Agenda and minutes
Venue: Committee Room 4 - Tŷ Hywel. View directions
Contact: Graeme Francis
Media
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Transcript: Transcript for 29/09/2020 - Petitions Committee - Fifth Senedd
No. | Item |
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Introduction, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Chair welcomed Members to the meeting Apologies were received from Michelle Brown MS. |
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New COVID-19 Petitions |
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P-05-1006 Release the £59 million to the arts to prevent local grassroots music venues from closure Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to write back to the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport and Tourism to ask:
The Committee indicated an intention to close the petition
once this information has been received. |
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P-05-1013 Provide financial support for self-employed individuals within the Welsh live music industry Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and
noted the financial support for individuals due to be available from 5 October.
The Committee agreed to write back to the Deputy Minister for Culture, Sport
and Tourism to seek further information about the eligibility criteria for the
funding available to individual
freelancers under the Cultural Recovery Fund, and ask how the Government
will keep that criteria under review if evidence shows that people employed in
this sector ‘fall through the gaps’. |
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P-05-1011 Virtual On-line teacher-led lessons to be provided for all school children Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to write back to the Minister in relation to this petition and P-05-1015, to outline the concerns raised and ask what plans are now in place, should circumstances change further during the autumn term due to national or local restrictions, to ensure there are resources available to support remote or online teaching of all pupils. The Committee also agreed to ask how many pupils in Wales do not have access to the Internet for the purposes of accessing online teaching at home, according to Government data. |
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P-05-1015 Categorise schools as critical infrastructure Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to write back to the Minister in relation to this petition and P-05-1011, to outline the concerns raised and ask what plans are now in place, should circumstances change further during the autumn term due to national or local restrictions, to ensure there are resources available to support remote or online teaching of all pupils. The Committee also agreed to ask how many pupils in Wales do not have access to the Internet for the purposes of accessing online teaching at home, according to Government data. |
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P-05-1017 Allow pupils to wear masks in all areas of the school premises Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time
and, given that the Welsh Government have issued guidance to schools and are
reviewing the policy around face masks regularly, agreed to close the petition. In doing so, the Committee agreed to provide the
petitioner’s recent comments to the Minister for Education for use in those
reviews. |
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P-05-1020 Introduce an Appeals process in Wales for all Centre Assessed Grades for 2020 public exam programme Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the response from the Minister for Education before considering the petition further. |
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Other New petitions |
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P-05-995 Freedom to Donate Blood Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to thank the petitioner for raising this important issue and: ·
write back to the Minister for Health and Social
Services to share the response provided by the petitioners and request that the
Welsh Government considers expressing support for the principle of using a more
individualised donor selection policy instead of the current three month
deferral period to the Department of Health Advisory Committee on the Safety of
Blood, Tissues and Organs (SaBTO) and the Joint Professional Advisory Committee
on Donor Selection; and ·
keep a watching brief on this issue in light of
the work being carried out by the FAIR (For the Assessment of Individualised
Risk) steering group and due to be considered by SaBTO in late 2020, and to
consider the petition again at that point. |
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P-05-1007 Merge Hope and Caergwrle into a two-member ward in the County of Flintshire Supporting documents:
Minutes: Jack Sargeant declared the following relevant interest under Standing Order 17.24A: The petitioners are known to him and he has previously expressed
support for the principle of merging the wards referred to by the petition. The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to write back to the Minister for Housing and Local Government to share the concerns of the petitioner over enacting boundary changes during the Coronavirus pandemic and ask:
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P-05-1008 Teach mental health first aid in schools in Wales Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the response from the Minister for Education before considering the petition further. |
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P-05-1009 Mandate Welsh Councils to apply a minimum 100% Council Tax surcharge on second homes Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and
agreed to seek information about how many councils in Wales currently use the
discretionary power to charge council tax premiums for second homes. |
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P-05-1010 An independent inquiry into the 2020 flooding in Rhondda Cynon Taf so that lessons are learned Supporting documents:
Minutes: Leanne Wood declared the following relevant interest under Standing Order 17.24A: She knows the
petitioner and has shared the petition within her constituency. The Committee considered the petition for the first time and
agreed to write to Business Committee to seek time for a plenary debate on the
petition. |
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P-05-1012 Oxygen chamber therapy for fibromyalgia patients on the NHS Supporting documents:
Minutes: Leanne Wood declared the following relevant interest under Standing Order 17.24A: She believes that she may know the petitioner. The Committee considered the petition for the first time and
agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the information provided by the
Minister for Health and Social Services before considering whether to take any
further action. |
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P-05-1016 Extend the new Green Homes Grant to Wales Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered the petition for the first time and
agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the information provided by the
Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs before considering whether
to take any further action. |
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Updates to previous petitions |
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P-05-960 Fund the funeral costs of all NHS staff who die from or with Covid-19 Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered further correspondence and agreed
to note the Minister’s intention to consider further advice and write again to
the Committee once this has been received. |
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P-05-868 Water Safety/Drowning Prevention and the effects of Cold Water Shock to be taught in all Schools in Wales Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and
agreed to await the anticipated launch of a Wales Water Safety Strategy and
further views from the petitioner before considering whether to take any
further action on the petition. |
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P-05-933 Ban Goldfish from being given away at funfairs.#OperationGoldfish Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and, in
light of the information provided by the Minister for Environment that work to
make The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Animal Exhibits) (Wales) Regulations 2020
has been postponed due to the impact of Covid-19 and that the Wales Animal
Health and Welfare Framework Group will consider the giving of animals as
prizes in the future, the Committee concluded that there was little further
that it could achieve at this time. The Committee agreed to close the petition
and thank the petitioner for bringing the issue forward. |
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P-05-941 Biodiversity Remit for NRW Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and noted
that the Remit Letter for NRW for 2020/21 makes reference to biodiversity. The
Committee agreed to write to the Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural
Affairs to ask her to give further consideration to whether the resources
available to NRW are sufficient to ensure that it can appropriately prioritise
work on biodiversity in addition to its other responsibilities. |
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P-05-951 Impose a legal limit on the maximum number of breeding bitches in licensed dog breeding establishments in Wales Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and
agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the response received from the
Minister for Environment before considering whether there is any further action
that it could take on the petition. |
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P-05-953 Ban Single Use Plastic Milk Bottles in schools Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and
agreed to await the views of the petitioners on the latest response received
from the Deputy Minister for Housing and Local Government. |
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P-05-965 Push the government into introducing a separate ward other than maternity ward, for families going through a miscarriage Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and
agreed to write to the Minister for Health and Social Services to ask him to
intervene to ensure that all health boards are supported and enabled to provide
separate facilities for people who are going through miscarriage. The Committee also agreed to write to all health boards to highlight the petition and the issues raised by the petitioner and ask:
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P-05-940 Reduce cancelled operations Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered comments from the petitioner and agreed to write back to the Minister for Health and Social Services to ask for a breakdown of figures in relation to cancelled operations for the 5 years prior to 2020, including:
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P-05-798 Male domestic violence victim support services to be independently run & funded Supporting documents:
Minutes: Consideration of this petition was deferred to the following
meeting at the request of the petitioner. |
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P-05-898 Ban the use of A boards in Wales Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered an update on the petition and agreed to await the views of the petitioner on the response from the Minister for Housing and Local Government before deciding how to proceed with the petition. |
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P-05-913 Creation of Lôn Las Môn Multi-Use Path Supporting documents:
Minutes: The
Committee considered a number of updates on the petition and In light of the
responses received, including the Welsh Government’s desire to maintain a rail
solution cited by both the Minister and Network Rail, and the ongoing
negotiations over a lease of the line for heritage rail, it is unlikely that
the aims of the petitioners can be met. The
Committee agreed to close the petition and thank the petitioners for their
engagement with the process. |
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P-05-932 Education On Food Allergies In Schools & Mandatory EPI PEN Training Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee considered correspondence on the petition and
agreed to write back to the Minister for Education to ask whether the planned
review of its approach to allergies has been impacted by the pandemic, and to
the WLGA to ask for details of the work being taken forward on special diets in
schools. |
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P-05-950 Agriculture and Countryside Education for 4-16-year olds in our schools Supporting documents:
Minutes: The Committee noted the Minister’s
responses on this petition and agreed to close the petition, given the lack of
contact received from the petitioner and the scrutiny work being carried out into the Curriculum and Assessment (Wales)
Bill and the Children, Young People and Education Committee. |