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.