Diolch. Thank you, Gareth, for bringing the first legislative proposal to this new Senedd.

The Welsh Government is committed to upholding and protecting the rights of all older people in Wales. I am clear that age does not diminish an individual's right to be treated with dignity and respect. The pandemic, as speakers here today have already referred to, has sharpened society's awareness of the importance of human rights, and several referrals have been made to some of the issues that have arisen during the pandemic.

I would just like to make a few points to clear up some of the statements that have been made. In terms of care home visiting, there has never been a blanket ban on care home visiting. It's always been possible for visitors to go into care homes in particular circumstances, but I accept the point that the Member is making: that, overall, it has been a very sad situation for people in care homes and their relatives. But, there has never been a blanket ban.

As I say, the pandemic has sharpened our awareness, but before the first outbreak of COVID-19, a programme of work was already under way to make rights real for older people. Older people's rights are already enshrined in the UK Human Rights Act 1998, and age is a protected characteristic under the Equality Act 2010. Specifically in Wales, the Social Services and Well-being (Wales) Act 2014 requires local authorities to have due regard to the UN principles for older people, and gives older people a strong voice in the arrangements for any care that they may need.

As part of our activity to co-produce a strategy for an ageing society, a working group was convened to develop practice guidance, demonstrating how health and social care professionals can embed a rights-based approach. Membership of the group included older people, leading academics and representatives of the third sector and the older persons' commissioner. The guidance, which was published in December 2020, uses practical examples to illustrate how local authorities can have due regard to the UN principles for older persons, as required by the social services and well-being Act. It shows how simple changes to the way that we work can uphold an individual's human rights and can have a major impact on their well-being.

For many, this guidance will provide a reaffirmation that the approach they are taking is the right one. However, I want the guidance to inform all aspects of service design—commissioning, tendering, delivery and evaluation. I will continue to take advice from the ministerial advisory group on ageing on how we use these resources to best effect. The group also produced a version of this guidance for older people, and I hope that these two documents will be used together to guide conversations and inspire a common understanding of the transformative effect of a rights-based approach.

In January 2020, we also ran an older people's rights campaign, which was promoted via print, radio adverts and social media. We'll continue to identify options for promoting rights as we publish the strategy for an ageing society, which is due in September. We'll have a supporting delivery plan by the end of the year. A rights-based approach will be fundamental to the realisation of our 10 well-being objectives, as set out in our new programme for government. Two of the objectives are: to protect, rebuild and develop our services for vulnerable people; and to celebrate diversity and move to eliminate inequality in all of its forms.

The pandemic has highlighted other groups in society who also experience the corrosive impact of inequality and deserve to have their rights better protected. There have been calls to enact the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, and also to bring into Welsh law the UN convention on the rights of disabled people, and we support these calls. However, introducing separate pieces of legislation to address the needs of individual groups would result in a piecemeal approach. It may also make it more difficult to understand how people living with more than one protected characteristic experience inequality.

There is a strong argument for taking a more ambitious, holistic approach to legislating for human rights. To inform this approach, the Welsh Government has commissioned research to explore the options available to strengthen and advance equality and human rights in Wales. This research is considering the possible incorporation of the United Nations conventions into Welsh law and whether there may be need for new legislation, such as a human rights Bill for Wales or changes to existing legislation. The final draft report has been submitted to the Welsh Government, and we are now able to say that publication is anticipated by the end of the summer period. As part of this work, the research team met with the ministerial advisory forum on ageing, and numerous community equality organisations representing people with different protected characteristics. Evidence from marginalised minority groups with lived experience was also collected via focus groups, and it is intended that the Welsh Government will consult on any identified options or legislative models to emerge from this research.

To conclude, while I am committed to upholding and protecting the rights of all older people in Wales, and I accept many of the points made by the contributors to the debate today, I cannot support this proposal. When we do legislate, we should do that holistically for the whole of society and in a way that acknowledges the complexity of people's lives and experiences.