Questions now from party spokespeople. The Conservative spokesperson, Sam Rowlands. 

Diolch, Llywydd. Minister, I've spoken before about the issues around abuse of politicians, in particular councillors serving in local government. Minister, you will be aware that yesterday it was reported that the deputy leader of Anglesey council has said that, and I quote,

'All Tories should be shot.'

We'll all be aware, of course, that, in the UK over the last seven years, two MPs have been murdered in their role as parliamentarians—one Labour and one Conservative. This is real, literal violence, and any attempt to insight violence like that, in my view, should be met with the strongest condemnation. The language that Ieuan Williams used, I would say, is obscene and creates a foul atmosphere around our politics, especially from somebody in a leadership position, who has now stood down, as I say, as deputy leader of Anglesey council. Of course, this isn't the first time in recent months that a councillor has done this. We heard earlier this year of a Caerphilly Plaid Cymru councillor posing with a gun and posting about shooting English people. So, Minister, can you share your thoughts on this particular issue in Anglesey and the wider issue of abuse in politics?

Yes, I'm very grateful to Sam Rowlands for raising this, and, actually, it's a topic he returns to frequently in spokesperson's questions, which I think is really, really important, because it is one that I think transcends those party political lines, and one where we have to all stand shoulder to shoulder against any form of abuse. Healthy debate is wonderful; it's really important to be able to challenge each other, but also to do so in a way that is respectful.

And I think that it is the case now that the individual concerned has asked the standards committee of the local authority to look at what happened. I think that is definitely the appropriate way forward, because processes are in place to investigate potential breaches of codes of conduct, and I think that it's important now that that process takes place. But there are sanctions for breaching the code of conduct, and they can range from censure to suspension or disqualification from being a councillor for up to a period of five years. So, it is a serious matter. 

It does give me an opportunity to say that we are currently consulting on a revised code of conduct, to ensure that it does remain fit for purpose in engendering trust in the highest standards of conduct for councillors. And I would obviously encourage colleagues to have their say in that consultation, and particularly to make sure that it is fit for purpose with all of the different things that we have to deal with nowadays, for example, threats online and social media abuse. 

Diolch yn fawr iawn, Minister. Thank you for that response. Just to expand on the issue slightly further, because, from that particular incident, it also appears that the chief executive of the council was at the meeting where those comments were made, and the chief executive seems to have asked for those comments not to be minuted. I would say that this is staggering, to say the least, because, of course, we'd all advocate and want people to stand up and speak out when things like this happen, not shy away in an attempt to cover it up. You just mentioned there some of the consultation on a revised code of conduct, but, I wonder, can I ask what resources and what support are Welsh Government giving to local authorities in order to support staff and councillors when they're dealing with aggression and hostility, especially in light of the events that we heard about yesterday?

We're working really closely with the Welsh Local Government Association, but also with One Voice Wales, because we know that levels of abuse are increasingly concerning to members of town and community councils as well as principal councils. And we are now working to develop some training on the code of conduct, so that local authorities and those who are elected to serve on councils are aware of the responsibilities of the various partners who operate roles on those bodies, but also ways in which they can find support, in terms of the WLGA, the resources from the local council and also those support mechanisms that lie outside the formal council as well. So, I think that it is something that now has a very strong focus and is a very important part of the work of my officials in the local government department.

Thank you for that response, again, Minister. Certainly, we're supporting efforts to make sure our staff and councillors in local authorities are properly equipped.

I just want to touch, in my last question, on local development plans. I'm sure the First Minister was disappointed yesterday that my question was too far down the order paper to be able to raise a question on it with him yesterday. But, Minister, you will be aware of Wrexham council's recent decision to not support the local development plan that was placed in front of the council. I did note the First Minister made comments on this a few weeks ago here in the Chamber, and I did note that those comments seemed to be mocking the decision of the council. In my view, it's completely disrespectful of local democracy and the mandate that councillors received only last year in those local authority elections. My view is that democracy works best at a local level, and if a local authority does not want to support something, they should be well within their right to not support something. So, in your view, Minister, would you not agree with me that local councils and councillors deserve respect as the people on the ground who know best for their local communities? And what approach will you be taking to build bridges not just with Wrexham council, but with all councils to ensure that they are properly supported in the development of local development plans?

Well, Wrexham is the only local authority in Wales not to have an adopted local development plan in place, and obviously that is a really disappointing position for them to be in. In not adopting a plan, it does remove certainty for communities, for businesses and for investors in Wrexham. We considered the positive report from planning inspectors following the statutory scrutiny process. We consider, as a Welsh Government, that that does enable now the LDP in Wrexham to be adopted, and let's remember we've had 11 years of preparation in Wrexham for this plan, and it was a plan that the council itself considered to be sound and able to be adopted, but yet it hasn't been. I do know that a judicial review was launched by third parties against the decision by the local authority not to adopt the plan, but Wrexham have conceded this judicial review in full. I understand that the authority is now scheduled to consider this again on 14 June. I'm checking my watch—that's today or tomorrow.

I was going to provide clarity, and then I worked out I couldn't work out whether it was 13 or 14 June. 

The Plaid Cymru spokesperson, Mabon ap Gwynfor. 

Diolch, Llywydd. Well, Llywydd, I'm hearing incredibly concerning things from local government and the homelessness sector about their ability to deliver homeless prevention measures. Representatives from the sector have told me that many support providers and commissioners have spent the last two months discussing how to reduce and remodel homelessness and housing support services because they don't have the funds to continue delivering services at the same level as they did last year. The lack of any increase to the housing support grant is forcing the sector to cut services in order to pay minimum wage, and the figures published by the Government last week show that over 10,000 people are now in temporary accommodation, causing huge challenges for local government and the sector at large. The sector is now under mor pressure than ever before. The likely reduction in support hours and service delivery is incredibly concerning, and the impact will be felt by the most vulnerable in our society. So, what is the Minister’s message to them and the brilliant front-line workers in local government and third sector who are struggling at the moment? What consideration did the Minister give to providing additional funds from the UK Government spring statement to increase the housing support grant? And what priority will the Minister give to the housing support grant, should the additional funds or in-year savings become available?

I'm very grateful for the question and also to take this opportunity, as you have, to recognise the important work that people in local authorities and those delivering these schemes provide. I will say that the question really is a policy and budget question for the Minister for Climate Change. I’ll make her aware of these concerns. But from my perspective, I will certainly say that, in the three-year spending review that we undertook last year, we did increase the housing support grant by 30 per cent at the start of that three-year spending review period, and that was, I think, a significant uplift.

It wasn’t possible, of course, to do a similar thing in the second year of the three-year spending review just because of the fact that the way in which the money that came from Westminster to Wales was profiled means that we had the majority of it in year 1; years 2 and 3 will inevitably be much more difficult.

The amount of funding that was provided to Wales through the spring statement was absolutely paltry. And let’s remember that this year, our budget is worth £900 million less than it was when we set our budgets, and that is largely the impact of inflation. So, at the moment, we’re really not in the space of being able to allocate additional funding to new things. It is very much about getting a clear sight, really, of the pressures across Government and the impact that inflation is having on our existing plans. So, I don’t want to mislead anybody as to our ability, really, to be providing large amounts of additional funding for new things, much as we would obviously want to be able to.

Thank you for the response. Of course, you didn't mention the increase—[Inaudible.]—the budget was £139 million back in 2012 and, in today's money, that is the equivalent of £186 million. So, in real terms, that's a £20 million cut that they've received over 10 years to the housing support grant. So, any in-year savings would be appreciated.

I want to turn the next question to the European Union and the funding that comes from the EU. And I understand that a total of around £500 million is still remaining to Wales from European funding. We have until the end of this year to ensure that this funding is spent in full. A recent report by Audit Wales on the issue has confirmed that this funding has been allocated, but that the expenditure rate needs to be accelerated significantly. The Minister will also be aware that the beneficiaries of this funding will have to make their final claims by 7 July to the Government.

So, may I ask the Minister where we are with this funding? Is there assurance that this funding will be allocated and spent? And finally, in the context of what I said earlier in terms of the EU membership programmes and in the context of housing, what's the Minister's assessment of the impact of the deficiencies of Westminster's proposals for Wales in terms of post-EU funding and the support available to provide for social housing in Wales?

Thank you very much for that question. The Member will be aware that Audit Wales concluded that the Welsh European Funding Office and the Welsh Government, despite some challenges including delays caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, have managed to commit all of the EU grant funding and more to projects and beneficiaries. 

The report did recognise that we still have some significant funds available to spend during 2023, whilst managing some significant risks to maximising the draw-down of the funding. I can say, though, since the publication of that report, we have made some further progress and seen more improvement in that position: now with only £320 million spend of the structural funds—the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund programmes—remaining. That was the data as of the first week of June, so, I would expect the position to have improved still since then.

The Minister for rural affairs and the Minister for Economy, who are responsible for these schemes, are obviously very actively keeping a close watch on this and driving forward the spend in those places. Obviously, the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee might take some interest in this as well. It's important that we respect the role of PAPAC in that. But, as I say, the position is improving and it's something that the two particular Ministers are very actively involved in.

It is the case, of course, that the funding that will come to Wales following our exit from the EU is just absolutely paltry compared to that which we would have received had we remained in the European Union. I think that's now accepted by more or less everybody. But, I think it's beyond that, part of the problems, really, are about the way in which the UK Government is going about allocating this funding. Going through local government, in some cases, puts some parts of the partnership landscape that we have in Wales against each other. It means that the third sector now, I think, feels that it is not having such a direct impact as it has had in the past. Obviously, the kind of funding cuts out, I suppose, the natural way in which we've previously engaged with further education and higher education. So, it has caused significant problems in terms of the way in which we would have envisaged our post-EU funding to be allocated. That said, of course we will work constructively where we can to maximise the benefit of that funding, and I will have some further discussions with the Minister for Climate Change on that particular point you raised about social housing. 

Question 3, Rhys ab Owen. I'm waiting for Rhys ab Owen's microphone to be unmuted.

If somebody can—. Yes, there we go. Diolch, Rhys.

I unmuted myself, Llywydd. [Laughter.]