Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies.

The following declarations of interest were made under Standing Order 17.24A – Vaughan Gething declared relevant interests in relation to Petition P-06-1373 - Item 3.3 – as he had made Ministerial decisions in support of that project - and in relation to Petition P-06-1488 - Item 3.4 – as he had made a series of decisions as Health Minister during the COVID pandemic. He did not think he should take any part in the discussions or decision making on those two items.

The Committee thanked the petitioner for highlighting an issue that had Member support. It seems that the Welsh Government is progressing proposals in several of the areas outlined in the petition and the matter will continue to be a subject of Senedd scrutiny. It was therefore agreed Members would continue to keep a watching brief on the issue, but would close the petition.

Following discussion it was agreed to close the petition, but to also write to Cardiff Astronomical Society and the Glamorgan Archives to ask about the location of the original plans for the observatory, and to make those responses publicly available.

It was agreed to close the petition, given the high profile this issue already enjoys in the Senedd. In doing so, Members agreed to highlight the petition with the Health and Social Care Committee, given that Committee’s previous work on this issue.

The Committee agreed to refer the petition to the Health and Social Care Committee which was responsible for scrutinising NHS performance and funding, and in doing so to include the related correspondence received from Senedd Member Russell George MS. The Committee also agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to ask - regarding his announcement that £120 million will be provided to help cut waiting times - how many of the appointments mentioned to reduce the overall size of the waiting list will be patients of Powys Teaching Health Board, and how this funding will benefit Powys patients who are on the waiting list. The Committee also agreed to write to Powys Teaching Health Board to ask what assessment they had made of the impact of the decision to apply NHS England targets. It was agreed that the petition would be closed and responses to correspondence forwarded to the Health and Social Care Committee.

The Committee noted the ongoing work to develop a workforce plan, and agreed to highlight the petition to the Children, Young People and Education Committee for awareness, to thank the petitioner and to close the petition.

The Committee agreed to highlight the petitioners’ concerns and recommendations with the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs and seek a further response. The petition would be kept open pending a reply. The Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee would be copied in to the correspondence for awareness.

The Committee agreed that it had addressed the issues that fell within the scope of admissibility of the petition and would now close the petition. In doing so it was agreed to write to the five local Senedd Members to highlight the latest correspondence, for those Members to pursue going forward.

In discussing the petition it was noted that the matters were referred to regularly in the Senedd, but that the Petitions Committee could not take them any further. It was agreed to forward the responses received to the Health and Social Care Committee, as the specialist committee, and to thank the petitioners and close the petition. 

Following discussion the Committee agreed that, as it was unlikely any other Committee would be able to look at the issue further, to keep a watching brief  before considering the petition again, and progress against the current plans, early in the new year.

Members noted the paper.

Members noted the paper.

A motion was proposed to go into private for the remainder of that meeting. The motion was agreed.