4. What assessment has the Welsh Government made of the percentage of the Welsh workforce earning the real living wage or above? OAQ54662

I thank the Member for that question. We publish an assessment in our annual well-being of Wales report, which sets out our progress against the seven well-being goals of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015. The latest Office for National Statistics figures show that, in 2019, 77 per cent of jobs in Wales were paid the living wage or above, and that is an increase from 74 per cent in 2018.

I'm grateful to the First Minister for his answer, but I'm sure that he will agree with me that we can none of us be pleased that almost a third of our children are living in poverty, and that many of those children have parents who are working—many of them more than one job.

I was pleased to participate yesterday in the launch of the Living Wage Week in west Wales, sponsored by the Burns pet food company in Kidwelly. I was really interested to hear how this relatively small company, with just over 120-odd workers, used contracting to ensure that all staff on their site—not only their directly paid workforce, but all staff on site—are paid the real living wage. And they simply won't contract with a subcontractor unless they do that.

What further steps can the Welsh Government take to ensure that public bodies in Wales follow the example of this innovative small company, and also that support is given to private sector organisations that may wish to do the same?

I thank Helen Mary Jones for that additional question. It was great to have the opportunity yesterday, here in Cardiff at the start of the day, and I know in Kidwelly later in the day, to mark real Living Wage Week here in Wales. And just as she was able to celebrate the success of a company in west Wales, so those of us from around the Chamber who were here in the Pierhead yesterday morning were able to celebrate the announcement of Cardiff as the first major urban area in the United Kingdom to be awarded living wage city status. That's a real testament to the leadership of the city council on the one hand, but also private sector companies who spoke at that event as well.

One of the main ways we have been taking this forward, of course, has been through the code of practice on ethical employment in supply chains—exactly the point that Helen Mary was making. Two hundred and eleven organisations have signed up to the code to date; 58 of those are from the public sector, but 153 are private organisations. And in many ways, we rely on the missionary spirit of firms such as the one in Kidwelly that explain to their peers why the actions that they are taking are not simply good for employees but are good for employers as well. That was the point that was being made in the Pierhead yesterday by employers.

Employers who pay the real living wage have a bonus of additional loyalty and commitment from their workers. Those people spend longer with them, they build up their success, they make an additional contribution to the success of that firm. So, it's not just altruism that we are asking for from the private sector, it's enlightened self-interest as well. And companies explaining that to other companies has been the way in which we have had the success we have had in getting those 153 private organisations to be signatories of the code already.

First Minister, I agree with much of what you've just said there with regard to the importance of private companies signing up to the code and their role in delivering the living wage. Can I also add my congratulations to those that other Members have given to Cardiff as the first living wage city? That's important not just for Cardiff but also for the city region area.

However, Cynnal Cymru have found that one in five jobs in Wales are still paying below the living wage of £9.30 an hour, and Welsh workers still have some of the lowest weekly wages across the UK. You mentioned Cardiff, and I've mentioned Cardiff—there's also disparity between the north of Wales and the south of Wales. So, given the powers that this Welsh Government now have at its disposal, but particularly tax powers, for instance, how do you envisage using the new tools in the toolbox, as they're often called, to make sure that, over the months and years to come, the situation between the north and the south of Wales can be evened up, so that all parts of Wales can benefit from more people living above the living wage?

Llywydd, some of the best wages in Wales are paid in north Wales, particularly in north-east Wales. What we want to see is an economy that is growing, where there is therefore more money to spend on public services, but where the growth in our economy comes from those jobs that offer people an opportunity not simply to survive but to thrive in their own lives. That certainly means paying at least the real living wage.

I pay tribute to Monmouth council which, although not yet accredited, is a payer of the real living wage. There is leadership to be shown by our public services here in Wales in order to encourage more companies in the private sector to follow suit. All health boards in Wales pay at or above the real living wage. Transport for Wales announced yesterday, and was part of the Pierhead celebration, that they too are now a real living wage employer. The universities are already, our national parks are already. We are creating a critical mass of organisations committed to this agenda, and then we want to use their experience to pull the rest of the Welsh economy in the same direction.