Back to the debate, please, if we can. First of all, I’d like to take up with Russell George, who says that it helps some people that they would prefer to be in this type of zero-hours contract. The truth of the matter, actually, Russell, is that it’s the employer who usually sets the times and number of hours and not the employee unfortunately.

I want to take up with Jenny Rathbone, where she was talking about the postal offices. Well, Jenny, I want to remind you that it’s the European Union that insisted on Britain opening up postal services, and they’ve been very much exploited by German companies. It’s left the Post Office having to deliver letters to farms and outposts whilst German companies make fortunes out of delivering parcels in inner cities.

So, in bringing this motion to the Assembly, the UK Independence Party sought to draw not only the Assembly’s attention to this ever expanding problem but also the attention of the general public. We must use all the powers at our disposal to end this appalling system of employment. Only by highlighting these abuses will we be able to call employers to account. We must make it abundantly clear to those who wish to exploit workers’ rights in this way that we, in this Welsh Assembly, will not tolerate such actions.

Every worker, wherever he works and at whatever level, should have some security of employment with hours and conditions clearly laid out. We agree with Plaid Cymru that the use of zero-hours contracts in devolved public services should be banned and that any services procured by the Assembly should also be subject to such a ban, and we will therefore be supporting Plaid Cymru’s amendments 5 and 7, which cover this issue.

The absence of working entitlements and conditions are totally unacceptable in twenty-first century Britain, and I ask the parties in this Chamber to support this motion.