Thank you very much, Dirprwy Lywydd. Good afternoon and thank you, Minister, for that statement. Deputy Llywydd, it's sad to say, but the latest homelessness statistics here in Wales paint a sad picture, and partly because of the cruel policies of Boris Johnson and his unprincipled Government in Westminster. For example, almost 1,400 homeless people were moved into temporary accommodation during September, which was an increase of 176 on August, bringing the total in temporary accommodation, as we've heard, to around 7,000 people, almost 280 of them being dependent children under 16, bringing the total of dependent children to 1,700. However, fewer than 500 homeless people were moved into proper accommodation, 52 in August, and of those who were given appropriate accommodation, 152 were dependent children under the age of 16, a reduction of 19 on August.

So, that's the picture of homelessness in Wales today, and it's not a pretty picture, but there are reasons for that, as we've already heard. I'm sure you would agree that no society can claim to be a fair and just society while people still don't have a roof over their heads. The good news, however, is that between the beginning of the pandemic and the end of September this year, over 15,000 people formerly homeless were assisted into urgent temporary accommodation, and we must congratulate those hard workers in our local authorities, and those charities who have worked tirelessly to house these people, but this shows the scale of the problem. I'm sure that everyone here shares the ambition of eradicating homelessness, but if we are truly to deliver this, then we must see radical action, effective action, in order to deliver our ambitions. We've now heard many times about the Finnish model and Housing First, but now is the time to stop discussing theory, and it's time for action. After all, homelessness is a political choice, and eradicating it is also a political choice.

The commitments outlined in the co-operation agreement between the Government and Plaid Cymru are ambitious and far-reaching. The agreement notes that homelessness should be only for a brief period and should not be repeated. We will work together to reform housing legislation, to implement the Renting Homes (Wales) Act 2016 in order to provide safeguards for those renters, and to implement the recommendations of the homelessness action group. I look forward to collaborating with you in this area, Minister, for the benefit of the people of Wales.

Llywydd, in that spirit of collaboration and finding solutions, I’d like the Minister to answer certain questions on specific concerns around homelessness in Wales and the plan to eradicate homelessness. Rough-sleeping is among the most extreme indicator of homelessness, which in itself is an indicator of a broader housing crisis. This is the most dangerous kind of homelessness. Although the pandemic demonstrated that we could act differently in a very brief period of time, there is a lot more to be done, with the latest data showing an increase in rough-sleepers here in Wales. What assurance, Minister, can you give us that the issue of rough-sleeping will be a thing of the past as a matter of urgency? Also, can the Minister outline what specific support the Government will provide to people who are rough-sleeping in Wales? Such support could include identifying all those sleeping rough and helping them immediately whilst they seek to find a home, helping them with benefits so that they can access appropriate housing, rather than providing temporary solutions. We need to incorporate a housing first approach across Wales.

The reports of the homelessness action group show that public services beyond housing departments often come into contact with people at risk of homelessness at an early stage, before the housing and homelessness survey actually engages with them. So, we need to look closer to home. We need to look upstream in order to identify these people sooner, such as what’s been done in health, social care, justice and crime, for example. So, Minister, what specific work is in train to help your preventative work in tackling homelessness upstream, if you like?

I would like to finish by talking about introducing a national leasing programme for Wales, which you’ve already mentioned. You mentioned that home owners will be encouraged to lease their properties to local authorities in exchange for a rental guarantee and additional funding to improve the condition of the property. I’d like to know more about this and how this can work on a practical basis. Who will encourage these property owners to participate? How will that happen? How much additional funding will be allocated to improve the state of the housing? Will additional funding be available for local authorities to run this scheme? And what lessons emerged from the pilot scheme that you mentioned and how will these lessons steer your actions? Thank you.