First Minister announces Welsh Government's new Cabinet
Following his appointment as First Minister, Carwyn Jones AM yesterday announced the new cabinet of the Welsh Government.
The housing brief returns to Carl Sargeant AM under the renamed portfolio of Communities and Children.
The full Cabinet is as follows:
- Kirsty Williams AM (Lib Dem, Brecon & Radnor) – Cabinet Secretary for Education
- Lesley Griffiths AM (Lab, Wrexham) – Cabinet Secretary for Environment and Rural Affairs
- Carl Sargeant AM (Lab, Alyn and Deeside) – Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children
- Ken Skates AM (Lab, Clwyd South) – Cabinet Secretary for Economy and Infrastructure
- Vaughan Gething AM (Lab, Cardiff South and Penarth) – Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Sport
- Mark Drakeford AM (Lab, Cardiff West) – Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government
- Jane Hutt AM (Lab, Vale of Glamorgan) – Leader of the House and Chief Whip
- Julie James (Lab, Swansea West) – Minister for Skills and Science
- Alun Davies AM (Lab, Blaenau Gwent) – Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language
- Rebecca Evans AM (Lab, Gower) – Minister for Social Services and Public Health
The appointment of Kirsty Williams AM as Cabinet Secretary for Education will need to be ratified by a special Welsh Lib Dem conference tomorrow and does not constitute a coalition agreement, according to the First Minister.
A statement by the Lib Dems said Kirsty Williams and the First Minister reached a Progressive Agreement between the two parties to work together in Government. The agreement enables the implementation of key Welsh Lib Dem policy priorities, including two housing policies, to ensure that:
- 20,000 extra affordable homes are funded;
- A new ‘Rent to Own’ housing model is introduced;
Aaron Hill, Public Affairs Manager at Community Housing Cymru, said: “We welcome Carl Sargeant AM back to the Housing brief. We had a productive relationship with him when he was Housing and Regeneration Minister previously, signing a housing supply pact to increase the number of affordable homes across Wales. Housing associations exceeded the previous target of 10,000 and the sector is up for the challenge of delivering more.
All parties in the Cabinet supported the Homes for Wales campaign in the run up to the election and it’s great to see cross-party working on common issues such as housing. We hope this support translates into an ambitious plan for housing in the new programme for government which protects the independence of housing associations and allows us to continue to deliver more homes for the people of Wales.”