Thank you, Llywydd. I’m very pleased to have the opportunity to have supported this motion and to support the other Members who have spoken so enthusiastically this afternoon on the need to promote physical activity and to ensure that the appropriate infrastructure is in place in terms of active travel, in order to ensure that that can happen within our communities as part of our daily lives.

The health of the people of Wales, and the children of Wales in particular, of course, is a cause of concern for each and every one of us here. There are plenty of signs that we are storing up huge health and social problems. The fact that we are spending 10 per cent of the NHS budget on treating diabetes is a stark warning to us. As Assembly Member for Ynys Môn, I wasn’t pleased to see Anglesey rising to the top of one table last year, when Public Health Wales announced that Anglesey had the highest percentage of children who were obese or overweight. A third of the children on the isle are either overweight or obese; those figures are, of course, frightening.

Of course, a lack of physical activity is at the heart of much of that. As Julie Morgan said earlier, the problem is that the patterns that children adopt early in life are often emulated when those children become adults. Therefore, we must tackle the problem at its root. I do some rugby coaching in Llangefni rugby club. I apologise to the children for the quality of my rugby coaching, but one thing that drives me is this element of promoting physical activity. There are numerous examples across Anglesey of opportunities that are provided for our young people, from rugby to football, to hockey, gymnastics, athletics, sailing—there are too many to list. It’s a wonderful thing to be in the Holyhead weightlifting and fitness centre when Holyhead school, which is nearby, closes at the end of the day and the young people flow in because the resources are available for them and there are people to inspire them to look after their own health through physical activity.

But, somehow, we must ensure that there is more physical activity happening in our schools. Of course, physical education is timetabled. But, as the motion suggests, only around a third of children in Wales get that hour of daily physical activity that is recommended. Forgive me for not getting too excited that the figure has increased from 35 per cent to 36 per cent. I do think that it’s through our schools that we should actually push up that figure for young people. I’m a strong believer, for example, in extending the school day in order to provide time to promote physical activity. We must ensure that the resources are in place in our schools. And, of course, promoting active travel in order to get to school does provide an additional layer of physical activity. I certainly welcome the new work that’s been commissioned by the Government, but it is now time, as Nick Ramsay said, for us to see those pledges becoming reality.

Let us look at slightly later in life, where physical activity is just as crucial. Age Cymru remind us that ensuring adequate levels of physical activity is crucial to the older population for the sake of their general health, but also for the sake of their independence and their ability to play a full part in society. What is wonderful, of course, is that that physical activity can be a core part of their daily lives because one tool that we have, which is supposed to help in this, is the Active Travel (Wales) Act 2013.

Unfortunately, the health benefits of active travel aren’t appreciated enough. The system to assess the cost-benefits of projects actually leaves health benefits out of the assessment, for example, which means that active travel plans don’t necessarily score as highly as they should. Sustrans—we’ve heard them mentioned a number of times today—are of the view that not all departments of government appreciate the benefits of active travel. Their experience is that, to date, it’s only transport departments that have this on their radar. We’ve heard that referred to already today, but if we are to create a culture of active travel in Wales, then we need a far broader workforce actually making it work and making it happen. That silo mentality has to come to an end.

As the motion states, and as the Member for Llanelli stated, we must work effectively and efficiently with communities in order to identify how to make the most of that legislative tool that we have. Let us, therefore, promote active travel with new enthusiasm and energy. It’s clear across this Chamber that we share the same ambition. It’s clear that we share common views on the direction of travel and, therefore, it’s time to achieve the vision that John Griffiths as Minister had, and this Chamber—the Assembly—more generally had, back in 2013 when the Act was passed. So, let’s promote active travel, let’s promote physical activity throughout our society, and let’s make Wales a healthier country. I encourage you to support the motion.