English: Thank you for this opportunity to reply and to make a few comments about the Plaid Cymru amendments. I agree with the content of the motion, and it's our intention to strengthen the motion with our amendments today. In terms of the Government amendment, we are going to hear from the Minister, without doubt, about the effect of the austerity policies of the Conservative Government, and, before that, the Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition Government in Westminster, and, of course, I agree entirely. I can't forgive the swingeing cuts that have put such pressure on public services for almost a decade now. It's ideology that's driven those cuts, we know, and, as we'll be discussing in another debate later on this afternoon, it's the poorest who suffer, but we're talking here about what the Welsh Government has chosen to do with the budget that it has. Yes, the budget has been under pressure over the years, but this year, against a background of a small increase in the total funding available for 2019-20, local government continues to be a very low priority for the Labour Welsh Government. Last week, of course, we had the announcement from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance that there was some additional funding that would be allocated to councils in Wales, as compared to the draft budget, and, of course, every penny helps, but we do have to ask why it's taken a consequential from the UK budget for the Welsh Government to give those crumbs to these councils. Now, we have the figures; the draft budget for Welsh Government shows an increase of 2.4 per cent in the revenue expenditure for 2019-20, but as that funding increased - not by much, but it is an increase - we saw a cut of 1.9 per cent in the local government budget. That's a political choice, namely, that decision to cut; not something where there was no choice but to do so. It's Labour austerity.
Welsh: Diolch am y cyfle i ymateb ac i wneud sylw neu ddau ynglŷn â gwelliannau Plaid Cymru. Rwy'n cytuno â chynnwys y cynnig, heb os, a chryfhau ydy ein bwriad ni efo'n gwelliannau ni heddiw yma. O ran gwelliant y Llywodraeth, rydym ni'n mynd i glywed gan y Gweinidog, heb os, am effaith polisïau llymder y Llywodraeth Geidwadol rŵan, a chyn hynny y Llywodraeth Geidwadol a'r Democratiaid Rhyddfrydol yn San Steffan, ac, wrth gwrs, rydw i'n cytuno'n llwyr. Allaf i ddim faddau y torri mileinig sydd wedi bod ac sydd wedi gwasgu gymaint ar wasanaethau cyhoeddus ers ddim yn bell o ddegawd erbyn hyn. Ideoleg sydd wedi gyrru hyn, rydym ni'n gwybod, ac fel y byddwn ni'n trafod mewn dadl arall yn nes ymlaen y prynhawn yma, y tlotaf sy'n dioddef. Ond, trafod yn fan hyn rydym ni'r hyn y mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi dewis ei wneud efo'r gyllideb sydd ganddi hi. Ydy, mae'r gyllideb wedi cael ei gwasgu dros y blynyddoedd ond, eleni, yn erbyn cefnlen o gynnydd bach yn y cyfanswm arian sydd ar gael ar gyfer 2019-20, mae llywodraeth leol yn amlwg yn parhau i fod yn flaenoriaeth isel iawn i'r Llywodraeth Lafur yma. Yr wythnos ddiwethaf, wrth gwrs, mi gawsom ni gyhoeddiad gan yr Ysgrifennydd cyllid fod yna rywfaint yn rhagor o arian yn mynd i gael ei ddyrannu i gynghorau Cymru o'i gymharu â'r gyllideb ddrafft, a heb os mae pob un geiniog yn help, ond mae'n rhaid gofyn pam ei bod hi wedi cymryd consequentials o'r gyllideb Brydeinig i Lywodraeth Cymru roi briwsion i'r cynghorau yma. Mae'r ffigurau gennym ni, wrth gwrs. Mi wnaeth cyllideb ddrafft Llywodraeth Cymru ddangos cynnydd o 2.4 y cant yn y gyllideb gwariant refeniw ar gyfer 2019-20, ond wrth i'r arian yna gynyddu - nid o lawer, ond mae o'n gynnydd - beth welsom ni ond toriad o 1.9 y cant yng nghyllideb llywodraeth leol? Dewis gwleidyddol, felly, oedd y penderfyniad i dorri, nid rhywbeth lle nad oedd dewis ond gwneud hynny. Llymder Llafur ydy hyn.