Firstly, can I join everybody else in thanking the Children’s Commissioner for Wales and her staff for presenting us with such a comprehensive report? Again, like others, she should be applauded, I think, for the wide-scale consultation undertaken by her and her staff, having met with the thousands of children, parents and professionals that she did.

The report does cover several significant areas, and others have really dealt with that, so I just want to cover two, if I may. Firstly, the evidence in the report of a level of concern over the current regime for supporting children and young people with additional learning needs is something that has certainly been raised with me by parents of children with special educational needs, who tell me about their struggle to get the right support for their child. And, in Wales, we've seen a rise of over 6,000 in the number of children with SENs since 2011, and, in Merthyr alone, there are 2,500 SEN children, nearly 200 of whom have statements. So, I was delighted when, in July this year, the Minister for Lifelong Learning and Welsh Language indicated that a new additional learning needs and educational tribunal Bill will be introduced before Christmas, representing a significant step towards addressing the concerns identified by the children's commissioner, as it moves us towards a more modern, multi-agency approach to dealing with ALN.

Secondly, given the economic challenges still faced in many constituencies, like my own in Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney, I was interested in the report's conclusions on child poverty, and I could spend a lot longer than the few minutes that I've got in this debate this afternoon talking about that particular issue, but I'm pleased that the report recognises that tackling child poverty isn't just a question of parents securing employment. We know that many hard-working men and women are having to cope daily with the scourge of in-work poverty, as outlined earlier by Julie James in her statement. Families with children are continuing to face damaging cuts to welfare support imposed by the Tories in Westminster, keeping them in poverty despite them often being in full-time employment. The enormous strides that were made by the last Labour Government in reducing child poverty have been rolled back, as the most vulnerable in our society continue to be the victims of austerity measures, where the poorest are hit the hardest. In-work poverty, therefore, is very much a theme that I've been focusing on in my constituency and, in the area of employment, stressing the need to ensure that, if new jobs come into an area, they are well-paid, they are not on zero-hours contracts, and they’re provided by companies who have a commitment to becoming a sustainable part of the local community, and who can now link in to the ‘Taking Wales Forward’ programme with local colleges and training providers to deliver skills and training that employers need. Because parents in skilled, secure, long-term employment are a crucial element in taking children out of poverty.

I'm also hopeful that the renewed commitment of the Welsh Government to support Flying Start and Families First with a more flexible tackling poverty framework and a cohesive community-based approach to tackling child poverty, through decent, sustainable employment, supported by Welsh Government when necessary, will start to address the issues identified by the commissioner, because, frankly, we cannot allow us to fail this generation of children.