Siambr · Louise Emery
Written questions
10 written questions on record from the Seventh Senedd on, newest first. Page 1 of 1.
WQ100748 · Tabled · Answered
How is the Welsh Government working with the Welsh Ambulance Service Trust to reduce the amount of time taken to respond to category red calls?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Health and Care
The Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust is taking forward a programme of work to optimise performance through its new clinical response model. This includes strengthening clinical triage and navigation arrangements so that more people receive assessment by the most appropriate clinician and are directed to the most suitable care pathway, helping to reduce demand on emergency ambulance resources while ensuring people receive timely care according to their clinical needs. The work also includes reviewing workforce and clinical navigator capacity and improving operational processes ahead of winter.
Improving ambulance availability also requires whole-system action. We are working with the Trust and health boards to reduce ambulance handover delays, improve hospital flow and discharge and strengthen community alternatives.
NHS Wales Performance and Improvement is scrutinising improvement plans and trajectories, and the clinical response model is being independently evaluated to assess its impact on response times, patient outcomes and system performance.
WQ100631 · Tabled · Answered
Why is self-catering accommodation not included in the permanent 30 per cent reduction in business rates from April 2027?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Finance
This support is focussed on the businesses at the heart of thriving high streets and town centres across Wales, as set out in my oral statement on this matter on 15 September.
WQ100059 · Tabled · Answered
What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the financial impact of the wildfires on the self-catering sector?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Enterprise, Connectivity and Energy
We recognise that the presence of wildfires in a region may affect self-catering lettings. I am aware that the recent fires in the Rhinogydd in the Sychnant Pass and Blaenavon caused temporary disruption to local campsites and holiday lets. There is currently limited published evidence quantifying impacts on the tourism sector or self-catering accommodation specifically however we are monitoring the effects of these incidents on affected communities.
WQ100003 · Tabled · Answered
What plans does the Cabinet Minister have to implement the Welsh Government's commitment to reform the business rates system, including the anticipated timetable for doing so?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Finance
Our manifesto included a range of specific commitments related to the reform of the non-domestic rates system. I will set out further details on our proposals, including the timing of implementation, in due course.
WQ99998 · Tabled · Answered
Will the Cabinet Minister work with Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board to develop plans to expand the opening hours and services offered at Mold Community Hospital Minor Injuries Unit?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Health and Care
The provision and opening hours of Minor Injuries Units are matters for local health boards, which are responsible for the planning and delivery of services to meet the needs of their communities.
Welsh Government supports the development of local, community-based models of care through our Community by Design programme, helping more people access the right care closer to home.
We are also developing a new Emergency and Acute Care Policy Framework for Wales, which will help inform how urgent and emergency care services evolve over the coming years to improve access, quality and outcomes for patients, including the contribution of community-based urgent care services.
WQ99924 · Tabled · Answered
Will the Cabinet Minister review the previous Welsh Government’s decision that Event Wales funding should not be used to relieve budget pressures arising from existing core event delivery costs?
Answered by Trefnydd, Chief Whip and Cabinet Minister for Culture and Sport
It is important that funding criteria remain fit for purpose, and I will be considering this as part of the wider development of the new Culture and Sport Strategy. Any approach must ensure public funding delivers value for money and wider benefits while supporting a sustainable events sector.
WQ99923 · Tabled · Answered
What steps will the Welsh Government take in 2026/27 to support projects that will open unnavigable sections of the Montgomery Canal?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Rural Resilience and Sustainability
Canals are a reserved issue led by the Westminster Government. The Welsh Government is supportive of the Canal & Rivers Trust project to restore unnavigable sections of the canal, but is not directly involved in funding the project.
WQ99922 · Tabled · Answered
Will the Cabinet Minister remove the requirement for all listed buildings to require Listed Building Consent when replacing old windows with UPVC?
Answered by Trefnydd, Chief Whip and Cabinet Minister for Culture and Sport
There are no plans to remove the requirement for listed building consent where proposed works would affect the special architectural or historic interest of a listed building, including the replacement of traditional windows with inappropriate modern alternatives.
Listed building consent is an important safeguard that enables changes to be considered on a case-by-case basis, balancing the need for adaptation and continued use with the protection of a building's special interest.
WQ99921 · Tabled · Answered
When the Welsh Government expect to publish an implementation plan setting out the steps and timescales to commence the Planning (Wales) Act 2026 and the Planning (Consequential Provisions) (Wales) Act 2026?
Answered by Cabinet Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning
The Welsh Government will publish the implementation plan by the end of this month and will notify stakeholders.
WQ99920 · Tabled · Answered
Will the Cabinet Minister review how the process of restoring historic buildings and gardens in Wales can be streamlined?
Answered by Trefnydd, Chief Whip and Cabinet Minister for Culture and Sport
Historic buildings, parks and gardens are central to Wales’s culture, character and identity. They contribute to our sense of place, and it is important that they are managed appropriately so that repair, restoration and sustainable reuse can take place while safeguarding their special qualities.
There are currently no plans for a review of the Historic Environment (Wales) Act 2023, but Cadw officials have an ongoing programme of updating and extending the suite of guidance and supporting conservation officers within the Local Authorities to support effective and efficient delivery.
Official verbatim record: each question and answer as the Record prints it. Answers are signed with a job title, as published.