Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:05 pm on 16 May 2017.
Mr Neil Hamilton
UKIP
2:05,
16 May 2017
I thank the First Minister for that reply, which of course I understand. This is the opposite to the situation that we faced in Llangennech, where there’s parental Opposition to the changing of the status of the school to a Welsh-medium school. There’s a feeling in the locality in Brecon that this proposal for closure has become a bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy because the council has, for many years, had a proposal to close down, and they’ve provided free transport to alternative schools for parents, so it’s not surprising that parents who want to have their children taught through the medium of Welsh are now exploring other opportunities with the result that the school rolls have been falling to unsustainable levels. I hope the First Minister will agree that I try to be on this, if on no other issue, non-partisan and helpful, so what I would like to ask the First Minister is: in addition to the acknowledged policy, which I think is the correct one, of the Minister for Lifelong Learning in relation to the situation in Llangennech—of persuasion and cajoling, bringing parents with us and going with the grain—is it not the case that where parents want to have their children taught through the medium of Welsh, you ought to make it as easy as possible for them? Therefore, requiring children to go on a bus journey of over an hour in each direction each day is not likely to bring more parents into the net of wanting to have their children taught through the medium of Welsh. So I’m wondering what, without, perhaps, commenting on this individual case, the First Minister can do to make it easier for parents in the situation that we find in Brecon to have their wishes satisfied.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
The Opposition are the political parties in the House of Commons other than the largest or Government party. They are called the Opposition because they sit on the benches opposite the Government in the House of Commons Chamber. The largest of the Opposition parties is known as Her Majesty's Opposition. The role of the Official Opposition is to question and scrutinise the work of Government. The Opposition often votes against the Government. In a sense the Official Opposition is the "Government in waiting".
