:00:25. > :00:30.Good afternoon. Welcome to am.pm and our weekly coverage of questions to
:00:31. > :00:33.the First Minister. A number of AMs are raising questions on the
:00:34. > :00:37.economy, from borrowing powers to rising fuel prices. Health, as ever,
:00:38. > :00:42.is never far from the political agenda at FMQs and is likely to
:00:43. > :00:45.arise. That's what I think the politicians will be talking about.
:00:46. > :00:49.What do you want to talk about? If you want to comment on anything on
:00:50. > :00:53.the programme or any other political news, get in touch with us. You can
:00:54. > :01:00.reach us via Twitter or send us an email. Well, with business having
:01:01. > :01:02.already kicked off in the Chamber, let's take a look now at questions
:01:03. > :01:17.to the First Minister. What steps it has the first Minister
:01:18. > :01:28.taken to ensure borrowing powers for Wales? I told him last Wednesday
:01:29. > :01:34.about borrowing powers for Wales. The Welsh business community feels
:01:35. > :01:38.very strongly about this. These borrowing powers are crucially
:01:39. > :01:44.important to the Welsh economy, so can you explain to us why your
:01:45. > :01:52.government has been so inadequate and ineffective in securing these
:01:53. > :01:57.powers? Not at all. We have received support from the business community
:01:58. > :02:04.in making this case. We look forward to ensuring this happens before too
:02:05. > :02:12.long. We need action from the UK government on this. Surely, that
:02:13. > :02:25.Westminster government can take action immediately? Have they told
:02:26. > :02:36.you why they are not implemented soak part one? It was deliberately
:02:37. > :02:40.kept outside. I have been told many times borrowing powers are accepted
:02:41. > :02:48.in principle, but we need to see changes put in place. We need to
:02:49. > :03:04.finance big projects. If there ever were... Could you tell us what
:03:05. > :03:10.management framework is the Welsh Government are working to to ensure
:03:11. > :03:14.the Government is ready to take on these borrowing powers? Can you
:03:15. > :03:19.outline what mechanism you intend to put in place in order to ensure that
:03:20. > :03:28.any decisions on borrowing powers are accountable to this Assembly?
:03:29. > :03:33.That work has been done. The United Kingdom government has been
:03:34. > :03:39.supportive of the principal, when I spoke to the Prime Minister, he told
:03:40. > :03:44.me he accepted the commission's recommendations in full. If that is
:03:45. > :03:48.true, we look forward to them being implemented in future. But work has
:03:49. > :04:02.been done to ensure we are in a position to use these powers. Will
:04:03. > :04:10.he make a statement on the success of the carrier bag charge? We have
:04:11. > :04:17.seen a huge decrease in the demand of single use carrier bags. Research
:04:18. > :04:23.shows that the charges are supported by the public and more people are
:04:24. > :04:30.reusing their bags. We are still looking at the impact of the charge.
:04:31. > :04:34.The purpose of the levy was to reduce usage of single use carrier
:04:35. > :04:40.bags and a great deal of money has been raised for charities. Following
:04:41. > :04:46.some throwaway comments from yourself a few weeks ago, are you
:04:47. > :04:52.now taking side of the clear public opinion that is now agreed that we
:04:53. > :04:58.could see similar outcomes by introducing a levy on sugary drinks,
:04:59. > :05:05.mainly that we could employ many more doctors through those who wish
:05:06. > :05:18.to pay that levy, but also, we could tackle the serious problem of
:05:19. > :05:27.obesity? First of all, we don't have the powers because the charge for
:05:28. > :05:33.the single use carriers goes straight to the charities. Regarding
:05:34. > :05:42.employing more doctors, we would have two draw in between ?80 million
:05:43. > :05:47.and ?103 million to ensure that more people actually drank more of these
:05:48. > :05:53.sugary drinks! I don't think that is a sensible approach at a time when
:05:54. > :05:58.we are trying to get people to drink less of these drinks. We must ensure
:05:59. > :06:03.that the number of people using sugary drinks either drink as much
:06:04. > :06:17.as they do at the moment will increase. I agree with the first
:06:18. > :06:22.Minister. The public and retailers have been accepting and positive of
:06:23. > :06:35.the charge. One of the contributing factors to the success of the policy
:06:36. > :06:40.was setting the charge at 5p. I wonder if he would rule out any
:06:41. > :06:44.increases of the levy in the foreseeable future? There are no
:06:45. > :06:50.plans to change the levy. There is, of course, a policy review. But at
:06:51. > :06:56.this moment in time, there are no plans to change the levy. It depends
:06:57. > :07:07.what that review shows, and depends on what we see as the practices of
:07:08. > :07:19.some supermarkets. We will have to keep a close eye on that. On the
:07:20. > :07:25.10th of September, your government issued a statement with said plans
:07:26. > :07:31.are in place for rigorous bed capacity planning based on
:07:32. > :07:35.anticipated demand, robust workforce planning and escalation arrangements
:07:36. > :07:44.to cope with spikes in demand this winter. Did you know, then, the
:07:45. > :07:52.health board 's intention to postpone all surgery? Are you
:07:53. > :08:01.satisfied that ambulances are being turned away? All I health boards are
:08:02. > :08:06.planning for winter pressures. It is wrong to say the health board is
:08:07. > :08:12.cancelling all non-urgent orthopaedic surgery. Those who have
:08:13. > :08:19.been scheduled to have orthopaedic surgery will receive it. All cancer,
:08:20. > :08:26.urgent and trauma surgery will continue. They are planning ahead so
:08:27. > :08:30.that they can carry ahead with appropriate numbers of operations
:08:31. > :08:34.but still have capacity to deal with winter pressures. That is precisely
:08:35. > :08:43.what the party opposite had been calling for! We are used to put
:08:44. > :08:53.antics from you. I didn't say cancel, I said postpone. However,
:08:54. > :08:56.there is a waiting time for 15 months for orthopaedic surgery. An
:08:57. > :09:05.extra five or six months could be added to that time. You stand here
:09:06. > :09:10.every week and claimed that patient safety is your overriding priority.
:09:11. > :09:14.Is Unison right, or are you saying that you genuinely believe patient
:09:15. > :09:22.safety would be compromised by people waiting longer for treatment?
:09:23. > :09:26.Operations are not even being postponed! All patients scheduled to
:09:27. > :09:35.have orthopaedic surgery will receive it. What I health board is
:09:36. > :09:40.doing is making sure they have an appropriate number of operations so
:09:41. > :09:45.they create capacity. Or is she saying the better approach would be
:09:46. > :09:49.to schedule more operations and cancel them further down the line?
:09:50. > :09:58.This is exactly what she and her party had been asking for. No, it is
:09:59. > :10:01.not. Are you aware of the level of outrage amongst clinicians who have
:10:02. > :10:07.been told they have a third of their work taken away from them? They will
:10:08. > :10:14.be underutilised for four months out of 12. These staff still have to be
:10:15. > :10:22.paid. People are stuck on waiting lists in pain. When can you take
:10:23. > :10:32.responsibility? We are taking responsibility in the way the party
:10:33. > :10:38.opposite is not. Their preferred option is to cancel operations at
:10:39. > :10:44.the last minute. We prefer to take the view we are planning for winter
:10:45. > :10:50.pressures, local health boards are planning for an appropriate number
:10:51. > :10:54.of operations. If they are saying that is not what they want to see,
:10:55. > :11:03.they do not want to see plans put in place to deal with winter pressures.
:11:04. > :11:09.It's a complete contradiction! Last week, you told me and this Chamber
:11:10. > :11:14.the seasonal planning group had been planning for the NHS winter since
:11:15. > :11:22.March. Yesterday, eight months since that group started meeting, they
:11:23. > :11:29.announced they would reschedule some orthopaedic elective work and would
:11:30. > :11:32.not be operating their third -- their full orthopaedic capacity
:11:33. > :11:42.until after winter. How long has your government known that they had
:11:43. > :11:46.been planning this action? We became aware this was planned yesterday,
:11:47. > :11:50.but this is exactly what we would expect local health boards to do.
:11:51. > :12:00.She cannot say there has to be planning for winter pressures and
:12:01. > :12:06.criticise them for doing that! I didn't say that. I asked you how
:12:07. > :12:12.long you had known about it. Last week, I asked you to outline how
:12:13. > :12:15.many operations would have to be rescheduled this winter because of
:12:16. > :12:22.winter pressures. Unsurprisingly, you didn't have an answer for that
:12:23. > :12:29.question. In light of the news today, I will ask you again: Given
:12:30. > :12:34.that planning has been going on since March, how many elective
:12:35. > :12:43.operations are you assuming will have to be cancelled to make space
:12:44. > :12:53.for winter pressures? No non-urgent elective orthopaedic surgery
:12:54. > :13:00.operations have been cancelled. You have told me, in this Chamber last
:13:01. > :13:06.week, that the Health Minister has been clear in terms of what has been
:13:07. > :13:11.planned for the NHS this winter. You now to this Chamber you didn't know
:13:12. > :13:15.about those plans since yesterday, you have not been able to provide a
:13:16. > :13:20.figure of how many operations you expect to be postponed. It seems you
:13:21. > :13:28.are not clear about plans for this winter, the Government isn't either
:13:29. > :13:34.and the public and clinicians are not clear. Why don't you play that
:13:35. > :13:58.up and publish, today, all the plans that have been submitted? She has
:13:59. > :14:02.been calling for plans to deal with winter pressures. The local health
:14:03. > :14:09.board has put forward plans to deal with winter pressures, and she's not
:14:10. > :14:14.happy with either! The local health board has to plan for an appropriate
:14:15. > :14:20.number of operations. None have been cancelled. I have already mentioned,
:14:21. > :14:26.several times, that those scheduled to receive orthopaedic surgery will
:14:27. > :14:28.receive it, but there is a need to deal with emergencies over the
:14:29. > :14:34.course of the winter. Or is she saying that should not happen? This
:14:35. > :14:44.is part of planning a winter pressures and she really should get
:14:45. > :14:53.a grip. I have listened with interest to the answers... It is
:14:54. > :14:58.interesting listening to Labour backbenchers who think this is a
:14:59. > :15:02.laughing matter! You said in response to earlier questions that
:15:03. > :15:07.it was only yesterday your government became aware of the
:15:08. > :15:11.proposals. We are told on a constant basis that the Health Minister meets
:15:12. > :15:16.with senior executives and the chairman of the health boards across
:15:17. > :15:21.Wales. And yet, you are expecting us to believe your government knew
:15:22. > :15:26.nothing until yesterday! Is it not the case that this shows your
:15:27. > :15:29.government is detached from the reality of what many patients and
:15:30. > :15:38.clinicians are experiencing within the Welsh NHS? Absolutely not.
:15:39. > :15:42.Unless he objects to what is proposed, I don't see what the
:15:43. > :15:48.problem is. The question is whether your government, which is in charge
:15:49. > :15:54.of NHS Wales, is in the loop. We are seeing issues arriving at the front
:15:55. > :15:59.door of LH be time and time again, which affect patient experience and
:16:00. > :16:02.patient treatment. You said earlier that to date no operations have been
:16:03. > :16:08.cancelled, but over the next five months, there is clearly a
:16:09. > :16:13.cancellation of non-elective surgery in the area. This will have a
:16:14. > :16:22.massive impact on the patient experience, and also on the ability
:16:23. > :16:25.of the board to retain its key clinicians. How can he be so
:16:26. > :16:32.flippant in the face of such proposals? He is either setting out
:16:33. > :16:37.to be disingenuous, or he hasn't listened to the answer I have given
:16:38. > :16:42.three times. I will say it again so he is on his feet and he can't say
:16:43. > :16:47.he hasn't answered -- she hasn't heard. The health board is not
:16:48. > :16:50.cancelling any elective non-orthopaedic surgery. It is
:16:51. > :16:57.reducing the patient work so as to better manage the caseload in the
:16:58. > :17:02.winter period, which is what his party has been calling for. You are
:17:03. > :17:06.just trying to muddy the waters with your barrister training. It is the
:17:07. > :17:12.fact that in one of our major health board areas, people will not be
:17:13. > :17:16.having the procedures that they reasonably expect their health board
:17:17. > :17:20.to deliver. Clinicians have pointed out that a considerable part of
:17:21. > :17:25.their workload which they are able to undertake is now going to be
:17:26. > :17:30.prevented by the health board's instructions. Isn't it time that
:17:31. > :17:33.your government got a grip on this, actually addressed the ability for
:17:34. > :17:41.patients to have the procedure is they require within the area, and
:17:42. > :17:47.ultimately, we do not move into a crisis situation in the next 12
:17:48. > :17:51.months? A crisis situation is precisely what the Leader of the
:17:52. > :17:56.Opposition is calling for, if he listened to the logic of his own
:17:57. > :18:01.argument. He is saying there should be no spare capacity in the NHS in
:18:02. > :18:04.that area over the winter. He is saying that things should be
:18:05. > :18:10.carrying on as they were before and there should be no space making
:18:11. > :18:20.capacity for winter pressures. The health board have built that extra
:18:21. > :18:25.capacity in place. We want to make sure that fewer people have their
:18:26. > :18:30.operations cancelled, and that means planning now for winter pressures,
:18:31. > :18:33.which is exactly what all the parties in this chamber have been
:18:34. > :18:38.calling for for the past few months. Yet, when the local health board
:18:39. > :18:47.wants to plan for winter pressures, they all start complaining. Can the
:18:48. > :18:51.First Minister make a statement on the number of nice -- NICE clinical
:18:52. > :19:01.guidelines that have not been implemented in Wales? I am not aware
:19:02. > :19:04.of any. In 2008, NICE issued clinical guidelines in relation to
:19:05. > :19:10.new call scanning in Wales for pregnant women. There is no such
:19:11. > :19:16.scanning available in North Wales, unless you pay for it privately,
:19:17. > :19:21.which makes a mockery of the NHS free at the point of use. Given that
:19:22. > :19:26.health boards were supposed to have produced their implementation plans
:19:27. > :19:32.in September, can you update us on when that 2008 guidance, which
:19:33. > :19:37.hasn't been implemented and which requires patience to pay privately
:19:38. > :19:42.if they need nuchal scans, will in fact be implemented? Of course we
:19:43. > :19:47.expect health boards to follow the clinical guidelines put in place by
:19:48. > :19:59.NICE, so if she supplies more information I will be happy to
:20:00. > :20:18.respond. SHE SPEAKS WELSH .
:20:19. > :20:51.There is a new NICE approved treatment for an age related
:20:52. > :20:55.degeneration treatment. It will not be available for patients until a
:20:56. > :21:01.further consideration by the Welsh Government. When will guidance be
:21:02. > :21:08.issued on a drug that was approved for use in the UK in 2012 and
:21:09. > :21:14.approved by NICE earlier this year? I should write to her with further
:21:15. > :21:18.details on that. Can the First Minister make a statement on the
:21:19. > :21:22.utilisation of women's skills in the Welsh economy? We are taking action
:21:23. > :21:27.to encourage women to be more enterprising and use their skills in
:21:28. > :21:34.the Welsh economy. For example, we are supporting a training programme.
:21:35. > :21:41.This is supporting women to also fill leadership roles in tech savvy
:21:42. > :21:45.organisations. We know that women play a vital role in our economy.
:21:46. > :21:49.While there have been welcomed moves over the last few years,
:21:50. > :21:53.particularly in the public sector, which have enabled some women to
:21:54. > :21:58.balance work and family responsibilities, there is still a
:21:59. > :22:02.way to go. What action is the Welsh Government taking to encourage both
:22:03. > :22:05.public and private organisations to create more flexible opportunities
:22:06. > :22:09.for women, to ensure that our economy does not lose out on
:22:10. > :22:14.much-needed talent? I think the member has hit the nail on the head
:22:15. > :22:20.by saying that no organisation can afford to lose out on any talent. I
:22:21. > :22:25.will offer the Welsh Government as an example for other organisations
:22:26. > :22:30.to follow. We have a suite of flexible working authorities --
:22:31. > :22:37.policies, such as flexible working, part-time working, maternity leave
:22:38. > :22:43.and foster leave. We also have a carers' policy in place. These
:22:44. > :22:48.policies have resulted in women making up 15% of the workforce. We
:22:49. > :22:52.would say to other public sector and private sector organisations that by
:22:53. > :22:55.being flexible, you can truly accumulate the talent you need to
:22:56. > :23:04.make your organisation more successful. The business console has
:23:05. > :23:10.called on businesses to do more to help women return to work and
:23:11. > :23:15.widening schemes such as flexible working to fully utilise their
:23:16. > :23:23.skills and the economy. The UK government is working closely with
:23:24. > :23:27.businesses on extending the right to request flexible working. What
:23:28. > :23:32.action is the Welsh Government taking to encourage more flexible
:23:33. > :23:36.working in Wales? I have already given him a suite of measures that
:23:37. > :23:42.we are taking SA government to Anchorage more women into the
:23:43. > :23:51.workforce, and is shown in the figures I have just given.
:23:52. > :24:15.SHE SPEAKS WELSH. Questions five and nine will be
:24:16. > :26:14.grouped. TRANSLATION: Particularly in the
:26:15. > :26:19.area of energy of various governments in the area. With the
:26:20. > :26:24.government accept the concerns of the environment sustainability
:26:25. > :26:28.committee that there are proposals within the UK government to withdraw
:26:29. > :26:31.powers on strategic infrastructure from local government in Wales so
:26:32. > :26:41.that the final decision should be referred back to government
:26:42. > :26:45.ministers. TRANSLATION: As regards terminology,
:26:46. > :26:48.I am not saying that the powers be withdrawn from the people of Wales.
:26:49. > :26:52.I would say they are going to be stolen from the people of Wales,
:26:53. > :27:00.because the decisions should be taken here with the powers already
:27:01. > :27:06.here. My view has been put very clearly in the past. I cannot say
:27:07. > :27:11.that this was discussed last Wednesday, but a number of other
:27:12. > :27:18.issues were discussed at the time. At the meeting, did the First
:27:19. > :27:24.Minister have the opportunity to discuss the proposed health levy,
:27:25. > :27:28.which is asking people on short-term visas to pay for NHS care? Did he
:27:29. > :27:36.discuss the financial implications for Wales? Yes, I did. It was a
:27:37. > :27:39.curious conversation. We had a discussion on the UK government's
:27:40. > :27:46.plans to charge a levy on those who apply for visas who come into the
:27:47. > :27:49.UK. It was made very clear, and I asked the question, is this levy
:27:50. > :27:59.being imposed in order to pay for health services? The answer was yes.
:28:00. > :28:04.I then asked if we could expect that extra pot of money to pay for
:28:05. > :28:09.services in Wales, and the answer was no. It was clear to me that the
:28:10. > :28:12.money was only going to be put towards the health service in
:28:13. > :28:16.England. It was clear it had not been thought out at all. Surely it
:28:17. > :28:20.makes sense that where a charge is made, when somebody applies for a
:28:21. > :28:27.Visa for the provision of health services, that that money goes into
:28:28. > :28:31.a pot that is shared properly between the health services in the
:28:32. > :28:35.UK. That is not the plan of the UK government at this stage, and we in
:28:36. > :28:38.Wales will find ourselves in a situation that we do not receive a
:28:39. > :28:44.share of money that is collected for the delivery of a devolved service.
:28:45. > :28:49.They need to think again. First Minister, one of the other topics
:28:50. > :28:54.that was touched on at a joint minister in meeting last Wednesday
:28:55. > :28:58.was about trade and investment, but it clearly across the whole of the
:28:59. > :29:04.UK. How do you break out for the Minister -- from the meeting of the
:29:05. > :29:09.First Minister and the ministers of the UK so that you work together to
:29:10. > :29:12.promote Wales as an interactive place or inward investment, rather
:29:13. > :29:18.than be left on sound bites on pieces of paper? We work very
:29:19. > :29:23.closely with them as it is, and we have several members of staff who
:29:24. > :29:31.work across the world on this. We cannot replicate the organisation
:29:32. > :29:33.and we should not try to do that. In organisations where it is
:29:34. > :29:43.advantageous to have a Welsh presence, we do that. We find that
:29:44. > :29:47.they have been very helpful to us in getting money to Wales. I have to
:29:48. > :29:57.say that the reason why we have seen increased exports and a massive
:29:58. > :30:09.increase in imports is because we have been working hard to promote
:30:10. > :30:13.Wales across the world. Welsh universities are still suffering
:30:14. > :30:22.problems in student recruitment because of the Visa system. Was
:30:23. > :30:26.there any discussion as to the need of Welsh universities, and the fact
:30:27. > :30:32.their voices had not been taken into account fully? There was discussion
:30:33. > :30:38.on that and the United Kingdom government's responds was more
:30:39. > :30:44.students are definitely coming, particularly from India and China,
:30:45. > :30:49.than ever before. When I was in India last time, they were saying a
:30:50. > :31:02.completely different story. There was a discussion on this subject. I
:31:03. > :31:06.have just returned from the British-Irish Parliamentary
:31:07. > :31:16.Assembly, and last evening, the Irish Minister made a very strong
:31:17. > :31:21.speech in which he spoke of our potential for a shared future in
:31:22. > :31:26.energy generation. In that context, what discussions of you had with the
:31:27. > :31:30.administration in Northern Ireland and Scotland regarding the potential
:31:31. > :31:39.for a sharing of generating capacity, particularly in the
:31:40. > :31:43.context of marine renewables? There have been discussions with the
:31:44. > :31:48.Republic in the past. The difficulty we have is we don't control the
:31:49. > :31:54.level of certificates, meaning that in Scotland, they are able to offer
:31:55. > :31:58.more money in subsidy than we can in Wales, despite the fact that
:31:59. > :32:04.conditions in Scotland are less promising than in Wales. The people
:32:05. > :32:14.in Wales deserve sufficient control over their own resources, meaning
:32:15. > :32:18.devolving the subsidy regime. The committee has responsibility and
:32:19. > :32:24.hopes to address unemployment and encourage economic growth. He will
:32:25. > :32:29.be aware of the United Kingdom being recognised as the major economic
:32:30. > :32:34.growth in Europe. Where is Wales on this? We recognise the UK economy is
:32:35. > :32:40.not in the same position as it was two or three years ago. Germany is
:32:41. > :32:50.the driver of the European economy still. We could devolve stamp duty,
:32:51. > :32:59.something which the Prime Minister did not object to. That would have
:33:00. > :33:17.an effect across the whole of the UK. Council tax is already 19% lower
:33:18. > :33:22.in Wales than it is in England. The suggestion that devolution would
:33:23. > :33:27.have an across -- would have an effect across the whole of the UK
:33:28. > :33:34.was not supported in Scotland. That is an excuse, and we need to see
:33:35. > :33:38.devolution as recommended and being taken forward by the Prime Minister
:33:39. > :33:44.and supported by almost every organisation that represents
:33:45. > :33:51.businesses in Wales. Listen to those organisations who represent the
:33:52. > :33:56.majority of businesses. Will he outline progress made in developing
:33:57. > :34:02.the Welsh economy? We support jobs and growth across Wales, and since
:34:03. > :34:11.devolution, we have seen a greater growth in employment in Wales than
:34:12. > :34:16.England. One of the witnesses of the Welsh economy is pharmaceuticals and
:34:17. > :34:19.financial services. What is the boss government doing to promote the
:34:20. > :34:26.sectors in Wales? We actually do slightly better in pharmaceuticals
:34:27. > :34:36.than the UK averages. That is one of the reason -- one of the reasons we
:34:37. > :34:42.have enterprise zones. There are a further 3000 potentially in the
:34:43. > :34:48.pipeline. By moving forward with enterprise zones, we can make sure
:34:49. > :34:52.that in the future, when it comes to financial services and ICT, the
:34:53. > :35:00.average in terms of people employed in Wales is close to or above the UK
:35:01. > :35:05.average. We all welcome yesterday's announcement of jobs coming into the
:35:06. > :35:14.Cardiff enterprise zone and 2% cut in interest rates in these zones.
:35:15. > :35:19.However, it is well-known interest rates are not at Wonga levels but
:35:20. > :35:25.are nonetheless disproportionately high. What is going on in Finance
:35:26. > :35:29.Wales, and do you agree we need a root and branch reform of that
:35:30. > :35:35.institution and organisation to stimulate the economy and get was
:35:36. > :35:43.moving again? Finance Wales has to be sustainable. That means that
:35:44. > :35:47.interest rates sometimes had to be charged at a level that businesses
:35:48. > :35:52.may find this high but is nevertheless lower than what they
:35:53. > :35:56.would find commercially. We cannot afford to subsidise interest rate
:35:57. > :36:03.payments. That would put finance was in a position where it could
:36:04. > :36:19.potentially collapse. -- Finance Wales. Why were interest rates in
:36:20. > :36:31.enterprise zones 2% lower than the norm? Progress in developing the
:36:32. > :36:36.economy throughout the south Wales valleys include my own constituency
:36:37. > :36:41.and that requires good public transport links. It was a great
:36:42. > :36:43.concern to me to read the report yesterday that electrification of
:36:44. > :37:06.the Valley line service yesterday that electrification of
:37:07. > :37:12.government was looking forward to borrowing money to pay for
:37:13. > :37:17.electrification of rail lines. It was important that was said and
:37:18. > :37:21.done. The issue here is that if electrification were to be delayed,
:37:22. > :37:25.train operating companies would have to decide whether to keep the
:37:26. > :37:30.existing road to stock or take the risk of entering into a lease for
:37:31. > :37:42.equipment it may not lead -- need. What needs to be done is greater
:37:43. > :37:46.certainty regarding electrification. If there is a delay to
:37:47. > :37:57.electrification, they will simply carry on with the old stock and get
:37:58. > :38:03.more and more inadequate. There is a close link between transport and
:38:04. > :38:08.economy. Yesterday, the European commission published its map of the
:38:09. > :38:13.main transport routes that would be able to receive funding for
:38:14. > :38:23.upgrading over the ensuing period. Not one inch of the railroads or
:38:24. > :38:31.rail... Do you condemn the Westminster government for failing
:38:32. > :38:39.to support Wales in this field? They did the same on the rebate on fuel
:38:40. > :38:45.in rural areas. No part of Wales will benefit from that. We have to
:38:46. > :38:52.ask the question whether they consider rule Wales tour. Do they
:38:53. > :38:56.consider we have ports in Wales with strong links with Ireland? I'm
:38:57. > :39:04.disappointed to see that was not taken into account. What strategy is
:39:05. > :39:14.the worst government using to reduce carbon monoxide poisoning? We are
:39:15. > :39:19.working to improve on this issue. We also engage with Fire and rescue
:39:20. > :39:32.services and energy suppliers to establish what more can be done. On
:39:33. > :39:38.November the 18th, national carbon monoxide awareness week begins. I am
:39:39. > :39:42.alarmed to learn one in five gas appliances in Wales are unsafe.
:39:43. > :39:48.There is a particular problem in Cardiff, where 44% of households are
:39:49. > :39:54.living with unsafe appliances. What more can the Government do to ensure
:39:55. > :40:00.landlords of fulfilling their obligations to ensure their tenants
:40:01. > :40:06.are living in safe accommodation? The gas safety regulations of 1990
:40:07. > :40:16.would require landlords to check gas appliances at 12 month intervals.
:40:17. > :40:22.They need to ensure gas safety inspection certificates are
:40:23. > :40:27.current. There is also the housing health and safety system, giving
:40:28. > :40:34.guidance on the risks of carbon monoxide poisoning. The majority of
:40:35. > :40:44.local authorities hold forums, providing information on the dangers
:40:45. > :40:48.of carbon monoxide poisoning. We are promoting carbon monoxide awareness
:40:49. > :40:52.week in order to build on the level of knowledge to ensure we can
:40:53. > :41:00.medicate as much as possible against any future tragedy. On the first of
:41:01. > :41:14.this month, carbon monoxide alarms will be fitted. Would there be
:41:15. > :41:19.similar plans in Wales? We have taken a non-regulatory approach. We
:41:20. > :41:23.have the awareness week coming up. We will continue to monitor the
:41:24. > :41:28.situation to see whether we need to be more prescriptive. We want to
:41:29. > :41:33.educate people, first and foremost. If that is not as effective as we
:41:34. > :41:36.wanted to be, we would consider options.
:41:37. > :41:39.There we are. That's it from us for First Minister's Questions, but
:41:40. > :41:45.don't forget that you can see more coverage of the Assembly online from
:41:46. > :41:47.the BBC Wales Democracy Live pages. Our correspondent, Tomos
:41:48. > :42:03.Livingstone, has been watching from our Assembly newsroom. Full throttle
:42:04. > :42:13.defence for the health board's plans? No surprise over this
:42:14. > :42:16.controversy. He basically ended up saying a variant of, well, these
:42:17. > :42:21.operations are not being cancelled because they're not been scheduled
:42:22. > :42:24.in the first place. Everyone health boards to plan in the winter, we
:42:25. > :42:33.should not be surprised if they have to move things around a little bit.
:42:34. > :42:39.Whatever the reality, the NHS in Wales have an extra ?150 million to
:42:40. > :42:45.spend in this financial year in the budget announced last week. Not
:42:46. > :42:52.enough of that money is going to the local health board to spend on
:42:53. > :42:57.non-elective surgery. Most observers would agree that health is the Welsh
:42:58. > :43:05.Government's Achilles heel. All three parties go on the same
:43:06. > :43:08.subject. It can put pressure on. They haven't managed to do that
:43:09. > :43:11.effectively, but today might give them a clue that maybe this is
:43:12. > :43:19.something they should be doing a bit more often and effectively. The
:43:20. > :43:26.plans for migrant Visa: No plans to be rolled out to the devolved
:43:27. > :43:34.nations? That's right. If there is to be this levy, migrants should be
:43:35. > :43:38.consequential. He is suggesting this is not a policy that has been
:43:39. > :43:42.thought through properly. That's it for today. It's half term
:43:43. > :43:46.next week so there will be no First Minister's Questions but am.pm will
:43:47. > :43:49.be back in a fortnight. If you want more Welsh politics before then,
:43:50. > :43:54.don't forget the Sunday Politics on BBC One Wales at eleven o'clock on
:43:55. > :43:56.this weekend. As for today, though, from all of us on the programme,
:43:57. > :44:01.goodbye.