I'm very pleased to speak in support of the Equality and Human Rights Commission , with special reference to the chapter on improving Welsh workplaces. The Equality and Human Rights Commission's stated aim is to improve workplaces by working with employers and by encouraging effective equality and human rights workplace practices. I welcome the working forward coalition that the EHRC has set up, with a commitment made by over 20 organisations in Wales, including the Welsh Government, to attract, develop and retain women at work, and this will help address the inequalities women are still facing, with the gender pay gap in Britain standing at 18.1 per cent. Further statistics they give in their review: 86 per cent of Welsh employers saying that they're firm supporters of female staff during and after pregnancy, but 71 per cent of mothers still saying that they have a negative or possibly discriminatory experience at work.

These statistics show how much further we need to go and I was reminded of this at the twenty-fifth anniversary of Chwarae Teg, which I attended last week, when the chief executive, Cerys Furlong, looked back to the start of Chwarae Teg when I was appointed as the first director, following a major survey of the role of women in the Welsh workforce. At that time, one in five women were not in work; by 2010, it was one in 10. But Cerys told us that women still carry out, on average, 60 per cent more unpaid work than men, at 26 hours per week compared with 16 hours. She reminded us that Chwarae Teg has been working over the last 25 years with women, businesses, schools and policy makers to ensure that women in Wales can enter the workplace, develop their skills and build rewarding careers.

Can I draw attention to the Chwarae Teg Agile Nation 2 programme set up to help improve the position of women in the workforce? The European Social Fund and Welsh Government funded programme was developed as a direct response to a body of evidence, showing a clear need for positive measures to be taken to support the progression of women in Wales. For example, national figures show that 7 per cent of employed women in Wales are in management, compared with 11 per cent of men. And women are underrepresented in key STEM industries—science, technology, engineering and maths. Agile Nation 2 will support 2,207 women and 500 businesses during its planned life cycle.

At this point, I want to pay tribute to Val Feld, former Assembly Member for Swansea East, who was the leading force behind the setting up of Chwarae Teg when she was director of the Equal Opportunities Commission in Wales. I know that this Assembly will be pleased to hear that we've progressed with the plan to install a purple plaque at this Senedd in the new year, when we can give due time and attention to her considerable legacy before her life was cut short after a brave fight against cancer. In memory of Val and in support of Chwarae Teg, ambitious about their goal to make Wales the global lead in gender equality, can I welcome Chwarae Teg's new fair play employer benchmark, launched last week? I know Val would be so pleased to hear of this and of their ambition.

The fair play employer benchmark will help employers see where they are ranked in terms of gender equality and equip them with an action plan to take them forward in terms of gender pay reporting. This fair play initiative will be available to public, private and third sector employers to help them receive recognition as a fair play employer. Can I just ask the Cabinet Secretary if Welsh Government can engage with this inspiring new initiative? I think this must be embedded in the economic action plan, on which, of course, there was a statement made by Ken Skates this afternoon. We must show our determination to drive change for gender equality in Wales to take us forward and I do thank the Equality and Human Rights Commission for their informative annual review.