There has to be an independent public inquiry. We owe it to those who have died and to the front-line staff who have put their lives on the line in this crisis. But, I believe that that has to be on a four-nation basis, albeit with a thorough examination of handling in Wales, as all the key initial decisions were taken on a four-nation basis. As the First Minister has said on numerous occasions, we went into this lockdown together and we want to come out of it together as best as we can, and then we should learn the lessons together too.

The first question any public inquiry should address is why the lockdown didn't happen sooner. Those pictures of the Cheltenham Festival will remain totemic in the public's mind for years to come. As Angela Burns has said, in Wales, we had a major Stereophonics concert, and in Gwent, a major rugby game between the Dragons and Benetton just days before lockdown. We could see what was happening in the rest of Europe, and clearly, a change of direction did take place, but I believe too late. These and other questions do deserve answers, and real answers at that, and not the kind we are used to seeing Matt Hancock provide at the daily press briefings.

We are a long way from being ready to start the work of a proper inquiry. The focus today, tomorrow and for the foreseeable future needs to be on saving lives, minimising the impact of COVID-19 on our communities and safely introducing a new normal into all our lives. By any measure, we are a long way from that happening. I will, therefore, not be supporting the Tory motion today, which could not have been more brazen in its politics if it was written in blue crayon and stamped with a blue rosette. By identifying the next election as the deadline for reporting, you are saying, in simple terms, you want to make this a political bun fight, not a genuine learning exercise that will save lives. To divert attention from those people battling the pandemic now by getting them into public inquiry territory now, when the pandemic is still claiming lives, would be grossly irresponsible. It would be akin to grounding the Spitfires and Hurricanes in the middle of the Battle of Britain in order to discuss flight training for future pilots. 

Yes, there are things we can learn as we go along, and the Assembly committees have a vital role to play in scrutinising the COVID response on an ongoing basis. I am pleased that both the committees I sit on are committed to doing that in a vigorous way. There is no sense to my mind that anyone is running from scrutiny. Indeed, I urge the Welsh Government to listen carefully to the views of committees, and genuinely embrace our recommendations as a real opportunity to add value and improve the Welsh Government response. 

One of the only sensible things Dominic Cummings has ever said is that he made mistakes every day during this crisis. And so, yes, there will have been mistakes in Wales, too, and we must learn from them. But, there has not been one moment in this pandemic where I have doubted for one second even that the Welsh Government has the safety of my constituents and everyone else in Wales as their very top priority. That is not something any serious person could say about the UK Government, and I think we should see this motion today for what it is—a desperate attempt to distract from that. Thank you.