Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:52 pm on 2 July 2024.
Rhun ap Iorwerth
Plaid Cymru
1:52,
2 July 2024
The political history of Wales for nearly 30 years is one of saying ‘yes’: ‘yes’ to having our own Parliament in 1997, a big ‘yes’ to giving it some proper teeth in 2011. ‘Yes’ because we saw that we can achieve so much more given the tools to do the job. Ahead of Thursday’s General Election, Plaid Cymru says ‘yes’ to HS2 consequentials that could transform transport infrastructure in Wales. We say ‘yes’ to devolving policing and justice to give Wales a more effective justice system. It’s ‘yes’ from us on devolving the Crown Estate to make the most of our natural resources. It’s ‘yes’ on all of these, because we have a can-do attitude, a belief that this is not as good as it gets for Wales. But despite, on all of those issues, even Labour Members in Wales in this Parliament agreeing with us, why is Sir Keir Starmer so determined to say ‘no’ to all of them and ‘no’ to Wales in 2024?
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.
In a general election, each constituency chooses an MP to represent it by process of election. The party who wins the most seats in parliament is in power, with its leader becoming Prime Minister and its Ministers/Shadow Ministers making up the new Cabinet. If no party has a majority, this is known as a hung Parliament. The next general election will take place on or before 3rd June 2010.
