National Assembly for Wales

In line with the 10-year mental health and well-being strategy, we will improve access to mental health support for all ages. This includes transforming our mental health services to move towards open-access, same-day mental health support, shifting from a traditional model to one focused on recovery and prevention.

Size and cost alone do not determine effectiveness; the real test is whether services deliver better outcomes for the people of Wales. Our focus is on reducing fragmentation, strengthening capability and accountability, and ensuring spending delivers measurable results. The Welsh Government civil service head count was also 8 per cent lower at the end of 2024, at 6,136, than it was in 2010. The latest figure for 31 March 2026 is lower again, at 6,125. By contrast, ONS figures suggest the wider civil service has grown by 28 per cent over the same period and by 57 per cent in Scotland.

This Government’s position is clear: justice and policing should be fully devolved to Wales, as it is in Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Dirprwy Brif Weinidog and I met with the policing Minister and Secretary of State for Wales last week to commence discussion on devolution and other policing priorities.

Devolving policing has been the recommendation of a series of independent commissions, dating back to the Silk commission in 2014. Those commissions considered the potential cost implications, among others, in reaching their clear conclusions.