The following amendments have been selected: amendments 1 and 2 in the name of Rhun ap Iorwerth, and amendments 3 and 4 in the name of Paul Davies.

Therefore, we move to item 10 on our agenda, which is a debate on the Equality and Human Rights Commission Wales’s annual review 2015-16. I call on the Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children to move the motion—Carl Sargeant.

Motion NDM6127 Jane Hutt

To propose the National Assembly of Wales:

Notes the Equality and Human Rights Commission Wales Annual Review 2015-16, 'Towards a Fairer Wales'.

Motion moved.

Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I welcome the opportunity today to discuss the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s annual review for 2015-16, which is entitled ‘Towards a Fairer Wales’.

The review captures the wide range of the work the commission has undertaken in the past year to promote equality in Wales and presents a forward look of its priorities. The EHRC has a unique role as a regulator of the public sector equality duty and the specific duties for Wales. The annual review provides many examples of good practice that have resulted from those duties and demonstrates the positive impact they are having in Wales.

It’s been another significant year for the commission. The publication of ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ in particular has had an important impact on the way inequality is addressed here in Wales. The report highlights the progress made in Wales to advance equality since the commission published its review ‘How Fair is Wales?’ five years ago. It outlines where improvements are needed and identifies seven key equality and human rights challenges that need to be addressed in Wales over the next five years.

The commission has also issued these challenges to all public, private and third sector organisations in Wales and we all have a role in tackling inequality and we should continue to work together where we can address these issues.

The commission wanted ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ to be a catalyst for change, and we have the same aspiration for our refreshed equality objectives, which we published in March 2016. Our objectives were developed following extensive engagement with people across Wales, and they’re strongly linked with the challenges identified in ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ Public authorities are setting equality objectives based on these key challenges, and the report is therefore inspiring a joint approach to address the major equality-related issues impacting on the lives of many people here in Wales.

I know the EHRC strongly favours collaborative working, and this is reflected in their eagerness to work with the Future Generations Commissioner for Wales to shape the equality and human rights agenda. The EHRC has welcomed the appointment of the commissioner and I look forward to working together to help make Wales a more equal and cohesive nation.

We recognise the commission’s commitment to encourage, inform and monitor the public sector, examples of which can be seen throughout their annual review, and the commission has recently produced a report that encourages employers in Wales to increase employment opportunities for Muslims and people of all religions by developing faith-friendly places in work. It is important that we in Wales lead the way to put in place practical measures in the workplace to attract, support and retain talented people of all faiths.

In September, I attended the launch event of the ‘Creating a faith-friendly workplace for Muslims’ publication and the accompanying short film, ‘Fairness Not Favours’. This was an excellent example of the information and well-attended events organised by the commission during the year 2015-16.

The commission’s equality and human rights exchange has continued to go from strength to strength. The exchange brings together employers and public service providers to share knowledge, good practice and new ideas. The regional events have provided a valuable forum for members to discuss a range of subjects.

The EHRC’s highly regarded annual human rights lecture is another fixture in the calendar for equality and human rights practitioners here in Wales, and the Reverend Aled Edwards delivered this year’s lecture, which focuses on the experiences of asylum seekers, migrants and refugees in Wales. This, of course, continues to be a timely and challenging topic, and I’m looking forward to contributing to the upcoming Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee’s inquiry into refugees and asylum seekers here in Wales.

We will work closely with the EHRC and we remain grateful for the advice and evidence it provides to the Welsh Government. This relationship assists us in the development of policy, and, as we have seen very clearly with our new equality objectives, the 2014 concordat between EHRC and Welsh Government provided a foundation for the relationship, and we have continued to build on this. It is important that EHRC remains a strong and distinct presence here in Wales, and particularly as we’re entering an uncertain time for equality and human rights here in the UK. We’re keeping a very close eye on the UK Government’s plans to replace the Human Rights Act 1998 with a Bill of rights, and the human rights Act protects us all regardless of our economic, social or cultural background. The Welsh Government greatly values an inclusive piece of legislation, one which allows the people of Wales to challenge inequality and injustice.

We strongly oppose any potential regression of our human rights, and we will do all we can to ensure the rights presently enjoyed by all people living in Wales are not weakened by the proposals by the UK Government. We expect the UK Government to fulfil its commitment and fully consult on any proposals affecting any human rights.

In summary, the EHRC’s annual review provides a valuable overview of the wide and varied work of the commission over the last year, for which I’m very grateful. I am sure this will be reflected in the diverse range of subjects discussed during this debate, and this demonstrates that equality and human rights are relevant to all aspects of our daily lives, and, as a consequence, an essential component in developing a united, connected and sustainable Wales.

Thank you very much. I have selected the four amendments to the motion. I call on Bethan Jenkins to move amendments 1 and 2 tabled in the name of Rhun ap Iorwerth.

Amendment 1—Rhun ap Iorwerth

Add new point at end of motion:

Calls upon the Welsh Government to work with Trade Unions and the Equality and Human Rights Commission to better promote the rights of young expectant and new mothers at work.

Amendment 2—Rhun ap Iorwerth

Add new point at end of motion:

Notes the establishment of a gender identity clinic for Wales achieved by Plaid Cymru in negotiations on the 2017-18 budget.

Amendments 1 and 2 moved.

I apologise that it’s me that’s actually contributing on behalf of Plaid Cymru throughout this afternoon; I’m sure people have had enough of hearing my voice. But I’m happy to welcome the contribution of the Equality and Human Rights Commission here in Wales by highlighting the work that they have done in maintaining momentum towards a fairer, more inclusive Wales, and also in highlighting what still needs to be done in order to secure the rights of all Welsh citizens.

Plaid Cymru has tabled two amendments to today’s debate, one which notes that there will be a gender identity clinic for Wales established as a result of negotiations between Plaid Cymru and the Government for the current budget. It’ll be the first clinic of its kind here in Wales, and I very much hope that everyone in this Assembly will appreciate the significance and the positive impact that that could have on the Trans community here in Wales. I have met with a number of people in that community who have had to travel to England for treatment, and they see real value in what’s being achieved as a result of this agreement.

Our second amendment asks for an assurance from Government that they will take on a specific issue raised within the report, which is to improve and promote the rights of young expectant mothers and new mothers in order to ensure that they are aware of their rights in the workplace, and that they are confident in standing up for those rights. It’s a disgrace that more than three quarters of pregnant women and new mothers in Wales experience negative treatment and discrimination, possibly, in the workplace. It’s a requirement, therefore, for the Government to co-operate with trade unions and the Equality and Human Rights Commission to promote the rights of young expectant and new mothers at work and to take specific steps to ensure that those rights are highlighted, not only to the mothers themselves, but also to employers, who, perhaps, ignore these issues on occasion.

We will also be supporting the amendments in the name of Paul Davies on the specific issue of cross-sectoral collaboration and the private and public sectors, because this is also important to us. But, as with all annual reports by the commission, some of the figures contained within it are frightening. Twenty-three per cent of people in Wales are still living in poverty, and this increases to 42 per cent of all children between 0 and 4 years old, and 27 per cent of disabled people and 38 per cent of people in ethnic minorities live in poverty still.

It’s a cause of concern to me that this happens year on year and the figures hardly change. And so it’s less of a question for the Minister but a question for the commission itself—I was looking at the website earlier and the commission does have some enforcement powers. They can challenge a number of policies that emerge from various Governments, and I would want to see, for example, as the older people’s commissioner has done, them using those powers more often and more prominently in order to take action in this area, because I am not content to be here year on year discussing the fact that people continue to live in poverty. What is the commission doing in terms of the skills and powers that it has to change this?

I also think it’s important that we look at the economy, because, of course, there is so much we can do in Wales, but we do need meaningful economic powers to be transferred from Westminster to Wales in order for us to transform what is happening within our economy, particularly in light of the fact that people have voted to leave the European Union. If now isn’t the time to have more powers for our own economy, then when will that time come?

I would like to hear more from the Minister on that issue, particularly in terms of the human rights Act and the Westminster Government’s intention to undermine that and scrap some of it. It is rooted in much of international law, therefore how does the Minister intent to challenge the UK Government and to tell them that Wales is not content to see that happening and how will he communicate that clearly to them? Thank you.

I call on Mark Isherwood to move amendments 3 and 4 tabled in the name of Paul Davies.

Amendment 3—Paul Davies

Add as new point at end of motion:

Notes the seven key challenges that need to be addressed in Wales over the next five years, as identified by the Commission, and that it will require the substantial efforts of public, private and third-sector organisations and of individuals to reduce these challenges.

Amendment 4—Paul Davies

Add as new point at end of motion:

Welcomes recognition by the Commission of the need to empower and engage with the voluntary and community sector.

Amendments 3 and 4 moved.

In noting the Equality and Human Rights Commission Wales’s annual review 2015-16, ‘Towards a Fairer Wales’, our amendment 3 notes that the commission’s analysis has identified seven key challenges that need to be addressed in Wales over the next five years, and that it will require a substantial effort of public, private and third sector organisations, and of individuals, to reduce these challenges. In other words, solutions to what the commission describes as major entrenched inequalities and human right abuses must be co-produced in equal partnership, acknowledging that everyone is an expert in their own lives. As the commission report states, these seven key challenges apply to: education; employment; living conditions in cohesive communities; access to justice and democratic participation; mental health services and support; abuse, neglect and ill-treatment in care and detention; and eliminating violence, abuse and harassment in the community.

As the all-Wales hate crime project states,

‘Welsh Government should take the lead on ensuring that accessible third-party…reporting mechanisms are in place for victims who don’t want to report directly to the police’, and

‘More should be done to ensure that hate crime perpetrators are dealt with effectively and restorative approaches should be made more widely available in Wales’.

We will support Plaid Cymru’s amendments, although we would also call on the Welsh Government to work with voluntary sector and employer bodies. The establishment of a gender identity clinic was in the 2016 Welsh Conservative manifesto.

Our amendment 4 welcomes recognition by the commission of the need to empower and engage with the voluntary and community sector. The commission’s Wales work plan 2016-17 includes promoting

‘evidence to empower the voluntary and community sector and the public to hold the Welsh Government to account, and influence decisions and policy making across the public sector’ and

‘Engage with public bodies and the voluntary and community sector in Wales to ensure the Public Sector Equality Duty drives improvements in public sector employment and service delivery’.

As the Williams commission stated:

‘Leaders at all levels will need to be open to different ways of working, including through collaboration or coproduction’.

As the Auditor General for Wales states:

‘there is now a much clearer recognition that previous approaches have not worked as intended and that radical change is required.’

We must therefore move away from a system in which people have their needs assessed and addressed to a system that protects an individual’s ability to make choices.

After Conwy council cut vital services for the deaf community provided through the voluntary sector, I wrote to them stating that the principle of the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 was that individuals and their families must be able to participate fully in the process of determining and meeting their identified care and support needs through a process that is accessible for them. Their reply? Well, they replied that their response to the Act had instead led to their establishment of an internal integrated disability service. The deaf community told me that their independence, human rights and rights to equality were being taken from them.

In support of an autism (Wales) Bill, the parent of an autistic teenager wrote last weekend: ‘I do not think that the social services and well-being Act is far-reaching enough to support these very gifted and special people.’

After I wrote to Wrexham Council, in support of a parent of a son with Down’s syndrome, who highlighted focus in the Act on involving people in how their care and support is decided and provided, the council replied that the Act is not the legislation under which the tender process must be carried out.

The Act’s Part 2 code of practice recognises that the removal of the barriers facing people should be in line with the social model of disability—consistent, it said, with the Welsh Government’s framework for action on independent living, which emphasises the crucial role of employment in promoting people’s independence, confidence, health and well-being, providing a route out of poverty and enabling participation in society. However, when I recently wrote to Flintshire County Council, after a conditional employment offer to a haemophiliac who was withdrawn following his medical, they replied that they could find no evidence that the actions taken by them breached any element of the legislation.

Noting these and other realities, such as the Welsh Government being the only Government in the United Kingdom not to maintain funding levels for the Family Fund, supporting low-income families with disabled children, it is clear that we need a new way of doing things in Wales.

I welcome taking part in this important debate today. The commission in Wales has worked extremely closely with Welsh Government in taking the equality and human rights agenda forward and I think that that’s invaluable. It’s important that the commission is able to hold the Government, public authorities and employers to account for their actions in Wales and I’m sure that nobody here will disagree with that.

As the report clearly shows, there has been progress on the gender agenda, but there is much more to do. In particular, gender is not a protected characteristic and this, in my opinion, is a serious omission. Only today, I received an e-mail that used gender-specific abuse terminology about another constituent. In any other sphere in public life, I would be able to do something about that. In this case, all I can actually do is tell the abusive person that, to me, it’s completely unacceptable.

We do now have a landmark violence against women, sexual violence and domestic abuse Act and the Equality and Human Rights Commission’s workplace policies to support staff experiencing domestic abuse cover over 400,000 employees in Wales. But it’s still the case that one in four women experience domestic abuse and, on average, two women, every single week in the UK, are murdered as a result of domestic abuse.

White Ribbon Day, which is on 25 November, is an important opportunity to raise awareness and there will be events here in the Senedd on 22 November. I hope that everybody will play their part in that.

There is also the profile of statutory homeless households in Wales, which changed markedly between 2010 and 2015, with an increase in the number of people fleeing domestic abuse up by 19 per cent. The Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 should help prevent current homelessness situations where a joint tenant leaves the tenancy, thereby ending the tenancy for everyone else. That new approach of joint contracts will, I hope, help victims of domestic abuse as it means that the perpetrator can be targeted for eviction rather than the victim, as long as it is safe to do so, which will provide some continuity in the lives of those affected.

We’ve seen that the gender pay gap has narrowed very slightly from 9.6 per cent to 9.4 per cent. At this rate, I will not be alive by the time that that gap is closed, by the current projections. That, in my opinion, is certainly not acceptable. The ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ report does identify key challenges for us all, and I’m not going to go through them, but what I do hope is that they will have the resource and the capacity to drive those forward.

But what I am going to finish with is the human rights Act that this current Westminster Government is trying to undermine and replace with a bill of rights. In my view, there is an over-focus on what human rights are for the other—that you will deny the other in the current climate their human rights. I think it’s worth remembering that when you deny the other their human rights, you also deny yourself your human rights, and that is not a place or a space that we want to go.

I’m grateful to the commission—in particular the Welsh commissioner, June Milligan, having taken over from Ann Beynon, who I’d like to thank for her work in that role—for this report, ‘Towards a Fairer Wales’. I think it’s important to understand that this report is from the Wales committee that is chaired by the Welsh commissioner as the lead officer of the EHRC, who supports it, and there’s a number of part-time people on that committee. But the vast bulk of the EHRC work happens on a Great Britain-wide basis across strands focused on—really, stemming from the previous commission, the Equal Opportunities Commission, which previously was focused on gender equality. The Commission for Racial Equality and Disability Rights Commission were rolled into this new EHRC. There is a disabled committee as there is a Wales and Scotland committee, but the idea of the EHRC was to focus on equality as a principle, rather than having competing commissions and bodies pushing different groups.

I think it would be wise for the Assembly to assess how that commission is working in terms of devolution. We have that particular Wales committee. There’s also a duty on the commission to report on what it’s doing in Wales in its own annual report; I can only find a very small paragraph on that, which then just links through to who’s on the Wales committee on their main website.

When we look at the seven key challenges that are identified for Wales, what I think would be valuable is if we were able to compare how we were doing on equality on these various perspectives in Wales compared to Scotland and compared to English regions, and whether the seven areas that have been identified are identified because they’re particularly important equality issues, or whether it’s because we have particular issues and challenges in Wales that aren’t shared elsewhere in the UK.

On its website, the commission says that it’s Great Britain’s national equality body, but I don’t think many people would argue that Great Britain is a nation; I can see why Wales or the UK would have a national equality body. But I think it’s important to understand how the Wales committee is working. It is advising the Welsh Government and also public bodies across Wales, and certainly some useful activity is identified in this report. But it’s also there to ensure that the EHRC on a Great Britain basis is taking into account the Welsh context and particular needs in Wales. I think it would be useful to explore the extent to which it’s doing that, and comparative data I think would be very useful to report back to the Assembly for future years.

For instance, when we look at its particular objectives for Wales, it wants to close the attainment gaps by raising standards for children receiving free school meals, children with special educational needs, looked-after children and Gypsy and Traveller children. When it speaks about free school meals, is that a particular problem in Wales—is the attainment gap greater in a Welsh context? Because I know in a UK-wide context, I think there’s been some narrowing in the free school meals gap, but that’s particularly been driven by very sharp improvements within London. Are there lessons we can learn there?

In encouraging fair recruitment, development and reward in employment, the Wales committee says it wants to increase the employment rates of young people, disabled people, ethnic minority people and Muslim people. It then goes on to say it wants to close pay gaps, focusing on young people, ethnic minority people and women. So, we see that young people and ethnic minority people are identified as areas of particular concern in both those areas, but its focus on closing pay gaps is for women; it doesn’t share that focus for employment rates, and, on employment rates, its particular concerns are disabled people and Muslim people. Are we not also concerned about the extent to which disabled people may be getting lower pay in the workforce, and the extent to which that may be a particular problem in Wales?

Similarly, when it refers to Muslim people, we see identification of particular groups who have a protected characteristic under the equality Act, but not necessarily a recognition of the wider context. For instance, the employment rate amongst Muslim men is a modest amount lower than it is amongst other men, but there’s a very, very large gap amongst Muslim women. Is that a particular concern of the commission and an area where it wants action by Government and public sector bodies? I just feel perhaps that we can look at this in a broader context, and also understand that we’re concerned about promoting equality and equality of opportunity more generally, rather than only about specific groups who happen to be identified in the equality Act. For example, in Wales, we’ve a number of communities where we have lower achievement or there are particular difficulties with employment or wages, often in white working-class areas, and I think we need to make it clear that we are as concerned about improving opportunities and outcomes there as we are with other areas that may perhaps have been identified in this report. But, overall, I welcome the report and thank those involved for their work.

I’m very pleased to speak in this debate, which I think takes place annually, on the report from the Equality and Human Rights Commission, ‘Towards a Fairer Wales’. I’d like to start by paying tribute to Ann Beynon, who’s been the chair during a very important time, and I’d like to acknowledge her commitment to equality and to human rights, and to welcome June Milligan as the new commissioner. But I’d also like to use the opportunity to pay tribute in this debate to Kate Bennett, who is shortly to retire as the director at the end of this month. Kate is a constituent of mine in Cardiff North, and has been in the post since 2007, and I think has helped hugely in forging a close relationship with the Welsh Government and with all of us as Assembly Members, and has been very approachable and very proactive. So, I’d like to pay tribute to Kate as well.

I think the work of the Equality and Human Rights Commission has had considerable impact in Wales and on the work of the Welsh Government, and, as I say, a very good close working relationship has been built up. I think the publication of reports like ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ provides a snapshot of how far we’ve come in Wales during the last five years in terms of equality, which is very good for the Government to use as a measure for its activities. And, I just want to say, I think never have we needed the voices of the Equality and Human Rights Commission as much as we need them at the moment. With the advent of Brexit, when we know the feelings that have been stirred up amongst many people in local communities, we need people to speak up for their human rights, and, of course, as previous speakers have already said very strongly, the threats to the human rights Act. So, this is a time when we need the need the Equality and Human Rights Commission as never before.

In their report, they do highlight some areas of improvement and some areas where we’ve still got quite a way to go, and I welcome the fact that they report reduced hostility towards lesbian, gay and bisexual people, but I’m concerned that they say that, generally, young people are faring less well in terms of employment, pay and housing than five years ago. So, I hope that the Welsh Government will take note of that—and other public authorities—and that we use that to inform policy making. One of the challenges that the Equality and Human Rights Commission highlight is to improve democratic representation, and I think this is absolutely crucial, because I think, as policy makers, if we don’t reflect the communities that are out there, the laws that we make are going to be diminished. I’m pleased to say that in the local government elections that are coming up in Cardiff North, in my constituency, we have two 18-year-olds standing for election, so I’m very pleased about that. Also, the candidates who were chosen were half men and half women, which, again, I think is a great step forward, as, of course, in this Chamber, on the Government side, we have half men and half women as representatives, basically, which I think is a great achievement. I think it does actually depend on the initiative of the local political parties to ensure that you do get good representation and you do need, sometimes, in difficult circumstances, to make sure that we speak up for equality and for trying to get representative bodies. So, I think that there is progress going on in terms of democratic representation.

I also wanted to highlight issues particularly relevant for young women and girls, and I was very pleased to sponsor the United Nations International Day of the Girl Child event, which was championing girls’ rights, in the Senedd in October. What this event did highlight is that there are still problems faced by girls in Wales in terms of inequality and sexism. The young women who spoke were absolutely inspiring in their very positive attitudes, but also revealing how much inequality they do feel that they face in their everyday lives. They said that in school, they felt that they weren’t allowed to play football, the teachers thought they weren’t as good as boys at maths—all the sorts of things that we know tend to happen and that we have to work very hard against to try to ensure that there is a more equal society. I know the Government recognises that very strongly in terms of choice of subjects in school—the STEM subjects, where more boys than girls choose those subjects—and so it’s very important that we keep on with that message. Because with inequalities and gender discrimination, it’s very important that that is tackled very early on.

I’m a firm believer in equality, but there’s one kind of inequality and one group of people that I’ve not heard mentioned in the Senedd yet, and, in relation to domestic abuse, that is men. I agree with Erin Pizzey, the founder of the first women’s refuge in the UK, and she says that domestic abuse isn’t gender-specific, it applies to both genders, because both males and females can be violent and can be abusive.

I tend to feel that the abuse of males is tolerated in Wales; indeed, I believe it’s institutionalised. The emotional abuse of males is permitted. If you take South Wales Police, for example, it’s absolutely impossible to get them to accept a complaint from a man who is being emotionally abused. I’ve got another case on my books now; I’m going to see how we get on next week. In this city, it is shameful that, as a male, there is absolutely nowhere—nowhere—to go for non-judgmental domestic abuse support. I’m looking around this Chamber and, as I’m speaking, I’m seeing smiles and grins, and that really worries me. It also says a lot about the prejudice that we find in this Chamber.

Now, 13.2 per cent of men are victims of domestic abuse; 23 per cent, a very large minority—it is a minority, but it’s a large minority—23 per cent of all victims are male; 19 men died at the hands of their partner or ex-partner two years ago, according to the figures; and what is really revealing is that 29 per cent of men are unlikely to talk about their experiences—they simply won’t talk about their experiences. Twelve per cent of females find themselves in the same situation. So, what I’m here today to do, in just highlighting those facts, really, is to call for real equality amongst everybody, regardless of faith, gender, sexuality, class, colour. What we really need to embrace, as I said, is that very, very simple word and it is called equality, and it’s something that I believe in absolutely passionately. Diolch. Thank you.

Rhianon Passmore. [Inaudible.] I call on the Minister to respond—the Cabinet Secretary to respond.

Thank you, Presiding Officer, for the opportunity to respond to this generally positive debate. I’d like to thank Assembly Members for participating in the debate today. I’d also like to thank the Equality and Human Rights Commission for its continued work to improve the lives of people here in Wales. I know they are in the Chamber today—upstairs in the gallery of the Chamber—listening.

Turning to the amendments, we will be supporting amendment 1. The Welsh Government strongly believes in promoting the rights of pregnant women and new mothers at work, and we are committed to working with the Equality and Human Rights Commission and others to ensure women do not face pregnancy or maternity discrimination in the workplace—a very valid point raised by the Member earlier. Last month, Welsh Government officials met with the EHRC to discuss the findings of the report on pregnancy and maternity discrimination and scope possibilities of action.

We support amendment 2. However, we should be clear that the Welsh Government has already been developing options this year to improve gender identity provisions here in Wales. Following a rise in the number of applications for assessments in recent years, we commissioned the Welsh Health Specialised Services Committee, which commissions gender identity services on behalf of health boards, to develop a gender identity care pathway for us here in Wales.

Llywydd, the committee has undertaken a public engagement event to hear the views of service users and health professionals and will provide options for service realignment to support the new gender pathway. The additional £0.5 million a year announced in the draft budget will assist the committee’s with this work.

We support amendment 3. The Welsh Government agrees that we all have a role to play in tackling inequality and recognising we must come together to address the seven key challenges contained in the ‘Is Wales Fairer?’ report. As I mentioned in my opening address, our new equality objectives have been developed with strong links to these challenges, and many of these have been raised with Members in the Chamber today.

We support amendment 4. The third sector does vitally important work with communities and with Welsh Government, which highly values the opportunity to support and engage the work of the third sector and the communities it supports. The work done by the third sector is vital, and to ensure this sector thrives, we must have a strong infrastructure to support that. For 2016-17 the Welsh Government allocated £6 million to support third sector infrastructure, which includes the core funding of the Wales Council for Voluntary Action.

I am very aware that the EHRC commission and commissioner have been listening to the contributions made by many Members. I will pick up on a few points that Members have raised this afternoon—all very valid, or most of them very valid, in terms of their comments. Mark Reckless—I believe the role of the Welsh commission and their commissioners is invaluable. It’s imperative that we maintain a Welsh voice, a Welsh perspective of inequality, and views on how we manage that. I pay tribute to the organisation that operates here. I also recognise the valuable experience of the union in terms of the effects of the knowledge base that is based in England, but also recognising that the work that is done here for Wales in a Welsh context is very valuable, and we should maintain that, whatever happens, as we move forward.

Joyce Watson and Julie Morgan raised issues around many, many issues, but one of the issues that came to my mind in particular, and I share the views of many—it is very difficult but we shouldn’t miss the opportunity to talk about these things, particularly around hate crime. We had a debate the other week about hate crime where there were many views expressed, some that I don’t agree with, but I accept that people have those views, and we should challenge them in the appropriate manner, and we did at that point. But hate crime particularly—I’m unconvinced why we shouldn’t have yet—. I believe we should include gender-based hate crime. Characteristics that I believe should be counted in the hate crime soundings because, and I quote, chair—it’s not a very good use of language, but I’m familiar with e-mail exchanges that Members have had. Why should it be appropriate to call a female a ‘whore’, but it’s still not acceptable or appropriate to call somebody a ‘homo’. Why aren’t they compared and seen to be the same, as a hate crime? I think we should do some more work on what that looks like, longer term.

I will respond to Councillor McEvoy’s point in terms of the issue around domestic violence. Can I say that this Chamber, this Government, takes very seriously—very seriously—the issues around domestic violence, whether that be male or female? The fact that two women die every week is a significant effect that we mustn’t ever forget. I do hope the Member, with his convictions, in terms of his personal convictions and his passion about tackling domestic violence—. I think there are many things that we also should discuss in terms of domestic violence services when it is wholly inappropriate to attack women. It’s wholly inappropriate to attack another person, and I just hope all Members reflect on that in the contributions they make in this Chamber when they move forward.

You may also be aware, Llywydd, that Kate Bennett, the national director for Wales at the EHRC is retiring from her role after more than 20 years—a fantastic achievement. And I would like to take this opportunity to thank Kate for her long service and commitment to advancing equality and human rights here in Wales. June Milligan was appointed EHRC commissioner for Wales this year, and I’d also like to welcome her to her new role, and I look forward to working with her in the future, and I pay tribute also to Ann Beynon, who did a fantastic job navigating to the point we are at today.

Lastly, the commission is hosting a reception in Tŷ Hywel immediately after Plenary, Llywydd. I’ll take the opportunity to remind Assembly Members to meet the EHRC Wales committee. I encourage all Assembly Members, particularly those who joined us in May of this year, to come along and learn about the fantastic work that the EHRC does in Wales, straight after Plenary, after this session today. And I thank Members for their contribution. I’m sure the commission will have listened carefully to the contributions and will act accordingly, in the appropriate professional manner as they do, and have done.

The proposal is to agree amendment 1. Does any Member object? Amendment 1 is therefore agreed.

Amendment 1 agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

The proposal is to agree amendment 2. Does any Member object? Therefore, amendment 2 is agreed.

Amendment 2 agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

The proposal is to agree amendment 3. Does any Member object? Amendment 3 is therefore agreed.

Amendment 3 agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

The proposal is to agree amendment 4. Does any Member object? Therefore, amendment 4 is agreed.

Amendment 4 agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

Motion NDM6127 as amended

To propose the National Assembly of Wales:

1. Notes the Equality and Human Rights Commission Wales Annual Review 2015-16, 'Towards a Fairer Wales'.

2. Calls upon the Welsh Government to work with Trade Unions and the Equality and Human Rights Commission to better promote the rights of young expectant and new mothers at work.

3. Notes the establishment of a gender identity clinic for Wales achieved by Plaid Cymru in negotiations on the 2017-18 budget.

4. Notes the seven key challenges that need to be addressed in Wales over the next five years, as identified by the Commission, and that it will require the substantial efforts of public, private and third-sector organisations and of individuals to reduce these challenges.

5. Welcomes recognition by the Commission of the need to empower and engage with the voluntary and community sector.

The proposal is to agree the motion as amended. Does any Member object? Therefore, the motion as amended is agreed.

Motion NDM6127 as amended agreed in accordance with Standing Order 12.36.

That brings today’s proceedings to a close.

The meeting ended at 19:13.