Agenda and minutes

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.  Apologies were received from Neil McEvoy.

The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to:

·         write to the Business Committee to seek time for a plenary debate given that the petition had received over 5,000 signatures; and in the meantime

·         write back to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services to ask:

o   for details of the outcome of the workshop organised by the Wales Urology Board on 12 November;

o   for an assessment of the current availability of mpMRI scans pre-biopsy for patients in Wales;

o   what support the Welsh Government has given to support the adoption and availability of mpMRI scans across Wales;

o   what support the Welsh Government would provide to health boards in the event that NICE revises its guidelines to recommend the use of mpMRI scans pre-biopsy; and

o   whether he considers there is an appropriate interim solution which would enable access to mpMRI scans for patients across Wales, such as through enabling access to private facilities for scans.

The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to write back to the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport to ask:

• if he will liaise further with Powys County Council to discuss the issues around parking in the layby in more detail; and
• whether any consideration has been given to extending the time limit to 2 or 3 hours to help alleviate the concerns raised.

The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the response received from the Minister for Environment before considering whether to take further action on the petition.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Minister for Children, Older People and Social Care together with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to:

• produce a summary of the evidence received, with a view to preparing a report or a detailed letter to the Minister setting out the evidence received and the Committee’s conclusions or recommendations; and
• request a copy of the results of the deep dive review of all cases where there is an intention to reduce the local authority’s direct support for recipients of the WILG, and details of any actions that the Welsh Government will be taking as a result of this.

The Committee considered a summary of responses received from health boards in Wales relating to details of the services currently provided to people with borderline personality disorder in their areas.  Members agreed to seek the petitioner’s views on the full suite of responses provided by the health boards and, in light of these, to ask him to outline any specific ways in which he considers that the services or support provided for Borderline Personality Disorder need to be improved.

Mike Hedges declared the following relevant interest under Standing Order 17.24A:

A company in his constituency makes prosthetic limbs by 3D printing.

The Committee considered a response from Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee (WHSSC) together with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to:

• write back to the WHSSC to:

o   ask for further details of the review of the Prosthetic and Amputee Rehabilitation Services specification, including the process, timescales and a list of the stakeholders it intends to consult; and

o   seek a full reasoning behind the limitations within the current Prosthetic and Amputee Rehabilitation Services specification for recreational lower limbs; and

• write to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services to ask:

o   for consideration to be given by the Welsh Government to making specific funding available for children to be able to access specialised sports prostheses; and

o   what barriers there are to using 3D printing for the production of prostheses.

The Committee considered a response from the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Services together with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to:

·         write to the Children’s Commissioner for Wales to ask for her views on:

o   current practices in relation to ensuring young people are able to participate in and inform the commissioning of services; and

o   whether the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure 2011 is effective in ensuring the participation of young people when commissioning local services; and

• request a research brief on the application of the Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure 2011 in relation to the commissioning of local services for young people.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and agreed to keep a watching brief on the petition pending the publication of the revised school attendance framework next year, before deciding whether to take any further action on the petition.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport and agreed to write to Powys County Council to seek details of any proposals to recognise the Brimmon Oak as part of the new bypass which have been consulted on locally.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport together with further comments from the petitioner and agreed to provide the petitioner’s contact details to the team considering possible designs for the new bridge. In light of the commitment made by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Transport that the Pont Bendigeidfran proposal will be assessed as part of the design work for the bridge, the Committee also agreed to close the petition.

The Committee agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Energy, Planning and Rural Affairs to request an update on the stock assessment exercise and the ongoing status of the fishery.   

The Committee considered correspondence from the Minister for Environment and agreed to await a response from the petitioners to the information provided by the Minister before considering whether to take any further action on the petition.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Cabinet Secretary for Energy, Planning and Rural Affairs together with further comments from the petitioner. Members concluded that decisions about whether or not a local development plan should be reviewed should be taken by each Local Planning Authority and, on that basis, the Committee agreed to close the petition.

The Committee considered correspondence from the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services, the RTPI and the petitioners and agreed to:

• write to the Public Services Ombudsman to seek his reflections on the issues raised by the petition, and to ask for an indication of the volume of correspondence and complaints received in relation to conflict of interest in the planning process;
• write back to the RTPI to ask for an indication of the volume of correspondence and complaints they receive in relation to conflict of interest in the planning process, and for clarification as to whether planning officers are able to undertake any private work within their local authority area, for example where that are is subdivided into area committees; and
• request a further research brief on the current limitations on planning officers to undertake private work.