I'm also proud to be able to speak on Universal Children's Day in this institution, which has done so much for the rights of children here in the National Assembly for Wales. We can be proud that the rights of children are at the cornerstone of everything we do. The Rights of Children and Young Persons (Wales) Measure 2011 ensured that Wales was the first nation of the United Kingdom to integrate children's rights into domestic law. John F Kennedy once said:

'Children are the world's most valuable resource and its best hope for the future.'

Though I'm sure that this sentiment is shared around the Chamber, I believe that we can all be proud that this Assembly's support for our most valuable resource is not confined to well-meaning statements, but is enshrined in legislation, and, on White Ribbon Day, the legislation around domestic violence, spearheaded by Carl Sargeant, has a valued place in ensuring the rights of the child.

We can also be proud of leading the way with the creation of the Children's Commissioner for Wales in 2001—something that has been replicated in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. It's important that we, as politicians, listen to the voices of young people, and that is why I'm delighted to see so many youngsters across Wales engaging with the first election to the Welsh Youth Parliament. So, well done, to all of our candidates and, obviously, good luck to Islwyn.

Although there is much that we can be proud of, we must also acknowledge the challenges that still face too many children in Wales. It is right that we in this place acknowledge the pressures that are currently being placed on youth services, not least by the Tory Government's harmful and cruel austerity agenda passported to local government, which deals with the most vulnerable in our society. It is sobering to hear the UN rapporteur on poverty and human rights in his just-published damning report on poverty and the impact on children across the UK. This is now the second highly damning UN report on the UK Government's social policy, which is, in his own words, creating poverty and homelessness through a cruel and misogynistic welfare system, and in the report's words, failing the rights of the child. I am deeply concerned about the potential rise in youth homelessness, exacerbated by UK welfare reform and the UK Government's regressive policies. 

Despite this harsh backdrop, progressive steps are being taken by this Welsh Government. Just yesterday, I was proud to welcome the First Minister to my constituency in Aberbargoed to see the fantastic collaborative work going on between Caerphilly youth services, the Welsh Government and third sector groups such as Llamau—collaborative working for the individual child —and to announce an additional £10 million of funding for projects to prevent youth homelessness. That is real action and a real initiative. I welcome the Welsh Government's additional funding of £15 million, announced last week, to tackle the rise in children being taken into care. And I ask that all in this Chamber work together and call upon the UK Government to protect the rights of the child and to make another UN report on UK poverty and human rights unnecessary by ending austerity and not furthering the universal credit roll-out fiasco by ending it. I call upon everyone in this Chamber to call upon the UK Government to end that. Thank you.