Jane Dodds was entirely right—cruel is the word, and I think we have to accept today that it's not the fault of people living in poverty that they are living in poverty. I think we have to accept that £20 per week hasn't resolved the issue of poverty. Seeing people smiling and laughing infuriates me when I know about the stories behind these statistics; when I get phone calls from people who are in work, and as Sioned Williams said in opening the debate, people who are key workers and can't afford to feed their children. I'm sorry, I am just infuriated in seeing people not truly understanding the poverty in our communities, and the solutions that we have to work together on, because if we don't accept that there is a problem, then how on earth are we going to resolve this? How are we going to change people's lives? 

Sixty-five thousand, two hundred and thirty families will be impacted by the cut in universal credit in the region I represent, namely South Wales Central. The Bevan Foundation has estimated that large sums will be lost from local economies in constituencies in the region. The losses are as follows: in Cardiff Central, the loss will be £8.4 million, Cardiff North, £5.2 million, Cardiff South and Penarth £13.2 million, Cardiff West £10.5 million, Cynon Valley £7.6 million, Pontypridd £6.1 million, Rhondda losing £7.8 million, and the Vale of Glamorgan losing £8.6 million. The total losses therefore are £67.4 million, which is a huge sum only in South Wales Central.

My region and its constituencies has suffered economically and socially for decades. During the pandemic, Rhondda Cynon Taf suffered most deaths per capita than any other region within the UK, and it continues to suffer high rates of COVID spread. They've also experienced the worst of climate change in Wales, suffering destructive flooding. As well as this, the region suffers from poorer health than other regions in Wales. People are dying earlier. More people suffer food insecurity and are reliant on foodbanks, and child poverty levels are the worst in the UK, if not Europe. [Interruption.] Well, and the Conservatives, sorry. If you're going to challenge Government, then both Governments are as guilty as each other. 

The uplift of £20 has been a saving grace for the people of South Wales Central, but wasn't a solution. It has allowed more families to afford to live, to feed their children, to clothe them, to pay for electricity, light, heat, crucial broadband connections, and has mitigated some but not all of the worst impacts of the pandemic. The Welsh Government must do everything within its power to urge the UK Government to overturn its cruel decision on universal credit. It must do everything within its devolved powers to mitigate the impact of poverty in South Wales Central and across the whole of Wales.

We need a strategy to tackle and to end poverty—a robust and considered proposal to tackle poverty that includes clear performance targets and indicators to measure progress. And, of course, there are a whole host of other policies that we can bring into power that will make a difference, including expanding eligibility for free school meals to all children in poverty, or all children in Wales, as we would like to see, and the Government must maintain the flexibility of the discretionary assistance fund to mitigate the impact of the reduction in universal credit in Wales.