4. Will the First Minister outline the reasons why there is currently no dedicated Minister for babies, children and young people in the Welsh Government? OQ61109

Thank you for the question. I have appointed a Minister for Mental Health and Early Years, and I should note that it is Mental Health Awareness Week this week. Jayne Bryant's portfolio also covers areas related to children, young people and families. However, the duties set out in the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure 2011 apply to, and are the responsibility of, all Welsh Ministers.

Thank you for your response. I would also like to associate myself, on behalf of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, with extending our sympathies to the family of Owen John Thomas as well. Diolch yn fawr iawn.

I am very clear that the appointment of Jayne Bryant in the role of dedicated Minister for Mental Health and Early Years is really positive. But it isn't the same as having a dedicated Minister for babies, children and young people. I was encouraged to hear you say that the Government is dedicated to the eradication of child poverty, but we are frustrated that there is no Minister totally responsible for overseeing this aim in your Government. The Equality and Social Justice Committee, in its report 'Calling time on child poverty: how Wales can do better', noted that our current efforts in Wales in tackling child poverty lack strategic  cohesion, focused leadership and clear accountability. So, let's learn from other countries, perhaps.

If we look at New Zealand, Ireland and Norway, each has a dedicated Minister leading child poverty strategy. And, crucially, they outperform Wales in terms of the numbers of children living in poverty: in Ireland, 14 per cent; in New Zealand, 12 per cent; and in Norway, we have 11 per cent. And that's compared to the shocking 29 per cent that it's operating at here in Wales. We know that Wales does not have total powers to eradicate child poverty, but it does have some. So, I would like to hear from you why we can't be as good as the other countries, and why we need to put up with child poverty in Wales being at 29 per cent. Diolch yn fawr iawn.

Thank you for the question. With respect, I don't agree that the design of Government and the titles of Ministers will resolve all of this as an issue. The lead Minister in the Government is Lesley Griffiths, as the Cabinet Secretary for Culture and Social Justice. This is an area where more than one portfolio needs to make a contribution to have the sort of impact that everyone, I think, in this Chamber would want to have.

It is about marshalling the range of different contributions that we make in different portfolios, from what we are doing on Flying Start—a real success story compared to the disinvestment in Sure Start that has taken place since 2010 in England, a genuine Welsh success story with really positive outcomes—to the pupil development grant that we provide. There's the work that we have done, and that I'm proud that we have done, on making free school meals free for every child in primary school, and the additional support that we provide to help people with school uniforms and additional items around the school day. These are practical measures that we take within our powers.

The Member will know that not all of the levers are in our hands, and I'm glad that she mentioned that. She will have seen this up close during her time in Westminster, when Conservatives continued to make tax and benefit changes that they knew full well would worsen the picture on child poverty. I am proud that she was on the right side of that argument then, and still is today. It is why we both need to see the action that we can take here in Wales, alongside a future UK administration that is prepared to look again at deliberate choices that made more of our children poor—to grow up in a life of poverty; more working-age adults in poverty; more children with an adult in their home who is living in poverty as well.

Our economic future is a part of this, together with the changes that I belive are necessary for tax and benefits. I look forward to working with what I hope will be a much more enlightened UK Government, which has a real commitment to making progress on child poverty, as we did in the first decade of devolution, when two Governments that were committed to taking action on this made real steps to lift hundreds of thousands of children across the UK, and thousands of children here in Wales, out of child poverty. I believe that we can do that again.

It's an interesting question that Jane Dodds raises today. But since we don't have a Minister for babies and young people, I would like to know what work the Welsh Government is doing to help parents of infants that have been discharged from special care baby units. I would also like to put on record my admiration and gratitude for the incredible work that doctors and nurses carry out in these units, such as the state-of-the-art sub-regional neonatal intensive care centre at Glan Clwyd Hospital in my constituency.

I'm sure that the First Minister will share these sentiments, and it's great to see that investment paying dividends for north Wales. But I would like to know how the Welsh Government is supporting parents of newborns that have recently been discharged from a special care baby unit. Motherhood and fatherhood is hard enough as it is, but for mothers and fathers of more vulnerable infants, this can be a particularly overwhelming experience. Thank you.

Well, I welcome the Members recognition of the investment that previous Welsh Labour Governments made in delivering the SuRNICC unit, not just the physical infrastructure, but the people required to staff that unit and to the quality—. It's a welcome recognition of the point that Carolyn Thomas was making about the fact that there are regular instances of high-quality care right across our NHS, including in north Wales, of course.

The support that is provided comes from what we look to do with our teams of midwives and, indeed, the additional support that can be provided through our community nursing team as well. I know that the support that we had from the health visitor was really important for us, and when you have additional need in the child you bring home, you expect there to be additional support, which is what that health service aims to provide. That's what I expect in every part of the country.

The Member has a difference experience, and he's welcome to raise that with Ministers across the health department field, but I hope the constituents in north Wales and every part of the country do have a level of care and expertise from the midwifery and health visitor family that tries to help them with the most difficult but also the most exciting steps in your journey as a parent.