1. Questions to the Minister for Economy – in the Senedd at on 9 June 2021.
Vikki Howells
Labour
8. How does the Welsh Government intend to strengthen the economy of the south Wales Valleys during this Senedd term? OQ56537
Vaughan Gething
Labour
2:17,
9 June 2021
Thank you for the question. We are currently considering how best to further develop economic, social and environmental action within this area, particularly in the Heads of the Valleys area. Over £19 million has already been approved for projects benefiting our south Wales Valleys towns through the Transforming Towns programme, which includes an allocation of over £1.5 million for each local authority.
Vikki Howells
Labour
Thank you, Minister, and welcome to your new role.
The Valleys taskforce was a very welcome Intervention by the Welsh Government during the fifth Senedd term, and delivered many tangible benefits to my Constituency of Cynon Valley, including £1.5 million for the Dare Valley Country Park, the creation of a remote-working hub in Mountain Ash, and a very exciting zero-waste food project in Aberdare. What plans do you have, Minister, to build on the work of the Valleys taskforce across the area? And will you commit to working closely with those Members of the Senedd who represent Valleys communities so that you can best shape your response?
Vaughan Gething
Labour
2:18,
9 June 2021
Yes, I'm happy to say that we're very positive about a range of areas in the Valleys taskforce work. I've recently spoken with the leader of RCT about continuing our work on the empty homes scheme, where bringing those homes back into beneficial use has proven to be more effective and cheaper than building new properties. So, we're looking to see what's worked already in the legacy report and the programme for action as the Valleys taskforce was wound up, and I'm happy to confirm and agree to the commitment to meet with Valleys representatives to have a conversation about how we are taking that forward to make sure we continue to invest in the future of the Valleys.
Elin Jones
Plaid Cymru
2:19,
9 June 2021
I thank the Minister. We will now suspend proceedings briefly to allow for some changeovers in the Siambr.
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.
An intervention is when the MP making a speech is interrupted by another MP and asked to 'give way' to allow the other MP to intervene on the speech to ask a question or comment on what has just been said.
In a general election, each Constituency chooses an MP to represent them. MPs have a responsibility to represnt the views of the Constituency in the House of Commons. There are 650 Constituencies, and thus 650 MPs. A citizen of a Constituency is known as a Constituent
