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The thirtieth FMQs of 2023 comes to a close.

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Because of the Israel-Gaza crisis, the lights in the Senedd continue to be dimmed each evening.

Llywydd Elin Jones says it is “to reflect the sentiment that such attacks represent another dark moment for humanity in the Middle East.

"It is a source of great sorrow for a democratic institution such as ours.

"As well as reflecting the sorrow, the darkness will also represent a statement of solidarity with all those suffering as a result of the attacks.”

Conservative Darren Millar refers to two recent reports about Betsi Cadwaladr NHS board.

"The first was brought to the attention of us all by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales, who investigated a complaint - a complaint that had taken four years for the health board to consider before it was passed to the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales - about a delay in treatment for a stroke patient, which led to them becoming permanently blind in one eye and being in chronic pain. That was in spite of the fact that they attended an emergency department and should have had emergency surgery - urgent surgery. That took 11 months before they finally got it.

"In addition to that, the north Wales coroner has raised concerns following the death of a patient from pneumonia and sepsis in February last year. She died because her medical notes had been lost. She needed urgent scans and wasn't able to get them. The coroner was so concerned about this that she issued a public interest report, and she expressed the fact that she didn't feel that any lessons had been learned by staff."

The first minister replies, "both reports make for very sobering reading. I have seen the response that the health board has issued in both cases. I don't think that it is fair to characterise the board as not being interested in learning lessons. And, just as there are very difficult reports that are published recently, there are other, more encouraging, reports as well."

Mark Drakeford reveals that he often spends Saturday afternoons preparing for First Minister's Questions.

"We are subsidising bus services across Wales to a greater extent than ever before," says the first minister.

"I wish people were using the buses in the numbers that they did previously. It's a complex pattern as to why that is not the case.

"The largest fall-off in passenger numbers is amongst people who didn't pay for bus travel, for people who were exempted from travel because they were over 60 or in another qualifying category.

"Something happened during Covid that means those people are still no longer resuming the sorts of patterns of living out their lives that were there before Covid struck."

Conservative Tom Giffard says "the Welsh government's war on motorists has been met with a similar approach to public transport. Not only have bus subsidies been cut, leading to reductions in routes and timetables across Wales, we've also seen the default 20 mph scheme causing chaos with bus timetabling too".

Plaid Cymru's Sioned Williams says "cuts that reduce coverage, frequency, reliability and cause overcrowding will make the task of boosting passenger numbers more difficult".

She adds that the climate and environment committee of the Youth Parliament's call for free bus travel for young people "could help boost passenger numbers".

Image source, Welsh government

Referring to the King's Speech this morning, when King Charles read out the UK government's plan for the year ahead at the State Opening of Parliament, the first minister agrees with Plaid Cymru leader Rhun ap Iorwerth's view that it lacked ambition.

Rhun ap Iorwerth says Plaid Cymru has published a plan for Wales including "an affordable energy Bill to help people struggling to make ends meet; a fair funding Bill, scrapping the Barnett formula, stopping more HS2 great train robberies; a Bill to transfer justice powers, creating a system that works for Wales; a social security Bill, to transform the lives of people in our most disadvantaged communities; and a Bill to bring the Crown Estate under Welsh control, creating a new wealth fund and greener, well-paid jobs."

Mr Drakeford said: "There is nothing in [the King's Speech] that is going to make things in the lives of people here in Wales better and it shows a government that has no ambition for the future.

"The King's Speech is the thinnest of documents. I myself believe it's a 'clearing of the decks in advance of an election' document.

"Wales wasn't mentioned once in that speech, and I mention that particularly because Northern Rail was mentioned in it. And yet the much-vaunted north Wales electrification got no mention at all."

Andrew RT Davies, leader of the Welsh Conservatives in the Senedd, raises the topic of the UK Covid inquiry.

First Minister Mark Drakeford promises to release all WhatsApp messages.

Mr Davies asked if Mr Drakeford was "confident that deletion mechanisms or apps were not used by government ministers... or officials".

The first minister replies that as soon as the inquiry was announced, no messages were deleted, but before that point he cannot rule out that some were deleted.

Mr Drakeford says he doesn't use WhatsApp and wouldn't know how to delete messages from his phone.

Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the inquiry in May 2021, and it formally commenced in June 2022.

Mr Drakeford added: "During the Covid period itself, many colleagues working for the Welsh government would have had devices with deletion instructions already on them.

"And those things may have remained on their phones, because at that point absolutely nobody was focused on whether those messages might be required at some future distant point".

Pressed further by Mr Davies, Mr Drakeford added: "I think the fair way of putting it is, deletion may have taken place."

The comments follow a row in Scotland over the deletion of messages.

WhatsApp messages between UK officials and ministers have been a key part of recent evidence heard by the Covid inquiry.

The Scottish government has been criticised for not handing over all relevant data and former first minister Nicola Sturgeon has refused to say whether or not she had erased any messages.

A submodule of the Covid inquiry looking at the response in Wales is expected to begin public hearings in February 2024.

Llywydd Elin Jones conducts a ballot to determine the names of members who may table questions to the first minister and Welsh ministers. Each member may enter their name into a ballot.

Labour MS Hefin David asks what measures is the Welsh government taking to safely restore coal tips in Caerphilly.

Wales has more than 2,000 coal tips. Most are on private land and most are around the south Wales valleys.

Of those, 294 are categorised as "high-risk", meaning they could endanger life or property.

Seventy are in Caerphilly, 64 in Rhondda Cynon Taf, 59 in Merthyr Tydfil, 42 in Bridgend, 35 in Neath Port Talbot, 16 in Blaenau Gwent and eight in Swansea.

First Minister Mark Drakeford says the Welsh government will introduce a Bill on Disused Tip Safety next year - to "set up a world-first new system of oversight of disused tips here in Wales, making the system fit for an era of climate change" - and that a "rigorous" inspection regime is in place.

He adds that the Welsh government has made £44.4 million available in capital funding for coal tip maintenance (over financial years 2022 to 23, 2023 to 24 and 2024 to 25).

Image source, JON POUNTNEY

Hello and welcome to our live coverage of First Minister's Questions.

The meeting is held in a hybrid format, with some members in the Siambr (Senedd chamber) and others joining by video-conference.

You can click on the play button above to watch the proceedings from 1.30pm.