Diolch, Llywydd. The seventeenth of May will mark International Day Against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia, or IDAHOT. This day offers an important opportunity to draw attention to the violence and discrimination faced by LGBT+ people internationally.

The day was created in 2004 to mark the anniversary of the World Health Organization’s decision in 1990 to declassify homosexuality as a mental disorder. It’s fair to say that LGBT people in Britain will have seen a great number of legal changes in that time that have brought us closer to equality for these communities, but I am in no means complacent—nor should we be—and we would not suggest that LGBTQ+ people no longer face discrimination.

Stonewall research shows us that more than half of LGBT young people in Wales and 73 per cent of trans young people still face bullying at school for being what they are—nearly half of those never tell anyone about it. We also know that one in five LGBT people in Britain have experienced a hate crime or incident because of their sexual orientation and/or their gender identity in the last 12 months. We are also very aware of the increase in damaging online hate directed towards trans communities at the moment.

And what about the situation for LGBT communities outside the UK? Whilst marriage is currently available for same-sex couples in 22 countries, same-sex relationships are still illegal in 72 countries, with eight states around the world activating the death penalty for consensual same-sex sexual activity between adults in private. This is why days like IDAHOT are so important in giving us the opportunity to stand in solidarity with LGBT communities around the world, and to highlight where we need to do more at home.

We must do all we can to tackle homophobic, biphobic and transphobic bullying in schools and prevent the potentially long-term educational and emotional damage it can cause. Tackling all forms of bullying within education remains a key priority for the Welsh Government. Our vision is to tackle bullying holistically, addressing the root causes of unacceptable behaviour and creating an inclusive and engaging environment where learners feel safe and are ready to learn.

We are updating our anti-bullying guidance, 'Respecting Others', which was published in 2011. The revised guidance will be published for consultation later this year and will include guidance on bullying incidents related to LGBT issues. We are working closely with education practitioners, other partners and children and young people to ensure the revised guidance has the maximum impact possible. 

LGBT people can also face hate crime that can take the form of verbal threats, assault, offensive graffiti, damage to property, cyber bullying or abusive texts, e-mails and phone calls. LGBT hate crimes can have a devastating and long-lasting effect on people and communities, but we know that around four in five LGBT hate crimes still go unreported.

In marking IDAHOT in Wales, I want to encourage the reporting of LGBT hate crimes. I urge anyone affected to report and seek support by contacting the local police on 101, or 999 in an emergency, or Victim Support’s national hate crime report and support centre, which is funded by the Welsh Government to provide emotional, practical and advocacy support.

We continue to work through our hate crime criminal justice board Cymru to make sure that as well as encouraging people to report hate crimes, we also strive to improve the quality of service and care that victims receive. This year, the hate crime criminal justice board is looking closely at case load attrition rates—that is, the drop-off in the number of cases between the first report, through investigation, community disposal, or charging and prosecution. We want to continue to examine each step and improve where necessary to ensure that victims are satisfied with the way in which their cases are handled, and that wherever possible justice is served.

We provide funding to Stonewall Cymru to engage with LGBT communities around Wales, empower LGBT people and their allies, amplify LGBT voices, strengthen advice, information and advocacy services, and transform learning environments. We are fortunate to have Stonewall Cymru provide their advice and expertise across the Welsh Government to help enable our policies to be inclusive. 

The global theme for IDAHOT this year is 'Alliances for Solidarity'. Now, more than ever, this theme is a rallying call to us all. We all need allies, especially when we are working to fight prejudice, reduce violence and campaign for cultural change. The 2018 theme encourages LGBT organisations to reinforce their bond with current partners, and to reach out to new partners working in the equality and inclusion sphere to raise awareness of our commonalities, and engage in collective action to tackle discrimination.

In Wales, we are working to strengthen such alliances and ally networks. They are important because we cannot secure the rights of any group facing discrimination while the rights of other groups are left undefended. For example, under our equality and inclusion programme, organisations working across the protected characteristics are discovering common causes and finding new ways of working together, so that collectively they can have greater positive impact. This also allows us the opportunity to recognise and consider the effects and consequences of multiple or intersectional discrimination, when sexual orientation or gender identity are accompanied by other grounds, such as gender, race, disability, migrant and asylum seeker status, or age, et cetera. 

I am very proud to be an LGBT ally and show my support and solidarity to our LGBT communities. At the beginning of this month, I attended Spring Pride in Swansea. I have to say at this point, Presiding Officer, it's not part of my statement, but I had not realised quite how unfabulous I was until I walked among that group of people. [Laughter.] There was a great turnout, and it was a fantastic way for groups to join together to celebrate diversity in the city. It leads me to think about what more we can do as allies. We can listen to LGBT people who have had real lived experience, and do our best to further our understanding of the issues they may face. We can stand up against discrimination when we see it. We can make sure we raise the voices of those people who are seldom heard, for example, BME LGBT people or disabled LGBT people.

In a world today where voices of intolerance and prejudice have been growing louder, it is very much time for us in Wales to ask ourselves: how tolerant are we? How much have we learned, and how committed are we? Our answer is resoundingly that we care more than ever, and that we must join our voices together with our allies and through all our networks to continue to strive for a more tolerant, more open and more welcoming society. Diolch.