Mark Williams, MP for Ceredigion, has called for an overhaul of the UK's 80-year-old child neglect law - which does not even include the UK Government's own definition of neglect[i] - in the House of Commons today (19 June).

Mr Williams is leading a Private Members Bill in Westminster to propose alternative legislation, drafted by charity Action for Children-Gweithredu dros Blant and a panel of senior legal and academic experts, which would more effectively protect children in the most serious cases of neglect.

In the National Assembly today the Welsh Liberal Democrats will be calling on the Welsh Labour Government to publish an Aviation Strategy for Wales, including a timetable for implementation.

Eluned Parrott, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Transport Minister and South Wales Central AM, commented:

"The Welsh Labour Government clearly needs to make Cardiff Airport a success. Yet, so far we have seen next to nothing about how they intend to turn the failing airport's fortunes around.

Eluned Parrott, Welsh Liberal Democrats Shadow Business Minister, has today urged the Welsh Labour Government not to press ahead with recommendations in the Business Rates Relief report that will punish charity shops in our high streets.

The independent review of business rates for charities was chaired by Prof Brian Morgan of Cardiff Metropolitan University, who published recommendations in April. These included:

William Powell AM, Welsh Liberal Democrat Rural Affairs spokesperson, has today called on the First Minister and the Welsh Government to clarify a key contradiction in the new Animal Welfare (Breeding of Dogs) Wales 2013 Bill, which could result in a single member of staff alone being responsible for the care of several hundred dogs.

Responding to the passing of an amendment to the Local Democracy Bill that ensures that council chief executives' pay will be referred to an independent remuneration panel, Peter Black, Shadow Minister for Local Government, commented:

"The Welsh Liberal Democrats made clear that we would not support the Local Democracy Bill until the Welsh Labour Government made moves to tackle excessive council pay. I am pleased that we, working alongside the other opposition parties, have forced the Welsh Labour Government's hand on this.

Responding to the statement by the Education Minister on the Future Delivery of Education Services in Wales, Aled Roberts, Welsh Liberal Democrats Shadow Education Minister, said:

"Today's report raises a vast number of questions for the future delivery of education in Wales. It is appropriate that the publication of the report should be followed by a period of consultation, but I have grave concerns with the timeframes being proposed for school improvement.

Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, has warned the Welsh Labour Government that unless significant changes are made to the Social Services and Well-being Bill, it risks being a huge disappointment to many people who rely on social services in Wales.

Kirsty Williams has raised concerns about the lack of detail on how the reforms will work and who will be eligible for what kind of help. Kirsty Williams has also highlighted the lack of financial information contained in the bill, leaving local authorities in the dark about how much they will have to spend on social care.

In response to the publication of the Tourism Strategy, Eluned Parrott AM has called for lessons to be learnt from previous failings to ensure that the downturn in tourism numbers is reversed.

Eluned Parrott, Welsh Liberal Democrat Minister for Business and Enterprise, said:

"Wales has seen a significant decline in tourism numbers over the last few years. Therefore it is essential that this new strategy identifies mistakes that have been made in the past. Given the importance of tourism to the Welsh economy and to Welsh jobs, it is vital that our tourism sector is allowed to thrive again.

Following the Education Minister's Statement on A and AS Levels today, Aled Roberts, Welsh Liberal Democrat AM for North Wales and Shadow Minister for Education in the Assembly said:

"I welcome the fact that we now have some clarity on the way forward for learners in Wales following the publication of the Review of Qualifications in November last year.

William Powell AM, Welsh Liberal Democrat Spokesperson for Environment and Sustainable Development, has used this morning's meeting of the Environment and Sustainability Committee to highlight the substantive gaps in the Welsh Government's progress in tackling the threat of Invasive Non-Native Species (INNS), and call for further work to address them.

Responding to the publication of the 'Households below average income' statistics released today, Peter Black, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Finance Minister, commented:

"These figures reflect the global downturn our nation is currently going through and shows the effect this is having on people living in Wales.

Responding to the news that employment in Wales has increased by 10,000 over the last quarter and that 32,000 more people are in work than this time last year, Eluned Parrott, Shadow Minister for Business and Enterprise, said:

"These figures are good news. As we all know, the economic climate across Europe has made life incredibly difficult, however the labour market in the UK has remained strong. Wales' unemployment rate is higher than England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, but today's figures show that things are going in the right direction.

Responding the publication of the 'Wales Infrastructure and Investment Plan for Growth and Jobs', Peter Black, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Finance Minister, commented:

"Barely a day in the chamber passes without the Welsh Labour Government complaining about the lack of resources available to them. Yet, as this report illustrates, funding from the UK Government is nowhere near as bad as the Welsh Government would have you believe. There is still scope to make a real difference to the lives of the people of Wales.

The long-awaited high quality Express Bus Service from Cardiff to Cardiff Airport, first promised by the Welsh Government in July 2009, will finally begin this August, First Minister Carwyn Jones announced today following pressure from Welsh Liberal Democrat Assembly Member Eluned Parrott.

Eluned Parrott AM said;

The Welsh Government needs to be doing more to raise the profile of apprenticeships and to simplify the system to widen access to them, according to Shadow Business and Enterprise Minister Eluned Parrott.

Between 2006/7 and 2012/11 the number of people on apprenticeship placements in Wales fell by more than 25%. The Welsh Liberal Democrats will be leading a debate this week in the National Assembly suggesting key ways to reverse this decline by overcoming the barriers that prevent young people from seeking and applying for an apprenticeship programme in Wales.

Commenting ahead of Universities Week in the Senedd, Aled Roberts, Welsh Liberal Democrat AM for North Wales and Shadow Minister for Education in the Assembly said:

"Universities Week is an ideal opportunity for us to reflect on the value of the University sector to the Welsh economy.

"Despite the Education Minister's emphasis on Higher Education, it is clear that there is still a great deal of work which needs to be done to raise performance in Wales and to get at least one of our universities into the top 50.

Responding to the First Minister's announcement that the NHS financial regime will now operate on a three year cycle, rather than the current one-year cycle, Kirsty Williams, Leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats commented:

"The constant cycle of end of year bailouts was completely unsustainable. Therefore it makes sense for this system to be altered. It will hopefully allow Local Health Boards an opportunity to plan for the longer term, rather than being forced to make sharp unplanned cuts at the end of each year - cuts that could affect patient care and safety.

Responding to the Welsh Labour Government's u-turn that it is to ensure that Local Government Chief Executive pay will be referred to an Independent Remuneration Panel, Peter Black, Welsh Liberal Democrat Shadow Minister for Local Government, commented:

"When all three opposition parties work together, we can force the Welsh Labour Government to improve legislation for the better of Wales. It would be quite churlish of one political party to claim 'victory' on this issue. The three opposition parties can work well together, and indeed with the government, and we hope this will continue. Curbing excessive pay was a priority for us and we are glad that the Welsh Labour Government has listened to us."

During questions to the Attorney General in the House of Commons, Roger Williams the MP for Brecon and Radnorshire raised the issue of widespread, smaller cases of fraud on individuals that could be part of more serious operations.

Mr Williams raised the issue following meetings with a number of constituents who had experienced fraud of up to £3000 and had limited success with Action Fraud. In 2010 the Serious Fraud Office was separated from other fraud elements and placed under the control of the Attorney General, with other areas covered by the Home Office.

Aled Roberts, Welsh Liberal Democrat AM for North Wales and Shadow Minister for Education in the Assembly, has called on the Transport Minister, Edwina Hart, to investigate charges being paid by schoolchildren to travel to and from school.

Commenting, Aled Roberts said:

"Charges for subsidised school transport are increasing as local authorities look to find ways of dealing with cuts in their funding from the Welsh Government. In many areas these services are being withdrawn completely.