English: I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate this afternoon. Although obviously not from the north, through my role as leader of the Welsh Conservatives here, I obviously spend quite a considerable time going up to north Wales and seeking first-hand experience of the plight, as I'd put it, that many people feel they're in about the service that they're getting from the health board, which has now been in special measures for some 30 months. It's worth noting that, obviously, in England, for example, the average special measures stay for a similar health body would be about 21 months. I don't detract from the fact that there are tensions and issues across the whole of the United Kingdom when it comes to health services. In particular, there is something to be celebrated in that more people are being treated in our health service across the United Kingdom. That's because, obviously, there are far more people on these islands and we're living longer as well, and so health services across the United Kingdom have a real dilemma on their hands of rising demand and an inability to attract the staff that they require to man the wards and man the primary practices. And there's no more significant case to highlight than that in north Wales, which, for many years - virtually I think for the entire time that I've been an Assembly Member - has struggled with recruitment and retention in particular. We do focus a lot on the recruitment of new staff into the health service, but, actually, retention is a critical part of what we need to be doing in the health service, and no more so than in north Wales. It is regrettable that, if you look at the stats on staff sickness within the health board, they are some of the highest within the health service in Wales, and stress in particular is identified as being one of the most common causes, or the biggest single cause, for staff taking time out, because, obviously, of the pressure that they're under. It has been now, as I said, some 30 months since the health board has been in special measures. The current Cabinet Secretary has been in position for now 16 or 17 months - maybe even a little longer than that - and I hope he will use the opportunity in responding to this debate today to actually give an honest and frank assessment of where he sees the health board going. It cannot be right that, after 30 months and with the health Secretary in position now for that length of time, we cannot get an honest assessment of how the Welsh Government, with all the resource that the Welsh Government has at its disposal, is not getting to grips with the waiting times, with the staff retention and recruitment and, above all, the budget issues that this health board faces; until recently, it was projected to have, for this financial year, a budget deficit of £50 million. As I understand it, the latest figure indicates that the deficit situation now has been brought down to £36 million, but, in itself, that's the biggest budget deficit as I understand it that this health board will have incurred in a single financial year. When you do look at the waiting times and the graphic examples that have been given by Members from north Wales, and in particular from my benches here by the regional Member Mark Isherwood and the Aberconwy Member Janet Finch Saunders, of people waiting 12, 18 months, in excess of 100 weeks for treatment, that is something that, in the twenty-first century, we just should not be tolerating. When you actually look at the numbers, if you take the 52-week wait for routine surgery, it has risen from 94 patients in 2015 to, now, a figure of 2,491 in September 2017. That's a rise of 2,500 per cent. Those sorts of figures, for most people, are just incomprehensible. Most people, all they want - they don't expect instant treatment, but they expect a reasonable time for that treatment to be provided. I do hope that the Cabinet Secretary will give us something hard and tangible that we'll be able to hang on this debate to say that the waiting time situation in the Betsi health board area is being grasped by the Cabinet Secretary and his officers in Cathays Park along with the health board to address these spiralling waits. Accident and emergency, for example, is another area of huge concern that my colleague Darren Millar has highlighted in First Minister's questions and, I believe, in questions to your good self, Cabinet Secretary, with regard to the appalling waiting times that people are having to face in Glan Clwyd, in his own hospital, which serves his constituents, where under 70 per cent of people are being seen within the four-hour target - your own target. Surely, you do not agree with that situation being allowed in a major hospital here in Wales. And so, I would ask, in your address to the debate this afternoon, that you do give us a clear route-map out of special measures that we can hang the hat of this debate on, so that Members can go back to their constituents and say what progress has been made since the health board went into special measures. I do hope that you will clarify the budget situation that the health board finds itself in, because this is your opportunity do that. Above all, I do hope that you will give us something meaningful on staff recruitment and retention, because without the staff on the front line within our health board, whether that be in a primary or secondary environment, there is no health service. As Angela Burns touched on, they are the backbone, they are the blood that makes our health service work, and it is incumbent on you, with the levers at your disposal, to be able to offer a significant and substantial package of measures that address the chronic understaffing that the Betsi health board faces, both in primary and secondary care.
Welsh: Croesawaf y cyfle i siarad yn y ddadl y prynhawn yma. Er nad wyf o'r gogledd, wrth gwrs, drwy fy rôl fel arweinydd y Ceidwadwyr Cymreig yma, rwy'n amlwg yn treulio cryn dipyn o amser yn mynd i fyny i ogledd Cymru a chael profiad uniongyrchol o'r trafferthion, fel y buaswn yn ei roi, y mae llawer o bobl yn teimlo eu bod ynddynt gyda'r gwasanaeth y maent yn ei gael gan y bwrdd iechyd, sydd wedi bod o dan fesurau arbennig ers oddeutu 30 mis. Yn amlwg, mae'n werth nodi mai'r cyfnod y bydd corff iechyd tebyg yn ei dreulio o dan fesurau arbennig ar gyfartaledd yn Lloegr yw oddeutu 21 mis. Nid wyf am fychanu'r ffaith bod tensiynau a phroblemau ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig gyfan mewn perthynas â gwasanaethau iechyd. Yn benodol, mae rhywbeth i'w ddathlu yn y ffaith bod mwy o bobl yn cael eu trin yn ein gwasanaeth iechyd ledled y Deyrnas Unedig. Y rheswm am hynny, wrth gwrs, yw oherwydd bod llawer mwy o bobl ar yr ynysoedd hyn ac rydym yn byw'n hwy yn ogystal, ac felly mae gwasanaethau iechyd ar draws y Deyrnas Unedig yn wynebu dilema gwirioneddol yn sgil y galw cynyddol ac anallu i ddenu'r staff sydd eu hangen arnynt i weithio ar y wardiau a'r practisau gofal sylfaenol. Ac nid oes achos mwy arwyddocaol i dynnu sylw ato na'r hyn a geir yng ngogledd Cymru, sydd, ers blynyddoedd lawer - fwy neu lai am yr holl amser y bûm yn aelod o'r Cynulliad - wedi cael trafferth i recriwtio staff, a chadw staff yn benodol. Rydym yn canolbwyntio llawer ar recriwtio staff newydd i'r gwasanaeth iechyd, ond mewn gwirionedd, mae cadw yn rhan hanfodol o'r hyn y dylem fod yn ei wneud yn y gwasanaeth iechyd, ac yng ngogledd Cymru yn anad unman. Os edrychwch ar yr ystadegau salwch staff yn y bwrdd iechyd, mae'n destun gofid eu bod ymhlith rhai o'r uchaf yn y gwasanaeth iechyd yng Nghymru, ac mae straen yn benodol wedi ei nodi fel un o'r rhesymau mwyaf cyffredin, neu'r achos unigol mwyaf, dros absenoldeb staff, oherwydd y pwysau sydd arnynt wrth gwrs. Mae oddeutu 30 mis wedi mynd heibio, fel y dywedais, ers i'r bwrdd iechyd gael ei roi o dan fesurau arbennig. Mae'r Ysgrifennydd Cabinet presennol wedi bod yn ei swydd ers 16 neu 17 mis bellach - ychydig bach mwy na hynny efallai - a gobeithio y bydd yn defnyddio'r cyfle wrth ymateb i'r ddadl hon heddiw i roi asesiad gonest ac agored o ble y mae'n gweld y bwrdd iechyd yn mynd. Ni all fod yn iawn, ar ôl 30 mis a chyda'r Ysgrifennydd iechyd yn ei swydd bellach am y cyfnod hwnnw o amser, na allwn gael asesiad gonest ynglŷn â sut nad yw Llywodraeth Cymru, gyda'r holl adnoddau sydd ar gael iddi, yn mynd i'r afael â'r amseroedd aros, â chadw staff a recriwtio ac yn anad dim, â'r problemau cyllideb sy'n wynebu'r bwrdd iechyd hwn; tan yn ddiweddar, rhagamcanwyd diffyg yn y gyllideb ar gyfer y flwyddyn ariannol hon o £50 miliwn. Yn ôl yr hyn a ddeallaf, mae'r ffigur diweddaraf yn dangos bod sefyllfa'r diffyg bellach wedi'i ostwng i £36 miliwn, ond ynddo'i hun, dyna'r diffyg mwyaf yn y gyllideb y bydd y bwrdd iechyd hwn wedi'i gael mewn un flwyddyn ariannol. Pan edrychwch ar amseroedd aros a'r enghreifftiau graffig a roddwyd gan Aelodau o ogledd Cymru, ac yn enwedig o fy meinciau i yma gan yr Aelod rhanbarthol Mark Isherwood a'r Aelod dros Aberconwy, Janet Finch Saunders, o bobl yn aros 12, 18 mis, mwy na 100 wythnos am driniaeth, mae hynny'n rhywbeth na ddylem ei oddef yn yr unfed ganrif ar hugain. Pan edrychwch ar y niferoedd mewn gwirionedd, os cymerwch yr amser aros o 52 wythnos ar gyfer llawdriniaeth gyffredin, cododd o 94 o gleifion yn 2015 i ffigur o 2,491 yn awr, ym mis Medi 2017. Dyna gynnydd o 2,500 y cant. Mae'r mathau hyn o ffigurau yn gwbl annealladwy i'r rhan fwyaf o bobl. Y cyfan y mae'r rhan fwyaf o bobl ei eisiau - nid ydynt yn disgwyl triniaeth gyflym, ond maent yn disgwyl i'r driniaeth honno gael ei darparu mewn amser rhesymol. Rwy'n gobeithio y bydd Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet yn rhoi rhywbeth cadarn a diriaethol inni ei ychwanegu at y ddadl hon i allu dweud bod Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet a'i swyddogion ym Mharc Cathays, ynghyd â'r bwrdd iechyd, yn amgyffred y sefyllfa mewn perthynas ag amseroedd aros yn ardal bwrdd iechyd Betsi Cadwaladr er mwyn mynd i'r afael â'r amseroedd aros cynyddol hyn. Mae damweiniau ac achosion brys, er enghraifft, yn faes arall sy'n peri pryder enfawr fel yr amlinellodd fy nghyd-Aelod, Darren Millar, yn y cwestiynau i'r Prif Weinidog ac mewn cwestiynau i chi, rwy'n credu, Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet, o ran yr amseroedd aros gwarthus y mae pobl yn gorfod eu hwynebu yn Ysbyty Glan Clwyd, yn ei ysbyty ei hun, sy'n gwasanaethu ei etholwyr, lle y caiff llai na 70 y cant o bobl eu gweld o fewn y targed o bedair awr - eich targed eich hun. Does bosibl eich bod yn cytuno â chaniatáu'r sefyllfa honno mewn ysbyty mawr yma yng Nghymru. Ac felly, yn eich anerchiad yn y ddadl y prynhawn yma, hoffwn ofyn i chi roi trywydd clir i ni allan o'r mesurau arbennig i ni allu ei briodoli i'r ddadl hon, fel y gall yr Aelodau fynd yn ôl at eu hetholwyr a dweud pa gynnydd a wnaed ers i'r bwrdd iechyd gael ei osod o dan fesurau arbennig. Rwy'n gobeithio y byddwch yn egluro'r sefyllfa y mae'r bwrdd iechyd ynddi gyda'r gyllideb, oherwydd dyma eich cyfle i wneud hynny. Yn anad dim, rwy'n gobeithio y byddwch yn rhoi rhywbeth ystyrlon i ni ar recriwtio a chadw staff oherwydd heb y staff ar y rheng flaen yn ein bwrdd iechyd, boed hynny mewn amgylchedd sylfaenol neu eilaidd, nid oes gwasanaeth iechyd yn bodoli. Fel y crybwyllodd Angela Burns, hwy yw'r asgwrn cefn, hwy yw'r gwaed sy'n gwneud i'n gwasanaeth iechyd weithio, ac mae'n ddyletswydd arnoch, gyda'r dulliau sydd ar gael i chi, gynnig pecyn sylweddol o fesurau sy'n mynd i'r afael â'r prinder staff cronig sy'n wynebu bwrdd iechyd Betsi Cadwaladr, mewn gofal sylfaenol ac eilaidd.