In responding to our letter, the First Minister stated that discussions were under way with the UK Government about a political agreement that would endorse the existing framework of equal treatment legislation in force across the constituent parts of the UK. The First Minister also told us that they would continue to work with the UK Government to seek assurances on individual rights. Today, I would appreciate an update on these discussions from the Welsh Government—what further steps they intend to take to ensure that charter rights continue to be in force once we leave the European Union and for more detail on the political agreement cited in the First Minister’s response.

We heard evidence from a number of stakeholders raising concerns about the loss of EU funding targeted at human rights and equalities issues. Wales currently receives £370 million a year from the EU. We recommended that the shared prosperity fund should be administered by the Welsh Government to enable it to be sensitive to local needs and inequalities. We also called for the fund to be targeted at tackling inequality and socioeconomic disadvantage. We welcome the Welsh Government’s support for this call, and, today, I would ask for an update on how discussions with the UK Government are progressing on this important matter.

An important part of our work was understanding what more could be done in Wales to ensure that we stay ahead of the curve in relation to human rights and equalities. Stakeholders called for the socioeconomic duty in the Equality Act 2010 to be enacted in Wales. We note that this duty has now been enacted in Scotland, and we have the powers to do the same in Wales. In the recent report, 'Is Wales Fairer? (2018)', the Equality and Human Rights Commission have recommended that this duty is brought into force as a matter of priority. 

We called for clarity from the Welsh Government as to whether they would be seeking to enact this duty. We note that in the response, the Welsh Government places a great deal of emphasis on the Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. This, of course, is an important piece of legislation, but it does not deliver the same effect as enacting the socioeconomic duty. The Government also stated that they would be reviewing their position in light of the rapid review into gender equality, and the Scottish Government’s experience of implementing the duty. So, can the leader of the house outline when she expects the Welsh Government to make a decision on whether this duty should be enacted in Wales? 

Dirprwy Lywydd, another way of protecting human rights within Wales would be the incorporation of international human rights treaties into Welsh law. We note that, in responding to our recommendation calling for further consideration to this suggestion, the Government emphasises the well-being of future generations Act once more as the primary legislative framework for this. While acknowledging that, we would highlight again that this Act does not provide for any legal challenge if rights are not being upheld. It's an important piece of legislation, but it is not one that can sufficiently ensure human rights protections.

We also heard concerns that, once we leave the European Union, human rights protections will be freeze framed. Disability organisations, in particular, highlighted a number of pieces of future UK legislation that they were concerned the UK would not benefit from. This is why we have called for a mechanism to monitor future human rights developments to ensure that Welsh citizens continue to receive the same protections as those within the European Union.

In responding to this recommendation, the First Minister highlighted that Welsh Government would continue to work with the Equality and Human Rights Commission to monitor human rights progress. Can the leader of the house now provide greater detail as to how this will happen?

Our final area of concern was around the perceived increase in hate crime following the EU referendum. We called for the community cohesion plan to be updated before summer 2018. In responding, the Welsh Government committed to publishing this, but did not state when that would happen. In July, the leader of the house stated that they would be consulting on the revised community cohesion plan in the autumn. Today, will the leader of the house outline exactly when this consultation will happen and when she envisages the new community cohesion plan will come into force? Dirprwy Lywydd, I now look forward to hearing contributions from across the Chamber.