Can I thank you for your statement, Minister? Can I say at the outset that I want to pay tribute to the staff who deliver Communities First in my constituency and also Torfaen council for their leadership of the project, and to say emphatically that, in Torfaen, it is delivering very real outcomes in the areas of employability, financial inclusion, digital inclusion and well-being? I note your commitment to phase out the Communities First programme, but, for me, the key part of your statement is where you say you will be establishing a new approach to meet the challenges of the future. It was with that in mind that I wanted to ask you a few questions.

Of course an emphasis on employability is very welcome, but do you also recognise that in some communities, particularly our most deprived communities, those communities often face so many significant barriers to employability that they often really need the softer approaches that Communities First has been so good at fostering. Can I ask about how you would see the future looking in terms of the interconnectedness, which undoubtedly exists in Torfaen, between Communities First, Families First and Flying Start? We wouldn’t want to see any of the very significant contributions that Communities First make to those programmes being lost. In Torfaen, we take a single-plan approach to these grants so they’re all planned as a unified whole. How will you ensure that that doesn’t jeopardise the vital work in this area?

On welfare reform, I’ve seen Communities First as being a very important part of making sure that we are actually resilient through these very difficult years of welfare reform. How will you ensure—also linked to what Bethan Jenkins said—that that work is not lost?

Finally, your statement alludes to engaging with internal and external stakeholders on our future approach. Can you say a little more, please, about exactly how that consultation will take place and what the deadline is likely to be? Thank you.