Swansea Bay University Health Board is a compact health board, structured so that each of the three main hospitals has its own area of expertise, including burns and plastics for south Wales and the south west of England. We have seen a large number of nurses and midwives qualify but not being offered posts, which is upsetting for each of them, but also means that the use of agency nurses will continue. Will the First Minister meet with the health board and suggest to them that employing recently qualified nurses, instead of the use of expensive agency nurses, will benefit the health service, the health board and the individuals recently qualified?
I'm asking for a Government statement on the future of renewable energy in Wales. My long-standing support for a tidal lagoon in Swansea, onshore and offshore wind turbines and solar power is a matter of public record. We are awaiting technological advances in solar power so that the energy can be generated without direct sunlight, and we also need improved battery storage. We have onshore wind planning applications that have to be dealt with. I'm not asking for individual planning decisions, just a direction of travel. We also have a proposal to produce substantially more offshore wind energy—the cheapest form of energy. Universities can play a major part in these developments. I'd like to see a plan for the development of renewable energy. I hope that you'll say that you're developing one, but a statement on current intent would be very beneficial.
My fear is that the new development agency will become the WDA mark II. Remember LG? Remember the advanced factories around Wales left empty for decades? Remember the firms who came, took the grants and then left with the equipment we paid for?
Whilst Wales has created many successful companies, one of the failures has been to grow most of these companies into large companies. There have been successes—Admiral Group plc and Iceland Foods Ltd, for example. Two of the world's largest companies—Hewlett-Packard Company and Amazon were started in garages. Looking at two previous medium-sized companies, Alun Griffiths (Contractors) Ltd and Dawnus, Alun Griffiths sold out to Tarmac, but has now been bought back, and Dawnus collapsed owing almost £50 million. Part of the problem was caused by overseas contracts.
I could give many other examples of things that have gone wrong, but I would like to raise some key questions. How are we going to scale up businesses? How do we avoid either failure or being sold to major companies? Why do American companies grow, especially in the technology sector? What can we learn from those American companies, who don't actually have a development agency? How do we arrange sufficient financial support? How do we provide the management and marketing support needed? How do we not only grow, but sustainably grow?
Can I start by saying I've consistently supported the ability of the Welsh Government to borrow prudentially, as every local authority in Wales can? There should be no borrowing limit, but the Government should have to produce a repayment plan, including cumulative repayments. It's ridiculous that the Government can use a modified version of private finance initiative—which is the old PFI scheme but without janitorial services—for capital expenditure, but not the cheaper direct borrowing method. The Finance Committee, of which I was a member, consistently asked that money could be moved into and out of reserves within normal limits. All councils have that power, so it's an anomaly that the Welsh Government does not have that power. I cannot understand why Plaid Cymru didn't put that down, because that would have had unanimous support in this Chamber from at least three parties and probably all parties.
There's a very strong economic case for a United Kingdom where not only is Wales a net beneficiary of redistribution, but also larger countries can more easily withstand economic storms and support the less affluent parts. Iceland, on the banking crisis, is an example of the problems of a small country. Wales has substantially more of its expenditure, including expenditure on people in Wales, coming from Westminster, including funding to the Senedd and Welsh Government, than is raised in Wales. We know that Wales gets 10 per cent more than England on total expenditure. We know that in devolved areas, Wales gets 20 per cent more than England for the same responsibilities.
We know the income tax take in Wales is approximately 75 per cent of England's. There are four possible methods of funding Wales. One is the Barnett formula, which evolved from the Goschen formula that was specifically designed to preserve Scotland's public spending advantage over England. The formula was never designed with Wales in mind. Applied rigorously, the formula should have led to convergence in levels of spending per head across the UK. The formula has, however, preserved a spending advantage for Wales over England.
There have been periodic adjustments to the operation of the formula since 1980, mainly through relative population changes. These adjustments have increased relative spending levels in Wales. The main advantage of the formula is its simplicity and objectivity as the basis of making spending allocations. There have been notable successes in securing formula bypasses for devolution, for example in relation to Objective 1 match funding and the funding for city deals. We also have the Barnett floor. At the 2015 spending review, the UK Conservative Government implemented a funding floor for Wales that provided a guarantee that Welsh block grant funding per head would not fall below 115 per cent of the equivalent funding per head in England.
The second option is that Wales pays its share of Westminster costs and keeps the rest of the taxes raised in Wales. This is what independence looks like. This could have a catastrophic effect on public expenditure in Wales. The only way Plaid Cymru could get anywhere near getting it to work is to not fund the state pension and other central benefits, and not fund the Welsh proportion of the national debt.
The third option is that Wales gets its population share of devolved expenditure. This is the simplest and second most catastrophic. The 115 per cent Barnett floor would be reduced to 100 per cent of English expenditure. This would lead to the removal of the Barnett floor that protects expenditure in Wales and sees Wales doing better than England.
The fourth option is to create a formula that takes into account sparsity, age profile and deprivation. Any new formula would not be without criticism. Consider the local government formula in Wales and the misunderstood arguments and misleading statements we have on it. Anyone who has followed discussions on the local government formula would not realise that the two authorities that receive the least Government support per head are Monmouthshire and the Vale of Glamorgan. The system of grant allocation is designed to be objective and to equalise for need and resources. The following principles underlie the calculation of standard spending assessments. The relative weights of services provided by local government are determined by actual expenditure patterns. Distribution within services is in general determined by objective indicators of an authority's relative need to spend. For the purpose of calculating individual standard spending assessments, allocation to local government revenue funding is broken down into 55 notional service areas. A separate method of distribution exists for each of these elements in order to distribute the total across the authorities. This formula could be compared to England and be used to calculate relative local government need between England and Wales.
Health is a major part of the Welsh Government. It's currently over 50 per cent of the Welsh Government's expenditure. On health, there is a simplistic age-based formula to calculate relative need. Then there's the more complicated and accurate formula, including relative occurrence of all conditions and diseases, with a cost weighting attached. This would create a long and detailed formula, but it is relatively easy to achieve. The data exists and the calculations can be done. The data on relative poverty, rates of long-term ill health and sparsity are known. The rest of the expenditure needs of Wales could be calculated in the same way.
Gerry Holtham chaired an independent commission on funding and finance for Wales that reported in 2010, also known as the Holtham commission. It proposed a Barnett floor and the production of a needs-based formula. Fair funding for Wales should be based on relative need. Reform to a needs-based formula would take time. Work needs to start on it now. The Welsh Government could start on it now. I support the introduction of a needs-based formula, but I think what we need to do is start working on it. The danger is, as has been pointed out by other people here, if we go to a needs-based formula, we could end up having substantially less.
I'm just going to finish on the Crown Estate. If we have all the money from the Crown Estate, it just comes off the block grant. Every other tax devolution has come off the block grant. Why would the Crown Estate be treated differently?
Can I declare an interest as a member of the Co-operative Party and as someone who has been active in several co-operatives? I'm proud that, in the last Senedd's term, the Welsh Labour Government not only set an ambitious target to double the number of employee-owned businesses, but actually broke it quite substantially before the 2026 election. Now, the benefit of employee-owned businesses is well established. My party's manifesto for May contained a commitment to double again the number of co-operatives and community-owned businesses, and I know that your party manifesto similarly spoke about ensuring that businesses are Welsh run, although without that specific target around how success could be measured. So, what target would you consider to be a measure of success for increasing the co-operative model of ownership?
Thank you for that answer. I believe the six key growth sectors in the world's economy are artificial intelligence and automation, renewable energy, digital health, fintech, advanced manufacturing and e-commerce. Does the Minister agree with me? We need an industrial strategy for each of these sectors, support for each of them, including grants, and, crucially, support for Welsh universities, which can provide both graduates and, crucially, academic research. What action is the Minister intending to take to support these sectors?
Diolch. Saturday, 4 July is national appreciation day for key workers in the retail industry. We all interact with retail workers, be it in our local newsagents, supermarkets, clothes shops or do-it-yourself stores. Retail trade union USDAW—Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers—is holding its National Retail Workers' Day, which engages with the public to highlight the value of retail workers in our shops and communities this Saturday.
There are 2.8 million jobs in retail, accounting for almost 10 per cent of all jobs in the British economy. It is collectively the biggest private sector employer in the country. I, alongside USDAW, am asking the public to show their support for shop workers and share the message that retail workers are at the heart of our communities. The staff are at the core of the success of the retail industry, which is crucial to the UK economy and is a vital part of our high streets and communities. National Retail Workers' Day provides a great opportunity to thank all retail workers for the hard work they do day in, day out.
The trade union for retail workers, USDAW, represents hundreds of thousands of workers across the UK retail sector. USDAW continues to make a difference for retail workers by negotiating higher pay rates, more secure employment contracts, calling for action to help revitalise our high streets, delivering for members in the workplace, including negotiating supportive policies on the menopause, greater support on mental health issues and caring for children and family, and working with employers, Government and police to tackle abuse, threats and violence towards retail workers and delivering vital new legal protections. I welcome the Crime and Policing Act 2026 to tackle the epidemic of retail crime and assaults on shop workers that occur far too often. We all need to respect and appreciate retail workers.
I'm a school governor, which is on my declaration of interests. Councils in Wales continue to deliver support for children and young people with additional learning needs, but rising demand and costs are making it harder to sustain. Figures from the Welsh Local Government Association show that spending on additional learning needs and early years support was expected to rise by around 6 per cent in 2026-27, which amounts to an increase of around £46 million across Wales. Individual councils predicted increases of up to 14 per cent.
Schools across Wales are at breaking point. A significant number of school budgets are currently in deficit—for many, a crisis that is driven directly by severely underfunded ALN provision. Schools that had a substantial surplus have seen that money used for ALN provision, and once money is spent once, it can't be spent again. Spending on ALN reform has more than doubled over the last decade, rising significantly faster than available funding. School leaders and local authorities simply cannot sustain this pressure without support.
Thanks to major investments announced for special educational needs and disabilities provision in England, Wales is due to receive £500 million, of which there is £322 million in 2026-27 and £197 million recurrent from 2028-29 in consequential funding via the Barnett formula. However, the Welsh Government have refused to pass the money on to schools. It is fundamentally unfair that children in England benefit from increased investment whilst Welsh learners are left behind. I want the full consequential funding arising from SEN spending in England to be allocated to ALN provision in Wales. And I'm waiting for somebody in Plaid Cymru to explain that autism is different in England than it is in Wales. That's what they've been saying, isn't it—that it's not the same pressure. It's exactly the same pressure on exactly the same children with exactly the same problems. The funding must flow directly to local authorities and to the schools delivering support on the ground.
I recall, from the auditor general's report from earlier this year, that the report focused on the system that supports children and young people with additional learning needs in Wales in the context of changes brought about by the Additional Learning Needs and Education Tribunal (Wales) Act 2018. The auditor general looked at whether public bodies understand ALN demand, workforce capacity, and scale of costs and outcomes. The findings show that public bodies do not have a complete picture of these issues—they do not have enough information for effective planning and budgeting and to assess value for money. The auditor general had concerns about the current performance of the system in supporting learners to meet their full potential.
The available data shows that there is a 58 per cent reduction in the number of school learners recorded as having ALN or SEN between 2018-19 and 2024-25. The reasons are disputed. I would say that it's a sleight of hand in order to try and make budgets match rather than a reduction in need. Over the same period, the number of school learners with ALN having statutory support through an individual development plan increased by 164 per cent.
The spending involved in supporting learners with ALN has been increasing, putting pressure on wider budgets. The auditor general could not place a firm figure on it. The sums that can be easily identified suggest that the current annual spending approaches £1 billion. This is not the full picture, and the full cost will likely be higher. Councils' budgeted expenditure on ALN increased by 34 per cent in real terms between 2018-19 and 2025-26. The auditor general concluded that the system does not have good enough data to understand the extent of growing demand and complexity. Patchy workforce data limits the system's understanding of a range of capacity and skills challenges. Public bodies do not have a good enough understanding of ALN costs, and the auditor general had concerns about the system's financial sustainability.
The goals of the ALN system are clear, but there is only a limited picture on whether it is delivering good outcomes for learners, and the system remains adversarial, despite evidence of some improvement. Every parent who I've spoken to about ALN provision starts off with the same statement: 'We had to fight for it at every step of the journey'. One-to-one provision is in the plan, but it is very often one to two and sometimes one to three or four. Teaching assistants assigned to one-to-one support for pupils with additional learning needs are frequently pulled away from their designated role to assist the wider class, manage behaviour or support the teacher with general tasks. This dilutes the focused, personalised support that ALN pupils are entitled to and can be genuinely harmful, particularly for children with communication difficulties who depend on the consistency of that relationship to feel safe and access learning.
This is not a criticism of headteachers, who are having to work with very tight budgets and are having to try and manage schools in very difficult circumstances. There is not enough money in the ALN system to meet all of the needs. There is the money that has come to Wales as a consequence of ALN spending in England. It needs to be spent on additional learning needs in Wales, like it is being spent in England. I would urge people to support this.
How we treat animals is a sign of the type of society we are and want to be. If we allow animals to be mistreated, either by ignorance or cruelty, then it reflects badly on us as a society. We must remember that the evidence from multiple scientific studies has helped us to understand that a wide range of animals are sentient beings. This means they have the capacity to experience positive and negative feelings such as pleasure, joy, pain and distress. Progress has been made in recent years in Wales, but a lot more is left to be done. I believe we need to legislate on animal welfare, with legislation to include the microchipping of cats, a ban on tethering horses, a ban on individuals keeping primates, ending the cage breeding of game birds, banning Larsen traps, and rabbit ownership only after a short training course where individuals can show they understand the needs of rabbits. Will the Welsh Government bring in this legislation?
Diolch, Lywydd. What analysis has the Counsel General made of the standard of court buildings in Wales? I have been told that a number of the court buildings in Wales are in a very poor state of repair. Has the Counsel General discussed the state of the court buildings in Wales with Lady Carr, the head of the judiciary of England and Wales? Has the Counsel General discussed the state of the court buildings in Wales with the Lord Chancellor? And will the Counsel General report to the Senedd proposals to improve the fabric of court buildings in Wales?
Thank you for that response. Lady Carr is well aware of the problems; she reported that to a Senedd committee in the last Senedd.
My next question is: a lot can be achieved without legislation, including what happened with comprehensive education, but some things need legislation. Areas that need legislation include statutory bodies. Support staff are very important to the running of a school. Schools could not run effectively without them. I've seen it first-hand as a school governor—a membership that I'm declaring for the record. Will the Counsel General and Plaid Cymru support my colleague Lynne Neagle's Member's legislative proposal to create in law a school support staff negotiating body?
Thank you, Presiding Officer. I believe in the importance of team sports, as somebody who used to take part. It is important for learning teamwork, improving health, and developing friendships. My grandson plays both football and rugby at under-nine level in Swansea and thoroughly enjoys it. I'm involved with a large number of football and rugby teams, which I won't name here, but they are on my declaration. You wouldn't give me enough time to read them all out.
During the winter, on non-3G and 4G pitches, a lot of junior games are cancelled due to rain. Young people get out of the habit of playing on a Saturday. Many give up on their teams. How does the Welsh Government intend to promote team sports and make sure that teams can play throughout the year? And I wish you luck in getting school headteachers to allow their pitches to be used.
Yesterday, I visited Penyrheol school in my constituency, and I was talking to the children there. They were talking about the fact that from November to March, you could play, at best, once every three weeks. At worst, you'll go months without playing. It really is important that we have facilities that are available. I was very pleased when, last week, during your statement, Minister, you said that you were going to take an inventory of sports provision in Wales. How many 3G and 4G pitches are there now, and how many do you intend there to be in April 2030?
What would you replace the Barnett formula with? We know that Wales gets 10 per cent more than England on total expenditure, including HS2. We know, in devolved areas, Wales gets 20 per cent more than England for the same responsibilities. How much more does the Minister think Wales should get, and why would the Treasury not suggest that we get our population share of everything, which would have a devastating effect on our income?
I didn't realise you were going to go on from sewage pollution. The River Tawe, which runs through your constituency—and acts as a border between your constituency and my constituency now—has very serious problems with the Trebanos pumping station and the fact that that continually releases raw sewage into the River Tawe—raw sewage you can actually see going into the River Tawe, which has caused children to be ill. Do you agree with me that what we need is NRW to stop being nice to Welsh Water and start prosecuting them and making them pay a price for letting the raw sewage go out there, and in which case, they'll stop doing it?
The economy of Gŵyr Abertawe cannot be looked at in isolation from Carmarthenshire and Neath Port Talbot. What type of economy do you want in the area? I want one based upon life sciences, computing and ICT. These are high-paid and innovative sectors capable of sustaining substantial growth. The strengths of the Swansea economy are the two universities. There has previously been a failure to accept that and provide them with the support they need. What support will the Welsh Government give to those university departments in order to produce high-paid employment?
The NHS in Brycheiniog Tawe Nedd cannot be looked at in isolation from Swansea. The Neath and Cwmtawe areas are part of the Swansea Bay University Health Board. Two of the three major hospitals covering that area used by patients are Morriston and Singleton Hospital in Swansea. For parts of Brecon, the Swansea valley and Neath, the emergency department is at Morriston Hospital. Some GP services cover Tawe Nedd, Swansea and the Swansea valley, including the Cwmtawe hub. Does the Minister agree that artificial political boundaries should not affect service provision and delivery?
Diolch, Deputy Presiding Officer. Can I welcome the Minister to her role as Minister for local government and congratulate her on her appointment? I believe this is the first time a local government Minister and an opposition spokesperson have both previously held senior elected office in local government. My question is: what do you calculate the rate of inflation for 2026-27 affecting local government?
Prior to the Welsh Government's final budget for 2026-27, the Welsh Local Government Association estimated that additional funding needed to meet local authority budget pressures could total £1.6 billion over the next three years. The Auditor General for Wales said some councils are at the very edge of financial stability. In November 2025, he stressed that some local authorities were close to issuing section 114 notices. Education and social services account for the majority of local government spending. The Welsh Local Government Association estimates schools and social services alone make up around 60 per cent of financial pressures this year. Local authorities have a statutory duty to provide these services and, with ever-increasing demand in these areas, there's little flexibility in other budgets. The Welsh Government had substantial consequential funding from ALN expenditure in England. Does the Minister now expect that money to come into local government, and do you accept what I am saying about how much extra for local government we need, and will you be arguing for the supplementary budget to have additional money for local government?
I think that when you compare London with Wales, you might find that, in London, there are very few properties that are below band D, and in parts of Wales like Blaenau Gwent, most properties are band A. So, it's not how much the banding is; it's how much people are actually paying. I think that you will find that there's not much difference, Wales pays slightly—
I'll try and explain it to you simply outside of here.
Will the Minister make available the calculation of the data for the standard spending assessment for each council? Will the Minister then make available the calculations and data for the Welsh Government's support for local councils? Does the Minister agree that we need that prior to making any changes to the formula?
It's lovely to be discussing the Swansea economy. The engineering supply chain within the Swansea bay city region has been particularly hard hit by the reduction in steel production at Tata Steel in Port Talbot. Can the First Minister explain, given the challenges currently facing manufacturing businesses, why substantial Welsh Government grants and business support are available within the Neath Port Talbot area, while businesses in Swansea appear to have access to little or no equivalent support, albeit some of them are only a couple of hundred yards over the border? I firmly believe the Welsh Government should be providing meaningful assistance to businesses throughout the wider region during these challenging economic conditions, and not be implementing very large rent increases.
Thank you for that answer, First Minister. As you know, in Wales, like most of western Europe, we have an ageing population, over half the Welsh Government's expenditure is on health and social care, and we have long waiting lists for hospital treatment. We need to use technology to improve health outcomes, speed up treatment and improve treatments.
We have research telling us that AI-powered devices help surgeons perform minimally invasive procedures with greater precision and accuracy, reducing the risks of errors and complications, and that AI can be used for personalised patient communication, including sending patients scheduling reminders, health tips and suggested next steps, improving patient engagement and adherence to treatment plans. AI can also be used to predict which patients are at risk of becoming frequent users of emergency services, allowing for earlier intervention and potentially reducing demand on emergency departments. Which of these is the Welsh Government going to use, or are there other ones?
I have consistently argued for the devolution of rail funding. Asymmetric devolution has not worked. It hasn't worked in Britain, it hasn't worked in Spain. It is important that rail funding is devolved. The main question is how should the funding be calculated. Which of these does the Minister prefer: relative population, relative population with the 20 per cent addition that the Barnett formula provides, relative track length, or relative passenger numbers? Each of those will give you a different answer.
Policing is one of the anomalies in the current devolution settlement. I led a debate back in 2013—it seems a long time ago now—that succeeded in this Chamber, calling for the devolution of policing. It didn't get very far, but it did get the majority's support in this Chamber. Policing is devolved to Northern Ireland, Scotland, London and other areas with elected mayors, but not to Wales. Different devolution settlements for Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland do not work, as I said earlier. Currently, Wales gets 20 per cent extra for devolved services than England gets. Why would it be different for policing?
I didn't expect you to stop there. Minister, I congratulate you on your appointment to this post and hope we can work constructively together. I want to raise today culture, music and the economy. Whilst culture is good and should be supported for that reason, we know it has a wider benefit to the economy and to health, and you mentioned health earlier. I declare an interest as president, vice-president and patron of a number of Swansea-based choirs. Please don't ask me to name them.
How will the Cabinet Minister ensure that Creative Wales has the resources it needs to build on its success since being created by Welsh Labour in 2020 and enable collaboration across culture and the creative industries in relation to a new culture strategy? Will the Cabinet Minister commit to continuing the work of the arts, creative and media sector workforce social partnership forum that was established under the last Welsh Labour Government to support fair work and sustainable careers across the sectors? What are the Welsh Government's plans for a new culture strategy that consults stakeholders, including the unions and those employed in the sector, in relation to the creative professionals who deliver activity across the sector?
Industries such as computer games have no geographical constraints. The computer games industry has a bigger turnover than film or music. There are no geographical constraints, and there are benefits in clustering. As I have said on several occasions in the Chamber previously, one of the world's most popular games, Grand Theft Auto, was created in Dundee. Dundee has a video game centre at Abertay University. There are many gaming companies based in the city. How did it become such a hub for the industry? Dundee's links to the gaming industry began with Lemmings, the hugely popular computer game released in 1991 for the Commodore Amiga. It was written by Dave Jones, a graduate of Abertay University, who then developed Grand Theft Auto. What it had was Government commitment and, more importantly, Government funding. In the first decade of the twenty-first century, the Government invested £2.5 million in Abertay University. There's now a symbiotic relationship between the university and the city's games developers. Investment in universities is much better for our economy than bribing companies to bring branch factories here with the promise of hundreds or thousands of jobs that are rarely fulfilled. Think LG.
Moving to music tourism, the data speaks for itself. In 2024, music touring in Wales attracted 834,000 visitors, supported 3,650 jobs, and generated £384 million for the economy. With the right support, its impact can grow even further. Does the Minister agree we must grow Welsh music through smart public investment, bring down barriers to exporting Welsh music, ensure music education is accessible to all, and support home-grown creativity and new music that drives Welsh tourism? Adopting these initiatives will ensure that the music sector is equipped to thrive, innovate and seize new opportunities, strengthening Wales's cultural and economic impact for generations to come.
Still on the music theme, the music industry and support for the base protects everything that grows from it and secures the long-term sustainable cultural infrastructure. What are your proposals on business rates reform, creating a dedicated cultural classification and music venue definition, ensuring fair valuation and reduced avoidable closures? We also need to ensure that any rates reduction is not taken by landlords as increased rents.
The 'agent of change' law embeds the principles in legislation to develop and manage noise and access around existing venues, reducing conflict and protecting long-standing cultural spaces. I'm sure lots of people here can give examples where there used to be a music place that people used to go to, then houses and flats were built around it, and all of a sudden the people who moved into the houses and flats wanted the music place closed down because it was noisy. The fact they hadn't noticed it was there in the first place was a bit of a surprise.
On safe, affordable late-night transport, we need to invest in late-night services so audiences, artists and staff can travel safely. Far too often events finish after the last bus leaves. A small timetable change can have a major effect. A small timetable change in Swansea with the train meant that people could go to the arena and be able to stay till the very end.
In terms of a grass-roots live music fund, we should establish a Creative Wales fund dedicated to live music programming and talent development, with simple application and fast decisions. When Ed Sheeran sang in Singleton park, he reminded people it was the second time he had been in Swansea. He had played early in his career at a small city centre venue called Sin City. In terms of a community ownership pathway, we should develop a Welsh model for community and co-operative ownership to protect venues on short leases and keep cultural assets in local hands.
I will return to other areas of your portfolio in the future, but I wanted to talk about music and creative industries in my first opportunity.
Thank you, Presiding Officer. Does this come on? It has now. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I want to pay tribute to Val Lloyd, who passed away in May. Val Lloyd was my predecessor as the Assembly Member for Swansea East. She was first elected in a by-election following the untimely death of Val Feld.
She had been in poor health for several years and had to move to London to be nearer her two daughters. She was born and brought up in Townhill in Swansea, attended the local primary school and the girls' grammar school in Llwyn y Bryn. She first qualified as a primary school teacher, then as a nurse, before becoming a nurse tutor at Swansea University where she taught and influenced many of the current senior nurses working in the Swansea Bay health board.
She had been an active Labour Party member from the age of 16, where she met her husband Bob. They had two daughters, Rebecca and Samantha, who she was devoted to.
She served alongside me as a councillor for Morriston ward where her commitment to her community shone through, alongside her willingness to help others and to take on authority for the benefit of the people of Morriston. She was elected to the Assembly, as it was then, in 2001 and served for 10 years until 2011. Whilst in the Assembly, she served as chair of the Labour group and as Chair of the Petitions Committee. In both cases, she chaired with fairness and thoroughness. She played a leading role in both the plastic bag levy and the ban on smoking in public buildings, both of which she was very proud of.
On a personal level, I thank her for her support for me as both a candidate and a Member of the Senedd. Finally, thank you, Val, you are missed by your family, friends and those who you met and helped in the constituency.
I congratulate Swansea Council on the work being done on resurfacing roads in Swansea. Climate change is leading to flooding and potholes. Following water penetration on roads, the water freezes, which causes the surface to break up, causing potholes. Not believing in climate change does not stop the potholes coming. Previously, the Labour Government provided revenue support for local government borrowing in order to support road maintenance and building new roads, because councils have borrowing powers the Welsh Government does not have. Will the current Government continue this support during this Senedd term?
I'm a graduate of Swansea University, and, like all other local Senedd Members, including yourself, am on the university court. I'm asking for an urgent Government statement on the planned redundancies in the computing department of Swansea University. If we are to improve our economy and productivity, we need to support university computing departments. Will the Welsh Government meet with the vice-chancellor of Swansea University and offer support for computing at the university and find a way forward so that we can benefit from the really good work being done there?
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'm not actually the spokesperson on this. Jayne Bryant is, so I think perhaps you might want to call Jayne Bryant now and call me later on.
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I'm a member of the Co-operative Party. I was very disappointed to see no mention of co-operative housing. Under a housing co-operative tenure, members are co-operative in the collective power to manage the accommodation between them. As decisions are made by the members, the principles of both community ownership and democracy are placed at the very heart of housing co-operative models. There are strong co-operative housing sectors in countries across Europe and North America. In Sweden, two large co-operative organisations provide over 750,000 homes, which is approximately 18 per cent of the total population of the country living in co-operative housing. Wales has made some progress in recent years, with support from Nationwide and Cwmpas, and the Welsh Government, not as much as I would like, and I've raised this previously with previous Ministers. Why does the Minister not believe that co-operative housing is an important tool in increasing housing provision in Wales?
River pollution is a critical environmental issue, caused by sewage, agricultural run-off, industrial waste and plastic debris, severely impacting ecosystems, human health and water quality. On the River Tawe, Trebanos pumping station is not splitting rainwater and sewage, so, when it gets full, the two choices are to let it back up and flood the houses with sewage or release it into the river. Now, as mentioned earlier, there have been reports of children being taken ill after swimming in the River Tawe. Natural Resources Wales has confirmed that work to prevent regular discharge of untreated sewage in the River Tawe from Trebanos waste water treatment works is not likely to be completed until 2030. I do not believe that is acceptable. Why do you think ending the ban on slurry spreading from mid October to January is not going to further increase pollution in the River Tawe? We know that it gets into rivers such as the Tawe, it can cause algal blooms, which block sunlight and deplete water oxygen, affecting all wildlife.
A question, really, probably in three parts. The first one is: what use of artificial intelligence to improve productivity is planned? The second one is: how will the Minister support computing and life science departments in universities so the spin-offs from them can grow and provide high-paid, high-quality jobs? And coming on to start-ups, I always remember that Hewlett-Packard was started in a garage by two people, and Amazon in a garage by one person. What support is going to be given to not only getting the companies to start up, but more importantly to get them to grow? Far too often in Wales, we have companies, they start off, they get to medium size, they can maybe employ a couple of hundred people and, all of a sudden, they get eaten up, taken over, bought, whichever terminology you prefer, by larger companies. What can we do to ensure that they stay in Wales and don't sell out at the first possible opportunity?