Official English translation

    One advantage of having stood for election in the same constituency as Paul Davies is that I have also picked up on those same comments from the hospitality and tourism sectors. So, there are a number of aspects of the work of this Government—some of which I'm responsible for—that are going to set about looking at how we can improve the conditions or the pressures that these important sectors are facing. You will know that there is a manifesto commitment from Plaid Cymru, for example, to look at the 182-day rule facing the self-catering industry currently. And we will be looking to take action to assess that and to assess whether it is possible or desirable to introduce additional national exemptions. We'll be moving forward with that work, and, as I said in my previous response, ensuring that we look at how business rates are reformed in order to improve the economic climate of the sectors that you've mentioned, particularly the high street.

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  16. on the clip

    Ie, diolch am y cwestiynau yna yn ychwanegol. Fel rŷch chi'n amlinellu, mae cael y balans yn iawn ar rai o'r polisïau yma yn bwysig iawn, fel nad yw'r pwysau ar y sector lletygarwch a'r sector hunanddarpar yn ormodol i ganiatáu iddyn nhw gario ymlaen yn eu busnes, fel gwnaeth Paul Davies sôn, ond hefyd fod yr angen i sicrhau bod neb yn gallu cymryd mantais o'r system dreth a'r rheolau sydd gyda ni. Felly, mae cael y balans yn iawn yn bwysig. Rydyn ni, fel Llywodraeth, ac fe fyddaf i fel Gweinidog, yn symud ymlaen yn weddol o gyflym nawr i edrych ar sut rŷn ni'n asesu'r polisi yma. A dwi'n rhoi cynnig agored i Aelodau yn y Senedd yma, sydd wedi bod yn canfasio dros y misoedd diwethaf yma, i fod yn rhoi eu sylwadau i fi a'u syniadau i fi o ran sut mae'n bosib inni fod yn newid rhai o'r polisïau yma er lles y sector twristiaeth, ond hefyd sydd yn deall nad oes unrhyw loopholes newydd yn cael eu hagor wrth ddiwygio ymhellach y polisïau yma. Felly, dwi'n gobeithio clywed syniadau oddi wrth Aelodau—byddwn i'n gwerthfawrogi hynny.

    Official English translation

    Yes, thank you for those supplementary questions. As you outline, striking the right balance on some of these policies is very important indeed, so that the pressures on the hospitality and self-catering sectors aren't too great, which means they're unable to continue with their business, as Paul Davies mentioned, but there is also the need to ensure that no-one can take advantage of the taxation system and the regulations that we have in place. So, striking that right balance is important. We as a Government, and I as Minister, will be progressing quite swiftly now to look at how we assess this policy. And I am making an open offer to Members of this Senedd, who have been canvassing over recent months, to provide their comments and ideas to me in terms of how we could change some of these policies for the benefit of the tourism sector, whilst also understanding that any new loopholes shouldn't be opened as we reform these policies further. So, I hope to hear ideas from Members and I would appreciate that.

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  17. on the clip

    Diolch am y cwestiwn yna eto ar Geredigion Penfro. Wrth gwrs, wrth i ni ymrwymo i asesu nifer fawr o'r agweddau ar y polisïau sy'n effeithio ar fusnesau ac ar y sector tai—fel y dreth gyngor, fel ardrethi busnes, fel y rheol 182—fe fyddwn ni'n gwneud hynny drwy asesu'n llawn impact y newidiadau mwyaf diweddar a'r hyn y gallwn ni fod yn ei gyflawni er lles rhai o'r sectorau pwysig yma yn ein heconomi ni. Felly, bydd yr asesiad yna, fel rŷch chi'n ei amlinellu fe, yn bwysig iawn i'w gyflawni.

    Official English translation

    Thank you for that question again on Ceredigion Penfro. Of course, as we commit to assessing many aspects of the policies affecting businesses and the housing sector—such as council tax, such as business rates, such as the 182-day rule—we'll be doing that with a full impact assessment of the most recent developments and what we can deliver for the benefit of these very important sectors in our economy. So, that assessment, as you outline, will be important to deliver.

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  18. on the clip

    Er mai cyfrifoldeb y Gweinidog Cabinet dros Wydnwch Gwledig a Chynaliadwyedd yw'r cynllun ar gyfer Cymru sero net, mae'n ymrwymiad i'r Llywodraeth gyfan. Bydd penderfyniadau buddsoddi strategol yn cael eu gwneud ar y cyd, felly, wrth i ni baratoi ar gyfer cyllideb yr hydref.

    Official English translation

    Although the plan for a net-zero Wales is the responsibility of the Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability, it's a commitment for the entire Government. Strategic investment decisions will be made jointly, therefore, as we prepare for the autumn budget.

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  19. on the clip

    Well, certainly not by just simplistic financial measures, and I say that as the Minister for Finance. As I said in an earlier response, the responsibility to meet our net-zero objectives is a responsibility that cuts across all Government Ministers and departments, and we want to see a truly engaged and innovative approach to how we invest every single pound of the Welsh budget to ensure that they are long-term, good investments, to mean that our impact on our climate is less than it needs to be. Because that investment will make a difference not just in terms of achieving net zero, which is an objective—a high-level objective—that a government needs to have, but also it makes a difference to everyday lives in Wales. So, it can mean that people may have more efficient, healthier housing, for example, and it can mean that our businesses can have cheaper electricity costs to run their businesses. So, it is truly a cross-cutting piece of work for this Government, and it needs to feature prominently, and it will, in our budget-setting process for the future.

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  20. on the clip

    Yes. Most definitely, the cost of bad decisions should never be borne by those least likely, least able to afford to pay those costs, and they should be borne by those people who have initially transgressed. In our manifesto, we're committed to establishing a just transition board to guide the net-zero strategy, and this will bring together relevant experts, ensuring key stakeholders have a meaningful role in shaping policy. The Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability will be making an early announcement on the just transition board that seeks to achieve the very things that you've outlined to do.

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  21. on the clip

    You'll know that the responsibility lies with the Minister for enterprise and energy on matters of renewable energy and infrastructure in Wales. The Minister, who happens to be one of the Members for the area that you also represent, in line with Plaid Cymru's manifesto commitments, will be making new policy on renewable energy in Wales and the deployment of infrastructure, and the expectations that this Government will have from it. That will give clarity as to how we see renewable energy needing to play a very positive role in our need to, yes, achieve our net-zero commitment, but also to make us less dependent on fossil fuels and oil and gas markets in the middle east. We know how vulnerable they are and how many of these issues mean that Wales as a country is less self-reliant in energy production. We need to increase our energy production in Wales from sources that can be trusted into the future, and not the sources of the past.

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  22. on the clip

    Mae sicrhau cyllid teg ar gyfer rheilffyrdd Cymru a mynd i'r afael ag anghyfiawnder HS2 yn flaenoriaeth bwysig iawn i ni. Mae Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol wedi cydnabod nad yw'r seilwaith rheilffyrdd yng Nghymru wedi derbyn digon o gyllid yn y gorffennol, felly mae'n bryd gweithredu. Fe godais i hyn gyda Phrif Ysgrifennydd y Trysorlys yr wythnos diwethaf.

    Official English translation

    Securing fair rail funding for Welsh railways and addressing the HS2 injustice is a very important priority of ours. The UK Government has recognised that rail infrastructure in Wales has not been historically funded properly, and therefore it’s time to take action. I raised this when I met with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury last week.

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  23. on the clip

    I can certainly commit to intensifying those discussions. I hope that the UK Government can also commit to that level of intensity of discussions that we need to have. We need to reach a place between the UK Government and the Welsh Government where we are not constantly having to discuss whether a funding allocation is fair or not. We need clarity and transparency, and we need also that independent arbiter to enable the people to know where the fair allocation would be received. As I said earlier this afternoon, the classification of HS2 as an England and Wales project is meaning at this point in this current UK spending review period that Wales is shortchanged by £850 million, and, over further spending periods, that will only increase. So, we need to get this right. There are at least, probably, four parties, five parties in this Senedd that agree that that’s an underfunding of Wales, and we need to use that cross-party leverage to ensure that we get to a better place in order to ensure that the people of Wales are not disadvantaged.

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  24. on the clip

    Roedd ein maniffesto yn cynnwys ymrwymiad i barhau i adolygu’r trothwy gosod o 182 diwrnod ac i greu eithriadau newydd rhesymol lle na fyddai llety hunanddarpar yn gymwys i fod yn gartref preifat. Fe fyddaf i’n amlinellu rhagor o fanylion am ein cynigion ar hyn maes o law.

    Official English translation

    Our manifesto included a commitment to keep the 182-day letting threshold under review and create reasonable new exemptions where self-catering accommodation would not qualify as a private home. I will set out further details on our proposals in due course.

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  25. on the clip

    Dwi eisoes, fel Gweinidog cymharol newydd o hyd, wedi cychwyn ar y gwaith o drafod sut y gallwn ni fynd ati i adolygu'r trothwy gosod 182 diwrnod ac i feddwl a oes angen eithriadau newydd cenedlaethol i'r polisi yma. Dwi'n gwybod bod y polisi heb landio yn y lle cywir ar hyn o bryd a bod angen yr adolygiad hwnnw, ac felly dwi wrthi nawr yn trafod opsiynau ynglŷn â sut y medraf ddod i gasgliad i gymryd penderfyniad ar sut mae adolygu hyn a chynnwys y Senedd yma ac, yn bwysicach, y sectorau perthnasol yn y drafodaeth ehangach am beth fyddai'r diwygiadau mwyaf effeithiol ar gyfer y polisi yma.

    Official English translation

    I have already, as a relatively new Minister still, started the work of discussing how we can move ahead in reviewing the 182-day threshold and to consider whether new exemptions are required on a national level in relation to this policy. I know that the policy hasn't landed in the right place at the moment and that we do need that review, and so I am currently discussing options as to how I can come to a conclusion and make a decision as to how we should review this, and I will include this Senedd and, more importantly, the relevant sectors in the wider debate as to what the most effective reforms of this policy would be.

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  26. on the clip

    Mae Gweinidog y Cabinet dros Lywodraeth Leol, Tai a Chynllunio yn bwrw ymlaen ag adolygiad o'r fformiwla cyllido llywodraeth leol mewn partneriaeth â llywodraeth leol.

    Official English translation

    The Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning is taking forward a review of the local government funding formula in partnership with local government.

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  27. on the clip

    Making sure that the local government formula does reflect adequately the various characteristics that our different local authorities have is important to this Government, and making sure that we understand wholly from local government and from councils how the current formula is working, either to their advantage—I suspect they won't be as upfront about that—or to their disadvantage, as you've outlined for Conwy. The Cabinet Minister for local government will be the person having this open conversation with local government as to how this funding formula can be reformed in a way that meets the various needs and requirements of disadvantage and sparsity that our wonderfully varied country of Wales has. We need to get to that place soon as a Government, and those discussions are happening now. Within our 100-day commitment as well, we have a commitment to align policies with rural-proofing and we need to ensure that any changes to the local government formula would do so in step with our alignment to rural-proofing.

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  28. on the clip

    Roedd y gyllideb atodol gyntaf, a gyhoeddwyd ddoe, yn darparu £164 miliwn o gyllid refeniw a £130 miliwn o gyllid cyfalaf ychwanegol i'n blaenoriaethau allweddol. Mae hyn yn cynnwys £145 miliwn i'r NHS yng Nghymru i dorri rhestrau aros ac adeiladu gwasanaeth iechyd a gofal sy'n addas ar gyfer y dyfodol.

    Official English translation

    The first supplementary budget, published yesterday, provided an additional £164 million revenue and £130 million capital funding to our key priorities. This includes £145 million for NHS Wales to cut waiting lists and build a health and care service fit for the future.

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  29. on the clip

    I didn't divert a single penny away from additional learning needs in yesterday's supplementary budget. The allocation for additional learning needs and for schools was voted on by the Senedd, introduced by the Labour Government and supported in part by Plaid Cymru in the previous Senedd. That allocation remains in full to local authorities in Wales. We are committed, because of the pressures, as you've outlined, on additional learning needs and on our schools, to working to design a service and fund it so that we are better prepared for the challenges and the delivery of additional learning needs in Wales. It is not a competition for funding; there is funding needed to run a variety of public services and public infrastructure in Wales. We seek to strike the right balance and we will listen to views across this Chamber on where that balance needs to be struck.

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  30. on the clip

    Cadarnhawyd symiau canlyniadol ychwanegol cynllun Cartrefi Cynnes Llywodraeth y Deyrnas Gyfunol yng nghyllideb yr hydref 2025. Bydd Cymru'n derbyn £17 miliwn yn 2026-27, £26 miliwn yn 2027-28, £26 miliwn yn 2028-29 a £17 miliwn yn 2029-30.

    Official English translation

    The consequentials from the UK Government's Warm Homes plan were confirmed in the autumn budget 2025. Wales will receive £17 million in 2026-27, £26 million in 2027-28, £26 million in 2028-29 and £17 million in 2029-30.

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  31. on the clip

    You've outlined the aspiration that you have for the Warm Homes work that needs to happen in Wales and the benefits that it can reap for households throughout Wales. I outlined in my original answer the consequentials we've already received as a Government. They fall significantly below the estimate that you've contributed this afternoon. That in itself outlines what I've said throughout my question session this afternoon: the opaque nature of how the Barnett formula and consequentials work, and how that, across UK Government departments, can mean very different things in how it comes through to Wales. But I will discuss with the Cabinet Minister for housing the true level of consequentials required for this area of work, to ensure that we consider clearly whether we have received the correct consequentials and what further representations we would need to make if that wasn't the case.

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How this page is made

Counted by Siambr from the Record's rows. Chaired contributions, spoken under the Record's title for the chair, are counted apart and never added in.

Each page holds 50 contributions at most and keeps a sitting day whole, unless the day alone is over 50.

Sources

The Record of Proceedings for each sitting day, quoted verbatim.