English: Research from Carers Wales shows that unpaid carers looking after disabled, ill or elderly family members or friends have saved the Welsh Government £33 million every single day since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Against that backdrop, the provision of £3 million during the whole of 2021-22 - split into two phases, with a first phase of £1.75 million further split between 22 local authorities in Wales - leaves us under no illusion that this is more of a sticking plaster rather than an attempt at a long-term solution. Carers Wales research also shows that the pandemic has severely affected carers' ability to take a break, which has an impact on their health and well-being. Nearly seven out of 10 carers in Wales say that their mental health has got worse because of a lack of breaks while caring during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-eight per cent of carers said that their physical health has deteriorated during the pandemic. The Deputy Minister explained that this funding is for emergency respite care, mainly for those at crisis point, and gives us little confidence that the Government is fully grasping the central point - that carers should have respite as a matter of course, and should be properly recognised in every context, including financially. Plaid Cymru has long advocated the creation of a seamless national health and social care service, and for rethinking our approach to health and care delivery, and focusing on prevention. One central access point into such a service would be to do away with bureaucracy and let us focus on the needs of citizens. We must also ensure that we have the levers in Wales to properly reward carers and to allow transformative action, as we would be able to do by seeking the powers to replace the carer's allowance with a universal carer's income - non-means-tested and equal to at least the level of the jobseeker's allowance - for all carers providing more than 35 hours of care. Could the Minister confirm the Welsh Government's position on this particular matter? Is it something that the Government is considering? You refer in your statement to the fund providing extra flexibility, and that it will develop more flexible and innovative forms of respite that are tailored to individual need. Can you elaborate on this point? I've heard from a number of unpaid carers about their experiences and the need to jump through hoops and fill out masses of paperwork to receive respite care. Can you tell us more about the process for how unpaid carers can access respite services from this fund? Additionally, how many carers are you aiming to reach with this fund? Figures show that three quarters of carers have received no respite at all. It's one thing to praise the work of unpaid carers, but how many people will this relatively small sum of money reach? And my last question: how will consistency be ensured in the delivery of the scheme, and in the distribution of funding, especially in the absence of a consistent, unified national health and social care model, which Plaid Cymru has long advocated for? Diolch yn fawr.
Welsh: Mae ymchwil gan Ofalwyr Cymru yn dangos bod gofalwyr di-dâl sy'n gofalu am aelodau o'r teulu neu ffrindiau anabl, sâl neu oedrannus wedi arbed £33 miliwn i Lywodraeth Cymru bob dydd ers dechrau pandemig COVID-19. Yn y cyd-destun hwnnw, nid yw'r ddarpariaeth o £3 miliwn yn ystod 2021-22 i gyd - wedi ei rhannu'n ddau gam, gyda cham cyntaf o £1.75 miliwn wedi ei rannu ymhellach rhwng 22 awdurdod lleol yng Nghymru - yn ein twyllo ni rhag sylweddoli bod hyn yn fwy o ateb dros dro yn hytrach nag ymgais i gael ateb hirdymor. Mae ymchwil Gofalwyr Cymru yn dangos hefyd fod y pandemig wedi effeithio'n ddifrifol ar allu gofalwyr i gymryd seibiant, sy'n effeithio ar eu hiechyd a'u lles. Mae bron i saith o bob 10 o ofalwr yng Nghymru yn dweud bod eu hiechyd meddwl wedi gwaethygu oherwydd diffyg seibiant wrth ofalu yn ystod pandemig COVID-19. Dywedodd 68 y cant o ofalwyr fod eu hiechyd corfforol wedi dirywio yn ystod y pandemig. Eglurodd y Dirprwy Weinidog fod y cyllid hwn ar gyfer gofal seibiant brys, yn bennaf i'r rhai hynny sydd mewn argyfwng, ac nid yw'n rhoi fawr o hyder i ni fod y Llywodraeth yn deall yn wirioneddol y pwynt canolog - y dylai gofalwyr gael seibiant fel mater o drefn, ac y dylid eu cydnabod yn briodol ym mhob cyd-destun, gan gynnwys yn ariannol. Mae Plaid Cymru wedi dadlau ers tro byd dros greu gwasanaeth iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol cenedlaethol di-dor, ac ailystyried ein dull o ddarparu iechyd a gofal, a chanolbwyntio ar atal. Un pwynt mynediad canolog i wasanaeth o'r fath fyddai dileu biwrocratiaeth a chaniatáu i ni ganolbwyntio ar anghenion dinasyddion. Mae'n rhaid i ni sicrhau hefyd fod gennym ni'r gallu yng Nghymru i wobrwyo gofalwyr yn briodol ac i ganiatáu gweithredu trawsnewidiol, fel y byddem yn gallu ei wneud trwy geisio'r pwerau i roi incwm gofalwr cyffredinol yn lle'r lwfans gofalwr - heb brawf modd ac sydd o leiaf yn cyfateb i lefel y lwfans ceisio gwaith - i bob gofalwr sy'n darparu mwy na 35 awr o ofal. A wnaiff y Gweinidog gadarnhau safbwynt Llywodraeth Cymru ar y mater penodol hwn? A yw'n rhywbeth y mae'r Llywodraeth yn ei ystyried? Rydych yn cyfeirio yn eich datganiad at y gronfa yn darparu hyblygrwydd ychwanegol, ac y bydd yn datblygu mathau mwy hyblyg ac arloesol o seibiant sydd wedi eu teilwra i angen unigol. A wnewch chi ymhelaethu ar y pwynt hwn? Rwyf i wedi clywed gan nifer o ofalwyr di-dâl am eu profiadau a'r angen i fynd trwy'r felin a llenwi pentyrrau o waith papur er mwyn cael gofal seibiant. A wnewch chi ddweud mwy wrthym am y broses a sut y gall gofalwyr di-dâl gael gafael ar wasanaethau seibiant o'r gronfa hon? Hefyd, faint o ofalwyr ydych chi'n gobeithio eu cyrraedd gyda'r gronfa hon? Mae ffigurau'n dangos nad yw tri chwarter y gofalwyr wedi cael seibiant o gwbl. Un peth yw canmol gwaith gofalwyr di-dâl, ond faint o bobl fydd yn elwa ar y swm cymharol fach hwn o arian? A fy nghwestiwn olaf: sut y bydd cysondeb yn cael ei sicrhau wrth gyflawni'r cynllun, ac wrth ddosbarthu cyllid, yn enwedig yn absenoldeb model iechyd a gofal cymdeithasol cenedlaethol cyson, unedig, y mae Plaid Cymru wedi ei argymell ers tro byd? Diolch yn fawr.