I am pleased to speak to this legislative consent motion today. I’d like to begin by thanking members of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee for their scrutiny of the memorandum, and I’m pleased that the committee has not raised any objection to the agreement of the motion.

The UK Government introduced the Children and Social Work Bill into Parliament on 19 May 2016. Having completed its scrutiny in the House of Lords, the Bill had its First Reading in the House of Commons on 24 November. The UK Government has given its support to an amendment, now adopted as a clause at Report Stage in the Lords, which provides protection for whistleblowers from discrimination by prospective local authority employers when they apply for children’s social work positions.

The clause to which this LCM relates enables the Secretary of State to make regulations that prohibit a relevant employer from discriminating against a person who applies for a children’s social work position because it appears to the employer that the applicant has made a protected disclosure. The consent of the Assembly is being sought to this amendment as it applies to the social services workforce and local authority social services in Wales. The Welsh Government supports the implementation of these provisions in Wales so as to avoid unnecessary delay disadvantaging workers here, to support fairness in recruitment to children’s social work positions, and, ultimately, to help ensure that children’s social services in Wales are provided to a high standard. I therefore ask Assembly Members to support this legislative consent motion. I move the motion.