7. Plaid Cymru Debate: A four-day working week

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:01 pm on 22 September 2021.

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Photo of Jack Sargeant Jack Sargeant Labour 5:01, 22 September 2021

Well, I'm very glad that my work on fairness has been of keen interest to the Member for Brecon and Radnorshire. The problem you have, I think, on the benches over there, as I said before—. Your colleague put it quite simply in his contribution that he doesn't care about the past, the only concerns are the future. The issue you have—[Interruption.] The issue you have with that is the outdated arguments. So, if it was me looking at a four-day working week, for example, what I would suggest to the Members on that bench is actually having an informed discussion, because I think—. I welcome your contributions to the debate, because it is a debate, but I would suggest looking more positively at the ideas and the evidence out there.

Many of the arguments against the four-day week are familiar—they are familiar. We've said they're outdated opposition. Luke Fletcher from Plaid Cymru is right: they were the same arguments against the weekend; same against paid holidays; paternity leave; even the Acts that stopped children working. They claim it will damage productivity, but they don't pause to address the real reasons that productivity is poor in the UK, because facing this does not suit.

Llywydd, in finishing—and I welcome this chance to debate this important motion today, and I look forward to tomorrow's event and continuing the conversation, which I know colleagues from around the Chamber are so kindly attending—I will say that I am proud to represent the Welsh Labour Party and the wider Labour movement, because we came into being to get a fairer deal for working people and, for me, a four-day week is a realistic ambition to do that. So, let's continue to have this conversation. Let's bring forward motions like today's to discuss this topic, and let's make this a reality here in Wales.