Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I welcome the opportunity to bring forward these amending regulations today. The Family Absence for Members of Local Authorities (Wales) (Amendment) Regulations 2021 will increase the time allowed for adopter's absence for members of county and county borough councils in Wales. The increase from two to 26 weeks will align with the arrangements already in place for maternity absence, resulting in the same period of absence available to both biological and non-biological parents.

Wales was the first country within the UK to introduce family absence arrangements for councillors. Part 2 of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 introduced an entitlement to periods of family absence for members of county and county borough councils, during which a member is entitled to be absent from meetings. That legislation created maximum periods or caps on the period of absence that could be taken for different types of family absence. Enabling councillors to take time off in a range of circumstances is an important part of the approach taken in Wales. Councillors benefit from taking time off to support their families, and Wales benefits from having a more diverse set of elected representatives. Family absence is a fundamental lever in increasing the diversity of those participating in local democracy by enabling individuals to balance the requirements of the important role they play in society with the demands and responsibilities that come with bonding, nurturing and developing relationships with their children. The Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 removes the maximum periods of absence from the 2011 Measure and enables them to be prescribed wholly within regulations. This change made it possible to bring forward these amending regulations.

In addition to the increase in the period of absence available to adopters, associated changes to the regulations will prescribe conditions a member must satisfy in order to be eligible for adopter's absence, create procedures for allowing a member of a local authority to vary the start date and duration of a period of adopter's absence, and provide that a period of adopter's absence may start on the day the child is placed with the member of a local authority for adoption, or up to 14 days beforehand. A member of a local authority may choose on which of these days their adopter's absence will start, create a procedure for a member of a local authority to bring their adopter's absence to an end, make provisions about the period of absence in situations where more than one child is adopted as part of the same arrangement, and allow individuals taking adopter's leave to continue some duties with the consent of the chair or presiding member of the local authority. I ask Members to approve these regulations today. Diolch.