Can I begin by thanking Mike Hedges for bringing forward this short debate today? I think it follows on nicely from the Deputy Minister's statement yesterday and National Apprenticeship Week the week before. As a former apprentice, I am very proud to have the opportunity to discuss my experiences and contribute today. Deputy Llywydd, I'd like to focus on two things in particular.

Firstly, time-served apprenticeships equip you with the skills to perform your tasks in your chosen trade efficiently, to a high standard, but most importantly, safely, and this is paramount in all trades.

The second thing I want to talk about in the Chamber today is the importance of continuing professional development as part of apprenticeships. This is needed so we ensure that workers can deal with the rapid changes in the economy and the rapid changes within the workplace, and this will be throughout their careers, not just during their apprenticeship. So, they will undertake continuing professional development training to allow them to always complete jobs in a safe manner to a quality standard that we all expect and should expect. 

Can I once again thank Mike for bringing this short debate forward and making those points, which I fully agree with? I look forward to working with Mike and the Welsh Government Minister to ensure we can deliver good-quality apprenticeships for current and future generations. Diolch.