Speeches by Lake.

“Thank you, gentlemen, for joining us this afternoon. There is probably unanimity on this Committee about the overall pot compared with what we used to have from the European structural funds. Putting that to one side, are we any wiser as to the programme length for this funding? Some of the old European structural fund…”

“Thank you all for attending this afternoon. I should like to direct my question to Professor Evans, if I may. It relates to the campus at Lampeter. I do not need to explain the importance of the campus, not only to the local economy, but to the identity of the town of Lampeter. The announcement that undergraduate teach…”

“Q2. I join the Deputy Prime Minister in thanking members of the armed forces community for their service. I have had the privilege in recent months of meeting many veterans in my constituency, some of whom still carry the trauma of war. Some, including amputees, have told me how repeat disability assessments are too of…”

“I thank the Foreign Secretary for his statement and also for emphasising the importance of restraint and de-escalation at this perilous moment. What steps is he taking to try to align and co-ordinate his diplomatic efforts with those of our European and G7 allies, in the hope of presenting a united diplomatic front?”

“Ms Davies, it strikes me that when it comes to contaminated land, not only do local authorities have an important part to play but also Natural Resources Wales in certain circumstances. There could well be an interplay with the Mining Remediation Authority in certain contexts as well. How well is the system working bet…”

“Thank you all for coming in this morning. I would like to turn to the contaminated land, specifically the way in which the contaminated land regime works from a practical point of view and how local authorities undertake their duties under that regime. If I could ask Mr Hartshorn first, how does the regime work in prac…”

“Do you encounter many challenges in assigning liability for certain sites? I represent a constituency in mid Wales where there are a lot of historical metal mines, many of which closed more than 150 years ago, but they are still a problem and have contaminated a lot of land. Do you encounter a big problem in your area …”

“I welcome the Minister’s statement, not least because it will offer much support and reassurance to so many of my constituents. As he knows, no system is perfect and mistakes will be made, so may I ask whether there will be an appeals mechanism for those who are entitled to the winter fuel payment but, for whatever rea…”

“Given that the situation in Wales allows for greater flexibility with regard to some of the contractors, what are the main factors that would impact on the ability for them to have more time out of the cell?”

“Thank you both for coming this afternoon. I note that not a single prison in Wales received a score of good for the purposeful activity healthy prison test and, indeed, written evidence submitted by His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Prisons to the Committee notes that the amount of time that prisoners in Wales were spendin…”

“Thank you; that is very useful. Is there an ideal amount of time for which you would like to see prisoners out of their cells doing activity?”

“Do you have anything to add?”

“Thank you all for coming along this afternoon. I will start with Mr Jones and then work down the panel. I am interested to hear your views on how you see the relationship between the UK and Welsh Governments when it comes to the Prison Service and how it is operating day to day, and perhaps more specifically between th…”

“That is very useful.”

“Thank you to all three of you. Very briefly, all your organisations are on record as pushing for the devolution of probation, and I think it is very clear from all your answers that it would bring about an improvement to outcomes. Can I also ask your views on the devolution of youth justice? That is sometimes discussed…”

“For similar reasons—because operationally it would improve things?”

“I thank the Foreign Secretary for his statement, and for reiterating the Government’s commitment to take further concrete action in concert with international allies should the Israeli Government fail to cease their military offensive and, indeed, lift restrictions on humanitarian aid. Given the immediacy of the crisis…”

“That is very interesting. Does that overall offer form part of the communications you have with potential investors? You tell them about how wonderful a place Manchester is to live?”

“Thank you very much.”

“Thank you, Chair, and Ceredigion Preseli is also wonderful at this time of year. Thank you very much, gentlemen, and apologies for my late arrival. Are there any other examples or points that you would like to make to the Committee that would be helpful for our work in looking into inward investment that you have not a…”