25/03/2017

:00:00. > :00:13.Labour has been in power in the Assembly for 18 years at how many

:00:14. > :00:27.councils will control after May's election? Welcome to the Labour

:00:28. > :00:33.conference 2017. Good afternoon. Welcome to the last of our Spring

:00:34. > :00:37.party conference programmes. We have brought you coverage of Plaid Cymru,

:00:38. > :00:43.the Welsh Lib Dems and the Welsh Conservatives. Now it is the Welsh

:00:44. > :00:47.Labour Party's term. We are on Twitter, where you can see the

:00:48. > :00:54.latest developments. Joining me with analysis and explanation is our

:00:55. > :01:00.Welsh affairs editor. We heard Jeremy Corbyn addressing the

:01:01. > :01:06.conference this morning, Carwyn Jones addressing the conference this

:01:07. > :01:10.afternoon. How are relations between the two of them? In so far as they

:01:11. > :01:17.have a relationship. They are putting on a brave public face. This

:01:18. > :01:25.conference has a slogan, together for Wales, but it is an irony that

:01:26. > :01:30.Labour has never been less together. What we will see in this conference

:01:31. > :01:36.though is an attempt to portray a party that is united and delivering

:01:37. > :01:40.in government and local government. There is papering over the cracks

:01:41. > :01:45.going on in this conference. Thank you for now. Bringing us news from

:01:46. > :01:51.outside the conference call is our reporter. She is out in the

:01:52. > :02:01.sunshine. What are people talking about outside the conference will?

:02:02. > :02:04.Welcome to a glorious setting here for the Welsh Labour annual

:02:05. > :02:09.conference. They have been talking about Jeremy Corbyn's speech. We

:02:10. > :02:14.heard from him earlier this morning and, as well as listing the Welsh

:02:15. > :02:21.Labour government's achievements, would talk about what Labour Party

:02:22. > :02:24.in power would do. Posterity he said is unnecessary. Debt and borrowing

:02:25. > :02:31.are not bad words and should be welcomed. After the Second World

:02:32. > :02:35.War, the established the NHS, established the modern welfare

:02:36. > :02:39.system and built council houses. That message was welcomed but there

:02:40. > :02:44.is very little warmth and the Labour leader amongst his colleagues in

:02:45. > :02:49.Westminster. Carwyn Jones acknowledges them and says they

:02:50. > :02:54.cannot be ignored. He has also said that Theresa May's elections will be

:02:55. > :02:59.tougher Welsh Labour after success in 2012, the last time they were

:03:00. > :03:03.held. He says that they need to promote the fact that Welsh Labour

:03:04. > :03:09.is delivering not only in Cardiff Bay but amongst the town hall they

:03:10. > :03:13.run across the country. The lead 12 out of 22 councils in Wales and

:03:14. > :03:17.expect to lose ground this time around but are trying to put on a

:03:18. > :03:26.positive message about what Labour can deliver, and quarter of an hour.

:03:27. > :03:31.We will be back with James shortly with some of the members there at

:03:32. > :03:35.the conference. The main event this morning was the UK party leader,

:03:36. > :03:43.Jeremy Corbyn. He was introduced by Carwyn Jones. As you can see, we are

:03:44. > :03:49.joined onstage by Jeremy, so without further ado, it is my job to

:03:50. > :04:09.introduce, to speak, the leader of the Labour Party, Jeremy Corbyn.

:04:10. > :04:15.Thank you for the introduction today, and thank you for inviting me

:04:16. > :04:20.here today. The speech we just heard from Emily with the superb and shows

:04:21. > :04:25.how strong that party is and what good hands it is in in the future

:04:26. > :04:29.with that generation coming forward. Thank you very much everything you

:04:30. > :04:35.said this morning. It is a pleasure to be here, but it is tempered with

:04:36. > :04:40.the sadness about what has happened this week. The events in Westminster

:04:41. > :04:47.on Wednesday afternoon showed a brutality that one man can reap by

:04:48. > :04:52.his behaviour. It also showed the humanity, bravery and solidarity

:04:53. > :04:59.that defines us, and that binds us together in times of darkness and

:05:00. > :05:02.adversity. Police, security personnel, NHS staff ran towards

:05:03. > :05:06.danger to put themselves at risk to protect the lives of others. They

:05:07. > :05:18.are the real heroes that did so much to protect people in London on

:05:19. > :05:22.Wednesday. I am sure you will all join with me in paying tribute to

:05:23. > :05:32.the police officer who lost his life. He is somebody the MPs see,

:05:33. > :05:38.chapter, smile to every day, and he died in the line of duty. We send

:05:39. > :05:43.our solidarity to his family in this conference here today. And to all

:05:44. > :05:48.the others who have lost loved ones from all over the world or are

:05:49. > :05:52.injured from all over the world, we send our love. Our values of unity

:05:53. > :05:57.and solidarity are needed now more than ever. We know from previous

:05:58. > :06:03.occasions that some sick people have tried to show division and hate, so

:06:04. > :06:08.please, look after each other, help one another and think of one

:06:09. > :06:11.another. Communities must come together in solidarity, not be

:06:12. > :06:16.divided by those that seek to promote hate and division amongst

:06:17. > :06:27.us. It is our job to bring people together, and that is what we will

:06:28. > :06:31.do. I want to say thank you to you and to the Labour Assembly Members

:06:32. > :06:36.for continuing to show that Labour can make a huge difference in

:06:37. > :06:41.government. Special mention must also go to mark Crayford, the

:06:42. > :06:43.Chancellor of the Exchequer for Wales, who is implementing your

:06:44. > :06:49.programme despite the fact the budget has been cut year-on-year, 6%

:06:50. > :06:56.in real terms by the end of the decade. That is equivalent to almost

:06:57. > :07:03.?1.2 billion less for vital public services, a decade of cuts imposed

:07:04. > :07:05.by the Tories in Westminster. Our Shadow Welsh Secretary, who was

:07:06. > :07:09.doing a brilliant job, is fighting your corner in the House of Commons,

:07:10. > :07:12.working with our shadow minister, and I want to thank them both for

:07:13. > :07:22.the fantastic work they do in speaking up for Wales. It also want

:07:23. > :07:26.to put on record my thanks to Joe Stephens for all the work she did

:07:27. > :07:35.when she held the brief. Thank you very much for everything he did. And

:07:36. > :07:40.Wales has great representation in Westminster. Niall Griffin is, our

:07:41. > :07:44.Shadow Defence Secretary, who recently accompany me to the

:07:45. > :07:49.unveiling of the Iraq and Afghanistan Memorial, recognising

:07:50. > :07:53.those who lost their lives in those conflicts. We should always respect

:07:54. > :07:58.those were sent to fight and risk their lives, and many have paid the

:07:59. > :08:04.ultimate price for it. I also want to pay warm tribute to our great

:08:05. > :08:14.Welsh Labour campaigner, leading an excellent campaign for the

:08:15. > :08:19.children's funeral fund. And what an utter disgrace that, in the budget,

:08:20. > :08:23.the Tories it ignored the simple and humane demand that parents who

:08:24. > :08:26.suffer the loss of a child do not have to then worry about the

:08:27. > :08:32.financial costs of giving them a funeral. I know that Labour councils

:08:33. > :08:37.such as those in Cardiff and Swansea have already waived fees, as has

:08:38. > :08:41.Co-op funeral care, but as a time in council budgets are squeezed and

:08:42. > :08:47.billions are given away in corporate tax cuts, we should be able to just

:08:48. > :08:51.a bite found ?10 million a year for this very basic, decent, humane

:08:52. > :09:00.measure. What is wrong with them that they cannot do that? I want to

:09:01. > :09:08.praise another of my good comrades although it was Kong rate although

:09:09. > :09:12.he lives in England. He wants to change the system for presumed

:09:13. > :09:16.consent for organ donation. In Wales, you have done that and lives

:09:17. > :09:23.are being saved as a result. I was so proud to speak alongside Mark

:09:24. > :09:26.recently. It was his first speech he made for several months, his first

:09:27. > :09:32.public engagement since a successful heart transplant, and I am glad that

:09:33. > :09:42.he is a member of our party. Wellcome, Mark. Deemed consent for

:09:43. > :09:47.organ donation is one example of the difference that Labour government

:09:48. > :09:51.makes. The NHS will last as long as there are folk left with the faith

:09:52. > :09:58.to fight for it and in Wales, you have that faith. Because it is the

:09:59. > :10:04.only country in the UK to show an improvement in ambulance response

:10:05. > :10:08.times, improving outcomes for stroke and cancer patients, and the British

:10:09. > :10:12.Heart Foundation says you are a world leader for cardiac

:10:13. > :10:17.rehabilitation will stop as NHS budgets are cut in England, the

:10:18. > :10:22.Welsh Labour government has found an extra ?240 million in the last

:10:23. > :10:26.budget, taking combined spending on health and social care 6% higher

:10:27. > :10:32.than that in England. And the Welsh government has achieved so much

:10:33. > :10:36.more. An social care, you have protected funding and seen delayed

:10:37. > :10:41.discharges for unlike in England where, under the Tories, they have

:10:42. > :10:44.risen by over one third. And with the flying start the early years to

:10:45. > :10:54.help children get the very best start in life. And then, as your

:10:55. > :10:58.childcare offer of 30 hours a week for working parents, free breakfasts

:10:59. > :11:02.for primary school children, extra police and community support

:11:03. > :11:07.officers, record rates of recycling, the second-best of any country in

:11:08. > :11:11.Europe and the third best in the world, protecting the environment

:11:12. > :11:17.and reserve in resources for future generations. And when the Tories

:11:18. > :11:20.abolished the agriculture wages board, the Welsh Labour government

:11:21. > :11:24.established the advisory panel for Wales to protect the wages of those

:11:25. > :11:29.working in the farming sector. And on housing, where you are building

:11:30. > :11:39.homes affected by the Tories cruel bedroom tax, and congratulations to

:11:40. > :11:52.the Labour council building homes again. I also commend your decision

:11:53. > :11:57.to end right to buy. When the government in Westminster is only

:11:58. > :12:02.replacing one council home for every six sold off, then we know what you

:12:03. > :12:06.are doing is helping the housing situation instead of selling of good

:12:07. > :12:12.quality housing. There is so much to be proud of in Labour Wales. Even

:12:13. > :12:16.constrained by cuts, what Labour has achieved in Wales stands as a

:12:17. > :12:22.beacon, a beacon that shines a light on the Tories abject failure,

:12:23. > :12:27.socially, economically and morally. The never ending cuts agenda, passed

:12:28. > :12:32.at the same time giving away ?70 billion in the next six years to the

:12:33. > :12:39.rich and big business, shows where the priorities lie. Austerity is a

:12:40. > :12:43.political choice not an economic necessity. Britain's infrastructure

:12:44. > :12:48.is second rate and falling even further behind other major

:12:49. > :12:52.economies. This government has an abysmal record. They failed to

:12:53. > :12:56.modernise the economy, whether in broadband, energy, transport or

:12:57. > :13:00.housing, and at the same time have not done enough to make finance

:13:01. > :13:04.available to the innovative small business sector. That is why Labour

:13:05. > :13:10.is committed to establishing a national investment bank with a

:13:11. > :13:14.regional investment banks for every region of England. The Labour Party

:13:15. > :13:18.is working to develop a fair economy that works for everyone. John

:13:19. > :13:23.McDonnell is travelling around the country in order to bring new

:13:24. > :13:27.policies and strategies together for a fair economy and society. This

:13:28. > :13:32.year, the Welsh Labour government has created the development bank for

:13:33. > :13:38.Wales with its purpose to create and safeguard over 5500 jobs a year by

:13:39. > :13:43.2022, providing more than ?1 billion of investment support the Welsh

:13:44. > :13:47.business. This has not come out of the blue. Labour in Wales has almost

:13:48. > :13:52.two decades of experience of working with small business and local

:13:53. > :13:56.councils to develop the role of Finance Wales. Our business team at

:13:57. > :13:59.Westminster will take a keen interest in the launch of the

:14:00. > :14:06.development bank and the work it does to generate growth and jobs.

:14:07. > :14:10.Last week, the Prime Minister twice accused me of wanting to bankrupt

:14:11. > :14:15.Britain by borrowing money to fund investment. But as every business

:14:16. > :14:18.knows, there is a world of difference between borrowing for

:14:19. > :14:23.capital spending and borrowing to fund the payroll and day-to-day

:14:24. > :14:27.trading or service delivery. As any homeowner who has ever had a

:14:28. > :14:32.mortgage knows, taking on huge debt can save you money in the long run.

:14:33. > :14:38.We should not be afraid of debt borrowing. At this end of the Second

:14:39. > :14:45.World War, the Labour government did not say, oh, dear, debt is 250% of

:14:46. > :14:50.GDP, let's Park those grand ideas of public ownership and National Health

:14:51. > :14:54.Service, building Council homes or creating the protection of national

:14:55. > :14:59.security. No, the book the country to be proud of, established the

:15:00. > :15:03.injured at tuition is made our country fairer, more equal and stop

:15:04. > :15:07.people being held back the cause of the poverty of whether were born.

:15:08. > :15:11.The people are being held back today despite the best efforts of the

:15:12. > :15:15.government here today. Disposable incomes of the lowest in Britain,

:15:16. > :15:21.energy bills of the highest in Britain, one in four Welsh workers

:15:22. > :15:27.earns less the living wage, an estimated 90,000 people on several

:15:28. > :15:34.hours contracts. Those facts are a direct consequence of Tory ideology,

:15:35. > :15:38.an ideology that believes that our national assets should be sold off

:15:39. > :15:46.to the highest bidder. That is the only industry that matters, the one

:15:47. > :15:49.in the City of London's square mile. The trade unions should have the

:15:50. > :15:52.most restrictive laws anywhere in Europe, that if you cut taxes on the

:15:53. > :15:59.rich and big business it will trickle down to Arsenal. Remember

:16:00. > :16:04.that one? And the latest one, that you can cut your way to growth and

:16:05. > :16:12.prosperity. Well, we reject every one of those tenets of Tory

:16:13. > :16:17.ideology. We need a political settlement and a new economic

:16:18. > :16:22.settlement. As we leave the EU, the process starts next week, it is time

:16:23. > :16:27.for Labour to set out our agenda, our vision for Britain, so our

:16:28. > :16:32.agenda is about investment so that we support industries, succeed and

:16:33. > :16:36.create high skill, high pay and high productivity jobs that have been

:16:37. > :16:40.destroyed in so many communities. The tidal lagoon scheme in Swansea

:16:41. > :16:46.that our Shadow Business Secretary visited last week, that is an

:16:47. > :16:49.example of a huge opportunity. To invest, kick-start a whole new

:16:50. > :16:50.industry that will lead to more investment and more jobs elsewhere

:16:51. > :17:00.around the UK. To create tens of thousands of

:17:01. > :17:02.skilled jobs and apprentices is, to help keep the lights on in this

:17:03. > :17:09.country and meet our energy needs, and to help you carbonised our

:17:10. > :17:17.economy and to ensure that 60% of our energy comes from the noble

:17:18. > :17:21.sources by 2020. Stop dithering and act now to invest in all our

:17:22. > :17:26.futures. We know what happens when the government dithers. We saw it

:17:27. > :17:32.with the steel industry last year. A foundation industry for our country

:17:33. > :17:37.and one which must be supported by government secure mid strategy, too.

:17:38. > :17:39.How can it be that under the Tories, the Ministry of Defence is

:17:40. > :17:45.commissioning Nordic steel for our defence needs while the Scottish MS

:17:46. > :17:56.ash SNP. Mid is using Chinese steel for the Forth Bridge. Changing our

:17:57. > :18:03.economy is also... Changing our economy is also about ownership so

:18:04. > :18:07.that we all share in the rewards. The privatisation of our utilities

:18:08. > :18:10.and our industries was the biggest ever redistribution of wealth in

:18:11. > :18:18.this country to the very richest few. It gave the privatised

:18:19. > :18:22.industries the green light to hike prices, cut staff, cream off high

:18:23. > :18:29.profits at our expense and asset strip. Across Europe, energy and

:18:30. > :18:33.water are being taught into public ownership, whether nationally,

:18:34. > :18:37.regionally, or locally. And when things are run in public ownership,

:18:38. > :18:41.the profits don't code to the few wealthy shareholders, they go to us

:18:42. > :18:46.all. We have to put back minimum standards to, for the labour market,

:18:47. > :18:53.the housing market, the injustice and the insecurity has to stop. Work

:18:54. > :18:58.must pay a living wage, a home must be the bedrock of security for

:18:59. > :19:02.everyone, whether renting, buying or owning. Security at home and

:19:03. > :19:09.security at work are the foundations of the good life. They will underpin

:19:10. > :19:11.Labour's promise to the country. The Tories never have and never will

:19:12. > :19:18.promise that because fundamentally they are on the side of the road

:19:19. > :19:23.landlord and the bad employer. In Westminster last year, the Tories

:19:24. > :19:28.voted down a labour amendment to the Housing bill that simply would have

:19:29. > :19:36.required homes for rent be fit for human habitation. They voted that

:19:37. > :19:41.down. When Labour councillors ring in landlord licensing, the Tories

:19:42. > :19:46.oppose it. When Labour brought in the minimum wage, the Tories opposed

:19:47. > :19:50.it. And they continue to attack trade unions because they know that

:19:51. > :19:54.unity is strength. They know that by acting collectively, workers can

:19:55. > :19:58.stand up to bad bosses. Very simply, here are feared things -- here are

:19:59. > :20:03.three things the Labour permit will do. We will look the homes that

:20:04. > :20:13.people need to live in, not the investors need to make a profit out

:20:14. > :20:24.of. Secondly, we will make the minimum wage real living wage of at

:20:25. > :20:39.least ?10 per hour I20 20. -- by 2020. And we will repeal the Tories

:20:40. > :20:43.trade union act. And don't think Tories cannot be defeated. We

:20:44. > :20:47.defeated them when they tried to change tax credits, we defeated them

:20:48. > :20:51.on police cuts, forced them into a retreat on national insurance

:20:52. > :20:57.contributions for the self-employed after only a few days. When we stand

:20:58. > :21:09.up together united, we can and we will defeat them. Our vision is all

:21:10. > :21:13.the more important as we head into the uncertainty of regs it.

:21:14. > :21:18.Uncertain because of the recklessness of Boris Johnson, David

:21:19. > :21:24.Davis and Liam Fox. And uncertain because of the complacency of Teresa

:21:25. > :21:30.Hammond, Theresa May and Philip Hammond, OK, sorry! Businesses need

:21:31. > :21:37.reassurance on investment but they also need as the Welsh government

:21:38. > :21:42.has demanded, for and unfettered access to the single market. The

:21:43. > :21:47.Foreign Secretary says it will not be apocalyptic to leave the European

:21:48. > :21:52.Union without appeal, it will be perfectly OK, he says. Tell that to

:21:53. > :21:58.thought workers at Bridgend, tell that to steal workers at Port

:21:59. > :22:05.Talbot, tell that to Airbus workers at Gordon. Their jobs depend on our

:22:06. > :22:09.exports to Europe, to our full and unfettered access to the single

:22:10. > :22:15.market. I know that our shadow set here Starmer, and our trade

:22:16. > :22:19.secretary Barry Gardner will be working alongside Carwyn Jones, Mark

:22:20. > :22:26.and the team, to make sure that labour stands for people's jobs, the

:22:27. > :22:32.economy, and investment. That is our agenda in negotiations over leaving

:22:33. > :22:40.the European Union. We are also making very clear that there is a

:22:41. > :22:44.starting point, European nationals have come to this country and made

:22:45. > :22:48.their homes here, made an enormous contribution to our health service,

:22:49. > :22:53.education, and so many other roles in our lives, they should be allowed

:22:54. > :22:56.to remain here. Give them certainty. Don't put them through the trauma

:22:57. > :23:03.they are going through at the present time. I have asked our

:23:04. > :23:08.sister Socialist parties all across the EU to promote exactly the same

:23:09. > :23:12.for British people living anywhere across the European Union, and do

:23:13. > :23:17.you know what, they all agreed to support that and are doing their

:23:18. > :23:24.best to support that within their own parties. They are all working

:23:25. > :23:30.together for the good of everybody across this continent. That is what

:23:31. > :23:37.socialism is about. The Labour Party has been most successful when we

:23:38. > :23:42.have been our most united. Whatever our differences, we all know that

:23:43. > :23:48.what unites us is so much more and so much stronger. And we know that

:23:49. > :23:53.our communities need a Labour councillor, a Labour mayor, and a

:23:54. > :23:59.Labour government. In Wales, this made, we will be defending over 500

:24:00. > :24:04.seats in 20 -- 92 unitary authorities, and we leave 12 of

:24:05. > :24:08.those councils, ten outright. I know that Carwyn Jones all manners of the

:24:09. > :24:14.party in Wales will be united and not only defending the councils but

:24:15. > :24:19.fighting to make gains, too. Whether it is that the town hall in Cardiff

:24:20. > :24:24.Bay or at Westminster, Labour being in power means having someone

:24:25. > :24:31.standing up for you. It is quite simple, United we stand, divided we

:24:32. > :24:37.fall. And United I believe this great party can do things together

:24:38. > :24:41.to it cheap for the people that need Labour councils and above all, need

:24:42. > :24:47.a Labour government and a society based on social justice and

:24:48. > :24:48.equality, not greed and inequality. Thank you very much for inviting me

:24:49. > :25:05.here today. Let's get the thoughts of our Welsh

:25:06. > :25:09.affairs editor on what Jeremy Corbyn had to say this morning. When you

:25:10. > :25:12.were listening to it this morning, you picked up the fact that he

:25:13. > :25:16.mentioned a key figure in the Welsh government a couple of times. Yes,

:25:17. > :25:21.to mention is the Mark Drakeford, once mistakenly referring to him as

:25:22. > :25:26.the Welsh Chancellor of the Exchequer, I don't know where that

:25:27. > :25:29.came from. Mark Drakeford is probably the most gullible candidate

:25:30. > :25:35.on the left of the party when Carwyn Jones chooses to stand down from the

:25:36. > :25:42.leadership of Welsh Labour. I wonder if Jeremy Corbyn was tried to give

:25:43. > :25:46.him a leg up, to his image and name recognition by mentioning him and

:25:47. > :25:50.not mentioning anyone else who is a member of the Welsh government other

:25:51. > :25:53.than Carwyn Jones himself. Another little thing, it highlights the

:25:54. > :25:58.problem that some Labour members have with Jeremy Corbyn, they think

:25:59. > :26:03.he is amateurish and the office he is running is unprofessional.

:26:04. > :26:09.Referring to Llandudno as being into Denbighshire when it is in the Arras

:26:10. > :26:13.Conway. That is a tiny slip but it feeds the narrative of Jeremy

:26:14. > :26:19.Corbyn. Opponents that he is really not up to the job. Other than that,

:26:20. > :26:23.it was a pretty good speech, pretty boilerplate defence and promotion of

:26:24. > :26:28.Wallasey is of the Welsh government, talking about the achievements of

:26:29. > :26:31.the government in Cardiff Bay, no doubt that part had been prepared

:26:32. > :26:37.for him by the Labour Party in Wales. Very little about Brexit,

:26:38. > :26:42.though. Without being such a large issue it was amazing he spent so

:26:43. > :26:47.little time on it. I think we can go over to the conference hall now

:26:48. > :26:49.where Carwyn Jones is just getting up on stage to give his speech to

:26:50. > :27:04.conference. Well, conference, thank you for that

:27:05. > :27:09.welcome. Thank you for your introduction, and nice words, I hope

:27:10. > :27:14.I can live up to them this afternoon. What an honour it was for

:27:15. > :27:17.me to listen backstage to Lord Lister Morgan, someone who has been

:27:18. > :27:22.involved in our movement for so many years, someone who has been involved

:27:23. > :27:27.in the campaign for devolution so many years. I remember watching him

:27:28. > :27:30.on TV in 1979, after heavy defeat in the referendum when he said that

:27:31. > :27:40.they would come the issue would be revisited, those were dark days,

:27:41. > :27:52.thank you for the work you put in for me to be able to stand here

:27:53. > :27:55.today. Conference, I would also like to thanks Jeremy for his speech this

:27:56. > :28:01.morning. It shows he understands Wales and he will fight for our NHS

:28:02. > :28:06.and campaign alongside us in the local elections in May. I heart felt

:28:07. > :28:09.thanks to Christina Rees, our new shadow state secretary for Wales,

:28:10. > :28:15.for the support she has shown me in the her first few weeks in the job.

:28:16. > :28:19.She used to be my ward councillor and she was unstoppable force then

:28:20. > :28:23.as I am sure she will be in the future. She is a credit to the front

:28:24. > :28:27.bench. The last conversation we had before this weekend was a bit sombre

:28:28. > :28:32.and surreal because I spoke to her on the phone on the day of the

:28:33. > :28:35.attack in Westminster last week. Chris, along with many other MPs was

:28:36. > :28:39.locked down in the conference chamber. I guess she was finding out

:28:40. > :28:46.what was happening by texts and sweets and I wanted to be sure that

:28:47. > :28:48.she and her colleagues and all our parliamentary Aryan staff and

:28:49. > :28:53.friends were safe and it was reassuring to find out that was the

:28:54. > :28:57.case. -- our parliamentarians staff and friends. When it was in the case

:28:58. > :29:05.for all, many people were treated for injuries, and scores more will

:29:06. > :29:10.be affected. The Beacon shines as brightly as it does today for the

:29:11. > :29:17.whole world. The beautiful, bustling living city that will continue to

:29:18. > :29:23.provide millions with inspiration. London will continue to thrive. Our

:29:24. > :29:26.parliamentarians will continue to work and argue and compromise and do

:29:27. > :29:29.their daily best for their constituents and our police and

:29:30. > :29:33.other emergency services will continue to be on it by everyone of

:29:34. > :29:36.us in this hall. Can I thank them and ask you to join me in thanking

:29:37. > :29:53.them for all the work that they do. Also this afternoon, I would like to

:29:54. > :29:59.mention councillor David Sage who passed away late last night. Some of

:30:00. > :30:04.you will have known him, some not. He was my election agent for five

:30:05. > :30:09.elections, dedicated councillor in Bridgend. He was truly dedicated to

:30:10. > :30:14.his family, and to improving people, lives. He was a true labour storm

:30:15. > :30:17.water and friend and he will be missed by so many. Dave, rest in

:30:18. > :30:33.peace. I want to take us back a little,

:30:34. > :30:37.this time last year. Barack Obama was president of the United States.

:30:38. > :30:43.Our membership of the EU seemed secure but the fate of our steel

:30:44. > :30:48.industry seemed uncertain. The Scottish question was settled, at

:30:49. > :30:53.least a decade, maybe a generation. David camera, remember? He was Prime

:30:54. > :31:07.Minister. And George Osborne was only doing badly at one job. --

:31:08. > :31:13.David Cameron. Much of the world had not yet heard the most magical words

:31:14. > :31:21.in the Welsh language... But we felt the top list assembly election since

:31:22. > :31:25.the start of devolution. We were predicted to lose and handful of

:31:26. > :31:33.seats, conversations were happening, we know about the rainbow coalition.

:31:34. > :31:37.The Tories were cashing in on the strong 2015 showing. When I arrived

:31:38. > :31:43.at midnight, I agreed to a quick interview with Sky News. First

:31:44. > :31:48.question, when will you resign? We won an election result I firmly

:31:49. > :31:51.believe in the context was the best we achieved since devolution and

:31:52. > :31:56.everything that has happened since in the UK and further afield merely

:31:57. > :32:03.underlines the strength that when last May. It was a fantastic result.

:32:04. > :32:06.It owed so much to the hard work you put in as members, the doors you

:32:07. > :32:10.knocked, the leaflets you delivered, the stories you told your friends

:32:11. > :32:21.and family. And I thank you for all your efforts? I would like to thank

:32:22. > :32:26.somebody else. Many of you will know this will be the last conference

:32:27. > :32:32.that our Welsh Labour general secretary. Over the last six years,

:32:33. > :32:36.he has served the party with great skill, good humour and, despite his

:32:37. > :32:41.unfathomable support for Aberdeen football club, he has been an

:32:42. > :32:47.incredibly popular store award for Welsh Labour. He has had to deliver

:32:48. > :32:52.59 Labour seats and lost it in particular he marshalled superbly

:32:53. > :32:53.our resources and brilliant campaign. Thank you for all your

:32:54. > :33:10.hard work. Let us look back just a little

:33:11. > :33:14.further. 20 years ago, the Labour Party stood on the verge of a

:33:15. > :33:19.historic general election landslide. Wales and Scotland stood ready to

:33:20. > :33:25.embrace devolution power. That was and remains the Labour way. Across

:33:26. > :33:30.the border, a very interesting contest was underway in Tatton, as

:33:31. > :33:35.Martin Bell took on one Neil Hamilton. March 1997, Mr Hamilton

:33:36. > :33:41.was responding to Tory attempts to kick him out by saying, it is

:33:42. > :33:46.all-out now, I am obliged to retaliate by revealing the deluge of

:33:47. > :33:48.truth. I'm not sure what happened to him but he is still the valiant

:33:49. > :34:18.carrier of truth. We created a very firm start for

:34:19. > :34:24.spending on health and education. It also was important for civil rights

:34:25. > :34:27.for gays and lesbians. A Labour government, the first for 18 years,

:34:28. > :34:33.it past the minimum wage and introduced a new deal to get young

:34:34. > :34:38.people back to work, brought in sure start, tax credits, pension credit,

:34:39. > :34:41.increased spending on health and education, legislated for civil

:34:42. > :34:45.partnerships for gay and lesbian couples and delivered the Good

:34:46. > :34:50.Friday Agreement, bringing lasting peace to Northern Ireland. And that

:34:51. > :34:56.is what Labour doesn't government, it delivers the people, our people.

:34:57. > :35:02.And let's never forget that this is the party of working people. The

:35:03. > :35:06.Tories can never steal that mantle. It was that Labour government that

:35:07. > :35:11.brought in devolution for Scotland and Wales. 20 years ago this

:35:12. > :35:16.September, Wales said yes to devolution and voted to have a

:35:17. > :35:18.National Assembly. It is the only political institution that the

:35:19. > :35:25.people of Wales have ever voted to have. I was campaigning in my

:35:26. > :35:30.community for devolution with dark brown hair! That is how long ago

:35:31. > :35:35.that was. An 18 years ago this May, I was elected to the National

:35:36. > :35:41.Assembly, proud to be elected from my home constituency. Wales is an

:35:42. > :35:50.old country but a young democracy. But we have been able to show how

:35:51. > :35:58.devolution can make a difference. In the years since then, it has made a

:35:59. > :36:05.difference in our schools, free bus passes for pensioners, foundation

:36:06. > :36:12.pays for young people and is supported package for students

:36:13. > :36:18.anywhere in the United Kingdom. And also the organ transplant

:36:19. > :36:25.legislation. ?1 million of gone into schools. Free school breakfasts,

:36:26. > :36:29.free bus passes for pensioners, the foundation phase, the most generous

:36:30. > :36:35.package of support for students anywhere in the UK. As Jeremy said,

:36:36. > :36:42.a model for organ donation, saving lives will stop ending the right to

:36:43. > :36:49.buy and of course eight ?2 billion school building programme, that is

:36:50. > :36:53.what we can do. We will be saying, why all this nostalgia? I have got

:36:54. > :36:58.to tell you that this week I turned 50. It was a reflective mood. The

:36:59. > :37:07.older persons commission and was now has an active interest in my

:37:08. > :37:11.welfare. I have started doing that thing where you have to give

:37:12. > :37:15.yourself an encouraging, right! Before you stand up. The things you

:37:16. > :37:19.remember and forget have no real audience of importance. I cannot

:37:20. > :37:28.quite remember in May 1997 that night but I remember my order at

:37:29. > :37:33.Bridgend kebabs house. But there is another reason to think back to

:37:34. > :37:37.because it challenges us to think about the future. That is where we

:37:38. > :37:42.were 20 years ago but where will we be in 20 years' time? We have got

:37:43. > :37:49.work to do. Look at the challenges ahead of us in the next three years.

:37:50. > :37:53.By 2020, we will have experienced a decade of Tory austerity, an ageing

:37:54. > :37:56.population, an American president more offended by sketches on

:37:57. > :38:02.Saturday Night Live than the division that cripples his country,

:38:03. > :38:06.and on top of this managing our exit from the EU, a task that would

:38:07. > :38:12.dominate so much and take up government time and resource. These

:38:13. > :38:15.are the battles ahead and we have to ask ourselves, why are we not taking

:38:16. > :38:23.those battles on more effectively? We have to do better. In 2015, we

:38:24. > :38:27.lost power. Within weeks, I was there holding a public meeting,

:38:28. > :38:31.listening to people about why that happened. We took those lessons away

:38:32. > :38:44.and changed the way we approach assembly elections. In May last

:38:45. > :38:57.year, Rebecca Evans beat the Tories. Just as Adam Jones smashed the

:38:58. > :39:02.Tories as well. And Carl Sargeant steam-rollered the Tories as well,

:39:03. > :39:14.Jane Hart hammered the tourism available Morgan. -- veil of

:39:15. > :39:17.Glamorgan. I have run out of constituencies and verbs to describe

:39:18. > :39:28.the performances last year. Every single Tory marginal rent red. That

:39:29. > :39:34.shows that we cannot hide from the electorate. It is why we are here.

:39:35. > :39:39.We have been brief enough to hear uncomfortable truths, bold enough to

:39:40. > :39:43.change our minds, to believe in our values, but they should never be a

:39:44. > :39:47.comfort blanket or worse straitjacket of finding new ways to

:39:48. > :39:52.deliver. Will we be happy to tell our children that we exited the

:39:53. > :39:57.freedom of play, the Brexit changed everything? We decided to leave the

:39:58. > :40:04.fight to the future in the hands of the SNP? To Tim Farron? No, not on

:40:05. > :40:09.my watch or an Jeremy's watch. It is because of the membership card in

:40:10. > :40:16.your pocket. The decision to join this party does not tie you into

:40:17. > :40:21.personalities. The decision to join this party is a decision about one

:40:22. > :40:27.simple thing, that we want to make the world the place. That is what it

:40:28. > :40:32.comes down to. We may explain the idea in different ways, better

:40:33. > :40:39.schools, the NHS, a cleaner environment, an ethical foreign

:40:40. > :40:43.policy, safer streets, but it comes down to one thing, the issue of

:40:44. > :40:48.fairness. We cannot allow the Tories off the hook, that would be

:40:49. > :40:51.unforgivable. The record is a disgrace, broken promise at the

:40:52. > :40:55.broken promise. They promised austerity would balance the books

:40:56. > :40:59.that they are failing to provide the basic helping hand needed to get the

:41:00. > :41:06.economy growing again. Years of pain for absolutely no gain. Theirs is a

:41:07. > :41:11.government with no ideas, direction, mandate. This month, we presented a

:41:12. > :41:19.supplementary budget debate the NHS an extra ?180 million. ?30 million

:41:20. > :41:23.for affordable housing and ?60 million for a new treatment fund.

:41:24. > :41:34.That is Labour delivering the people of Wales. And that is a budget that

:41:35. > :41:39.Ukip applied in the Tories voted against, a budget that would put

:41:40. > :41:43.more nurses on the wards, more families into homes and secure

:41:44. > :41:48.faster treatment for patients. Welsh Labour delivering in government. A

:41:49. > :41:53.week later, Philip Hammond presented the budget, you might have read

:41:54. > :42:00.about it. It did not go so well. Tories break tax vowel is not the

:42:01. > :42:04.Telegraph front Page Tory chancellors dream about. Rob the

:42:05. > :42:11.builder, read another headline. No laughing matter, said that

:42:12. > :42:21.well-known left-wing organ, the Daily Mail! May force is Hammond in

:42:22. > :42:26.the budget U-turn. Humiliating fiasco and my personal favourite,

:42:27. > :42:31.Hammond, egg on his face! You know what they say, if at first you do

:42:32. > :42:42.not succeed, skydiving probably isn't for you. It would be funny if

:42:43. > :42:47.it was not so serious. Cameron's gambles the guts out of Europe,

:42:48. > :42:54.Hammond's fumbles are damaging our economy, made's stumbles are pushing

:42:55. > :43:04.Scotland towards an exit. I have been dealing with Brexit much longer

:43:05. > :43:08.than many of you. But for many years, I thought I had heard the

:43:09. > :43:14.last of that dreaded word but no, so every morning begins with Brexit.

:43:15. > :43:17.There are important days ahead because on Wednesday, the Prime

:43:18. > :43:22.Minister will formally signalled the UK's intention to lead the European

:43:23. > :43:26.Union by triggering the Article 50. I firmly believe we have to get

:43:27. > :43:30.real. Brexit is happening and we have to respect the will of the

:43:31. > :43:34.people and we have to make a success of that process. That has been a

:43:35. > :43:39.mission of the worst government in recent months to our white paper,

:43:40. > :43:43.bilaterals of the Prime Minister and others, and who visits to Brussels

:43:44. > :43:49.and beyond. We are making the case for what Wales needs. It centres on

:43:50. > :43:53.one thing, full and unfettered access to the single market. That

:43:54. > :43:58.will give our business is the best chance to succeed, allows the secure

:43:59. > :44:05.growth and prosperity in the future. We all heard the uncertainty that

:44:06. > :44:12.surrounds Bridgend. Every engine made in that factory is exported to

:44:13. > :44:15.Europe. Do not tell me that the kind of Brexit negotiations is a dry

:44:16. > :44:19.academic exercise, it is the difference between good secure work

:44:20. > :44:23.and an uncertain future for countless families. And that story

:44:24. > :44:28.is replicated thousands of times over, or crossbow places in Wales,

:44:29. > :44:33.large and small. I do not pretend we have all the answers but as the

:44:34. > :44:40.months of ticked by, it is becoming creasing it clear that our

:44:41. > :44:42.consistent and determined stance on Brexit is having an impact on

:44:43. > :44:47.transition arrangements, workers' rights and single market access.

:44:48. > :44:51.That is because we are making a common-sense case for the economic

:44:52. > :44:55.good of this country. But the UK Government has got to meet the

:44:56. > :45:00.subway on this, they have got to keep the hard Brexit is locked in

:45:01. > :45:03.the attic and move into the 21st century because too many in

:45:04. > :45:08.Whitehall have seen Brexit as an opportunity to turn back the clock

:45:09. > :45:12.to pre-devolution days, to grab hold of powers they never thought

:45:13. > :45:18.should've been relinquished. The great reform bill, which you can

:45:19. > :45:21.turn to as an acronym of the gerbil, will be huge and potentially last

:45:22. > :45:27.opportunity for the Tory government to prove they understand just what

:45:28. > :45:31.is at stake. There can be no land grab on Powys. New frameworks on

:45:32. > :45:37.agriculture, trade and the environment, they must be agreed on

:45:38. > :45:40.all four governments. The Tories have already gifted the SNP the

:45:41. > :45:46.advantage to the careless dealings with the UK. For the sake of this

:45:47. > :45:53.union, they cannot carry on in that direction. For now, we remain

:45:54. > :45:57.committed to the same process but Wales has to see our engagement

:45:58. > :46:00.recognised in the final negotiating position.

:46:01. > :46:11.And there are bigger questions for us to answer for which Frexit has

:46:12. > :46:20.been a catalyst. -- exit. We have been to defensive. It has long been

:46:21. > :46:23.my belief that there is nothing more certain of destabilising the union

:46:24. > :46:29.than trying to hang onto the Status Quo. It is right that Labour must

:46:30. > :46:33.show leadership on this issue and that is why I am delighted that

:46:34. > :46:40.Kezia Dugdale and others have agreed to start the RSS of the

:46:41. > :46:42.constitutional tension that will inject fresh urgency with Labour

:46:43. > :46:50.leading the way. That work begins next week with the conferencing

:46:51. > :46:55.Cardiff. The next day, the Prime Minister tries to take us out of the

:46:56. > :47:00.European Union and we try to imagine what it will liken the future. Let

:47:01. > :47:05.me say one more thing on the issue of Brexit. It is the way that our

:47:06. > :47:11.political discourse has changed so markedly. Have we become detached

:47:12. > :47:16.from some communities we seek to represent? Some people who used to

:47:17. > :47:21.vote Labour and experience a sense of loss which needs to be addressed.

:47:22. > :47:25.I want to recommend a book that talks about the experience of

:47:26. > :47:30.growing up poor. It says, whenever people ask me what I would like to

:47:31. > :47:33.change about the working class, I saved the feeling that our changes

:47:34. > :47:39.don't matter. That is a challenge that should speed to us in Wales

:47:40. > :47:43.just as Mac -- just as much in the States. The re-examination of what

:47:44. > :47:47.we are about should always be an urgent and ongoing process for a

:47:48. > :47:51.party of government. But I get deeply concerned when I hear people

:47:52. > :47:56.party saying we should sideline some of our fundamental principles so

:47:57. > :47:59.don't anybody tell you that securing might -- rights of minorities is

:48:00. > :48:12.anything other than the core business of any Labour movement

:48:13. > :48:19.worthy of the name. Don't let anyone tell you we should be selling our EU

:48:20. > :48:22.citizens, our friends, neighbours, colleagues, and the river in Brexit

:48:23. > :48:26.negotiations, don't anybody tell you we should worry less about the

:48:27. > :48:29.refugee children on our doorstep denied access to shelter by a

:48:30. > :48:43.cowardly Tory government. Conference, we have fought for the

:48:44. > :48:47.rights of those children, as we fought for the ones that came before

:48:48. > :48:51.and we must always lead the fight for those that need our help. And

:48:52. > :48:59.don't let anyone tell you that our commitment to all women short lists,

:49:00. > :49:02.gender equality and ending domestic violence against women is anything

:49:03. > :49:10.other than core business for this party. It is usually important. --

:49:11. > :49:16.hugely important. And don't let anyone tell you that our friend and

:49:17. > :49:21.colleague Jo Cox lost her life to anything but an act of political

:49:22. > :49:27.extremism, violence, and the let that death passed you by. There is

:49:28. > :49:30.more that unites us than divides us but it is vital for this party to

:49:31. > :49:36.take that message to the country because our party was founded to

:49:37. > :49:40.flatten the Judas and inequality and it flourishes when we signed with

:49:41. > :49:45.modernity and progress and we work to lift up our brothers and sisters

:49:46. > :49:51.from their struggles. It asked challenge ourselves over what we are

:49:52. > :49:55.doing. Don't ever surrender the fight for that because look around,

:49:56. > :50:01.without us, who will take this fight on? And for all these reasons and

:50:02. > :50:04.more, the Brexit challenge cannot be under rest but of course we know it

:50:05. > :50:10.cannot cloud everything because we have to deliver for our people. Last

:50:11. > :50:17.week, I held one of my regular public meetings, this one was in the

:50:18. > :50:20.Rhondda and it was packed, all ages, all walks of life, but the only

:50:21. > :50:24.person who mentioned the word Brexit that night was made, twice. The

:50:25. > :50:31.things people wanted to know about shouldn't surprise you. Jobs, work

:50:32. > :50:38.for young people, town centres regeneration, isolation and the NHS,

:50:39. > :50:46.tackling poverty, more and better apprenticeships programmes, and so

:50:47. > :50:50.it is, everywhere I go in Wales, hundreds of people concerned for

:50:51. > :50:54.their future, looking for a fair shake of the dice. And what is at

:50:55. > :50:57.the heart of everything we have been asked for and everything we have

:50:58. > :51:05.been promised to deliver? It is quite simply fed deal. The Welsh

:51:06. > :51:10.people are more unreasonable in their demands. -- are not

:51:11. > :51:16.unreasonable. We will offer a fair deal to the people of this country.

:51:17. > :51:20.Huge budget cuts handed down by the Tories to Wales mean the financial

:51:21. > :51:23.context of financial services have changed radically in a short space

:51:24. > :51:29.of time. Councils face increasing demand but ensuring resources.

:51:30. > :51:32.Business as usual is no longer an option, we are embracing this

:51:33. > :51:37.challenge and showing there is a different but fair way. They have

:51:38. > :51:41.innovated to develop the best services to the people they

:51:42. > :51:46.represent while ensuring Labour's values of fairness, community, and

:51:47. > :51:51.social justice are the driving force of that. We saw an energy collected

:51:52. > :52:00.that helped 4000 households switched to a cheaper energy tariff, saving

:52:01. > :52:04.money. We are taking advantage of the abolition of the right to buy

:52:05. > :52:13.and are investing in building houses once again. My own counsel in

:52:14. > :52:19.Bridgend has invested in new flying start centres in various places.

:52:20. > :52:26.Hopping over 1000 children and their families. Barry Island has been

:52:27. > :52:36.transformed, thanks to our Welsh Labour council driving through

:52:37. > :52:42.ambitious changes. That is the confidence of Welsh councils working

:52:43. > :52:45.with the Welsh government. Across Wales, Welsh Labour councils are

:52:46. > :52:50.constantly improving services, giving local people a stake in how

:52:51. > :52:54.services are delivered, working and collaborating with others to how to

:52:55. > :53:01.get the best value and solving problems before they are alive -- a

:53:02. > :53:05.rise. Working in partnership, the Welsh councils and partnerships are

:53:06. > :53:08.delivering for our children. Our schools are reporting their best

:53:09. > :53:17.ever exam results. Pupils getting five good GCSEs are up in different

:53:18. > :53:21.places over the last five years. And the gap between the richest and

:53:22. > :53:27.poorest children is closing at every key stage. Pupils in the most

:53:28. > :53:31.deprived areas up performing better and similar pupils and the rest of

:53:32. > :53:44.the UK. That is what Labour delivers for children. Conference, that is

:53:45. > :53:47.Welsh Labour delivering a fair deal for our children. Because about

:53:48. > :53:53.commitment to fairness, I want to mention something else today. The

:53:54. > :53:59.tenacious and dignified campaign being fought by Carolyn Harris on

:54:00. > :54:03.funeral costs for children, Karyn has been an example to us all. The

:54:04. > :54:11.councils and it says that have rallied to York Hall deserved praise

:54:12. > :54:14.and thanks. -- to your call. The Welsh government will step in and

:54:15. > :54:15.make sure that burial charges for children will no longer apply in

:54:16. > :54:51.Welsh communities. It is the right thing to do. It took

:54:52. > :54:54.Carolyn to shine a light on this issue, so thank you. Not just a

:54:55. > :54:59.local cup and but in the Welsh Parliament to, and fair deal for

:55:00. > :55:03.Wales. Brexit or no Brexit, we promised to deliver on our

:55:04. > :55:10.commitments. In the last Assembly, we created 150,000 jobs, 50,000

:55:11. > :55:14.people were found work, parallel success stories for Wales. But we

:55:15. > :55:18.heard the complex from the older population, how can we find new

:55:19. > :55:24.work, where is our support? We have announced new plans for 100,000 all

:55:25. > :55:29.age apprenticeships in Wales, a fair deal for all people looking for good

:55:30. > :55:32.work. And, for me, being in government is about changing

:55:33. > :55:38.people's lives for the better, by making the services individual,

:55:39. > :55:42.families and companies find on stronger and more reliable. Over the

:55:43. > :55:46.next few years, I want to utilise the new powers we are gaining next

:55:47. > :55:48.year over our railways and bus networks to build a world-class

:55:49. > :55:54.transport system in Wales, one that is truly integrated, sustainable,

:55:55. > :55:58.and one that can better connect our communities and our economy. One

:55:59. > :56:01.that can help to make real our ambition of better jobs closer to

:56:02. > :56:06.home. Today, I can announce three majors that will make a tangible

:56:07. > :56:10.difference to passengers on the transport network as a starter that

:56:11. > :56:14.process. As part of the work to prepare for the new rail franchise

:56:15. > :56:18.in 2030, we will insure that every train on the Wales and Borders

:56:19. > :56:24.franchise will be equipped with free Wi-Fi by September this year, free

:56:25. > :56:27.Wi-Fi to train stations across Wales starting with 50 of the busiest

:56:28. > :56:38.stations in Wales and to strengthen bus services I am announcing a 12

:56:39. > :56:42.Mount -- 12 month pilot to make free travel for part of the network. We

:56:43. > :56:51.will make sure that our transport system is fit for them -- this

:56:52. > :56:56.century. This is just the start. In health care, we knew the Tory

:56:57. > :57:03.concept of the Cancer Drugs Fund was unfair. It cost lives. Access to

:57:04. > :57:06.approved drugs in Wales is fast and our new treatment fund will give

:57:07. > :57:11.even greater chances to those who need them but we also saw that there

:57:12. > :57:13.was a postcode lottery on occasion. That worked against people who

:57:14. > :57:19.needed the most cutting and specialist treatment and drugs. This

:57:20. > :57:22.week, our Health Secretary Vaughan Gething and announced a new approach

:57:23. > :57:27.and now people who need it will have access to better life-saving drugs

:57:28. > :57:34.and treatment as quickly as possible. Conference, we face the

:57:35. > :57:40.local elections, as many of you have noticed in a few short weeks. But we

:57:41. > :57:47.shouldn't need a single shred of motivation more than what the Tories

:57:48. > :57:54.tried to do to the Welsh NHS. They used our health service as a punch

:57:55. > :57:57.bag in the right wing press, handy distraction from their own

:57:58. > :58:02.catastrophic mistakes which only now are coming to light. We have never

:58:03. > :58:05.shied away from an honest assessment of the NHS in Wales and it is the

:58:06. > :58:10.reports we commission ourselves that give us the hardest lessons and we

:58:11. > :58:15.are, double with that. But we want the best for patients, we want to

:58:16. > :58:19.service -- a service fit for the future. No one is more impatient for

:58:20. > :58:22.improvement than us. At another report shows that Wales is

:58:23. > :58:27.performing as well as or better than the other health systems in the UK.

:58:28. > :58:34.How often do we tell ourselves not to be taken in. When it comes to how

:58:35. > :58:38.we view our own country, we need to be a bit more Cerys Matthews, bit

:58:39. > :58:45.more optimistic. We owe it to our health care workers to celebrate our

:58:46. > :58:49.dedication and look at what we are doing, waiting times going down, and

:58:50. > :58:53.as performers going up, outstripping every other country in the UK. The

:58:54. > :58:58.average response time to emergency calls is now less than five minutes.

:58:59. > :59:12.Let's take the opportunity now to thank the Ambulance Service for that

:59:13. > :59:17.remarkable turnaround. With more and more patients having cardiac

:59:18. > :59:21.rehabilitation after a heart attack, the British Heart Foundation has

:59:22. > :59:27.described Wales as a world lever, saving lives. -- world leader.

:59:28. > :59:32.Improvements in cancer performance, the number of patients treated now

:59:33. > :59:35.is 40% higher than five years ago and we very know that our record

:59:36. > :59:41.investment in social services has helped prevent the crisis we are now

:59:42. > :59:46.seeing in England. Our NHS every day striving to be faster, safer, and

:59:47. > :59:50.better. And for the fourth successive month, we are getting

:59:51. > :59:53.people home from hospital faster. We know there is more to do so I am

:59:54. > :59:59.delighted today to announce a further ?20 million social care to

:00:00. > :00:02.ease the burden on the NHS, to ensure dignity for old and

:00:03. > :00:09.vulnerable people and to give staff of up -- the resources they need,

:00:10. > :00:17.delivering on social careful Wales. -- social care for Wales.

:00:18. > :00:25.As we do that, we will deliver for our schools and colleges. You know

:00:26. > :00:29.that education has all been my top priority and that is why I promised

:00:30. > :00:35.and delivered extra funding for our schools. We protected our classrooms

:00:36. > :00:39.from Tory cuts. We will do more to secure progress and deliver our

:00:40. > :00:45.children, an extra ?100 million for our schools, and more money in the

:00:46. > :00:49.early years to support children from deprived backgrounds, a fair deal

:00:50. > :00:54.for our children. We know that a major barrier for working parents is

:00:55. > :00:59.the availability of good quality childcare and this week we announced

:01:00. > :01:03.pilot projects for the new 30 year scheme that we will deliver for the

:01:04. > :01:08.whole of our country, a fair deal for working parents. We know that

:01:09. > :01:12.too many older people have had to face an impossible choice between

:01:13. > :01:14.pairing for the care and passing something onto their children so

:01:15. > :01:20.next month the capital limit the people going into care will rise

:01:21. > :01:25.again and by 2021, it will have doubled to ?50,000. A fair deal for

:01:26. > :01:30.older people. For small businesses, the Welsh government will provide

:01:31. > :01:33.more than ?200 million for support in the next financial year,

:01:34. > :01:37.providing help to more than three quarters of businesses to pay their

:01:38. > :01:42.rates. Half of small businesses in Wales will pay no business rates at

:01:43. > :01:48.all. Our scheme is more than match those on offer in England. Our small

:01:49. > :01:54.businesses, this is a fair deal, for them, their customers and staff. We

:01:55. > :01:58.are delivering on our promises. People expect a fair deal from Welsh

:01:59. > :02:10.league Labour and that is what they will get from a Welsh Labour

:02:11. > :02:15.government. But we know as well how central the economy is to our lives.

:02:16. > :02:18.I make no apology for putting jobs and growth at the heart of

:02:19. > :02:24.successive budgets and no apology for putting them at the heart of our

:02:25. > :02:31.Brexit position either. Unemployment in Wales stands at 4.4%, lower than

:02:32. > :02:36.the UK average. Lower than London, Scotland and most English regions.

:02:37. > :02:41.We note that on almost every measure that counts, prosperity, happiness,

:02:42. > :02:45.well-being, work matters. It would've been easier to grandstand

:02:46. > :02:54.rail against the unfairness, but we did everything we could to save the

:02:55. > :02:56.Welsh steel industry. We broke down political barriers, we travelled

:02:57. > :03:04.from Port Talbot to Downing Street to Mumbai, we did not rest. We

:03:05. > :03:07.worked tirelessly with our colleagues, MPs names and local

:03:08. > :03:12.councils and put money up front and challenged others to match our

:03:13. > :03:19.commitment. When we paint those badges to our lapels, it was not an

:03:20. > :03:22.empty gesture, it was a mission statement, now Welsh steel is back

:03:23. > :03:24.on its feet. The Welsh Labour government delivered the future for

:03:25. > :03:41.steel while the Tories did nothing. And it is because of that that

:03:42. > :03:46.thousands remain in good well-paid work and communities can plan for

:03:47. > :03:53.the future once again. It is not just about manufacturing. We created

:03:54. > :04:03.or safeguarded 6000 jobs as a direct support of the Welsh Labour

:04:04. > :04:09.government. We created new jobs in Wrexham. But we know that is just

:04:10. > :04:16.one part of the challenge. Work matters but so does pay, so does

:04:17. > :04:19.fairness at work and Security and productivity, these are the

:04:20. > :04:26.challenges that we will take on this assembly term. I want to make Wales

:04:27. > :04:31.a fair work nation. Where everyone can access better jobs closer to

:04:32. > :04:36.home, developing skills and careers, where we can all expect decent life

:04:37. > :04:41.enhancing work without exploitation or poverty, where we all build

:04:42. > :04:44.prosperity that we all share in that prosperity as well. I can announce

:04:45. > :04:51.today that next week I will bring together our social partners and

:04:52. > :04:53.business organisations to discuss the establishment of the work

:04:54. > :04:58.commission to help us build an economy in which more people can

:04:59. > :05:09.have access to good work and a secure income. That is what Labour

:05:10. > :05:15.is all about. Fairness is in everything that we do, a fair deal

:05:16. > :05:19.for the people of Wales, they deserve nothing less, more and

:05:20. > :05:24.better jobs closer to home, faster fairer access to life-saving drugs,

:05:25. > :05:28.more money into our classrooms and more help for the youngest and least

:05:29. > :05:35.well off, more money for people going into care, the best childcare

:05:36. > :05:40.offer anywhere in the UK for working parents from today, more funding for

:05:41. > :05:45.social care, a better deal for commuters and a fair deal at work.

:05:46. > :05:50.That is the sort of Wales that we were elected to deliver, that is the

:05:51. > :05:56.sort of Wales but we can be proud to talk about on the doorsteps in May

:05:57. > :06:02.because as I said before, we are the party of working people and the best

:06:03. > :06:08.hope for Britain, our people are under pressure. They need this party

:06:09. > :06:13.now more than ever before, so now is the time to keep on delivering, to

:06:14. > :06:25.keep on working and should once again that it is Welsh Labour that

:06:26. > :06:29.is the true party of Wales. A very warm response from delegates in the

:06:30. > :06:33.conference hall to that speech from the Welsh Labour leader, Carwyn

:06:34. > :06:40.Jones. He started by referring to events in Westminster earlier this

:06:41. > :06:45.week and then onto a bit of nostalgia, and referred back over

:06:46. > :06:52.the use of devolution and what has changed over the years. There was

:06:53. > :06:57.stuff about ideas, Labour members and how they should not surrender

:06:58. > :07:00.the fight for good and a few policy announcements and the swell, and

:07:01. > :07:05.that announcement that burial charges the children will no longer

:07:06. > :07:10.apply in Welsh communities. What did you make of that speech? That was

:07:11. > :07:16.Carwyn Jones's seven speech as Labour leader. I would say it was

:07:17. > :07:22.just about the best. It had a lot of content but something else as well.

:07:23. > :07:26.The main criticism of Carwyn Jones that people have is that he is

:07:27. > :07:32.managerial, he lacks vision. But today we saw a vision and we got a

:07:33. > :07:35.pretty big hint about when he will retire as Welsh Labour leader

:07:36. > :07:40.because he looked back over his career and said it was because he

:07:41. > :07:45.had just turned 50, looking back at the start of devolution, and then

:07:46. > :07:52.over the recent years. He said, what do we have to achieve in the next

:07:53. > :07:56.three years? Three years takes us to 12 months before the next assembly

:07:57. > :08:04.election. He did not say between now and the next assembly election. So

:08:05. > :08:08.he was setting out a programme for that period and putting it in the

:08:09. > :08:12.context of traditional Labour beliefs and his own personal

:08:13. > :08:19.beliefs. I think that gave the speech structure and a vision that

:08:20. > :08:25.at times he lacks, where it is all a bit technocratic. It was different

:08:26. > :08:31.today and pretty effective as well. It was pretty animated as well, a

:08:32. > :08:38.few jokes in the. If you are right about that hint, that would take us

:08:39. > :08:43.to 2020. He has hinted about a decade would be the right time. We

:08:44. > :08:47.sort of assumed without saying that he would do the same as Rodrick

:08:48. > :08:54.Morgan, serve a decade and then stand down, so Labour could have a

:08:55. > :08:59.renewal in office and the new First Minister would have a year to

:09:00. > :09:03.introduce him or herself to the Welsh public. I do not think he has

:09:04. > :09:08.ever hinted at it quite as clearly as he did there. I may be reading

:09:09. > :09:13.too much into the speech though. But there is no other reason for picking

:09:14. > :09:17.out that three-year time frame. It would've been a four-year time frame

:09:18. > :09:20.if he was talking about the next elections. That was a fairly clear

:09:21. > :09:25.hint that that is when he will step down. When he was talking about

:09:26. > :09:28.Brexit, he was saying there are some in the party that do not want to

:09:29. > :09:34.accept it, his view was that they have to get on with it now and maybe

:09:35. > :09:38.offer a more positive vision of the opportunities over the next few

:09:39. > :09:43.years for Wales will stop did you sense a difference in turn the? I

:09:44. > :09:50.think he was trying to steer a middle ground. He was not saying, we

:09:51. > :09:53.should fight Brexit. He said, we have got to accept it. But he was

:09:54. > :09:59.not going down the route that some the Labour Party feel they have to

:10:00. > :10:07.go down, which is also to become Ukip light, that they should embrace

:10:08. > :10:15.social conservatism to try to reach those left behind in communities. He

:10:16. > :10:18.said, standing up for LGBT rights and women's rights, these are a core

:10:19. > :10:29.part of his message. You have to accept Brexit but no, we do not

:10:30. > :10:32.compromise with Ukip views to reach our core supporters. He was trying

:10:33. > :10:39.to steer that middle ground between the two. As you would expect ahead

:10:40. > :10:45.of an election, it was a speech focus on rallying the troops, a lot

:10:46. > :10:52.about what Labour can offer, what members can offer, very focused on

:10:53. > :10:56.getting them up to the fight ahead. Addressing two sets of troops. He

:10:57. > :11:00.was saying to be built in the Labour Party who would disillusioned with

:11:01. > :11:06.Jeremy Corbyn, this is Welsh Labour, this is worth fighting for, but he

:11:07. > :11:14.was also saying the Jeremy Corbyn's supporters, we are a radical

:11:15. > :11:21.government. It is not an anti-CORBA night government. You can support us

:11:22. > :11:24.as well. He was as addressing both as key constituencies. The Welsh

:11:25. > :11:29.Labour leader and First Minister joins us now. Thank you for

:11:30. > :11:37.hotfooting it from the conference stage for us. Can I just some of the

:11:38. > :11:41.things you raised in your speech? Firstly on Brexit, you said your

:11:42. > :11:49.stance is having an impact. Is the UK Government listening to your view

:11:50. > :11:52.on Brexit? There are signs of it. We had a meeting last week where there

:11:53. > :11:57.were signs they were beginning to understand what the challenges are.

:11:58. > :12:03.They were not trying to prevent Brexit, it is a question of a

:12:04. > :12:07.sensible Brexit, and that is what we have put forward. You have said in

:12:08. > :12:11.the run-up to this conference that there was a danger if Wales is not

:12:12. > :12:17.listened to that that could fuel calls for independence in Wales. Is

:12:18. > :12:22.that an attempt to give you leveraging those discussions with

:12:23. > :12:29.Theresa May? What I have said is if this is handled badly and Scots

:12:30. > :12:33.leave, what is left of the UK? I am somebody who wants the UK to stay

:12:34. > :12:38.together. In a different format, that is true, but it is hugely

:12:39. > :12:46.important the impression is not given from Whitehall that it is not

:12:47. > :12:50.matter whether the UK. At. We want to avoid that. These are difficult

:12:51. > :12:54.times and people do not want to see more turbulence. They want to seek

:12:55. > :12:57.government is working together in a sensible way despite their political

:12:58. > :13:03.differences to get the best outcome for Wales in Britain. You mentioned

:13:04. > :13:06.the Constitutional Convention you are setting up. To what extent is

:13:07. > :13:12.Jeremy Corbyn involved in the support of the? He is well aware of

:13:13. > :13:18.it and supportive of it. We want to bring together English regions to

:13:19. > :13:28.look at how this would work, what it means for English regions. But to

:13:29. > :13:33.look at developing a future that would keep the UK together but also

:13:34. > :13:38.recognise the identities within it. Is it a dry academic exercise? No,

:13:39. > :13:42.it is all about making sure we continue to have a common purpose

:13:43. > :13:47.and prosperous future. You also talked about a fair work nation.

:13:48. > :13:51.Difficult to disagree with the principle of that. But what will it

:13:52. > :13:58.mean in practice and how you ensure it happens? We know that

:13:59. > :14:02.unemployment is low, so on one telling of the tail, we are doing

:14:03. > :14:08.very well. But it is more than that. Too many fine themselves and

:14:09. > :14:12.insecure jobs, zero hours contracts, maybe two jobs, so we're looking to

:14:13. > :14:18.establish a commission to deal with these issues because the figures do

:14:19. > :14:22.not show us. It. I know full well how difficult it is for people to

:14:23. > :14:27.make ends meet and feel secure. To be worth our salt as a party, we

:14:28. > :14:31.have to make sure the working people see the party is taking forward

:14:32. > :14:35.ideas and developing things that would make a positive difference to

:14:36. > :14:40.their lives. We have brought jobs in and we now need to make sure we

:14:41. > :14:48.improve job security. What sort of practical things can be changed in

:14:49. > :14:51.order to reach that aspiration? Look at the way the public sector

:14:52. > :14:57.operates, working with the private sector because businesses will be

:14:58. > :15:03.involved, increasing productivity. We know productivity brings better

:15:04. > :15:06.wages for people. How can we do that through skills and training? We need

:15:07. > :15:09.to make sure there is more money in people's pockets. You do that by

:15:10. > :15:15.improving skills in working with them. In doing that, you can make

:15:16. > :15:21.sure that people have the skills they need to get better employment

:15:22. > :15:27.closer to home. If we look ahead to the Council elections, you have

:15:28. > :15:32.already said maybe a warning to members to expect losses in view of

:15:33. > :15:33.your performance in 2012. It is not very ambitious message to be putting

:15:34. > :15:43.out the,? The message is we cannot be

:15:44. > :15:48.complacent. I remember last year being told we would lose loads of

:15:49. > :15:53.seats, we heard that message, we put in the work, and we were successful

:15:54. > :15:58.in that election. We did well in 2012. We want to hold the councils

:15:59. > :16:02.that we have and hold the number of councillors at least that we have

:16:03. > :16:06.now and today is about making sure people understand that Welsh Labour

:16:07. > :16:12.is the party, we are on the side of Welsh working people. To what extent

:16:13. > :16:18.will Jeremy Corbyn been -- playing a part in the campaign? Most of the

:16:19. > :16:22.campaigns will be local. It'll be about what local councils have

:16:23. > :16:28.developed livid. Most people say to me, what about the what about the

:16:29. > :16:33.schools, local services? We will be saying to people, the Labour

:16:34. > :16:40.councils who have delivered for the people who live in their areas and

:16:41. > :16:44.for all -- order do that to continue, those Labour councils need

:16:45. > :16:49.to stay. You have the invite greater the party in Westminster, are you

:16:50. > :16:55.worried that would cost U-boats the election? Most people don't raise

:16:56. > :17:01.it. I won't pretend things are marvellous that Westminster or the

:17:02. > :17:06.card -- parties being united. One of the messages I was emphasising today

:17:07. > :17:10.is the need for unity. Most people on the doorstep of raising local

:17:11. > :17:14.issues, they want to know what is gay to happen in schools, in

:17:15. > :17:20.transport, -- what is going to happen in school,. We are providing

:17:21. > :17:27.more money in those areas, we want to see those areas improve. If I can

:17:28. > :17:32.ask you about your ball as First Minister, Labour leader in Wales,

:17:33. > :17:37.you have said around a decade is the right time to be a leader a decade

:17:38. > :17:42.is enough time. It is not that far off now, big challenge in the next

:17:43. > :17:46.couple of years but are you still looking at that sort of timescale? I

:17:47. > :17:53.was listening to the conversation you were having earlier on about my

:17:54. > :17:58.future. I'm turning 50 this week but I am not ready to stand down. Back

:17:59. > :18:05.to Article 50 and Brexit, Article 50 is being triggered on Wednesday, the

:18:06. > :18:06.same day as you are having your discussions on the Constitutional

:18:07. > :18:11.Convention, does that with increasing a pressure -- Russia new

:18:12. > :18:16.to get those messages across about the single market that you want to

:18:17. > :18:19.get across to the UK Government? I think they are in the same place as

:18:20. > :18:29.us. They understand we need to get the access to the single market. 67%

:18:30. > :18:33.of our exports from Wales go abroad or go into the European single

:18:34. > :18:37.market, the last thing we want is for barriers to be put in place to

:18:38. > :18:41.make it more expensive for us to sell in those markets to prevent

:18:42. > :18:47.selling in those markets, that costs Welsh jobs. As we leave the EU, we

:18:48. > :18:52.have to make sure that access to the single market in the easiest

:18:53. > :18:57.possible terms is absolutely crucial for the Welsh jobs in future. And

:18:58. > :19:01.the message from now on, is it going to be a positive message about the

:19:02. > :19:07.opportunities for Wales after it leaves the European Union? Well, it

:19:08. > :19:12.is going to happen, we will want to make sure that there is minimal

:19:13. > :19:18.disruption. It is a big change in many ways, Britain leaving the EU is

:19:19. > :19:20.a more complicated process than it would have been for Scotland to

:19:21. > :19:27.leave the UK, though more complicated now. Let's not pretend

:19:28. > :19:31.it is going to be easy. We want to be in a position that we are a

:19:32. > :19:34.country where there is investment, because we have access to the

:19:35. > :19:44.European single market, and to make sure that the UK comes out of this

:19:45. > :19:47.in the strongest position as well. Carwyn Jones, thank you very much

:19:48. > :19:50.for joining us. Now with Redford at the top of the border to call

:19:51. > :19:53.agenda, it is no surprise that the party held a debate if you out of

:19:54. > :19:59.the goal on securing Wells future after Brexit. It was led by the

:20:00. > :20:02.Welsh MEP Derek Vaughn. It has been nine months since the Tory

:20:03. > :20:08.referendum, nine months since David Cameron gamble our future and lost.

:20:09. > :20:13.The referendum was lost for many different, complex reasons, and you

:20:14. > :20:21.have heard me speak on those reasons in the past. But be in no doubt that

:20:22. > :20:25.people will -- were duped by right wing, rich ideologues. Remember what

:20:26. > :20:30.they said in the referendum campaign, they said the UK sends

:20:31. > :20:35.?350 million a week to the European Union and that money could be used

:20:36. > :20:40.for the health service. Both those things were alive and they knew it

:20:41. > :20:47.was a lie. They said that Turkey was about to join the European Union. 17

:20:48. > :20:52.million Turks could come to the UK. But, of course, Turkey is probably

:20:53. > :20:56.further away from joining the European Union than it ever has

:20:57. > :21:02.been. They said we could have our cake and eat it. They said we could

:21:03. > :21:06.retain full and free access to the single market and not pay into the

:21:07. > :21:12.EU budget and still have access to the single market. Of course that

:21:13. > :21:16.was wrong. Indeed, one of the things that struck me of the last few weeks

:21:17. > :21:22.and months is the unity of the European Union institutions and the

:21:23. > :21:27.27 member states. They have all been saying the same thing, they have

:21:28. > :21:35.said that any deal with the UK must be worth than the UK already has,

:21:36. > :21:37.they have said there will be no negotiations with the UK until

:21:38. > :21:45.Article 50 is triggered, and they have stuck rigidly to that. They

:21:46. > :21:48.have said the UK must pay its liabilities and attitudes have

:21:49. > :21:55.hardened and that in the last week or so. It could be a figure of

:21:56. > :21:59.between 20 and 60 billion euros. That will be the bill presented to

:22:00. > :22:07.the UK at the start of the negotiations. And they said that the

:22:08. > :22:12.UK must accept freedom of movement, and limbs from the European court of

:22:13. > :22:16.justice if it wants full and free access to the single market. And the

:22:17. > :22:23.Labour Party has to accept this, too. The price of access in the

:22:24. > :22:28.single market is accepting EU rules, including freedom of movement. And

:22:29. > :22:34.freedom of movement of the thing. It allows millions of our citizens to

:22:35. > :22:40.travel, to work to learn, to study, and to live right across other

:22:41. > :22:46.member states. EU citizens put into the UK economy about 2.5 any pounds

:22:47. > :22:52.a year more than they take out. So it is good for the economy, and it

:22:53. > :22:58.is good for our health service. There are around 55,000 EU nationals

:22:59. > :23:03.working in our health service. And when the EU makes its demands of the

:23:04. > :23:08.UK, it is not being vindictive, it is a fact of life. You can't expect

:23:09. > :23:15.to leave the club and then retain the same benefits as members of the

:23:16. > :23:19.club. It just doesn't happen in real life, and it won't happen in this

:23:20. > :23:25.case. Essentially, the UK Government is saying to the U -- the EU, we

:23:26. > :23:30.want to leave the single market, we want to leave the customs union, but

:23:31. > :23:34.we want a free trade agreement with the EU. In the EU is saying, and it

:23:35. > :23:42.is not a surprise, but isn't that just access to the single market via

:23:43. > :23:45.the back door? And it is just not going to happen. These views are

:23:46. > :23:51.also the views of the European Parliament. You remember the final

:23:52. > :23:58.deal with the UK has to be agreed in a vote by the European Parliament.

:23:59. > :24:03.Just after Article 50 is triggered next week, the European Parliament

:24:04. > :24:07.will debate and pass a resolution set -- setting out the position on

:24:08. > :24:12.the negotiations with the UK. And it will say things very similar to what

:24:13. > :24:17.the member states are saying, it will say the UK has to pay its

:24:18. > :24:23.current and future liabilities, any future trade deal with the UK must

:24:24. > :24:27.be inferior to what we have currently, that EU citizens and UK

:24:28. > :24:35.citizens must be protected, that the Irish border must be kept open, and

:24:36. > :24:40.that the UK cannot sign any trade deals with third parties until it

:24:41. > :24:43.actually leads the European Union. All these things will make the

:24:44. > :24:53.difficult negotiations when they start. But the EU is determined to

:24:54. > :24:58.look after its future. It's a wiki is the political integrity of the

:24:59. > :25:04.EU, not economics. And that is where many UK ministers misunderstand the

:25:05. > :25:08.situation. Some ministers, I believe, do know it is going to be

:25:09. > :25:10.difficult, some know it is going to be complex, and they would rather

:25:11. > :25:17.just walk away from negotiations with no deal rather than face

:25:18. > :25:20.failure. I believe that up other ultra-Brexiteers in the UK

:25:21. > :25:26.Government who don't want to deal at all, because they want, as they put

:25:27. > :25:35.it, a new economic model for the UK. They want the UK to become a tax

:25:36. > :25:43.haven, they want the UK to become a sweatshop. Free of EU rules on

:25:44. > :25:45.protecting workers, consumers, and the environment. They want an

:25:46. > :25:52.absolute and totally free free market. No doubt leaving the

:25:53. > :25:56.European Union without a deal will mean less money for public services,

:25:57. > :26:02.it will mean lower pay for our workers, and it will mean less

:26:03. > :26:08.protection for our workers also. No deal also means reverting to WTO

:26:09. > :26:16.rules, this means for example 10% tariff on the cars we export. Out of

:26:17. > :26:22.45% tariffs on our agricultural products. Just imagine the damage

:26:23. > :26:26.that will do this to our manufacturing industry and the

:26:27. > :26:29.farming industry. Companies, and they have already started to do

:26:30. > :26:33.this, I just looking to see where they make their investments, their

:26:34. > :26:37.investments in the future depend on them having access to the single

:26:38. > :26:40.market outside of that single market, I fear many of our large

:26:41. > :26:47.companies will not invest in Wales and the UK after we leave. But for

:26:48. > :26:54.the hard right, hard Brexit is worth it. To get the free market they

:26:55. > :27:00.want. Unfortunately, it seems as things stand, but hard Brexit or no

:27:01. > :27:06.deal at all is where we are heading, unless the Prime Minister and the

:27:07. > :27:09.government say at the end of negotiations, this is all too

:27:10. > :27:15.difficult, and we should say -- stay in the EU or the single market but

:27:16. > :27:20.then they would need to eat a large amount of humble pie if they said

:27:21. > :27:25.that. Hard Brexit or no deal at all is just not rational it makes no

:27:26. > :27:29.sense, it would be the greatest act of self harm in the history of our

:27:30. > :27:35.country. I just hope, conference, that when those problems come, that

:27:36. > :27:44.our party, the Labour Party, will not be indicated in allowing this to

:27:45. > :27:49.happen. We know 65% of Labour voters voted to remain in the European

:27:50. > :27:53.Union and you guv poll at the weekend before last demonstrated

:27:54. > :28:03.that in the last election, for every vote we have lost two Ukip, we have

:28:04. > :28:09.lost four or five to the lift them. That is why it is really important

:28:10. > :28:12.for us as a party that the Welsh government continues as it has done

:28:13. > :28:17.to argue for full and free access to the single market and continues to

:28:18. > :28:24.point out the consequences for Wales of a hard Brexit or no deal at all.

:28:25. > :28:31.Indeed, we may now even have to start preparing for a no deal said

:28:32. > :28:34.tuition. We need to keep in close contact with our major industries,

:28:35. > :28:40.the Welsh government and myself are to do this. I can tell you, they are

:28:41. > :28:46.all fully concerned about tariff and nontariff barriers if we exit the

:28:47. > :28:52.single market. And we need to look at what we can do to protect workers

:28:53. > :28:58.from the Tory onslaught which will come, no doubt it will come when we

:28:59. > :29:00.leave the European Union, and I am sure we are all delighted that the

:29:01. > :29:06.Welsh government is starting to think about this for the future. I

:29:07. > :29:12.think we must keep our options open on a public vote at the end of

:29:13. > :29:18.negotiations. When the economy falls, and it will, and when people

:29:19. > :29:26.see that the deal on offer from the European Union is much worse than we

:29:27. > :29:28.have now, it is a chance people will change their minds, and in

:29:29. > :29:35.democracy, people have the right to change their minds. And if the

:29:36. > :29:40.public mood does change, then we, as the Labour Party, must be ready to

:29:41. > :29:47.listen and respond to that change. And indeed it will be our duty to

:29:48. > :29:52.respond. If the hard right are taking us over a cliff edge which

:29:53. > :29:56.will trash our economy, take away workers' rights, and break-up the

:29:57. > :30:03.United Kingdom, then our party from top to bottom must do whatever it

:30:04. > :30:08.can for a safer future is generations to stop it. That will be

:30:09. > :30:13.our historic duty. Whether that is by having a proper vote in the UK

:30:14. > :30:20.Parliament or supporting calls for a second vote on the final deal, that

:30:21. > :30:24.is what we should do. If that big red Brexit buses going over the

:30:25. > :30:27.cliff edge, our party should not be pushing it, we should be slamming on

:30:28. > :30:31.the brakes, that is what our members will demand, that is what our

:30:32. > :30:32.supporters will expect, and that is what the country will need. Thank

:30:33. > :30:57.you very much. James? Joining me back at the

:30:58. > :31:01.conference at two of Welsh Labour's Assembly Members. We have heard from

:31:02. > :31:08.both Jeremy Corbyn and Carwyn Jones this morning and this afternoon.

:31:09. > :31:11.Carwyn Jones very much focusing on fairness and what Welsh Labour in

:31:12. > :31:16.government can deliver. Is that a message that the party is keen to

:31:17. > :31:21.take out on the doorstep? Definitely, and it builds on the

:31:22. > :31:25.work last year. This idea that it is opportunity for everybody. In my

:31:26. > :31:31.patch, we see the flying stop being rolled out. It is about giving those

:31:32. > :31:35.young children the same opportunities that any child would

:31:36. > :31:39.have regardless of being born with a silver spoon in their mouth. So for

:31:40. > :31:49.all the people who are worried about care costs, massive announcement

:31:50. > :31:54.today. The cracks of what he was saying is that there was a need for

:31:55. > :31:57.partnership between Labour and local government and Welsh government to

:31:58. > :32:01.deliver this agenda. It is not happen by accident but because there

:32:02. > :32:07.is an active Labour government intervening to say, you deserve a

:32:08. > :32:11.fair deal. Even so, Carwyn Jones expects to lose ground in May. He

:32:12. > :32:17.has said that but I do not think we should give up on it. We will fight

:32:18. > :32:22.every council seat. Every council we currently hold will be fighting

:32:23. > :32:27.hard. But we did exceptionally well last time around so probably he is

:32:28. > :32:32.reflecting the reality, which is when you achieve so much, it is hard

:32:33. > :32:38.to uphold that. But we will fight every doorstep to make sure. We

:32:39. > :32:44.heard from Jeremy Corbyn, who you nominated to become leader. What do

:32:45. > :32:49.you think of the current state of the party nationally? We have heard

:32:50. > :32:58.recent rumblings from Tom Watson and unite and all that. The question of

:32:59. > :33:03.leadership has gone away. The message that has come out here today

:33:04. > :33:09.is we have to win at all levels of government, including the UK level

:33:10. > :33:14.well. In fact, they both talked about international cooperation. If

:33:15. > :33:19.there was an election tomorrow, would you win? I know everybody says

:33:20. > :33:25.the only poll that counts as the election poll, but whenever that is,

:33:26. > :33:30.whether that is called by Theresa May for opportunistic reasons, in a

:33:31. > :33:34.few years' time, Labour has the win that election in the same way is we

:33:35. > :33:38.need to live when local government elections because nothing will be

:33:39. > :33:45.delivered outside that. We need to put not just our values but things

:33:46. > :33:50.like investment in apprenticeships, a development bank for Wales. We can

:33:51. > :33:55.do that the UK level as well, but only in government. Jeremy and the

:33:56. > :34:04.party knows that. There is our big challenge. We have to fight to win

:34:05. > :34:13.the public round. It is Jeremy Corbyn and acid or hindrance? Jeremy

:34:14. > :34:19.Corbyn is a fair man. People agree with his values. They can relate to

:34:20. > :34:25.his honesty in politics and people find that refreshing. My colleague

:34:26. > :34:31.is right that in his speech he referred a lot to what Labour has

:34:32. > :34:34.done in Wales and has emphasised the difference we make in government,

:34:35. > :34:39.whether that be in the UK level all Welsh level or local elections. He

:34:40. > :34:45.said that the party and country should not be afraid of debt and

:34:46. > :34:48.borrowing, starkly at odds with the conservative movement and the

:34:49. > :34:56.austerity agenda. Is that something that will resonate on the streets?

:34:57. > :35:00.What people want to see is the endgame, the result. They want to

:35:01. > :35:05.know that what is being done will make a difference to our

:35:06. > :35:08.communities, better investment, better transport infrastructure,

:35:09. > :35:12.jobs and opportunities. We are very interconnected with the north-west

:35:13. > :35:16.of England. 20,000 of my constituents travel every day for

:35:17. > :35:19.work. So it is things that can be done the UK level in England as well

:35:20. > :35:29.but will make a difference to them. You used to be a Unite officer. I

:35:30. > :35:33.was not an officer, a member staff. That internal tussle has rid its

:35:34. > :35:40.head and spilt over into the party recently. Is unite's relationship

:35:41. > :35:45.with neighbour a problem for the party? Absolutely not. In Wales, we

:35:46. > :35:53.have seen how unite works in partnership through the Wales TUC to

:35:54. > :36:00.run things like the agricultural panel, ethical practices concerning

:36:01. > :36:06.employment. Thank you for your time. Back to you in the studio. All

:36:07. > :36:10.parties are looking ahead to council elections in over a month's time and

:36:11. > :36:14.earlier there was a discussion about local government in the conference

:36:15. > :36:26.hall led by the Cabinet Secretary for local government.

:36:27. > :36:34.TRANSLATION: Good morning. All elections provide a watershed of one

:36:35. > :36:38.sort or another. The local government elections in May of this

:36:39. > :36:42.year present a defining moment in which the flame of Labour Party

:36:43. > :36:47.leadership is passing and local government level to a new generation

:36:48. > :36:53.of leaders here in Wales. I want to begin why have say this morning by

:36:54. > :36:58.paying tribute to those Labour local authority leaders who have made

:36:59. > :37:09.their own decision not to stand for re-election in 2017. Keith Reynolds

:37:10. > :37:14.in Caerphilly, Bob Wellington into online... They will all stand down

:37:15. > :37:22.after years of astonishingly successful service in local

:37:23. > :37:26.government and share a leading local authority through a period of

:37:27. > :37:32.persistent and punishing austerity which takes both political courage

:37:33. > :37:38.and enormous personal commitment. This party owes a debt of gratitude

:37:39. > :37:43.to each and everyone of those retiring leaders. They have kept the

:37:44. > :37:50.flame of municipal socialism burning brightly here in Wales and the pass

:37:51. > :37:54.that on to a great new group of Labour leaders, ready to take our

:37:55. > :38:10.message to the voters in the weeks ahead.

:38:11. > :38:19.Aaron Shotton, who you have heard from already, joined now by Anthony

:38:20. > :38:24.hunting tour vine, Hugh David in Bridgend, and sitting here on the

:38:25. > :38:35.platform, when ready to reply, a fantastic leader of the great city

:38:36. > :38:43.of Newport, Debbie Wilcox. No other party in Wales has the enormous pool

:38:44. > :38:46.of talent which Welsh Labour brings to the vital business of local

:38:47. > :38:54.government. And we do that because we know that we owe our very best to

:38:55. > :39:01.all of those who rely on our essential public services every

:39:02. > :39:06.single day. We owe our very best to all those who work so hard to

:39:07. > :39:13.provide those services in every part of Wales. And we owe our best to

:39:14. > :39:18.come together to design a future for local government here in Wales,

:39:19. > :39:21.which is renewed, resilient and ready for the enormous challenges

:39:22. > :39:29.which lie ahead. You have heard from our own already. He can be confident

:39:30. > :39:34.in the message we can take the people in Wales because of what we

:39:35. > :39:40.have already achieved together. The best ever exam results, the start of

:39:41. > :39:43.council house building in Wales, the hugely improved recycling rates that

:39:44. > :39:52.make Wales second in Europe and third across the whole world. At the

:39:53. > :39:57.Assembly, we will put a trade union Bill in front of the National

:39:58. > :40:04.Assembly, which rolls back the mean divisive attack on workers' rights

:40:05. > :40:14.and builds on the social partnership... Our trade union Bill

:40:15. > :40:18.has been a commitment by Labour at the National Assembly as we went

:40:19. > :40:23.into the election, it was a commitment that I was able to repeat

:40:24. > :40:27.here in this hall on behalf of the First Minister at the Wales TUC

:40:28. > :40:31.conference in May of last year, and it is a bill which builds on the

:40:32. > :40:38.social partnership which has been such a hallmark of devolution here

:40:39. > :40:45.in Wales. This morning, I can announce that we will go further

:40:46. > :40:49.again. Not content with the confrontational gender of the trade

:40:50. > :40:55.union act, the Tories now threaten to poison the conduct of industrial

:40:56. > :40:59.relations further by allowing the use of agency workers to break

:41:00. > :41:04.strike action. I can tell you that, on behalf of Welsh Labour and the

:41:05. > :41:10.Welsh Labour government, I will lay an amendment to our trade union Bill

:41:11. > :41:12.to prevent that changing the law and our great public services here in

:41:13. > :41:28.Wales. And our social partnership model

:41:29. > :41:34.goes beyond the way in which we work with employers and trade unions. It

:41:35. > :41:38.shapes the way that, as the labour movement, we have gone about shaping

:41:39. > :41:46.a shared agenda for local authorities here in Wales. We go

:41:47. > :41:51.into a's elections united behind a set of proposals which have been

:41:52. > :41:57.scraped together, committed the dialogue is the collaborative way to

:41:58. > :42:02.refine those ideas further and rooted always in our shared belief

:42:03. > :42:08.in the fundamental importance of local government services in the

:42:09. > :42:14.lives of our fellow citizens. That is the message we take on this hall

:42:15. > :42:20.and onto the streets the length and breadth of Wales over the coming

:42:21. > :42:24.weeks. A Labour Party here in Wales united behind our approach to local

:42:25. > :42:31.government, a Labour Party committed, Labour Party on the side

:42:32. > :42:37.of all our citizens, a Labour Party that is standing up and fighting

:42:38. > :42:49.back, a Labour Party that together for Wales is here, and here to win

:42:50. > :42:52.again in May this year. That was the finance and Local Government

:42:53. > :43:01.Secretary. Let's go back to Llandudno. James Williams is joined

:43:02. > :43:07.by a couple of council leaders. No rest for the wicked! Those local

:43:08. > :43:15.elections a matter of weeks away and I am and the company of two of

:43:16. > :43:20.Labour's councillors. Carwyn Jones says these are tough elections. Do

:43:21. > :43:27.you agree with him? Every election is tough. In the context of how well

:43:28. > :43:31.we did last year, we need to air on the side of caution, but I am being

:43:32. > :43:35.more and more optimistic as I knocked those doors in Newport where

:43:36. > :43:39.people are telling me they want to continue with the Labour

:43:40. > :43:43.administration. It will be tough and I take what is the First Minister

:43:44. > :43:47.says I am encouraged by what I'm hearing. What do you hear on the

:43:48. > :43:52.doorstep, then? What is it that people are disappointed by? Is at

:43:53. > :43:59.the back to have been in power so long? We have not been in power so

:44:00. > :44:03.long. We came back into power in 2012 Newport where we picked up from

:44:04. > :44:06.the coalition who took ?10 million out of social services in the first

:44:07. > :44:10.thing we did was put ?7 million backing so we have shown the people

:44:11. > :44:15.of Newport the difference and that contrast has been very useful to

:44:16. > :44:18.say, you want more of that or you want the regeneration of jobs and

:44:19. > :44:23.services and a Labour led administration with social justice

:44:24. > :44:32.at the heart? Does Jeremy Corbyn come on the doorstep? People talk to

:44:33. > :44:37.me about jobs, the economy, good school places, good social services,

:44:38. > :44:40.council services. This is a local election and the wider context is

:44:41. > :44:48.not as important to people as their everyday lives. We can turn out to

:44:49. > :44:52.Anthony Hunt. Carwyn Jones said the Brexit rarely comes up on the

:44:53. > :44:57.doorstep, it is those local issues, transport, jobs and so on. The

:44:58. > :45:01.bread-and-butter issues that affect people's lives. That is what they

:45:02. > :45:06.want councils to deliver on. But to the people of tour vine want

:45:07. > :45:10.changed? They want good schools, social care that is not falling

:45:11. > :45:17.apart, investment in their communities. They want their

:45:18. > :45:20.communities cleaner and greener. The more people see Welsh Labour

:45:21. > :45:25.delivering on a local level and working with the Welsh government,

:45:26. > :45:31.the more they will like that. How hard is it to deliver at the moment,

:45:32. > :45:37.given the stricken financial Times? It is a bit like riding a bicycle

:45:38. > :45:42.into the gale force winds. The UK Government has put in ?1 billion

:45:43. > :45:45.less than social services, so it is difficult councils, but Labour

:45:46. > :45:48.councillors have a great deal of experience in the last five years of

:45:49. > :45:53.delivering in straitened times and that is what we want to use to move

:45:54. > :45:59.forwards, to deliver on social schools, cleaner and greener, things

:46:00. > :46:03.people care about and deliver a fair deer per hour working force. We have

:46:04. > :46:10.introduced the living wage despite the cuts from Westminster.

:46:11. > :46:18.If you can manage to deliver, there was the suggestion there was too

:46:19. > :46:22.much excess before these cuts? I think it shows we have got better in

:46:23. > :46:28.government. We are dealing with tough objects and I think whereas

:46:29. > :46:32.Local Government Association to lag behind other parts of the public

:46:33. > :46:36.sector, now, I think the most streamlined and the best budgeting,

:46:37. > :46:41.we have to buy Vince are budgets every year and have done it every

:46:42. > :46:45.year in Torfaen,. We have got good at making those savings but

:46:46. > :46:55.delivering on the priorities people care most about. Debbie Wilcox,

:46:56. > :46:59.Carwyn Jones says Rex it hasn't come on the doorstep but it is going to

:47:00. > :47:02.happen, it is going to change the shape of this country over the next

:47:03. > :47:11.couple of years, how is that going to affect us? This was David

:47:12. > :47:19.Cameron's big gamble, who was David Cameron now? Who it will impact is

:47:20. > :47:24.that trade issue and we have to make sure that Wales has that proper

:47:25. > :47:31.trade channel to Europe because of we don't, then all sorts of tariffs

:47:32. > :47:39.will be imposed and you tell that to the workers in fourth Ridge end,, we

:47:40. > :47:46.need to have that continuity. Is that what the people of Newport want

:47:47. > :47:50.because they voted to leave? I respect what the people of Newport

:47:51. > :47:54.have to say, that was not my view more I was a Remainer. It is a

:47:55. > :47:59.trickle to go over those reasons are now at I respect those views and we

:48:00. > :48:02.need to move forward and have the best possible deal for the people of

:48:03. > :48:06.Newport, for the people of the Wales and for the people of the United

:48:07. > :48:14.Kingdom. Thank you for your time. Back to you in the studio. Thank

:48:15. > :48:18.you, James. As we know, Jeremy Corbyn addressed the conference this

:48:19. > :48:21.morning and after he spoke, our political editor caught up with him

:48:22. > :48:29.and began by asking him what he thinks has changed cos of the events

:48:30. > :48:31.of the past week. There were a lot of people very frightened of

:48:32. > :48:37.Wednesday when they saw what was happening, as some did, and of

:48:38. > :48:40.course the aftermath of it. The police actually worked very

:48:41. > :48:44.efficiently and very well and everyone was released from

:48:45. > :48:47.Parliament later on in the evening but there was obviously a concern

:48:48. > :48:55.because one individual managed to create mayhem and kill people. Would

:48:56. > :48:58.it change, do you think, the nature of the relationship that elected

:48:59. > :49:04.politicians have with the public? It has not. -- it must not. I have a

:49:05. > :49:07.long conversation with the Speaker after the event and said the most

:49:08. > :49:11.important thing is that our democracy carries on, and that the

:49:12. > :49:17.relationship between elected representatives and the people they

:49:18. > :49:23.elect must remain an open and real one because if politicians are

:49:24. > :49:26.totally cut off from people by an endless security cordon, then the

:49:27. > :49:31.relationship changes, and I think we have to maintain that relationship.

:49:32. > :49:35.I realise it has to be managed as a sensible and careful way but the

:49:36. > :49:41.relationship has to be as open as possible. Moving on to events at

:49:42. > :49:44.Westminster and divisions between your party, your own deputy Tom

:49:45. > :49:50.Watson talked about the threat of activists on the left of the party

:49:51. > :49:55.and we are told he was cheered to the rafters in a meeting with MPs,

:49:56. > :50:00.is he right? What we have is a very large party, a passionate party, and

:50:01. > :50:05.a party that wants to win elections in order to deliver to the people of

:50:06. > :50:10.return. The debates in the party? Of course there are. But we are united

:50:11. > :50:15.in wanting social justice, in wanting decent houses and decent

:50:16. > :50:21.wages and an investment led economy and cliff edge approach to Brexit

:50:22. > :50:24.which the Tory government is taking. Carwyn Jones was talking about

:50:25. > :50:30.things not being great at Westminster and surely there are

:50:31. > :50:36.divisions having an impact on the council elections in May. It could

:50:37. > :50:40.we cost seats. Well, we are united in supporting our council candidates

:50:41. > :50:44.and supporting our councils. I praised the laboured have met in

:50:45. > :50:48.Wales for its record on what of those achieved and what our councils

:50:49. > :50:53.are doing their best to achieve. In Wales, children get breakfast in

:50:54. > :50:58.primary school, council houses are not being sold off, council houses

:50:59. > :51:02.are being built, that is good. Quite a detailed analysis of Welsh Labour

:51:03. > :51:09.policies, there have been efforts for the Welsh party to have more

:51:10. > :51:14.autonomy, greater freedom to come up with its own policies, where are you

:51:15. > :51:18.with this? We are discussing autonomy around the country,

:51:19. > :51:20.devolution issues around the whole of the UK, and obviously,

:51:21. > :51:27.eventually, the Labour Party must reflect that degree of devolution.

:51:28. > :51:30.At the moment, we have devolved government in Scotland, Wells, and

:51:31. > :51:33.Northern Ireland, we don't have any regional devolution in England apart

:51:34. > :51:38.from the system of London government, we have mayors

:51:39. > :51:42.established in some places, it is a bit of a piecemeal approach to it by

:51:43. > :51:47.the mud and we are looking to bring some coherence to that -- by the

:51:48. > :51:50.government. Are you in favour of what has been called the more edible

:51:51. > :51:55.structure within the party? I wouldn't go so far as to say federal

:51:56. > :52:00.structure at this stage but we have a very large membership, an

:52:01. > :52:06.enthusiastic membership, and they want to contribute. On economic

:52:07. > :52:09.policy, we set out a framework of investment led economy and the kind

:52:10. > :52:14.of economy what one to achieve what we are also very aware that we have

:52:15. > :52:18.fantastic experts in the party so we have now three economic illicit

:52:19. > :52:23.conferences, one on Merseyside, one in the north-east and one in

:52:24. > :52:28.Scotland, and they were very successful. They talked about the

:52:29. > :52:31.industries they want to see developed, green energy jobs, that

:52:32. > :52:36.is where our inspiration comes from and I am proud to lead the party

:52:37. > :52:40.that has such a large and well informed and infuse you stick

:52:41. > :52:44.membership. After all, the best experts in any industry are those

:52:45. > :52:49.who work in it. Time and time again, people of that to me constituency

:52:50. > :52:53.member ship has grown enormously and largely thanks to you, a lot of

:52:54. > :52:56.people would say, the big problem -- problem I have in the party is

:52:57. > :53:05.getting these huge numbers of members campaigning. Broadly, no one

:53:06. > :53:09.sees them. I recognise that joining parties of the extent for people,

:53:10. > :53:14.expressing a political view is a big step, and we want people to be

:53:15. > :53:18.active within the party, but we also want everyone to be active out there

:53:19. > :53:22.on the streets during the campaigning work. I'm doing my west,

:53:23. > :53:26.I'm going all around the country to say to members, William that you are

:53:27. > :53:35.making this contribution but we have also got to convince others. In

:53:36. > :53:40.relation to the membership, a successor to Carwyn Jones, should

:53:41. > :53:46.there be a one member one vote? Let's let the Welsh Labour Party

:53:47. > :53:49.discuss and decide on this first. I have great respect for the Labour

:53:50. > :53:52.Party in Wales, an incredible history, and I have great respect

:53:53. > :53:59.for Carwyn Jones and his achievements at Westminster. Labour

:54:00. > :54:04.leader Jeremy Corbyn speaking to our political editor earlier. He joins

:54:05. > :54:12.us live now from the conferencing and at night. You spoke to Jeremy

:54:13. > :54:18.Corbyn earlier. What did you make of Carwyn Jones' speech? Well, I

:54:19. > :54:22.suppose anecdotally I think it is a repeat the most relaxed I have seen

:54:23. > :54:25.him make-up week set peace conference speech in years, possibly

:54:26. > :54:32.something to do with him just turning 50. In terms of the content,

:54:33. > :54:37.lots of rhetoric there, lots of Tory bashing which went down well with

:54:38. > :54:41.the party faithful. He had a bit of money to play with because of the

:54:42. > :54:46.budget we have just had, ?20 billion to social care, the decision to

:54:47. > :54:51.abolish the cost of child burial costs, a hugely emotive subject,

:54:52. > :54:55.that went down very strongly in the conference hall, as you can imagine.

:54:56. > :55:00.And to an extent, vindication of this campaign for Carolyn Harris,

:55:01. > :55:08.the Swansea MP, she has led this campaign. Elsewhere, fairly popular

:55:09. > :55:12.as in relation to transport, free Wi-Fi in a bus stations, train

:55:13. > :55:17.stations, that kind of thing. We also had really got a great love

:55:18. > :55:24.detail on this there pay commission, the bigger qubit -- accusation is

:55:25. > :55:27.that he was to research secret hide with the jobs for people in the

:55:28. > :55:32.local area without being exploited or subject to poverty, how can

:55:33. > :55:36.anyone to be disagree with that but he is saying at this stage it will

:55:37. > :55:41.be talks with the private sector and the TUC to look into this. A few

:55:42. > :55:45.other big games that were made in which he really took credit for

:55:46. > :55:51.saving the Welsh steel industry, which is an interesting one. I guess

:55:52. > :55:56.the kind of thing that will politically go down well, and did go

:55:57. > :56:01.down well in the conference chamber, on a purely factual perspective I'm

:56:02. > :56:06.not sure if it is entirely the case. He was pretty bullish about the NHS,

:56:07. > :56:10.actually, and said that NHS waiting times are coming down, and again in

:56:11. > :56:14.a statement that we'll get paralysed very strongly indeed because

:56:15. > :56:17.certainly a lot of the figures out there, if there is any movement,

:56:18. > :56:24.there is certainly nothing significant to report on that

:56:25. > :56:29.subject area. On top of all of that, he has the local elections coming

:56:30. > :56:35.up, and triggering Article 50 next week, two big things on the horizon

:56:36. > :56:38.for him. That's right. There has been a lot of talk about council

:56:39. > :56:46.elections, as you can imagine. They are in control of 12 out of 22, a

:56:47. > :56:49.senior figure has told me if they can keep control of eight or nine,

:56:50. > :56:53.they would be happy with that they would consider that a good night.

:56:54. > :57:01.Nick, thank you very much for joining us. Some final thoughts on

:57:02. > :57:05.the conference. You were struck by that speech by Carwyn Jones, you see

:57:06. > :57:10.bigger significance? I thought it was one of his better speeches and

:57:11. > :57:14.it actually gave us some context for this political period we are going

:57:15. > :57:17.into. What does strike me with all these conference season is, you look

:57:18. > :57:22.at the size of that conference compared to the previous three,

:57:23. > :57:28.Labour still is the big hitter in Welsh politics, way ahead of the

:57:29. > :57:32.other parties, in terms of the membership and the organisation and

:57:33. > :57:36.so on, and we saw that again. Despite all the travails of the

:57:37. > :57:42.Labour Party on the UK bases, the grip on Wales is still pretty solid.

:57:43. > :57:45.You did see that Carwyn Jones is ready trying to infuse the members

:57:46. > :57:51.and that is a challenge after 18 years in government in the Assembly.

:57:52. > :57:56.18 years in government and dreadful UK wide opinion polls. It is not fun

:57:57. > :58:00.being a Labour Party member at the moment. Let's put it in and say, why

:58:01. > :58:05.would you want to go out on the streets when there is so much

:58:06. > :58:09.self-inflicted grief, self-indulgence from the MPs, some

:58:10. > :58:12.of the members see it? He had to try get them out there but I think he

:58:13. > :58:18.has succeeded in doing that with what was up witty adept speech.

:58:19. > :58:21.Before the conference, quite a negative approach in managing

:58:22. > :58:26.expectations about the council elections but a lot more optimistic

:58:27. > :58:32.in a speech today. Well, you know, there was adamant of spin saying we

:58:33. > :58:36.are bound to lose ground, there was an element of honesty in it. As Nick

:58:37. > :58:39.was saying, it is very unlikely that Labour could hold onto everything

:58:40. > :58:42.they have got, the question is how much did they lose and that is

:58:43. > :58:46.something we have to benchmark as journalists, in the weeks ahead.

:58:47. > :58:53.Thank you very much, Vaughan. That is it for today. Sunday Politics

:58:54. > :58:57.will be on tomorrow. From us today, goodbye.