Questions in the Welsh Assembly on support for members of the Armed Forces

Alun Davies AM, Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services

Presiding Officer, we have made tremendous progress over the past two years and will continue to build on that progress. I set out in my written statement in April the future support the Welsh Government will provide to the armed forces community.

Mohammad Asghar (Oscar) AM

Thank you very much for that reply. We earlier enjoyed a great Royal Air Force centenary in the Senedd with a whole group of Royal Air Force air chief marshals and the top Assembly Members there. It's a great day for the Assembly. The cross-party group on the armed forces and cadets recently undertook an inquiry into the impact of the armed forces covenant on forces personnel. This inquiry identified issues around how public sector organisations fulfill their obligations, including insufficient accountability for delivery of the covenant, a lack of awareness among public sector staff and unsustainability in how Government-related activities are funded. How does the Cabinet Secretary intend to address these concerns, and will he reconsider his decision to reject an armed forces commissioner for Wales, please?

Alun Davies AM

Presiding Officer, I'm not sure that's an entirely—how shall I say—balanced view of that report, but, in terms of the support that we provide for the armed forces community in totality, I will continue to keep that under review. I've made a statement on how we will be responding to the report of the cross-party group—a report that I value greatly, I must say—and we will look at how we can strengthen different areas of support.

But, I will say to the Member that this is mainstreamed into our work as well. I spoke yesterday at a conference in Cardiff on how we provide specific support, and need to provide specific support, on additional learning needs to children who are from the armed forces community. Last week, I visited Parc prison in Bridgend and spoke there to members of staff who are working on the Endeavour wing, which is dedicated for members of the armed forces community. So, whilst we will continue to provide specific support for veterans and for those serving in our armed forces, we will also ensure that it is mainstreamed into all the work of this Government.