I’m encouraged to hear that this work will be different from previous initiatives and programmes that are focused on the Valleys, and it has to be different, because what has happened in the past hasn’t worked. So, it’s positive to see a commitment to doing things differently, and it’s also positive that you’ve recognised Ferndale, a community that feels very neglected.

So, I’ve started with a positive, now I will turn to the ambition to close the employment gap between the south Wales Valleys and the rest of the country. First of all, I welcome the recognition that you just stated that there are different challenges to the southern most parts of the Valleys to the northernmost reaches. It’s a fact that the further away from Cardiff you are, the greater the challenges there are. So, we need to have a clear commitment from you that the ‘closer to home’ part of your job offer will be fulfilled. We need jobs in the Valleys, not just jobs within the reach of the Valleys. So, I’d like to know how many jobs will be in the Valleys. The location of jobs is crucial, as are the skills and wage levels. There are many of us, I’m sure, in this Chamber who started off our careers working in the retail sector, so I welcome the acknowledgement of the importance of the foundational economy, but where are those additional job opportunities coming from? Care and retail jobs are already very well represented in our Valleys communities. What about other jobs? What about careers for people?

Minister, I’d also like to ask about some of the projects that you’ve listed, because, again, I’m not filled with confidence. Why? Because pre-existing schemes are mentioned as relating to this taskforce, but these are schemes that are already in the pipeline. The automotive park in Ebbw Vale has already been mentioned. It’s new, but it seems to have been created purely because the Circuit of Wales plan was rejected. Now, of course, Plaid Cymru will welcome that development in Ebbw Vale, but are there other similar solutions for other Valley locations? Where’s the big project for the Rhondda, for example? The employment rates for the Rhondda are similar to Blaenau Gwent. The claimant count is similar as well. But when Rhondda Cynon Taf is considered as a whole, the most affluent southernmost communities mask the poverty and deprivation faced by people in my constituency, and I really think you need to take account of that. Are you talking to big employers in Cardiff and elsewhere to see if they will consider the larger Valleys towns for their next expansion?

I note there is a mention of the M4 relief road. Can you outline how the new M4, and in particular your favoured black route, will help the Valleys? The Sustainable Places Research Institute at Cardiff University commissioned a report that said that the new M4 would offer very little to the Valleys, and that report focused on those Valleys closest to Newport. Minister, Plaid Cymru will not accept a situation where existing Welsh Government initiatives like the M4, which have very little to do with the Valleys, are pulled into this work. Can we instead have new projects that are for the sole purpose of giving a fair deal to the former south Wales coalfield? I and Plaid Cymru will champion any new projects that the taskforce proposes, but we want to see the proof that this is new and innovative work that will deliver results and turn around the poverty and deprivation that is still our hangover from the pit closure programme.

The leader of the Tories asked about money. Now, I’ve noticed that no budget has been talked about—no specific budget—for this work. You’ve talked about catalysts, but I very much hope that the ambition that you’ve outlined will be backed up by resources.

You’ve mentioned the metro. How much money is going to be allocated to the metro? When will we see the plan for the metro? Are you going to start the work in those points furthest away from the city? These are the questions people in the Valleys want to know. People in the Valleys will not put up with a repetition of previous initiatives that have either failed or made things worse, and neither will Plaid Cymru.