Thank you to Jane for bringing this incredibly important debate, which I'm very pleased to co-submit to the Senedd. The roll-out of the Welsh Government's basic income trial is a most welcome step towards a more progressive welfare system. I look forward to seeing the results and hope that they will lead to a wider expansion of a basic income across Wales.

The path to a zero-carbon economy is not an easy one. It will require tough decisions from politicians, big changes to the way in which our society functions and adaptations to our lifestyles and behaviours. Let me be as clear as the evidence on climate change is: we have no choice but to follow that path. There is no doubt that we face tall and sometimes frightening hurdles. We must be honest about the threats they pose, particularly to carbon-intensive industries. But whilst we still have to overcome challenges along the way, transitioning to a zero-carbon economy will also provide a myriad of opportunities to build a fairer, more equal and greener society. 

It is incumbent on us as politicians to make the most of those opportunities, and in that regard I'd like to concentrate on two industries in particular: animal agriculture and care. Animal agriculture, as we know, is particularly carbon intensive, as well as being the biggest cause of river pollution. Reducing or removing our reliance on eating meat and dairy products will be vital in tackling climate change. However, the huge farmers' protests that are currently paralysing the Netherlands show how important it is that our farming transition is just and as progressive as possible. Providing a basic income to the farming industry can provide them with the headroom and opportunity to diversify their business models in preparation for a society that is less reliant on meat and dairy consumption. 

In Finland, technological leaps are being harnessed to turn bacteria and hydrogen into proteins, which can then be used to make anything from milk and eggs through to lab-grown meat and fish, all done with no harm to animals. Tweaks to these proteins could produce lauric acid, which could bring an end to the use of highly destructive palm oil. Environmental author George Monbiot predicts that this technology will make the plant versus meat-based diets argument irrelevant, and with all manner of foods created in this cellular manner, these farm-free foods, as Monbiot calls them, could allow us to hand back vast swathes of our land to nature, massively reduce pesticide use and end deforestation. And this is where the Government comes in: if this technology is harnessed by the state and kept out of the hands of the private sector, it could provide affordable and abundant healthy food for humankind. Instead of simply subsidising carbon-intensive farming, we could provide a basic income and state-owned green jobs to today's farmers to help them create the food of the future.

And in the care industry, a basic income for care workers would reshape the industry from being one with a reputation for precarious zero-hours contracts, low pay and high staff turnover to one that could transform care services, both for those who need them and for those who work in them. An extension of the basic income to care workers would not only encourage and generate employment, it would also boost equality because of the high proportion of the workforce that is female or black, Asian, minority ethnic.

In terms of helping the fight against climate change, research shows that jobs in care produce lower emissions than the average job, helping Wales on its path to a zero-carbon economy. Any serious attempt to tackle climate change requires us to reckon with the neoliberal obsession with growth and measuring GDP. Investing appropriately in a care-led recovery would show a commitment to build a society that properly appreciates non-economic measurements, such as happiness and well-being.

The effects of the climate crisis are globally debilitating on so many issues. The wheels of change in politics can be frustrating and slow to react to the demands of society, but when it comes to climate change, we simply do not have time to be slow. Wales has already shown it can lead the way on climate change. We must continue to lead by embracing the radical and ambitious solutions that will pave the way for a just transition to a zero-carbon economy. Thank you.