Jayne Bryant
Casnewydd Islwyn · Welsh Labour · Wales
“As we were talking about earlier, part of it is being registered, but also we need to encourage and make people feel that they are able to cast their vote in an informed manner. So, there is still a lot to do.”
“Diolch, Deputy Llywydd. I welcome the opportunity to set out work under way to improve Wales’s democracy. This encompasses both work by the Welsh Government on electoral administration and reform, and also work of other organisations that we are supporting.”
“In terms of the automatic registration pilots and how will they work, we've got those areas—Carmarthenshire, Gwynedd, Newport and Powys—and those authorities are going to be using local data to identify and verify potential electors before adding them to the local government register after a waiting period.”
“The new board has the potential to drive this further, in combination with clearer rules in the conduct Order and the standards set by the Electoral Commission. Finally, the Electoral Commission’s report last week on the recent elections drew out the issues of harassment and abuse of candidates.”
“The Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Act places duties on Welsh Ministers to introduce schemes to support people with a range of protected characteristics and from a range of socioeconomic backgrounds to stand for election.”
“Moving to principal councils, the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 gave them the option to choose between first-past-the-post and single transferable vote systems for their elections. Three local authorities, Ceredigion, Gwynedd and Powys, agreed to consult on whether to change to STV.”
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“Certain houses in multiple occupation will be in scope of the fire safety provisions in the Bill. However, they will not be subject to the wider duties that will be introduced through the Bill, such as registration, as they are already regulated. I'm pleased to confirm local authorities will regulate the new occupation phase regime, including holding the register of in-scope buildings. They will work closely with the fire and rescue authorities, who will remain responsible for regulating many of the fire safety measures that will form part of the Bill. As the regulators for the new regime, it is important local authorities contribute to the development of our policy for the Bill. To this end, we have held a series of workshops, attended by local authorities and the fire and rescue authorities, that have helped inform our thinking.”
“The Bill will establish a new regime in Wales focusing on the occupation phase of a building’s life cycle. It will cover the regulation of building safety risks in multi-occupied residential buildings. The new regime will include, with some exceptions, all residential buildings that contain two or more residential units, and not just those of 18m and above. Deputy Llywydd, accountability is at the heart of our proposals. Our plans include the introduction of accountable persons, who will be responsible for assessing and managing building safety risks in these buildings. Responsibilities will differ depending on building height, but across all in-scope buildings the proposals will place statutory duties on accountable persons, with a principal accountable person for each building having certain key duties.”
“The Welsh Government accepted the recommendations and we are reviewing the findings to take the necessary works forward. To date, we have introduced tighter regulations of higher risk buildings, as well as a new regulatory system for registration and oversight of the building control profession, including building control approvers and building inspectors working in both the private sector and local authorities. The next stage of reforms to the building control regime in Wales will deal with dutyholder roles, gateways, golden thread of information, mandatory occurrence reporting and compliance, and stop notices. A consultation on these reforms is scheduled for spring 2025. Today, I am pleased to confirm the building safety (Wales) Bill will be introduced before summer recess in 2025.”
“Diolch, Deputy Llywydd. The Grenfell Tower inquiry phase 2 report published in September reiterates the need for urgent and decisive action. Officials are carefully considering the report’s recommendations, but our initial view is that the recommendations align well with our intended reforms in Wales. I am therefore pleased to have this opportunity to share the progress being made to address building safety in Wales, including progress to reform the design, construction and occupation of buildings, as well as progress on remediating buildings in Wales. I’d like to start with an update on the new building control regime in Wales. As members will be aware, a review of building safety in Wales was conducted by the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee, the recommendations of which were published in August 2024.”
“It’s going to take a two-pronged approach, through an advice service and through physically improving the homes of the fuel poor. The scheme is in its infancy and my officials are reviewing progress to ensure that the programme meets its primary objectives. Free energy savings advice is available to all householders in Wales and I’ve also introduced a crisis route for vulnerable households without heating and hot water on 7 October, and I’m pleased that this service has already helped 26 vulnerable households.”
“Diolch, Russell. We're investing more than £30 million this year in the new Warm Homes Nest scheme to reduce the number of low-income households living in cold, damp homes. Eligible households will receive a bespoke package of measures to insulate and decarbonise their home, leading to lower energy bills and moving them out of fuel poverty. We are targeting the least well-off, and so that income threshold has been introduced, rather than relying solely on that means-tested benefit. The new Warm Homes programme does respond to the current cost-of-living crisis and it takes a fabric, worst and low-carbon first approach to improve the long-term energy efficiency of the least thermally efficient low-income households in Wales.”
“We are in the early stages of the new Warm Homes programme, which is an ambitious programme to tackle fuel poverty and the climate emergency. Officials are undertaking a six-month review to ensure the scheme meets the requirements of Welsh householders.”
“Diolch, Natasha. Local authorities make decisions. They are accountable for their decisions, so I do agree that local authorities make those decisions and are accountable for them.”
“Local authorities in Wales are democratically accountable bodies. Audit Wales, Estyn and Care Inspectorate Wales assess their performance. This includes consideration of their compliance with statutory requirements and guidance.”
“The Welsh Government does undertake a rural-proofing assessment as part of its integrated impact assessments when developing any policy, and we are committed to eradicating poverty and agree that support should be available to everyone in all parts of Wales. As I said, we do recognise that lived experiences of poverty can be different for many in rural areas.”
“Diolch, Cefin, and thank you for raising the issues within rural communities. We do recognise that there are particular challenges in rural communities, associated with things like the cost of living and poverty, for example. We know that there are those challenges, and I've heard from local authorities on that in particular, and I'm looking forward to visiting Carmarthenshire and Pembrokeshire in the next week, I think—so, very shortly—and I'm sure I'll hear some of those issues that you've raised today. It's not the Welsh Government's intention to develop a rural strategy. We are committed to delivering support across all parts of Wales through a range of policy interventions and funding mechanisms, and we remain steadfast in our core priorities.”
“Diolch, Cefin. The Welsh Government will continue to protect local authority services as far as possible, including in rural areas. We're committed to continuing to use and maintain a fair and transparent funding formula for all local authorities, which is agreed with local government.”
“So, we do know that there are lots of things to do on this, but I think this does—. Community-led and co-operative housing certainly has its role, but we know that it's a small sector.”
“Diolch, Altaf, and, as I said earlier, affordable housing is and should be a priority that we all support. We know that we can't solely continue to deliver homes in the traditional way, which is why innovative housing solutions have been mainstreamed into the social housing grant funding programme. I'd like to encourage all RSLs and local authorities to explore alternative housing solutions, such as community-led housing, as a mechanism to meet the needs of their communities. To support this, we've launched a range of initiatives that will deliver more genuinely affordable homes as quickly as possible to meet that housing need, such as our transitional accommodation capital programme, or as I know it and many in the sector do, TACP, and, as I mentioned earlier, Leasing Scheme Wales.”
“So, we are working with Cwmpas on a future package of support to continue the growing of the sector, and I'm looking forward to the publication of research being undertaken by Cardiff University and Co-op Dan Do to support needs for the sector.”
“Diolch, Mike, and getting John Lennon into a question is no mean feat, so thank you for that. It must be recognised that we do have different models in Wales when compared to some European countries, and our traditional social housing model is one where local authorities and registered social landlords play a central role. The Danish model, for example, has chosen to drive forward community-led housing instead of our more traditional social housing approach. But we do look to learn where we can. Community-led housing is and continues to be an important part of the housing solution in Wales. We're focusing our efforts on our ambition to end homelessness by providing support at both ends, providing more homes alongside early intervention, prevention and support systems.”
“Diolch, Mike. We're committed to supporting the development of co-operative and community-led housing in Wales. We have increased funding through Cwmpas to £180,000 annually between 2022-23 and 2024-25. Cwmpas is prioritising support for 41 community-led housing groups seeking to deliver affordable housing in Wales.”
“It includes events such as the one being planned for spring 2025 that showcases best practice and develops new approaches to encourage greater diversity in local democracy. So, there are ways, but we do take that very seriously.”
“Diolch, Mark, and thank you—I know you've raised these sorts of issues over a number of years now—and for the work that you do with disabled people's groups as well. I know that you have a long-standing history of that. The Welsh Government does take a leadership role in promoting the Equality Act across the public sector, including in social partnership, through the workforce partnership council, and the workforce partnership council has promoted the Disability Confident scheme across the public sector, social partners, and produced a variety of statements and reports on diversity, monitoring and things like the gender pay gap. So, there is work ongoing, and I think that it's really important that we also find where there are areas of best practice and how we can share that. There are opportunities where that happens.”
“Diolch, Mark. Local authorities are democratically accountable to their electorate. Responsibility for regulating and enforcing the Equality Act 2010 and the public sector equality duty falls to the Equality and Human Rights Commission.”
“Diolch, Luke. I know of yours and Tom's, and, I know, the Deputy First Minister's, interest in this area. I think, from my perspective, it's hopeful and helpful to know about the new community liaison manager who answers queries from residents, and I think it's important that I can feed that back and that that is fed back to the community liaison manager as well, because I think, as you say, communication is so important, isn't it, if residents have been living with this for such a long time. I think that we can make sure that communication is as clear as possible for residents. So, I'll take that information back as well. But I think it's important that there is somewhere for people to go. There is a drop-in session that happens, as I say, at least weekly, and I would encourage residents to go to that as well.”
“And in terms of the lessons learnt, some of the things from the lessons learnt, from those legacy issues at Caerau, have influenced our new Warm Homes programme, in which we have incorporated a higher standard of quality assurance. Just to say, officials are in regular contact with the local authority and we will receive progress updates on a quarterly basis, but I will also ask my officials to update Members of the Senedd as well. But there are some lessons to be learnt as well as that Warm Homes programme, for example, reducing potential conflicts of interest by letting separate contracts for our advice and referral provider and our delivery provider, introducing key performance indicators for complaints received. So, there are lessons that we definitely need to learn, and I can assure you that that is what we're doing.”
“Diolch, Tom, and, again, I'd just like to put on record that I recognise and understand the frustration of home owners in Caerau. I know this, as you say, has been a long-standing issue, and I know that residents are being kept informed of progress now. I know that drop-in sessions happen at least weekly, and I know that there will be opportunities to meet an appointed co-ordinator. Bridgend County Borough Council have appointed that community liaison manager to answer any queries from concerned residents, so I just hope that everybody could share that as well with residents in Caerau to make sure that they are aware of those weekly meetings.”
“Diolch, Tom. Welsh Government has awarded £2.65 million of grant funding to Bridgend County Borough Council for remedial works on affected homes in Caerau. My officials recently met with BCBC and we will receive an update on progress to treat the affected properties in early December.”
“But I really would encourage Members to share that video as much as possible, and perhaps I could write to all Members to make sure you've all got that information.”
“That actually looks at some private landlords who might actually be looking to leave or give up their property, or perhaps have a property that's empty, and that's a scheme that local authorities administer, so they can contact their local authorities. And I think it's just something that we can help promote. There is a video on Welsh Government website with Rent Smart Wales. Rent Smart Wales, I believe, have sent out information to landlords who might be interested in Leasing Scheme Wales. It started off small. It's only been announced recently, but we are making some really good progress. Some local authorities have only just brought it online, so I know, when I was speaking to Torfaen, that that's just come on.”
“As I say, I do agree and I've seen where it's started to be done really well. Earlier this week I visited Torfaen County Borough Council, and just across from where they are they're redeveloping an empty property within Pontypool town centre, which will be for assisted accommodation, assisted living, which is really, really interesting. So, I look forward to that scheme opening, but that's just another example, perhaps, on our high streets of seeing a building that isn't suitable or no longer used being brought back to life with people living in it. I'd also like to take the opportunity to mention our Leasing Scheme Wales campaign. I try to encourage it as much as I can when I go to all local authorities, and I just think if every Member here could also look into the Leasing Scheme Wales campaign that we have got going on—.”
“We've got our land and buildings development fund, which is about low-carbon homes through a strong, short supply chain to make use of modern methods of construction. We also know that we've got our empty homes grant. Just for you to know, we've had 904 valid applications for this scheme to date and 122 of those properties completed. But I can write to you on specific funds, and perhaps you could write to me about that particular scheme that you mentioned as well, because I'd be very interested to hear about that.”
“Diolch, Adam. I do very much understand the situation of our town centres, in particular, are facing, and when we see empty properties in those town centres I think we all look at them and think, 'Could they be used for businesses or accommodation?' I know of some places like in my own constituency, actually, where they've worked really hard to put—. The local registered social landlord has actually bought up some of those properties and created extra housing in the city centre, which has been really successful to bring people to the high street as well. So, this is something we are obviously keen on and looking at, and working with local authorities and RSLs to ensure that that happens. We do have a number of loans and grant schemes that are available that might be useful to know, and different funds.”
“Diolch, Adam. Through our funding programmes, we're working with local authorities to redevelop empty properties, including empty commercial properties across Wales, with many of these disused properties being revitalised for mixed-use development, including residential housing.”
“I can certainly make sure that we write to you further on that, because this is something that I know local authorities are very concerned about. Again, I speak to them regularly, and social care is one of those challenges that comes up time and time again. I’ve heard the pressure that they’ve been under and face, and I know that the finance Secretary is very much aware of that as well. I can make sure we write to you with some further information specifically on that.”
“Diolch, Peredur. HM Treasury have acknowledged that the change to employer national insurance contributions from April will increase costs for public sector employers, and they’ve said that they’ll provide funding to the public sector to support them with additional costs associated with these changes. We’re working with HM Treasury to clarify the details, and I can assure you that we’ll provide further information as soon as we possibly can.”
“In terms of local authorities in particular, I obviously meet local authority leaders regularly, I speak to them regularly. And this is all about how we work in partnership to deliver the best that we possibly can, because local authorities have been under a huge amount of pressure over a number of years now, and we’ve done the best we can here in Wales to protect our local authorities. They’ve been under that pressure, as I say, for a number of years, and I’m very acutely aware of that and I hear that directly from them.”
“Diolch, Peredur. You know, we have to remember here that we've got that £22 billion black hole from the previous UK Governments that the new Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, has started to have to fix. The position of the new UK Government that we've inherited cannot be turned around in one budget, and I think we have to be aware of that, and it's going to take time for public finances to recover. The budget is welcome and it's a welcome investment in Wales, its people and its communities, local businesses and public services. You know that the wider financial context remains challenging, remains difficult, but the budget does represent vital first steps forward to fixing that damage that we have inherited.”
“And I will work in partnership across all elements of the sector to see how we can do this, because it is really important we come together. We all have this ambition, and I think we need to really focus on how we can deliver for people in Wales.”
“Thank you, Mark. We do have a proud record of delivery in difficult circumstances here in Wales in terms of housing. We've provided record levels of funding to support the delivery of social housing in this Senedd term; it's more than £1.4 billion allocated. Despite the challenging budgets that we have seen over the last 14 years, we have protected the budget for social housing. In 2023-24, we awarded an additional £61 million on top of the original £300 million budget for that social housing grant, but there is always more to be done. You know, I'm very acutely aware of that, and I'm really focused on what more we can do together. And that's why one of the reasons I wrote to all the registered social landlords, and wrote to local authorities, to see what more can be done.”
“We’re seeing a UK Government who want to fix the foundations of the country, after the budget and the last 14 years of economic mismanagement we’ve had by the previous Government. We know that we need to build more houses. As I said, we're looking at what more we can do, and I can assure you that I, the First Minister and the Minister for Delivery, and our new taskforce will be very much focused on that, because we know that there are too many people in temporary accommodation. You mentioned the human cost of that, and I do feel that myself very strongly. We often see numbers and we see those statistics, but behind those are individuals.”
“Thank you, Mark, and I can assure you that I’ll be making that argument around the housing support grant around the Cabinet table. I’ve heard directly from people and organisations, as you’ve outlined in your question, and we know that the housing support grant has been really, really important, and the uplift that we’ve managed to put in that. We’ve done as much as we can possibly do in the last budget round, but I really think that the work of people who work in the sector is incredible, and, without that, we just put more pressure on other parts of the system. Going back to the first question—apologies—that you did raise around the UK Government budget, again, this is something that we’re looking at very carefully. We have our budget-setting process going on, as you know, at the moment, but we’re doing all we can to fix—.”
“We all know that we need to build more houses, and that is something that we’re looking to do, as we have done in the past, and we want to see where these blockages are and make sure we do what we can to unblock them.”
“Thank you, Mark. In terms of your point on affordable homes, I think affordable housing is, and really should be, a priority that we all support in this Chamber. In terms of the work we’re putting in on building more homes, we have—. Over the summer, I wrote to all local authorities, all registered social landlords, and asked them specifically what were the red flags in their programmes in terms of building more homes to rent in the social sector, and we’ve got that information now. And, again, I’ve announced a taskforce as part of that, which will look at the specific blockages within that. So, I think we are doing everything we can, and I really feel that there is that pace behind it.”
“Thank you, Gareth. As I said in response to Luke Fletcher, in our recently published White Paper, we are not currently proposing to take forward national rent control measures. As I said, the White Paper is looking to approve the affordability of the private rented sector by exploring how to achieve better and more localised rent data, to improve our understanding of the market rents. We confirmed to social landlords back in May that the current rent settlement, CPI+1, would be extended to cover the next financial year, while we're working with the sector to develop our proposals for a future social rent policy, thereby providing them certainty for 2026. We're going to consult on our proposals for a new social rent policy for Wales next summer.”
“So, we've considered a range of evidence, which has informed the White Paper, and, as I said, that evidence available at the moment indicates that rent control measures would likely be ineffective, and, as I said, may have that adverse impact on affordability.”
“Diolch, Luke. The evidence from the Green Paper consultation, and evidence from the national rent cap in Scotland, indicates that rent control measures are unlikely to be effective and may have an adverse impact on the affordability and supply. Scotland have now lifted their national rent cap and are now taking forward legislation that will require the collection of rent data and provision for local authorities to apply for specific areas to be designated a rent pressure zone. We've always been clear that we would not introduce rent controls without an understanding of the potential unintended consequences of rent control on the private rented sector.”
“Diolch, Luke. Available evidence on rent controls in the private rented sector indicates such measures would likely to be ineffective or may even have negative impacts on affordability. As such, and as set out in our recently published White Paper, we are not currently proposing to take forward national rent control measures.”
“And I'm also keen to see how we can support good landlords who provide high-quality, safe and affordable accommodation, so that people feel safe to stay and invest in the sector for the future.”
“A tenant may also be entitled, under the new occupation contracts, to withhold their rent if they have reported issues affecting the habitability of the property and the landlord has failed to rectify the issue. So, there are ways to make sure that tenants have recourse to this. But I would just like to put on record that we do have the White Paper on adequate housing, and we’re keen to look at annual check-ins that will confirm whether landlords and properties are active in the sector to ensure that we’ve got up-to-date data rather than waiting for the end of the five-year registration or licensing period, so we've got a better understanding of who's in that. So, we do have the White Paper at the moment.”
“Thank you for that question and for raising your constituent's concerns and their situation, as well as Sam's in his initial question. Again, if a landlord is in breach of standards set out in the fitness for human habitation regulations, then the tenant should report that, as your constituents have, to the relevant local authority. The local authority then should inform Rent Smart Wales of any enforcement or improvement notices that have been served on a landlord or, if they fail to rectify that issue, Rent Smart Wales can issue fixed-penalty notices and consider revoking a landlord's licence, which would mean that they could no longer legally manage the letting and would need to appoint an agent.”
“Diolch, Sam, and I'm sorry to hear about the issues that your constituents have. Rent Smart Wales is responsible for the registration and licensing of landlords, ensuring that they’re trained and meet requirements in respect of being fit and proper persons. If the landlord is in breach of standards set out in the Renting Homes (Fitness for Human Habitation) (Wales) Regulations 2022, then the tenant should report this to the relevant local authority's environmental health team, who have the responsibility to investigate those breaches. So, if a landlord is in breach of their contract, then any notices that they may serve in the future, including for rent or a no-fault eviction, may be invalid. So, I’d very much make sure that your constituents are raising that with the local authority.”
“Diolch. We are committed to using all available levers to ensure we maintain a viable private rented sector in Wales, offering high-quality and choice of accommodation. We have a number of grant schemes that are available to landlords or tenants and provide guidance and information through Rent Smart Wales.”