I thank you for your statement this afternoon, Deputy Minister, despite you announcing your plan to the media 48 hours before discussing the proposals on the floor of this Senedd, to where you're elected. But it was good to see you in north Wales on Friday, so that's a positive.

And turning to your announcement today, I'd like to start on a technical point, if I may. I’m very interested in the £70 million to upgrade care settings, Deputy Minister. So, how will this funding be weighted amongst the 22 local authorities—which is, essentially, a question to ask how much each council will receive? I also note that you'll be publishing guidance on the application process, but could you tell us today what the maximum bid is childcare settings can apply for and who is eligible for this funding?

Child poverty rates have actually increased in Wales, Deputy Minister. In 2020-21, Wales had 34 per cent of children living below the poverty line, which is the worst in the UK, with England at 29 per cent, Scotland at 21 per cent, and Northern Ireland at 24 per cent. I hope you recognise these figures, Deputy Minister, and are in a position to outline today which components of the extension will directly tackle these issues. And where I can welcome the principle of extra spending on childcare, you could have gone further than this if the Labour and Plaid Cymru coalition weren’t determined to create 36 more Members of the Senedd, costing in the region of £100 million, which, during a cost-of-living crisis, and winter on the horizon, would seem to be a plausible argument to make this afternoon, Deputy Minister.

Now, when introduced in 2007, the Flying Start scheme was seen as one of the Welsh Government's top priorities for tackling poverty. So, does the Deputy Minister believe it has worked, and how will this extension improve chances for the most deprived children in Wales? And I'd like to also address geographical and postcode-lottery concerns, particularly when it comes to cases where more affluent families can qualify for the Flying Start scheme, and families in need of the support can't qualify, just because of where they live. So, can the Deputy Minister give less-well-off families any assurances today that the extension will go some way to tackle these problems? And if not, what future plans will the Welsh Government adopt to make sure that extra spending is focused on the people who need it the most?

And this is the true cost of 25 years of Labour in Wales—years of economic mismanagement have seen Wales's in-work poverty grow alongside rising child poverty. Is it any wonder when, under Labour, Welsh workers take home the lowest pay packets in Great Britain, with hard-working people missing out on £3,000 compared to other parts of the UK? Labour Ministers need to stop playing politics with the real pressures that people are facing, and stop wasting money on their vanity projects and provide the targeted support that hard-working people and businesses are crying out for. Thank you.