On behalf of all Members, I'd like to welcome Jack Sargeant to the Senedd and congratulate him—[Applause.]—on his recent by-election success. You are following in a tradition of proud representatives of Alyn and Deeside in this place, and we all wish you well. Jack Sargeant. 

Thank you, Presiding Officer. Can I firstly thank you for letting me make this statement today? It really, really means a lot to me. I'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the Members across this Chamber for their words of congratulations following the recent by-election in Alyn and Deeside. From the members of the security team, the catering staff, the Assembly Members support staff, not to forget the drivers, the kind words of congratulations have been really, really overwhelming. 

It is customary, of course, in your first statement, to pay tribute to your predecessor. Not often though is it in those circumstances that I find myself in today, because not only I am paying tribute to someone who loved his constituency, and who loved Wales, and fought tirelessly across his constituency and across Wales for those who were less able to stand up for themselves, I am also paying tribute to the man that I knew as dad, the man I loved going for a pint with, the man who helped me with my exams, the man who stood by my side right the way through life, and stood so proud when I was graduated, the man that was the glue of my family and held us together on many, many occasions. But he was also the man who showed me that being the right sort of politician wasn't about being the right sort of politician in the Assembly Chamber. It was something that you did in every interaction with every person, no matter who they were or what their situation was. It was important to him that their issues and concerns were listened to and understood. And although we knew that was my dad, we've been touched and comforted by the outpouring of support and solidarity that we've seen from people right across Alyn and Deeside, right across Wales, and across the United Kingdom. And here, in the Assembly, I know you all knew him as my dad as well. 

We are, of course, devastated beyond words, and we know that our grief will continue to be shared by everyone who knew him and loved him, and many other strangers who didn't have the chance to meet him. And I also want to say how proud I am to have friends and family here in the gallery today, watching me in my first session. So, thank you to all of you here today and all the family members and friends across Alyn and Deeside and further afield. My dad was truly loved by his community and the special people of Alyn and Deeside. He loved the sense of togetherness, and our community's problems were everyone's problems. That's clear from the way the local people come together when times get tough. 

Alyn and Deeside has been through many a tough time, but it's that sense of community and looking after each other that we as a family have seen more than ever in recent months. Like much of north-east Wales, it has a large manufacturing base. It's something we're all so proud of, and we're also so proud that it's not just holding its own where we are now, but we are also moving into the forefront of the manufacturing industry and embracing the new technology to create jobs for the future—great jobs for the future. But we must carry on, and we must do more, to build to give better opportunities to our young people, and our current generation as well, to make sure our communities have the right infrastructure and services for the future.

The Airbus plant in Broughton employs 7,000 people and supports businesses directly and indirectly right across the region, and further into the north-west of England as well. The plant specialises in manufacturing wings and the majestic Beluga, transporting those wings, once they are completed, all across Europe. I was pleased to meet with Unite shop stewards during the campaign and I look forward to returning there soon to discuss what we can do further. 

My constituency is also the home of Deeside College—Coleg Cambria, which has students right across north-east Wales and Cheshire. I gained my engineering apprenticeship there, which I'm so very proud of. I want to see it continue to grow from strength to strength, and I want to see that young people benefit from the opportunities that we and the college provide to them—opportunities that, if we get right, can put Wales in the forefront of our industrial revolution.

And, for those sporting fanatics, there is a strong local heritage in Alyn and Deeside. Deeside College's main stadium is the home of Gap Connah's Quay Nomads, which I had the pleasure of visiting during the campaign as well, with Tom Watson, which was great. Not only that, we've had some great footballers from the constituency—Michael Owen, the late Gary Speed, and it was fantastic to meet with Roger Speed just on Sunday; what a true gentleman he was. But I would never be able to live this down if I couldn't thank and mention my own local team, FC Nomads of Connah's Quay, and club chairman, Bernie Attridge. So, I really want to say thank you for everything he's done, and we'll keep that support going. Good luck on the weekend, guys.

I said last week that this by-election was a by-election that no-one wanted to see. And I am not the only person in this Chamber who wants justice for my father, my dad. I know from the campaign we have just conducted that this feeling is shared by the constituents and the community, but further afield in Wales and the UK as well. And alongside my political work in this Chamber, I will also be working to ensure that the inquiries under way will examine the way my dad was treated in the run-up to his death. I owe my family, my friends, my constituents, and, no less, my dad, for that.

Finally, Presiding Officer, I was truly honoured and humbled to have been elected as the area's—our great area's—new Labour AM last week. And I want to thank all the local Labour members, and others, for their work during the campaign, during the snow, when we got out on that doorstep. And I also want to thank all the colleagues from the Assembly who came up to help me with that, on a snowy Tuesday in February. So, thank you all. But, most importantly, I want to thank the voters of Alyn and Deeside for putting their faith in me.

I am in this place to be a strong voice representing the interests, building on the work started by my dad: jobs and skills; aiming to end youth homelessness; working to end the epidemic of domestic violence, domestic abuse; working to ensure that this Government listens to people—real people from my constituency, and across north Wales and the whole of Wales—and working to deliver the policies that will work for them. And there is no greater tribute I could pay to my dad than continuing his legacy and his work, and all the service that he provided for our special people up in Alyn and Deeside. That's what I intend to do, and I hope, as the representative of the new generation in the Assembly, I can do something to build a better, kinder politics for the future. Thank you. [Applause.]

I thank Jack Sargeant.