As the theme for International Women’s Day 2017 states, we must be bold for change and step up to help drive gender equality. We will be supporting the motion and all amendments. Despite progress in some areas, we must address the barriers that continue to prevent women from playing as full a role as men in the economic, political, social and cultural life of Wales.

Oxfam Cymru is calling for a human economy that benefits women and men alike. Oxfam Scotland’s ‘decent work’ research showed that women valued a number of factors higher than men, for example a supportive line manager, support to return to work after absence, additional benefits beyond pay, flexibility in choosing working hours, and a job that is easy to get to. As the charity Chwarae Teg/Fair Play states, steps to address gender inequality can help drive economic growth, yet steps to drive economic growth will not necessarily deliver equality. As a new economic strategy for Wales is developed, they’ve said it’s crucial that the following three questions are addressed: how can the strategy deliver equally for men and women? How can the strategy take equal and fair consideration of the contribution of men and women? And how can it be ensured that the strategy doesn’t create any additional barriers to women reaching their full potential? They emphasise that Wales’s economy is not currently making the most of women’s potential, where women’s economic participation remains lower than men’s, where women continue to be more commonly employed in sectors that are lower paid and offer fewer opportunities to progress, and are less likely to be represented in more senior positions, and where women are often found working below their skill level with a lack of appropriate childcare and/or flexible working options cited as contributing factors. In consequence, a 16 per cent gender pay gap persists in Wales.

Chwarae Teg’s experience in delivering the previous Presiding Officer’s Women in Public Life development scheme confirms that there are sufficient numbers of interested, suitably qualified and experienced women in Wales to provide boards with a ready-made pool of talented women to fill available posts and help the boards achieve their goals. They also propose using public procurement, investing in good social infrastructure, such as childcare and health services, and tackling gender stereotypes as additional steps to address the complex causes of the gender pay gap. This includes healthy relationship education, helping pupils develop a better understanding of gender roles and ensuring that teachers and schools are supported to create gender inclusive learning environments. As I stated during the Stage 3 proceedings of the Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act 2015, those of us, like myself, who have been out, for example on Hafan Cymru’s Spectrum project, teaching children and young people about healthy relationships, abuse, its consequences and where to seek help, know of the positive impact this can have.

Assurances were secured by the three opposition parties at Stage 4 of the Act that stakeholders from the violence against women sector would be involved in developing proposals to ensure that healthy relationship education is developed within the Welsh curriculum—something we heard about at lunchtime at the cross-party group on violence against women and children. In 2014 the Centre for Social Justice reported findings that 43 per cent of young people received no information about healthy relationships in school, and that one in three girls and one in six boys experienced sexual violence in the classroom. They recommended that relationship education be made mandatory in the school curriculum. In England, the UK Government has now announced a requirement for relationship education in primary schools and relationship and sex education in secondary schools.

The Autistic Women’s Empowerment Project recently told the cross-party autism group that the different presentations of autism in women and girls suggest that the accepted ratio of five boys to one girl should actually be a lot closer, where many females are left undiagnosed, misdiagnosed or without support. As the parents of many misdiagnosed daughters have told me, statutory bodies don’t understand that thinking has changed, that autism presents differently in girls, and that many females are unable to access a diagnosis due to stereotype views, leaving autistic girls and women vulnerable to low self-worth, anxiety, depression and self-harm.

Well, with local government elections on the horizon, I will conclude by referring to the Equality and Human Rights Commission figures, showing that only 26 per cent of councillors in Wales are women. Well, my wife is a Flintshire county councillor, and until we address the health-harming misogyny that she suffered there, many more women will not be encouraged to come forward.