Thank you, Llywydd. I am responding to this debate this afternoon and I will start by saying how important migration has been, as such an important part of Wales’s history and it will be an important part of our future today, and I think that’s been certainly reflected from contributions in parts of this Chamber today. It’s very much reflected in the White Paper that we jointly put forward with Plaid Cymru, and much of what I say in my response will be very much underpinned by the White Paper. Citizens of other countries who live in Wales make huge contributions to our economy, our public services and our communities, and we heard a bit about that, a flavour of that, in the earlier inspiring debate on refugees in Wales. And of course we have to also say—and I very much support Steffan’s opening remarks on this point, in moving his amendment—that it is vital that the rights of EEA nationals currently in the UK are protected. We’ve been repeatedly calling for that as a Welsh Government, as well as for rights to be reciprocal for UK citizens in EEA countries.

We do recognise that we need to manage migration, as Jeremy Miles has said, through connecting migration more closely to employment, offering flexibility, supporting our ambition for full and unfettered access to the European single market. And exploitation of our workforce, of course, is a key and important issue to debate in this Assembly. Too many workers are exploited by unscrupulous employers, undermining wage levels and terms and conditions for all workers, and we recognise that migrants can be particularly vulnerable to this. But the issue we need address here is not immigration but exploitation, and, of course, the UK Government can do much more to tackle exploitation by employers who don’t pay the minimum wage or who deny workers their statutory rights, and the Welsh Government is already doing what it can to drive compliance with labour laws, and these are important issues to debate. For example, our code of practice on ethical employment in supply chains sets out our clear expectations for employers across Wales to embed ethical work practices in their organisations and stop labour exploitation. It should be noted, of course, that we have much lower levels of migration in Wales than most other parts of the UK, and many people who have chosen to live and work in Wales play a vital role in delivering our public services. In the Welsh NHS alone, there are over 1,300 dedicated staff from the EU. In fact, 7 per cent of all Welsh doctors are from the EU. But there are also many people born overseas who work in our key economic sectors who play a role in the success of our academic institutions—Andrew R.T. Davies acknowledged this—in terms of research in our universities. These are people who we equally want to see staying in Wales and coming to live and work in Wales in the future.

Clearly, we want to ensure that people in Wales are able to access high-quality jobs and, to do so, to provide the support they need at school or later in life to develop the skills they need to access these opportunities. So, we’re doing that through the skills priorities set out in ‘Taking Wales Forward’, which includes supporting people seeking employability skills, creating apprentice opportunities and promoting innovation and connectivity. Where there are skills shortages and gaps, our actions will help to address these in the longer term. But, in the shorter term, we need to be able to recruit staff from overseas to fill key vacancies.

UKIP asked us to note the Bank of England working paper. Its findings may be relevant, but they have to be taken into account in terms of the wider context. I would also draw attention to the London School of Economics paper, which, Steffan Lewis, your amendment responds to, because it’s worth repeating what Steffan Lewis said. It concluded that there are no significantly large negative effects on employment, wages and wage inequality for the UK-born population. But I would also draw attention to the report by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, which showed immigration creates a net benefit for the public finances.

But I would also like to make a point in terms of the factors that I think UKIP should be addressing. I draw attention to the factors that have a far greater effect on people’s earnings, such as inflation, which is at its highest point in years, which the Bank of England has attributed to the depreciation of sterling and the run-up to and then the aftermath of last year’s referendum. Fiscal austerity, again, results in a very severe squeeze on public sector pay. The lack of investment in infrastructure is another notable feature of the UK Government’s policies of fiscal austerity, weakening productivity, and that, in turn, leads to lower pay growth. The legislated minimum wage and the way it’s enforced will also influence wage levels and growth, and the Welsh Government is itself accredited as a living wage employer by the Living Wage Foundation. The Welsh NHS has been paying the real living wage to all its employees since 2015, and we’re promoting the benefits of the real living wage more broadly across the public sector and the economy. It does form part of our code of practice on ethical employment in supply chains.

The Welsh Government has outlined an approach comprising a focus on migration linked to employment, supported by strong labour laws and increased opportunities for all. We believe this is the best option for our wider economy and our workforce, and that it gives the UK the best options going into negotiations. There are aspects of both the Conservative and Plaid Cymru amendments that we can agree with, which endorse this approach.

I think, finally, Llywydd, I would say that it would have been welcome if UKIP had taken the opportunity to not only welcome the work undertaken by the Welsh Government to tackle exploitation of our workforce wherever they come from, but also to join us in calling for an end to the era of austerity, low wages and the public sector pay cap, all still driven by a Conservative Government, which means our public sector workforce have been trapped in low wage growth for seven years. This debate, I fear, does reveal sharp divisions in this Senedd with the politics espoused by UKIP, which are abhorrent to the majority in this place. I think, Llywydd, this is a week where we’re celebrating the contribution of refugees in Wales, and it is relevant to this debate following an inspiring debate this afternoon on the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee report, a debate about the contribution that refugees are making and want to make, and the ways in which we’re seeking to support them to do so. It’s very sad that that debate, that very inspiring debate, has been followed by a debate where, again, the true nature of UKIP’s divisive and negative views reside. Jeremy Miles was right to draw attention to UKIP’s form on this, as, indeed, was Leanne Wood.

I would say, finally, this motion goes against the grain of the values and the political perspective of the majority of people in this Assembly and the people whom we represent in Wales. Wales can be a sanctuary. It can be a welcoming country with a vibrant economy. We will debate with UKIP, but we will never, never, never agree with the ill-informed and bigoted views that UKIP is proclaiming today. I urge you to support our amendment.