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Welsh Affairs

Absolutely. Then people would know that the system was fair, and not an arbitrary process. Welsh questions yesterday focused on cross-border health issues, which affect many of us on both sides of Offa's Dyke. We need to ensure not just that we have high-quality health care in Wales, but that our constituents can have treatment that is convenient for them. I greatly appreciated the Secretary of State's response yesterday, when I raised several cases with him. We need to work closely with English hospitals. They rely on Welsh patients for sustainability, and if we work together we can safeguard services for people in rural areas on both sides of the border. Given that 14 per cent. of elective surgery in Hereford is performed on Welsh patients, we must work together to keep English border hospitals open and ensure that a service is provided for everyone. As I think will be clear from my earlier remarks, I am a passionate devolutionist, but that does not mean that we cannot co-operate for the good of our local communities. My Liberal Democrat colleagues in the Assembly have secured a debate on this important matter which will take place next week, and I hope that all parties both here and in Cardiff will work together to ensure that those vital cross-border health services are maintained. During Prime Minister's questions yesterday I raised the issue of post offices, which is of concern to all Members but especially to those of us who represent rural areas. In such areas, post offices are much more than places where people can buy stamps. They provide a social service, and perform an important function in the community. I am particularly worried about possible closures of post offices that are also shops. In such cases, when the post office closes the community loses the shop as well. Next week I shall find out which post offices in my constituency face closure. I await the news with some trepidation. I have always been slightly confused by the process of setting an arbitrary figure for closures and then working out which post offices should be included in it. Given the rural nature of much of Wales, I should like to be reassured that we will not face more than our fair share of closures because of the nature of the closure programme. I asked the Prime Minister about the possibility of a moratorium on post office closures so that local communities could use the powers in the Sustainable Communities Act 2007. The Act applies only to England, but there are other powers in the strategy developed by the Assembly Government. Those powers must be given time to work. People are fed up with being told what to do by bureaucrats sitting hundreds of miles away. The Government supported the new powers; if they really support local decision making, why do they not put their money where their mouth is and let the people decide? Those same communities have also suffered badly in the past year from foot and mouth and bluetongue outbreaks. On foot and mouth, farmers will receive compensation from the Assembly Government, but the Assembly should receive compensation from the Westminster Government because it was an establishment licensed by DEFRA that allowed the outbreak in the first place. Welsh farmers do not get a fair deal at the hands of supermarkets and we are pressing the Government to accept recent recommendations to create a food ombudsman and to ensure changes. Poverty is still a big issue in Wales, which still has the highest percentage of UK pensioners living in poverty. This is a scandalous problem that can be tackled only by giving pensioners a citizen's pension, access to free personal care and a system of benefits that properly reflects the rising cost of fuel. Liberal Democrats will pursue these issues but we think that devolution is at their heart—giving the Welsh Assembly primary law-making powers so that it can address the issues directly in a method that is most appropriate to the situation in Wales.