Claire Archibald

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1. 5. Statement by the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care: Update on winter preparedness en

   I've got the wrong thing. I'm really sorry. I just wanted to say thank you, Minister, for bringing the statement forward. Everybody's been talking about vaccines, so I just wanted to add that I want to recognise the vital contribution of the third sector, primary care and the community teams, GPs, pharmacists, nurses and health workers, who deliver essential vaccinations all over the county, especially in my community. Yesterday, I visited Bronglais Hospital and saw first-hand the mental and physical wear that departments and their staff are experiencing. Speaking to front-line workers, it was impossible not to be struck by their commitment to their patients, but also the toll that the relentless demand is taking on them. Year on year, we hear of increased demand and an uptick in pressure on A&E and wards, yet too many patients and staff continue to face challenges that are becoming increasingly difficult. Just this Sunday, Glangwili, Bronglais and Withybush put out a statement saying they were severely under pressure in their A&Es, so this is nothing unusual to them. It's a fact that the health and social care staff are carrying immense constraint. History shows that winter pressures—

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2. 5. Statement by the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care: Update on winter preparedness en

   —are harsher than forecasted. I'm really sorry. If demand this winter exceeds the forecast, what reassurance can you give the public that they will not see a repeat of the delays experienced in previous years? Diolch.

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1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care en

   Thank you, Minister, and it's good to hear that you are talking about integrated care, because you know that's something I'm incredibly passionate about, as we've spoken about it. But today, obviously, I want to talk about something a little bit different, which is that you've increasingly promoted digital and remote health services as a pathway to improving access to care. However, many residents in rural parts of Ceredigion Penfro continue to face poor mobile coverage and unreliable broadband, leading to barriers to using digital technology. Can the Minister explain how the Government is ensuring that the expansion of digital healthcare does not disadvantage rural patients? And what assessment has been made as to whether people in west Wales can access services equally, regardless of where they live? Diolch.

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2. 10. Short Debate: The importance of port infrastructure and maritime traffic to the Welsh economy en

   When we talk about ports, we should remember that not all Welsh ports play the same role. For Pembrokeshire, Milford Haven is not just a local asset, it is nationally significant infrastructure. In 2024, it handled almost 33 million tonnes of freight and has since become the UK's third largest port by tonnage. It is also responsible for handling the overwhelming majority of liquefied natural gas entering the United Kingdom. This means the Milford Haven port authority is not only supporting jobs and businesses across Pembrokeshire, it is helping to keep the lights on and homes heated across Wales and the wider UK. But strong ports cannot exist in isolation, particularly in rural Wales; they rely on resilient transport links and long-term industrial investment. The question for the Government is not whether Welsh ports are important; the evidence clearly shows they are. The question is whether the Government is turning its commitments on port resilience and economic growth into real investment that allows ports such as Milford Haven to compete, grow and create high-quality jobs for future generations. Diolch.

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1. 3. Business Statement and Announcement en

   Trefnydd, could I request an urgent statement from the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care regarding the reported outbreak of scabies in the Hywel Dda health board area, and the adequacy of the Welsh Government's response to this developing public health concern? There is growing concern about the spread of scabies within communities and care settings. The situation has become even more alarming following the reported death of an elderly gentleman, whose illness was linked to complications associated with scabies. Given the vulnerability of older people, those living in residential care and individuals with underlying health concerns, there are serious questions about the infection control measures, the availability of treatment, support for care providers and the steps being taken to prevent further outbreaks. An urgent statement would provide an opportunity for the Welsh Government to update Members on the current scale and extent of the outbreak in west Wales, measures being taken to contain transmission and protect vulnerable individuals, guidance being provided to care homes, hospitals and community healthcare providers, and whether additional resources or support are being made available to affected areas. Given the significant public concern and the potential implications for public health, I believe that this matter warrants an urgent statement at the earliest opportunity. Diolch.

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2. 5. Statement by the Deputy Minister for Social Care, Mental Health and Women’s Health: Stronger Safeguarding for a Safer Wales en

   Thank you, Deputy Minister. I welcome the statement and the recognition that safeguarding is one of the most important responsibilities of any Government. Every single one of us in this Chamber has been given the honour of representing the people of Wales, and with that honour there comes a strong responsibility to protect our most vulnerable and to challenge the system that fails them. However awkward the questions, however uncomfortable the answers, we must have the courage to act. Safeguarding is essential. Children, patients and adults at risk must be protected. People must feel confident about reporting concerns, knowing they will be heard and taken seriously. I welcome the Minister's emphasis on strengthening safeguarding across Wales and on creating a system that is proactive rather than reactive, one that learns lessons and acts before harm escalates. But we must never judge safeguarding by what it achieves. A policy is only effective if it works in practice. Additional procedures must address and identify problems and deliver a clear benefit. We must distinguish between preventing abuse and investigating allegations against those entrusted with people's care. Both require accountability. Children can face exploitation in their homes, their communities and online. They may not recognise the abuse. They may even defend the person harming them. Protection cannot depend on a child finding the words to explain what is happening. Warning signs must never be dismissed because an individual is respected, an organisation fears embarrassment or someone is uncomfortable asking difficult questions. That principle applies everywhere, including hospitals and care settings. Proper scrutiny also demands fair treatment. Doctors, nurses, social care workers, teachers and foster carers carry enormous responsibilities. We want people to enter these roles, stay in them and feel supported to provide good care. An allegation must be taken seriously. It must never be treated as a verdict. Immediate protective action may be necessary while facts are established. The action must reflect the risk, being regularly reviewed and accompanied by a fair and timely investigation. Where a process becomes unnecessarily prolonged or poorly co-ordinated, the consequences of this can reach into someone's livelihood, family life, confidence and mental health. For a foster family, an investigation affects their home. For a nurse or a doctor, it can leave their professional future uncertain. Children, patients and those reporting harm also need answers. Avoidable delay serves nobody. When an investigation continues for months, who is responsible for its progress, who reviews the restrictions, who challenges the unnecessary delay? The statement speaks of stronger leadership and accountability. Those principles must apply not only when concerns are raised, but throughout the safeguarding process itself. Several bodies may have legitimate responsibilities, but there must be clear co-ordination with avoidable duplication identified and removed. Those affected need clear communication, appropriate support and a fair opportunity to respond, subject to necessary safeguards for the investigation. Decisions must draw on relevant clinical and care expertise. Front-line experience must inform the process alongside safeguarding expertise, and decisions must be open to proper challenge. You announced today a national oversight arrangement, a national social care intelligence hub and a national safeguarding risk register. These may help improve consistency and identify emerging risks, but they must also demonstrate how they will improve outcomes on the ground for vulnerable people and support timely, effective decision-making in front-line services. We must also examine the effect on recruitment and retention. If foster families withdraw because of how allegations are handled, the Government must establish why. It must examine what any loss of placements means for that child needing a stable, suitable home. The same scrutiny must apply to concerns about nurses, doctors, social care workers leaving their roles. You must explain how existing arrangements of these proposed reforms will protect vulnerable people, how unnecessary duplication is prevented and who takes responsibility if investigations drift. Before introducing further requirements, identify the gap they address and demonstrate how they will improve safety. I call for a review of existing arrangements, their effectiveness, proportionality, delays and support for everyone affected. That review must listen to children, families, patients, front-line workers and safeguarding professionals, and publish clear findings and actions. Accountability cannot stop with a nurse on a ward or the foster carer in their home. It must extend to those managing investigations and setting those policies. Our constituents deserve protection. Those caring for them deserve fair treatment. The Government must deliver both. Diolch.

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1. 9. Short Debate: The importance of local services—Protecting the future of Withybush hospital en

   Diolch, Lywydd. Firstly, I'd like to thank my colleagues, Paul Marr, Cristiana Emsley, Anna Nicholl and Paul Davies for contributing their time today—one minute each, I believe. So, thank you very much. I want to begin today by directly speaking to the people of Pembrokeshire who are genuinely worried about the future of Withybush Hospital. Because they are worried. They have watched services change, they have watched services move, and now they are asking one very simple question: what will be left at Withybush when we need it most? This question deserves an answer, because, when someone is seriously ill, when someone has a stroke, or when someone needs emergency surgery, minutes matter and, in rural Wales, distance matters too. So, I want to be absolutely clear today: Withybush cannot simply become a place where patients are assessed before being sent somewhere else. It must retain meaningful emergency and urgent healthcare for people of Pembrokeshire. But I also want to be clear about something else. I do not believe that centralising all our services is the answer. Since becoming a Member of this Senedd, I have visited the health board on numerous occasions, I have spoken to doctors, nurses, consultants and other front-line staff, and those conversations have allowed me to see both sides of this argument. If we cannot safely staff a specialist service, keeping a sign above a door saying that that service exists does not necessarily mean patients are receiving the best care. I understand that. But I also understand the parent frightened about how far away emergency care for their child might be, I understand the husband wondering how he will visit his wife if she is transferred miles away, and I understand the elderly person who doesn't drive and wonders how on earth they are supposed to get to an appointment. Both sides of this debate matter, but what isn't acceptable is leaving patients, staff and entire communities in the dark about what their healthcare will look like in the future. Take stroke services, for instance. I want to make my position clear today—I am talking about Withybush. I am not calling in this debate for stroke rehabilitation provision at Bronglais to be removed. Bronglais serves another large rural population and its importance must be recognised individually. My concern today is what happens to patients in Pembrokeshire. The current preferred model will ultimately make Withybush a treat-and-transfer site for stroke, with a 24-hour specialist acute stroke unit at Glangwili Hospital. I understand the clinical argument for bringing specialist expertise together, but I also expect one very important commitment to be honoured. Withybush must not become a treat-and-transfer before that 24-hour specialist stroke unit provision at Glangwili is actually commissioned. Don't remove the existing service and then promise a replacement later: build it, staff it, make sure it works, then make the change. Because patients cannot be left in a gap between one service disappearing and another becoming operational. And even where specialist acute stroke treatment is concentrated, I want us to look seriously at what rehabilitation can be provided closer to home. Because rehabilitation can take weeks, sometimes months, and families matter during recovery. And we should bring people back closer to their communities as soon as it is clinically safe to do so. The same concerns exist around emergency general surgery. Hywel Dda has decided that, under its future model, patients at Withybush requiring an emergency operation would be transferred to Glangwili. The health board itself has acknowledged that transfers could increase the likelihood of delays in treatment. So, I want to know how quickly will that patient be transferred? Will an ambulance be available? What happens when ambulances are already under enormous pressure? What happens at 2 o'clock in the morning? Emergency care has to work on the worst day, not just the best. And then there are our children. Families in Pembrokeshire have already experienced the loss of 24-hour in-patient paediatric services at Withybush Hospital. For a parent with a seriously ill child, particularly late at night, Carmarthen can feel a very long way from home. But there is also something positive happening here. Hywel Dda have recently announced a £750,000 investment in a new, dedicated children's facility at Withybush, including a rapid-access clinic. I welcome that, because it demonstrates the very point I'm making today: just because the most specialist elements of care are being provided elsewhere does not mean everything has to follow. We can still build strong local services, and there are already examples at Withybush showing us what can be achieved. I visited the acute frailty unit, and I was enormously impressed by what I saw. Instead of automatically admitting frail and elderly patients into hospital, they can be assessed, treated and, where appropriate, supported back into their own homes or community services. That prevents unnecessary admissions, it helps protect hospital beds and, most importantly, it can provide better care for that patient. The same applies to same-day emergency care. GP and other healthcare professionals can refer patients into this service, where they can be assessed and treated without automatically going through A&E and being admitted. That is the sort of healthcare we should be expanding on.

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2. 9. Short Debate: The importance of local services—Protecting the future of Withybush hospital en

   And this brings me to something I feel very strongly about, which is social care. Because the pressures faced in Withybush do not stop at the door. We have the best doctors and nurses in the world, but if somebody is medically ready to leave that hospital and support isn't available in the community that person cannot simply go home. And while that person waits, a hospital bed remains occupied, another patient is waiting in A&E and an ambulance may be waiting outside, and the pressure moves backwards like a vicious circle. Health and social care cannot continue to operate as though they are separate worlds. We need health boards, councils, GPs, community nursing, care homes, domiciliary care and the third sector working around that patient as one joined-up system. And we must include unpaid carers in that conversation, because, far too often, when we say that somebody can be cared for at home, there is a family member behind that sentence—a husband, a wife, a son, a daughter; someone who may suddenly find themselves providing hours of care every day. We cannot solve pressures on hospital beds by simply transferring that pressure onto families. If somebody is going home, care must be waiting for them, the family must know what is happening and unpaid carers must be properly supported. That isn't separate from protecting Withybush Hospital; it's part of protecting Withybush Hospital. Because the answer to pressure on hospital beds cannot simply be fewer hospital beds. We need to prevent unnecessary admissions to make sure they're ready to leave and can do safely. I also want Withybush to have a stronger future in cancer care and palliative care. For someone living in Pembrokeshire, travelling for cancer treatment isn't necessarily an appointment of an hour or two. So, let's look at what we can deliver locally safely: diagnostics, follow-up care, cancer treatment where appropriate, GP premises, community facilities and, working properly with organisations such as Macmillan and our wider third sector, bring healthcare to people wherever we safely can instead of continually expecting sick people to travel long distances. And that brings me to transport. You cannot have an honest conversation about centralising healthcare in rural Wales without talking about how people are actually going to get there. You cannot design healthcare for Pembrokeshire as though Pembrokeshire has the transport network of Cardiff. It doesn't. I am seeking discussions with Transport for Wales about improving connections involving Withybush and Carmarthenshire. But transport cannot be an afterthought. If you move healthcare, you must first show us how the patient is going to reach it. And there is another issue that I believe we need to talk about more openly, and that is accountability. We often hear that these are decisions for the health board and, of course, health boards have a responsibility for planning and running local services, but responsibility cannot simply stop at the door of a health board. Health boards are accountable to the Welsh Ministers; Welsh Government oversees their performance and has powers to intervene when things go wrong. So, when communities are frightened about the future of their hospitals, I don't believe an elected Government can simply point towards a health board and say it is their decision. Health boards must be accountable for the decisions they make, but, ultimately, political accountability must sit with those of us who are elected. As a member of the Health and Social Care Committee—. I'm really sorry, I've missed a page. But if patients cannot access the care they need, if services continue to deteriorate or if communities lose confidence in their local NHS, somebody democratically accountable has to answer for it. For me, ultimately, the buck stops here, in the Welsh Government. And that brings me to money and workforce. We cannot keep putting more money into the same structures if patient outcomes and access do not improve. Administration is important. Hospitals cannot function without good administrative staff. But administration supports healthcare; front-line staff deliver it. So, when finances are under enormous pressure, we have to be brave enough to look at the structure itself. Are there unnecessary layers of management? Are roles being duplicated? Could services work differently? Could management structures be simplified? And could those savings be redirected towards the nurses, doctors, healthcare support workers, therapists, carers and other front-line professionals patients actually need? That isn't an attack on NHS managers; it's about making sure that as much of every pound as possible reaches patient care. And these concerns are not mine alone. Thousands of people have signed a Senedd petition raising concerns about healthcare provision at Withybush. The Petitions Committee has now agreed that those concerns deserve further scrutiny, including further engagement with the Health and Social Care Committee. A petition on its own will not decide the future of Withybush, but, when thousands of people take the time to put their names to one, we should pay attention. And I am paying attention. I have listened to the residents, I have spoken to the staff, I have visited Withybush, I have spoken directly with the health board, and, as a member of the Health and Social Care Committee, I will continue to scrutinise the decisions being made, because I don't want the story of Withybush to be one of managed decline.  I want us to protect what works, change what doesn't, specialise where clinical evidence generally shows we need to specialise, but localise wherever we safely can, keep emergency and urgent care strong, build on same-day emergency care and frailty, bring rehabilitation closer to home, strengthen cancer and palliative care, join healthcare and social care together, support our unpaid carers, and make transport part of healthcare planning, not an afterthought. And to the doctors, nurses, healthcare support workers, therapists, porters, cleaners, administrative staff, ambulance crews, and to everyone else working at Withybush Hospital, this debate is not an attack on you. It is quite the opposite. You are the people holding these services together. I used to be one of them, and you deserve to know that the hospital you work in has a future. So, my message today is simple: Withybush cannot simply become a hospital where more and more patients are assessed and then sent somewhere else. The people of Pembrokeshire deserve safe, specialist care, but they also deserve local care. They deserve honesty. They deserve replacements to be ready before existing services disappear. Above all, they deserve something they have been asking for for far too long: a clear, credible, secure future for the hospital. Diolch, Lywydd.

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1. 7. Statement by the Deputy Minister for Social Care, Mental Health and Women's Health: Improving Family-centred Neonatal Care in Wales: Progress Towards the Bliss Baby Charter en

   Thank you, Deputy Minister. I welcome the progress being made to the Bliss baby charter today, but I particularly want to highlight the challenges faced by families in rural Wales. You have said in your statement today that individual services should focus on the changes that make the greatest difference locally. Long before the current charter programme, the neonatal team at Glangwili Hospital recognised the challenges of rurality and lack of transport, and the financial pressures facing families travelling backwards and forwards for appointments. They responded by changing the way they worked, bringing specialist appointments together to make things easier for families. Where families couldn't get to the hospital because of rurality, transport or financial pressures, the neonatal team would go out and see them at home. You mentioned earlier what happens after they leave, which I think is just as important. They bridge the gap between hospital and home—such things as the dietician, occupational therapy, physio, speech and language. All of these are really important afterwards. They actually went on to win the Bliss project of the year award, which I think is really good for such a rural hospital. Minister, almost £1,000 was invested in this national programme in 2025. As the programme is still in its early stages, how will you make sure that good practice, like that at Glangwili, is identified, shared and implemented across Wales, rather than simply focusing on whether units meet the charter standard? Diolch.

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1. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Education and Welsh Language en

   I'd just like to say 'thank you' to my constituency Member, because it is something that is very close to my heart—church schools. So, I just wanted to get that out there. Policies promoting inclusive physical activity are welcome and many disabled pupils and their families continue to report barriers to meaningful participation in school sports, such as wheelchair-bound children being made to take timings for their peers rather than actively taking part. Can you therefore outline what specific measures the Welsh Government is taking to monitor participation rates amongst disabled learners, how it evaluates whether policies are translating into outcomes on the ground and whether it will commit to publishing data, so that Members can assess if disabled pupils are participating in curriculum-based sport at the same rate as their non-disabled peers? Diolch.

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1. 7. Statement by the Deputy Minister for Social Care, Mental Health and Women's Health: Putting Women, Babies and Families at the Heart of Safety: The implementation of Call for Concern in Maternity and Neonatal Services en

   Thank you, Minister. I welcome the introduction of the Call for Concern for maternity and neonatal services. At its heart, this is actually a very, very simple principle. When a woman says something is wrong, we listen. When a family says something has changed, we listen. And when they remain concerned, there must be somewhere else for them to turn. As a woman, a mother of three children, and somebody who's also experienced the loss of a pregnancy, I know just how vulnerable a woman can feel when something does not feel right. And sometimes a woman cannot explain medically what is wrong, she just simply knows. Her partner or her family may notice something, that she just doesn't look right, or isn't behaving normally, or is becoming more unwell. Those concerns should never be dismissed simply because observations on a chart have not yet sounded the alarm.  That is why I support the principle of Call for Concern. But, Minister, the success of the programme cannot simply be measured by whether every maternity unit has a telephone number or a poster on the wall. We have to measure what happens after somebody makes that call. Did somebody respond? How quickly did they respond? Was the woman seen by another member of her medical team? Did they find that her condition had got worse? Did her treatment change? And, most importantly, did that action prevent serious harm? Because those are the results that will tell us whether this policy is actually making women and babies safer. We already know from the use of Call for Concern elsewhere in the Welsh NHS, as you've mentioned, that concerns raised by patients and families can lead to further medical checks and changes in this care. That demonstrates why listening matters. But it also raises another issue—we cannot have a postcode lottery in patient safety. Call for Concern has been introduced at different speeds across Wales, so I would ask the Minister today for a very clear commitment: by what date will every woman using in-patient maternity services and every family with a baby receiving neonatal care in Wales have access to the same Call for Concern service? And when that service is available across Wales, will the Welsh Government publish information for every health board showing the number of calls, how quickly they were answered, what action was taken, and what the outcome was? Because without that information, we simply cannot judge whether this is working. There is another part of this that I believe is equally important—the way we treat people when they speak up. Call for Concern must never make a woman feel that she is being difficult, questioning a professional or causing trouble. A mother should never have to think twice about saying, 'Something isn't right with me. Something isn't right with my baby'. Staff, therefore, need to understand that a call for concern isn't an accusation against them, it's just another safety net. And sometimes the people sitting beside the hospital bed know better than anybody what that patient is feeling. We continually hear that maternity and neonatal care should put families at its heart, and that the voices of women and families must be heard. Call for Concern gives us an opportunity to turn those words into something practical. But the service must be the same across Wales and have enough staff to run it properly. And we must check whether it is actually working. That's our jobs. Minister, I welcome this initiative, but I would ask you to give us three things today: a clear date for when this will be available across Wales; a clear standard for how quickly a call for concern must receive a response; and a commitment to publish the results health board by health board. Because, ultimately, this isn't about another NHS initiative or another document—this is about something much more fundamental. If a woman tells us she is worried, we listen. If a family tells us something is wrong, we listen. And if they believe somebody is becoming more unwell, we must make it absolutely certain that somebody acts. Diolch.

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1. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning en

   Thank you for that and obviously this will probably go to the financial Minister as well, so I'm going to carry on, as the Member just carried on. Small businesses are the backbone of our community in Wales, but many are effectively shut out of public sector contracts before the process has even begun. Large companies have dedicated teams to deal with procurement, legal requirements and lengthy tender documents. Small local businesses may have one person trying to do all of that while also running a day-to-day business. If the Welsh Government genuinely wants more public money to stay in Wales, it must make sure that local businesses have a fair chance to compete. So, my question is: what practical support will the Welsh Government provide to simplify the procurement process and help Welsh businesses bid successfully for local authority contracts? And will the Minister support publishing council-by-council figures showing how much public spending is awarded directly to Welsh businesses in respect of transparency? Diolch.

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1. 6. Welsh Conservatives Debate: Hospital services and hospital closures en

   I first want to ask a question of the Cabinet Minister on what can only be described as a growing crisis in confidence in the way that rural healthcare decisions are made in Wales. I congratulate the Minister on his appointment, but I have to say at the outset that warm words will not be enough to reassure the people of west Wales if they are not matched by action. The reality is this: rural Wales is not being treated on an equal footing with urban Wales when it comes to healthcare planning. Geography is being ignored and access to care is being steadily eroded. Bronglais Hospital is the most rural general hospital in Wales; Withybush serves a vast and dispersed population alongside it. Together, they support around about 196,000 people across west Wales. In any urban setting, that population would typically be served by multiple easily accessibly sites. In west Wales, patients face long journeys, poor transport links and significant delays simply to access basic services. That context is everything, yet it is consistently treated as secondary in decision making. Bronglais is now facing proposed changes to stroke services that have caused serious alarm across the constituency and beyond. I have received a large volume of correspondence from constituents and the message is consistent: people are frightened that access to time-critical stroke care is being weakened. We all know the clinical reality when someone suffers a stroke: every minute counts. Extending travel times to Glangwili Hospital is not a neutral administrative adjustment. It is a decision with potentially life-altering consequences. Minister, before the election, you were unequivocal in your criticism of these kinds of proposals. You spoke in this Chamber about grave concerns about patient safety and about the risk of harm. You said clearly that sustainability must never come at the expense of access, and I agree with that. Those were not vague comments. They were clear commitments. Yet in Government, your office is telling local representatives that they are matters for the health board alone, with Ministers standing back and simply encouraging participation in consultation. With respect, that is not leadership, it is abdication. It is also the same approach that has been taken by previous health Ministers, some I worked for, who also relied on passing responsibility down to health boards, rather than exercising clear leadership from the centre. People in west Wales are noticing. The sense growing in our communities is that nothing is changing, except the people sitting on the Government benches. This issue is not isolated to Bronglais. In Pembrokeshire, communities are increasingly alarmed about the future of emergency and acute services at Withybush Hospital. Once again, services are being pulled further away from rural populations in the name of centralisation. Let's be honest about what this means in practice. For people in cities, it's an inconvenience. For people in rural Wales, it can be the difference between timely treatment and serious harm. That difference should be shaping Government policy, but it is not clear that it is. I also want to challenge the financial logic being used to justify these decisions. We are told that services are being removed due to cost pressures and efficiency, yet I understand that in several cases there are alternative options that would allow services to be maintained locally at relatively modest cost. In the wider context of NHS spending, these are not transformative sums, but in the context of rural communities losing access to essential services, they are absolutely critical. So, I ask the Minister directly: has a proper cost-benefit analysis been undertaken that compares maintaining local services with the long-term costs of centralisation, patient transport, increased pressure on acute hospitals, delayed diagnosis and poorer outcomes, or are we simply accepting service withdrawal because it is administratively simpler than sustaining rural provision? Because from the outside, this is how it is increasingly looking. So, I will ask the Minister three questions. First, will he be willing to commit to reviewing the insightful 'Mid Wales Healthcare Study' by Dr Longley before any irreversible changes are made to the stroke services at Bronglais? Second, will you guarantee that no services will be withdrawn until a fully staffed, fully operational and clinically safe alternative is in place? And third, will you confirm whether you are prepared to intervene, using the powers available to Welsh Ministers, where rural access to emergency and time-critical care is clearly being put at risk? Minister, the people of west Wales are not asking for privilege. They are asking for equality of access. They are asking whether this Government truly believes that a patient in Ceredigion and Pembrokeshire deserves the same chance of timely care as someone in Cardiff or Swansea. Right now, the answer they are receiving is silence wrapped in bureaucracy, deflection dressed up as process, and leadership reduced to observation. This is not good enough. It is not what was promised and it is not what rural Wales needs. If this Government will not stand up for Bronglais and Withybush now, when the services are under active threat, then people are entitled to ask a very simple question: when exactly will it act? Because if the answer is not now, not here and not us, then it is rural Wales that pays the price. Diolch yn fawr.

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1. 6. Statement by the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care: Delivering on our priorities: Reducing waiting times and strengthening primary care en

   Before I begin, I'd just like to put an interest in. Cabinet Secretary, in your statement you spoke about primary care and prevention and waiting lists. The part of primary care that was noticeably missing was NHS dentistry. From my own personal experience working in a dental surgery, and my daughter being a dental nurse, I have seen first-hand what the crisis looks like. I saw patients coming in desperate for care, begging to be put on the NHS list, even when that list was already so long that staff knew there was very little chance of them ever being seen. I saw emergency appointments being used to firefight people in severe pain, without the time or the capacity to deal with the problem. That does not help with prevention. I also saw the pressures on dentists themselves, the paperwork, the costs. For many practices, keeping NHS ongoing simply becomes unworkable. In your own manifesto, it says that only 44 per cent of people in Wales are able to access a dentist through the NHS. Cabinet Secretary, what are you going to do to reduce the waiting lists for patients in Wales, and how do you plan to stop NHS dentistry disappearing from our communities? I would also like to add, as a passionate NHS worker, I actually do care very deeply about the NHS.

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1. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care en

   Diolch, Lywydd. Minister, Plaid Cymru promised to take all reasonable steps to ensure that carers' needs assessments are completed within 28 days. The 'At breaking point' report shows that too many carers either do not know that they're entitled to the assessment, or wait too long to receive meaningful support. Will the Minister confirm when the 28-day standard will be in place across Wales, and how the Government will hold local authorities to account if they fail to meet it? Diolch.

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2. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care en

   Thank you for the response, and some of the questions that I have, actually, you've already answered. So, the committee report is very clear that poor access to respite is one of the reasons unpaid carers are being pushed to breaking point. Will the Welsh Government now commit to a national minimal standard for respite care, including emergency and night-time provision, so that support is not dependent on where the carer lives?

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3. 2. Questions to the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care en

   I look forward to that, so thank you very much. What additional funding will be made available to ensure the 28-day assessment target and improved respite provision can actually be delivered, rather than simply passed down to already very stretched local authorities?

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1. 3. Business Statement and Announcement en

   I would be grateful if the education Minister could bring forward a statement on the future of rural village schools in Wales, particularly where local authorities are bringing forward closure proposals, despite strong community concern. In Pembrokeshire, village schools such as Manorbier VC School and Ysgol Clydau are facing closure. When the village school closes, the village does not just lose a building, it loses its heart. Families are drawn away and often the shops, services and community spaces close too. These schools also provide a very particular kind of education. For some children, especially those with additional learning needs, autism, anxiety and sensory difficulties, this is where they are best able to cope and learn. At a time when children's mental health is declining and more children are struggling and feeling unable to attend school, we should be protecting the small nurturing schools where some children best thrive. The Welsh Government says rural schools should be protected. I therefore ask the education Minister to bring forward a statement setting out whether the current protections for rural village schools are strong enough and what steps the Welsh Government will take to ensure local councils cannot close them without fully providing that every alternative has properly been explored. Thank you.

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1. 1. Questions to the First Minister cy

   6. Pa gynlluniau sydd gan y Llywodraeth i fynd i'r afael â'r materion sy’n parhau i godi ym mhob maes gofal cymdeithasol? OQ64078

   Official English translation

   6. What plans does the Government have to address the ongoing issues in all areas of social care? OQ64078

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2. 1. Questions to the First Minister en

   Thank you so much for your response. As a carer myself, across Pembrokeshire and Ceredigion in my constituency, Labour has reduced the clinical role in our rural hospitals, but the community care to fill the gap has simply not been put in place. The results are delayed discharges, families left struggling, and many people denied the chance to spend their final days at home with their loved ones. We have providers across west Wales handing back contracts, refusing referrals and shelving expansion because they cannot recruit the workforce. So, after 26 years of Labour-led Government supported by your party, isn't it the truth that rural social care has been neglected and left to pick up the pieces? What concrete action will your Government take to restore front-line social care in west Wales? Diolch.

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3. 5. Statement by the Cabinet Minister for Health and Care: Health and Care Priorities en

   Welcome. No, 'congratulations' I should say, actually, not 'welcome'. You just mentioned ophthalmology. Before the election, funding had been identified to tackle the growing cataract surgery waiting list, but progress was reportedly put on hold during the election period. Now that the election is over, will the Welsh Government commit to delivering that funding in full, and can the health Minister provide a clear timetable for when patients waiting for cataract surgery will see the benefits of this investment? Thank you.

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