Thank you very much, Llywydd, and thank you for the opportunity to introduce this debate, and I'm very grateful to Carolyn Thomas, Luke Fletcher and Mabon ap Gwynfor for accepting an invitation to contribute to the debate.

The pandemic made all of us more aware than ever before of the importance of strong and resilient communities. Our communities were in the vanguard of the response to the pandemic, with neighbours and social enterprises working together to support the less fortunate and most vulnerable in their local communities. Following a decade of Conservative austerity, they're now facing a cost-of-living crisis, and we have a duty to support those communities by providing the help that they need not just to survive, but to thrive.

At the heart of vibrant communities are prosperous local businesses, pubs, shops, cafes, post offices and so on. Unfortunately, and increasingly these days, local newspapers across the region that I represent are full of stories of these vital—if I may say—community centres closing, and this brings genuine risks to the sustainability of our communities, and, of course, to the Welsh language and our culture.

However, it's encouraging to see communities, during the pandemic and pre pandemic, coming together to safeguard or buy these important community assets. From the Cwmdu pub in Carmarthenshire to Tafarn Sinc in Pembrokeshire; from the Farmers Arms in the Brecon Beacons to Tafarn y Plu in Llanystumdwy, these pub—and many more than those that I've named—are owned by the communities and play an increasingly important role. In Tre’r-ddôl, for example, Cletwr is a community cafe and shop that supports local producers, provides essential goods, and facilitates a range of Welsh cultural activities. In Newport, Pembrokeshire, the Siop Havards project is raising £450,000 to buy the old ironmongers shop before Christmas. And if successful, this would be the first community goods store in the whole of the United Kingdom, and their business plan includes an integral role for the promotion and protection of the Welsh language.