03/11/2015 am.pm

Good afternoon. Welcome to the programme and our weekly coverage of

questions to the First Minister. After a week away from Cardiff the

politicians are back and Carwyn Jones will and the questions on

superfast broadband is as well as city regions. You can follow the

latest on Welsh politics on our Twitter feed. Business in the

Chamber is underway, so let's take a look now at today's questions to the

First Minister. Order, order, the National Assembly is in question.

Question one. John Griffiths. Will the First Minister make a statement

on community volunteering? Volunteers make a vital contribution

to our communities, we support volunteers and have given ?6 million

to the infrastructure and organisations including ?600,000 in

core funding for the Gwent Association for voluntary

organisations. I think everybody here would agree that across the

length and breadth of Wales volunteers do amazing jobs in so

many different ways, and without that contribution many aspects of

life in our communities would grind to a halt. Would he agree that we

need to reward and support of volunteers. An important way of

doing this is the time banking service. It provides free access to

leisure, entertainment and other services. We need to support and

roll out time bugging across Wales. I find the member for his question.

It is a way of recognising people's worth. It is a way of incentivising

action and involvement. We have provided a way of incentivising

action and involvement. We have 2015 to develop the time banking movement

in Wales. First Minister, ahead of Remembrance

Sunday it is important that we acknowledge the dedication and hard

work of community volunteers across Wales and in my own constituency who

tirelessly sell poppies to raise money for the Poppy Appeal this

support is vital to the Royal British Legion to give support to

service women and their families and reminds us how much has been given

by this to this country. We use join me in paying tribute to all those

who give their time and energy so that we may remember and support

those who have given so much more for our country?

Yes, I join the member in those sentiments. It has been a noticeable

at this year that there are more poppy sellers than previous years.

I've seen many people wearing their poppies. With Remembrance Sunday

coming up this Sunday many people's minds will be focused on the

sacrifice that has been made. It is encouraging to see more and more

poppies sold every year. Julie Morgan.

Will the First Minister join me in current graduate in the Cardiff

Samaritans which celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. It is one of

the oldest continuously operating charities in South Wales. It gives

confidential support at all times to people suffering from emotional

distress. Yes, I would, and I thank the member

for bringing this milestone to my attention. Also my thanks to the

Cardiff and district branch of the Samaritans on behalf of the Welsh

government. Without the important work they do many people would not

have been able to overcome great difficulty in their lives. It is

right to say that there are some people who would not be with us now

if it wasn't for the advice they were given.

Thank you, dirty Presiding Officer, we all know that the public purse

continues and that puts more pressure on volunteers to step into

the breach. Would you join me in congratulating Conwy County Borough

Council when it comes to the remaining with their library

permission. Many libraries have now been transferred to the community.

There are several examples of that. Would you join with me in

congratulating them on that approach. Can we look at that model

specifically when looking at the future of libraries?

This is a model that has been developed in other parts of Wales as

well, for example a library in Neath Port Talbot, volunteers have taken

the library at Briton Ferry over. They have actually secured the

future of that library. We know with real is serious

pressure on the public purse and it's good to see people taking local

resources and keeping them open for the benefit of local people. It's

good to see the library survive. It's good to see this model being

adopted in other areas. First Minister, last Saturday I

visited the headquarters of a hospice at home in our breast lift,

a charity which is community-based and offers end of life care to --

Aber mistress. It deals with rural hinterland communities. It has

already established a high-quality service agenda stands the needs of

people at the end of their lives. And the important need for support

for their families. Will you join me in praising the hard work of the

volunteers of hospice at home Ceredigion, and is subject to daily

pressure consider accepting a bit invitation to visit them.

I would be pleased to consider the invitation. If a formal invitation

goes through the normal channels. What's interesting is that the work

that the member describes involves enabling people to stay at home

rather than having to go into a hospice. That has been a major

change in the NHS. Instead of it being overly hospital-based as a

case of stem people are able to stay at home. It is important that their

pain is managed in a familiar environment. Of course, that depends

on the good work of hospice is at home to give people that option.

Question two, Gwyn Price. Will the First Minister outline how the Welsh

government is supporting local high-street businesses in my

constituency? We have a further cap on the

business rates multiply and the extension of small business rates

relief as well as the enhancement of the Wales retail scheme.

Thank you for that answer. On Saturday the 5th of November we

celebrate small business Saturday. Last year over 60 million people is

shopped in small businesses on the day, what is the government doing to

make sure that small businesses are aided in my constituency?

What's more businesses need more than anything else is customers.

It's important that if people don't use small businesses they will

disappear. Small business Saturday is on the 5th of December. Business

Wales proposed to support the activity around that Iran including

supporting the SPS UK team when they visit Wales. I know that the

businesses marketplace initiative will support small businesses on

that Saturday by providing trading experiences in Cardiff market as

well as phase two showcase and celebrate micro and small Welsh

businesses. The entrepreneurship campaign that was launched as part

of an integrated support scheme for small businesses in Wales.

Thank you, deputy providing officer. The UK Government has announced that

is to allow local authorities in England to keep money they collect

from business rates, to boost and create jobs in the areas, what

studies has the Welsh government undertaken into the potential

benefits of this policy on businesses in Wales, will we be

considering the same sort of policy here?

There is a large pitfall here. Some local authorities would lose out as

a result of such a system in Wales. The element of cross subsidy

disappears, we would lose about ?4 million a year. We have to consider

allowing local authorities the flexibility they need without them

losing out in terms of access to a smaller part of money in times of

financial difficulty. Well, First Minister, you are right.

Too many people are shopping online. Get out should be called. Many of

our high streets are home to historic buildings that fall into

disuse or distributor as town centres decline. Could these

buildings be used again for a purpose and related to traditional

shopping as we have come to know it?

Local authorities are taking steps to redesign the mix within town

centres. In Bridgend there are too many shop units and not enough

offices. It means there are not enough office workers in town to

provide footfall for units. We are converting some of the shop units

into offices and residential units as well. We need to make sure there

are people in town centres in the day and evening. There are many town

centres which don't have a footfall any longer. They are open between

9am and 5:30pm when there is no one around. They come back when the

shops aren't open. We need to look at making sure that footfall is

there in the day, that means offices. Businesses need to start

thinking about whether you're after open 9am until five or whether 11am

until 7pm is a better model. I now call the party leaders to

question me First Minister, starting with the leader of Plaid Cymru,

Leanne Wood. Plaid Cymru welcomes your statement this morning about

cutting waiting times for people with mental health issues from

trying to dig a 56 to 28 days. I would like to ask you about child

and adolescent mental health services in the community. You will

be a way that the repercussions for children and young people waiting

too long for mental health treatment can be lifelong. What plans do you

have two improvement of health services for children and young

people? We have an additional ?800,000 in

expanding provision for children and adolescents. Health board proposals

have been agreed. They will result in the recruitment of more

specialist staff across Wales to work with primary care providers and

directly support young people in primary care. That is expected to

improve in terms of assessment and treatment. Evidence suggests that

around one third of young people referred have no mental illness if I

can put it that way, a further third have low level difficulty which do

not meet treatment thresholds. Expanding primary care means more

young people can be assessed and receive appropriate treatment

without onward referral being needed. This helps to free up time

for those in more need of the services that the agency provide. It

is important that we have different ways of helping young people with

mental health issues. Some will not need specialist treatment, but we

are working with the health minister to make sure that treatment is

available. I accept that there needs to be a

range of treatments, but perhaps you can shed light on official figures

that show that between 2009 and 2014 there was a reduction in spending on

child and adult mental health services in primary care of ?2

million, leaving the overall spend on those crucial services at ?5.1

million. I am aware that the mental health measure in 2012 we

categorised some funding streams, and that might mean official

statistics don't tell us the full picture, can you give us an

assurance that there has not been cut in funding for community mental

health services for children and young people over this period? And

are you prepared to publish the details and make them available in

the library as soon as possible? Varies no reason why that shouldn't

be done. In terms of the investment we made in mental health services

and, of course, the 7.6 million that has gone in, we will see new

services developer for our young people with new services developer

for our young people with we will issue guidelines outlining our

expectations that all referral should be undertaken within 48 hours

by the 1st of April next year. While routine assessment should be taken

place within 28 days. That is currently different to the situation

that has existed. I'm still not clear as to whether or

not you have provided an assurance as to whether or not there's been

been cut. Almost two thirds of children are now wait longer than

ten weeks for treatment to begin. You have made a welcome announcement

to create a more ambitious target for adults experiencing mental

health problems and I welcome that but will you now committed to

tackling these appalling waiting times for treatment? And will you

agree to set appropriate targets and back this up with a firm commitment

to an annual real terms increase in funding for child and adolescent

mental health services? We will look to allocate the money that is

required for child and mental health services. It partially depends on

the budget that we see from the government. However, we know we want

to see improvement in this area and as I said earlier, we have issued

guidelines on our website that referrals should take place within

48 hours and routine assessments within 28 days. They are taxing

targets but we expect to meet them. First Minister, two months before

the commission of public service and government delivery publish an

independent report, why did you instruct Sir Paul Williams as to how

you wanted his proposals laid out presented and delivered? Unless the

reader of the opposition gives more detail, I cannot comment. In e-mails

we have had released to us, it clearly shows that an October, 2013,

an e-mail sent by him on your behalf stated that you would prefer a

series of options for proposals to reorganise local government. The

e-mail went on to say that you wanted no heavy steer in favour of

any particular option. Remarkably, you said that once the report was

finalised, only you and your permanent secretary should be given

a copy. Nobody else, not even your local government minister. That

e-mail went on the 27th of December. The commission was supposed to

independently review public services in Wales. Why did you instruct it to

spend ?130,000 commissioning report, and then Pinzi proposals? I am at a

loss to understand what the Leader of the Opposition is trying to say.

-- and then bin the proposals. I did not want to give them the heavy

steer, that is the whole point. I took the view of the Williams

Commission that I wanted them to be independent, and to come up with an

option, if they could, but they had a free hand to deliver another

option. There was no steer, as the e-mail confirms. The principle of

the Williams Commission was to be independent. It was left to get on

with its work and come forward with proposals. These e-mails clearly

show that your officials, and yourself, were supporting the work

of the commission, and directing how you wanted the final report to

resemble your own thoughts on local government reorganisation. The issue

is quite clear, that you and your officials were directing what

everyone else thought was an independent commission. Do you not

recognise that this is now calling into question any findings of the

Williams Commission, as brought forward in the final report? That is

an example of someone who asked a question and then realised it was a

mistake. Let me make it clear that the Williams Commission asks whether

there would be options and my preference was that there should be

an option. It was for them to make a decision and they were given a free

hand in that. If anyone can point out to me what is wrong with that, I

am open to suggestions but this is a scenario where an independent body,

with a member of the Conservative Party sitting on it, was not

directed in any way by government. There is no point shouting now. They

were not given any steer as to what they should be doing. They were left

to provide an independent report in any way they saw fit. They were

given no heavy steer, as suggested by the e-mail. A perfectly proper

way to do this. Can I return to the issue of mental health? You will be

aware that the Welsh Liberal Democrats have long campaigned for

parity between physical and mental health. The government announcement

today that waiting targets will be taken from 52 to 28 days is very

welcome. Can you confirm that a patient awaiting therapy will

receive that therapy within 28 days? We expect to see that. Thank you for

that clarity and commitment. As the government will be aware, setting a

target is one thing and meeting it is quite another. Given that your

own government's review found that some people are waiting up to two

years to access psychological therapy, how many extra

professionals and extra patient appointments will be created in

order to fulfil your promise that you have made in this chamber that

people needing psychological therapy will receive it within 28 days? As I

said, and I will give the answer, health proposals have been agreed

and they will result in the recruitment of more specialist staff

across Wales to work with primary care providers and support young

people in primary care as well. Of course, we expect that to improve

overall waiting times. I am glad for the clarity. It is really important

for someone who has had the courage to go to the primary health care

professional today to discuss a mental health issue to know that if

they need to have psychological treatment, that they will receive

that within 28 days. I think that is a massive step forward if the

government is able to achieve that. As we heard earlier, there are over

3000 young people in Wales currently on a waiting list. I accept that for

many of those young people, they do not need to be in that service at

all. Indeed, it is a positive and negative thing to be in that service

and to have that label if that child does not need it. But there are many

people in that service on a waiting list that desperately need a

professional intervention and they need it quickly. Given what you have

said about improvements to assessment times, why does the

government think that it is acceptable for young people to wait

after an assessment for 112 days for treatment, when you expect adults to

only way to 28 is now? What we expect with the recruitment of new

staff is that we will see waiting times improve. But it is also

important to ensure that those who do not need specialist treatment get

it quicker and get appropriate treatment in other ways. We're

looking to do that as well, as a mission to the leader of Plaid

Cymru. But an urgent referral in 48 hours is important, in terms of

being able to plan for the treatment and care of a young person, and

assessment within 20 days is a significant improvement, something

that we are determined to see through, given the findings we have

put in place. They're in mind that mental health in England and Wales

has been ring fenced since 2009, but we want to make sure that there are

more professionals involved in providing specialist advice to

children and young people. Will the First Minister make a statement on

the services in Wales East? We are looking to improve the access to

health services in that area. The United Kingdom Cancer coalition, ten

years on, report is tracking how far lung cancer outcomes and services

have progressed over the last decade. They say that Wales have the

second worst lung cancer survival rate in Europe. How can these issues

be addressed, First Minister, in a relatively short period? We have

already announced a significant investment, which will help many

people. Radiotherapy is showing itself to be very promising when it

comes to the treatment of bone cancer. And we know that the key to

lung cancer is the future development of gene therapy

targeting the individual, and we are fortunate to have the Centre for

Cancer genetics, hosting a Nobel Prize winner, putting Wales at the

forefront of research into this terrible disease. First Minister, of

course these serious conditions are often picked up following routine

appointments with the GP. Last week, a family member wanted a routine GP

appointment. They rang the surgery and of course it was eight o'clock

in the morning. 59 times, they rang the number before 830. Only to find

out that the appointments had gone. I have to say, it took some tenacity

on the part of the family member. How do you rate the accessibility of

nonurgent GP appointments in south-east Wales? Bid in mind that

most GPs are independent contractors, I am aware of surgeries

where it is possible to book online evening before and possible to get

through easily. There are other surgeries where GPs need to ensure

that there is consistency of services. There is no reason why GPs

shouldn't be able to offer appointments. There is no reason why

they should not be able to offer the ability to order a repeat

prescription online as well. I've seen good examples of this in

Caerphilly, and in my own patch at Bridgend. I encourage all GPs to

actually make sure that they are as accessible as they can beat and not

just rely on saying that that is the way things were done 20 years ago.

That is not a way that things need to be done now. The cornerstone of

your plans for south-east Wales health care is the long promised

specialist critical care centre. The failure to deliver the project to

date, something that was promised to be done before the last election

which should be open now and accepting patients, is having a

knock-on effect as to where people are getting secondary care and is

impacting the ability to recruit and retain trainee GPs in South Powys.

They need to undertake an application for paediatrics at the

Royal Gwent Hospital, travelling from rural Powys all the way to

Gwent to undertake that part of the training, where previously they

would only have had to travel to low Hall. This makes it a less

attractive proposition to recruit trainee GPs to practices in South

Powys. When will the SCCC be delivered? I can confirm that the

health board submitted a business case for the SCCC to ourselves on

the 15th of October. It was accompanied by an updated programme

business case which will look at the wider health care provision for the

area and both of those cases are now with the Welsh ministers and will

receive full consideration. Will the First Minister outline how the Welsh

government is helping to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer in

Wales? Pancreatic cancer is a dreadful disease and it is usually

detected very late. The survival rate past five years is less than 4%

as a result of that. In awareness of -- and awareness of Greta cancer is

essential for early diagnosis. -- pancreatic cancer. It is pancreatic

Cancer awareness month and I have just posted an event with pancreatic

Cancer UK today to market. It was clear how devastating this illness

is. A recent study found that 71% of respondents in Wales could not name

a single symptom on prompted and while survival rates for most forms

of cancer have been surviving, survival rates for pancreatic cancer

remain low, shockingly so, for the past 40 years. Will you join me in

recognising the hard work of pancreatic Cancer UK and the

supporters in Wales of raising awareness of this awful illness.

It can be difficult to diagnose because the symptoms can be very

nonspecific. We are encouraging people, with VCs someone with a

condition that isn't resolving, but is difficult to pinpoint, to refer

them on for further investigations. My sister-in-law was 44. She was

diagnosed, it was very difficult to get that diagnosis. It is a disease

that is untreatable when it passes a certain stage. Many will know people

who were diagnosed and didn't have much time left. Early diagnosis is

absolutely critical. I understand that it is difficult to diagnose but

if an unusual pattern is presented in someone bent...

Thank you. And thank you for the work my colleague did this afternoon

presenting that event for us. I think everyone in the Chamber knows

somebody with cancer, don't they? In one form or another it touches all

our lives. I wonder if the time has come for us to look more closely at

the introduction of on-screen comps for GPs when people go and consult

them. And also whether more sophisticated diagnostic tools could

be introduced into our GP practices. Our dentists can perform

x-rays and put them up on the screen. That don't seem to have a

problem taking mobile stands out. Has the time come for technology to

help us with diagnosing these more difficult diseases.

It is difficult to know because, of course, with many diagnoses a

consultant radiologist is needed to read the extreme properly. GPs have

some training as part of their general medical training, but would

GPs be comfortable, feeling they're able to do that, or would they

rather refer to a radiologist? I can't answer that question that's

for GPs to answer. We have seen cancer referrals increased greatly

in Wales, happily, most of those referrals have led to a resort where

no cancer is present. But, better to be safe than sorry. GPs, to be

fair, have understood this and are referring people. But what might be

missed in parts is not being missed in the future. As with any illness,

diagnosis is not an easy thing, it can take some time to diagnose the

cancer and even longer to work out a treatment plan. These things are

best left to oncologists, but GPs have a critical role being able to

refer. Question five, Alan Jones. Will the First Minister make a

statement on progress in relation to the availability of superfast

broadband in Kennedy Gam? -- Kerry Dion? Before they roll-out began

there was no access to superfast broadband in the area so the work is

progressing well, and there are 16,615 premises in the local

authority area now able to access superfast broadband that is almost

half of Ceredigion. We want to ensure that everyone will have

access by 2017. This Sunday and area in my

constituency was the brightest and sunniest place in Britain since

records began. Although the weather was very good there, be broadband is

terrible! I had a meeting last week which is served by an exchange where

we got written confirmation from Beattie that they would deal with

the 96% of homes that received superfast broadband under the

contract with the government. Now we understand they won't benefit under

this programme you are an from receiving that confirmation. Is it

fear that a community like this is misled in this way by BT and will

you raise this issue with BT and give the people of this area and the

other communities assurance that confirmation will be honoured? Yes,

of course, I will write to the member once the details are

available. We know that 68 properties in Aberystwyth are now

part of broadband superfast broadband. 53% in Bow Street had a

good proportion. That is no help to the people in the area the member is

speaking about. Will the first minute make statement on his

economic priorities for south-east Wales? Supporting jobs is

important. Support for skills development and transport and ICT

infrastructure. Thank you, First Minister. We recently celebrated

back to the future day. In 1955 you could jump on a train in Monmouth

and travel down one of the world's most beautiful railways and then

connect to the national network at Chepstow. 60 years later Monmouth is

not on the Metro map. It is a key component of the future in

Monmouthshire, are you looking at ways we can get Monmouth and

outlying areas back on the map? , I can't be held responsible for the

Beeching cuts, but I take the point that until quite recently it was

possible to see wagon station from the area but it has been moved now.

There is no reason why Monmouth can't be part of the South East

Wales Metro. It cannot be part of the network, whether it is light

rail or through faster bus connections, it is not just about

heavy rail. I am more than happy to work with the council to see how the

Metro network can be extended to Monmouth and indeed, some other

parts of Montgomeryshire as well. There is no reason why it can't

happen. First Minister, I am sure you will agree that the priorities

in south-east Wales are similar to those in my constituency. People

need enough to live on. Will the First Minister agree with me that

many families in the Pontypridd constituency alone will phase

attacks by the tax credit system. The Tories have no mandate, having

said before the election they would not cut tax credits, they now have

no mandate to inflict this poverty on the people of Wales. Quite

right. We all saw the Prime Minister saying he would not cut tax credits.

We were told that that wasn't going to happen. The issue of tax credits

was not resolved. We say to people that we want to see people in work

that pays and when we say actually, it won't pay as much as it did

before. In the Economist this week, not exactly a left-wing paper, it

makes the point that if tax credits go many families will suffer as a

result of that. The message being given by the UK Government is, if

you work hard, but your wages are low, we were penalised you for it. I

would like to see more businesses taking advantage of the

infrastructure in Wales as opposed to crossing the border and bridges.

Is it possible to give us more details progress on how you are

strengthening and improving Cardiff airport, and how we are promoting

the use of this airport as opposed to crossing over to Bristol? In

September numbers are 21% up on the previous September. We have similar

increases in July and August. I saw the planes coming over my house

every five minutes, it was good to see the airports at capacity. It was

good to see them busy. We are seeing companies continue to thrive at

Cardiff airport. Discussions are taking place with other airlines in

terms of long haul flights. Taking it into public ownership was the

right thing to do. We were shocked at the state of it when we took it

over, we now have an airport that is moving in the right direction, we

are seeing great growth in passenger numbers and that is something we

expect to see continue. What measures is the Welsh government

taking to improve the economic outlook for South Wales Central? We

support economic growth for new and existing businesses, infrastructure

improvements and supporting Wales as they business and tourism

destination. We've just had a successful rugby World Cup. The

rugby ball was taken out of Cardiff Castle Wall last night. It was a

hugely successful event. It was a huge economic opportunity for

businesses the length and breadth of South Wales Central. But they were

significant transport issues relating to key matches on road and

rail. What measures will be Welsh government be undertaking to assess

what changes, if any, they think are appropriate with operators like a

Riva trains Wales and the Severn Bridge tolls to ensure a better flow

of traffic in and out of the capital city so people don't leave with a

negative impression of the journey in and out of Cardiff? First of

all, the tunnels don't help in terms of traffic. In terms of the Severn

Bridge, there is no reason why those bridges need have told at all in

terms of toll barriers. In Dublin there not to toll bridges that are

relic Tronic and run by cameras. The Irish government converted them into

tolls where you have two pre-pay. You prepay on a website beforehand

and you pay within 24 hours of going through. They could all be

electronic decontrol. In terms of trains, we made, the difficulty is,

given the rail structure we have now there is not much spare capacity.

They used to be able to bring rolling stock in for rugby

internationals and run them as games are on. That's lack isn't there in

the same way, we see situations where Network Rail close the tunnel

down and train operators find that they can't get to London,

particularly, as quickly as is normal. Trains are drumming

properly, this is what happens when you have a system that doesn't have

sufficient public control. 20 years ago there was no problem. British

rail were able to handle numbers going through Cardiff station. Yes,

there are more people now, but the capacity isn't there. Unless we

continue to work with sporting authorities like the Welsh Rugby

union to make sure they don't have the same experience in the future.

The same thing happened in Twickenham. People were left

stranded there because the station couldn't cope with the numbers at a

particular time. Salt needs to be given to how the British rail system

copes with big events. We don't seem to do as well as we should. The

Metro clearly is an important piece of infrastructure for the economic

outlook of my region, part of that is going to be the development of

new station so that people can get the Metro. The plan includes a list

of this nation is in my region which might potentially be considered in

the future, however, it says that the planning and assessment of those

stations is going to take from 2015 to 2020 and beyond, there is no

commitment to build a single brick. When will they be built? The Metro

has already started in terms of phase one. We are hoping to see

another one in 2017. The difficulty is that many of the powers required

are default. Particularly in terms of light rail and buses. We don't

have the full range of powers that we want, but there is no reason to

suspect that they want to prevent the Metro taking shape. The next

thing for us will be looking at individual lines and deciding what

the best mode of transport is. The building is still there, it is still

usable as a station, that is anybody's guess. The eastern part of

Cardiff is not well served by the rail network, how cannot be

resolved? How do we make sure that if new stations are built on a

connected to public transport networks. These form part of our

thinking not just in terms of creating the metric system but

making sure it is future proof. Thank you, Willie first minute and

make a statement on how the Swansea city region's economy is being

improved? We are supporting jobs and growth in every part of Wales. We

are making good progress in identifying... What role do you see

for the successful universities in the area to further develop the

local economy? The universities have been very

successful. Two weeks ago I was at the opening of the campus, a

remarkable investment that would not have happened without European

money. That is something we need to emphasise. And also the support of

the UK Government. It has had the effect of drawing in some of the

best academics and it will draw in the best students. And of course

there is a proposal for a new campus on the site, which is a componentry

and ambitious the parliament which shows that the investment is going

into Swansea to strengthen not just the city's academic ability but its

economy as well. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I am sure you

would agree that for the benefits to be felt across Swansea, the Welsh

government should do everything in its power to help local employers

make the most of local skills within the workforce. Will the First

Minister back calls to scrap the age restrictions on the jobs growth bill

scheme so that all members of the community in Swansea have the chance

to benefit... You must related to Swansea. To have a chance to benefit

in growth of the local economy and do not end up exempt from the

current scheme because they are too old. I have listened to four years

of the Tories criticising jobs growth Wales. And now they are

taking it on court. We work with employers to make sure that they

understand the skills and experience that older workers can bring and we

also know that young people, especially given they have been

hammered by the UK Government at the moment, need an extra leg up, and

extra support. That is what this is designed to do, to give that

experience at the work environment at a time where everything else that

my generation took for granted, and the Prime Minister's generation took

for granted, is being removed from them. We will stand by young people

as we have always stood by older people. It has already been

indicated that the opening of the new campus at Swansea University is

a mechanism by which we can look forward to new opportunities in

particularly in research and abandonment. What discussions has

the government had with the community to attract businesses into

this development so that we can develop the high end business skills

that we need in the economy? I am aware that the University is in his

constant news see -- constituency. I have two examples. The Wales coating

and printing centre supports that. And of course, specifically, the

academic and industrial consortium led by Swansea University, with BASF

has strategic partners. And of course, we support Pacific as well.

TRANSLATION: First Minister, the Milford Haven enterprise on the part

of the Swansea based city region is the only region in Wales were you

have to pay a toll to go from one part of another, ?75 over the

bridge. If you look at the trunking of the bridge, are you going to

abolish the tolls? That is an interesting question. There has been

a toll there for many years, and that is something that we would

consider if that is the direction of the road, whether it should be a

trunk road or not. We would have to consider the costs of the bridge

itself, as regards maintaining the bridge and then, of course, we will

take a decision. First Minister, one of the threats to the Swansea Bay

region is the current state of the British Steel industry. There are

concerns about Tata, which is weathering the storm so far. Can I

ask what the UK Government and your government are doing in terms of

trying to mitigate the costs that threaten the future of that plan to?

Much has been done. The Minister has written to UK ministers five times

this year. -- the future of that plant. We have continued to press

the UK Government for resignation of the compensation package as soon as

possible. -- recognition. These costs are brutal as far as the

industry is concerned. We have raised that time and time again with

the government to ensure that British high energy manufacturers do

not face the penalty of high energy costs, like they are facing at the

moment. I can say to the Minister, we are working with the UK

Government to look at things like... Wires British Steel not being used

in British projects? -- why is British Steel. We will be holding a

meeting our self to be chaired by the Minister. And then we will look

to continue with the discussion. I understand there is a competitive

council meeting in Brussels and was government will be represented on

Monday. STUDIO: That was first ministers questions. If you want

more coverage of the National Assembly, go online to the Senedd

live page. But that is it first ministers questions. Don't forget,

all the latest political news at 6:30pm tonight. But from all of us

on the programme, thank