National Assembly for Wales

Immigration and asylum decisions are reserved to the UK Government, but the Welsh Government has an important role in supporting integration, safeguarding and community cohesion. Our approach is evidence-led, drawing on available data, partner engagement and lived experience. We work with partners to prevent harm, support victims and survivors, including women and girls, and maintain public confidence.

The Welsh Government regularly engages with faith leaders and communities of faith and belief, ensuring that their views inform our work, support inter-faith dialogue and promote community cohesion. I look forward to meeting faith leaders later this month.

Tackling child poverty is a cross-government priority, and I work closely with the Cabinet Secretary for Education and the Welsh Language to reduce financial barriers to learning. Alongside the School Essentials Grant, we support schools through the Poverty Prevention Pilot Project, which aims to reduce costs, remove barriers, and tackle poverty-related stigma.

Our Equality, Race and Disability Evidence Units work collaboratively across policy areas to support evidence-based policy development and decision making. Intersectionality is at the heart of this approach, considering both the interconnected nature of protected characteristics and wider contributors to disadvantage, including unpaid caring responsibilities and socio-economic status.

We recognise the vital role voluntary organisations play in supporting communities across Sir Gaerfyrddin and Wales. In 2026–27, we are providing £9.128m to Third Sector Support Wales, including £244k in funding for Carmarthenshire Association of Voluntary Services, to help local groups with fundraising, governance, safeguarding and volunteering.

Creating strong, united and resilient communities is central to our vision for a fairer Wales. Through the Community Cohesion Programme, we support regional cohesion teams and local partners in Sir Gaerfyrddin to strengthen relationships between communities and encourage a sense of belonging.

Our industrial heritage has left us with a difficult legacy. We will work with UK Government towards environmental justice and ensure our communities are no longer exposed to derelict sites, toxic soils, polluted waterways. Our aim will be to map, prioritise and remediate, where necessary, contaminated land across Wales.

Food is a key Foundational Economy sector and central to our vision for a sustainable, resilient and locally connected food system. Through the National Food Strategy, we are strengthening local supply chains by connecting Welsh producers with public sector demand, supporting Welsh businesses through procurement guidance, legislative reforms and engagement.

At my introductory meeting with Natural Resources Wales on 20 May, I made clear that improving water quality is a key priority for this government. I emphasised the need for a partnership approach and highlighted the important role that nature-based solutions can play in delivering benefits to our water environment.

We are supporting farming in Gŵyr Abertawe in the delivery of our 100-day commitments and manifesto. We have already launched an independent review of the bureaucratic burden on family farms in Wales, and we are working hard to deliver more in the coming weeks, including the multi-year funding cycle for the Sustainable Farming Scheme payment.