Questions to the Minister for Communities and Tackling Poverty

Janet Finch-Saunders – International Women’s Day; Equal Pay

Minister, following International Women’s Day yesterday, it does remain an absolute scandal that here we are in Wales in 2016 with women still doing the same job as men and still being paid less. Even today, despite the Equal Pay Act 1970, my own local authority still has a number of outstanding equal pay claims. How is your Government working with local government to ensure that such inequality for our working women stops, and it stops right now?

Lesley Griffiths

Well, I’d be very happy to write to local authorities to remind them of those duties before the end of this term.

Janet Finch-Saunders – Communities First Funding

Further to the figures raised by my colleague Janet Haworth, and according to your response to my recent WAQ, since 2013, £14.6 million of Communities First funding has been returned by lead delivery bodies across Wales. Now, recently, on my Communities, Equalities and Local Government Committee, we led a poverty inquiry, where resources were identified as a much needed priority. Would you look into why this Communities First returned money has just simply gone back into Welsh Government coffers and hasn’t been used for its intended aim, and that is to reduce the poverty levels here in Wales?

Lesley Griffiths

I think I just gave the answer to that question in a previous question to Janet Haworth.

N.B. Janet Haworth

7. Will the Minister make a statement on Communities First funding in North Wales?

Lesley Griffiths

Thank you. I’ve protected next year’s Communities First funding. Current funding available across north Wales’s eight clusters is over £4.4 million. Indicative figures have been provided to lead delivery bodies for 2016-17. Delivery plans for next year are being assessed and final-offer letters will issue at the conclusion of the exercise.

Janet Haworth

Thank you, Minister, for that data; it is quite reassuring. But the data for the last financial year shows that four councils in north Wales returned over 10 per cent of their Communities First grant during their last full financial year, with north Wales councils making up four of the top five repayers in percentage terms. Minister, your Government does make great play of the importance of Communities First money, so can you explain why so much is returned to your Government each year, and what actions are you putting in place to ensure that the funds allocated to this project are fully used?

Lesley Griffiths

One of the highest costs of Communities First funding is obviously the staff and, when delivery plans are put forward, there will be staff costings within that plan. If all the funding is not spent—if there is a time when all posts aren’t filled, for instance, or if somebody leaves and they’re not able to fill that post—that money then has to be returned, and I think that’s absolutely right and proper.