Diolch, Llywydd. I've agreed to give James Evans and Peredur Owen Griffiths each a minute in this debate. 

2021 marks 50 years since the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 was passed in the UK Parliament. While that policy was designed to prevent drug use and reduce harm, we have witnessed instead an exceptional rise in illegal drug use, addiction, and drug-related deaths across the UK. Simultaneously, drugs are getting stronger, criminal gangs are growing in power, and the violence linked to drugs is increasing. Perhaps most worrying, thousands of children and young people are being exploited across county lines and borders in every corner of the country. 

Today's situation represents a very serious failing in the drug laws, but in-depth and serious discussion on reform remains miles away. This urgently needs to change. We here must open a discussion about what's gone wrong and how we might do things differently: differently, by changing how we think about drugs and in what terms we discuss them; differently, by considering the conditions that are specific to Wales, and what influence we as a Senedd have; differently, by looking outward, learning from our friends and neighbours, taking inspiration from what the international community is doing to combat a serious problem.