Part of the debate – Senedd Cymru am 3:41 pm ar 28 Mawrth 2017.
Diolch i’r holl Aelodau sydd wedi cyfrannu at y ddadl hon, ac i Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet am ei ymateb.
Dirprwy Lywydd, last week Simon Thomas focused upon funding and powers, and highlighted the concerns of repatriation and the consequences that if we do get them repatriated, we won’t get the funding that goes with it. And I think that’s a crucial element that we need to make sure that if we’re going to be able to move forward, then we must have the resources and the powers to do so that come back from Brussels.
Suzy and Mark—I do put you together—highlighted the concerns, obviously, about the timing of the Welsh Government paper. I think the important thing they highlighted was that there are alternative pathways that we sometimes need to explore, that there are alternative options too and that we cannot ignore those options, and taking those is important, as was highlighted to us by the senior members of Universities Wales that came in. We need to look at things anew.
Eluned raised something that perhaps we don’t often talk about in terms of Brexit, and that’s health and medicines because, again, there are elements within the EU that sometimes we forget about. We often talk about agriculture and environment, because they’re the ones we normally deal with, but there are some important aspects that still go on at EU level that affect us, and that is an important thing that we cannot ignore in the months ahead of us. And, importantly, the loss of the recourse of citizens in particular areas, not just in environmental areas, but in other aspects as well, and losing that recourse, and the costs that we may have to apply, which may rule it out for many, many people.
David Rowlands—what can I say about his contribution? I will be positive. He is right—and I stated last week—that we should be united in taking a positive stance as we move forward, because we want to get the best opportunities we can for Wales. But a claim that says that EU funding is insignificant I think is atrocious. Come to my constituency and see how that money makes a difference to my communities, because the UK Government does not fund us. It’s as simple as that. And talking about an increase of 2.6 per cent from the UK Government to cover it—we are seeing cuts from the UK Government, not increases, so I think this ambition of getting money is a pipe dream. Unfortunately, that perhaps reflects the whole of UKIP’s thinking on this agenda.
Now, Cabinet Secretary, I welcome your responses and I also hope that you—