This guidance is intended to help public bodies make good decisions that manage the risks of controversy, that take opportunities to create a more informed relationship with our history, and that genuinely celebrate the diversity of our communities. The guidance fulfils a commitment in the programme for government to address fully the recommendations of 'The Slave Trade and the British Empire: An Audit of Commemoration in Wales', which was first published in November 2020, and re-issued with amendments a year later. The guidance also directly supports one of the goals of the Welsh Government’s 'Anti-racist Wales Action Plan':

'To work with public bodies to fully recognise their responsibility...for setting the right historic narrative, promoting and delivering a balanced, authentic and decolonised account of the past'.

The action plan includes a specific action of

'appropriately addressing the way in which people and events with known historical associations to slavery and colonialism are commemorated' in our public spaces and collections,

'acknowledging the harm done by their actions and reframing the presentation of their legacy to fully recognise this.'

The guidance also fulfils a recommendation in the report of the Senedd Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee, published in March 2021, 'Set in Stone? A report on who gets remembered in public spaces'. This recommended that Welsh Government should provide clear guidance that would present a route-map for decision making in relation to both historical and future acts of commemoration.

The audit of commemoration in Wales demonstrated very clearly the extent to which legacies of the slave trade and the British empire are still visible in our public places. The purpose of the guidance is to help public bodies deal with those legacies. The guidance also addresses the diversity of Welsh society, and the fact that many of its characteristics are barely visible in public commemorations. For example, very few people of black, Asian or minority ethnic heritage, and very few named women, have been publicly commemorated in Wales, and it would be difficult to find any representation of disabled and LGBTQ+ people. So, as we reflect on who is commemorated already, we should also reflect on who and what is missing, taking opportunities to address under-representation, and respond to changing values, as well as to deepen our understanding of historical issues and events.

The guidance sets out best practice for decision making and is not mandatory. Its focus is on how to make good decisions rather than on what decisions to make. It is in two parts. Part 1 introduces the issues around public commemoration and its impact, and part 2 sets out four steps that public bodies should take in order to address these issues and realise the contribution of public commemoration to the achievement of an anti-racist Wales. These four steps are: establishing a framework for inclusive decision making; setting clear objectives for public commemoration; establishing criteria for decision making; and, taking action to meet objectives and address the issues raised by public commemoration.

Taking all these steps will help public bodies to discharge their responsibilities under the specific action included in the 'Anti-racist Wales Action Plan'. It will also enable them to use public commemorations more generally to contribute to an anti-racist Wales, and to deepen understanding of our past and its legacies, and to celebrate the achievements of our diverse society.

The guidance is focused on permanent and deliberate commemoration in public places—that is, statues, sculptures, and plaques—and the names of streets and public buildings. There are many such commemorations in Wales, and past decisions about who or what to honour—decisions that were often taken by a small elite—remain highly visible in our public spaces. Many of them add character to our surroundings and, by offering a visible reminder of people and events in the past, they can prompt historical enquiry. But, as the audit of commemoration in Wales has shown, that enquiry can sometimes lead us to dark places in our past, especially where figures linked with the slave trade and colonial exploitation are literally put on a pedestal.

The commemorations that we have inherited don't necessarily reflect our values, but they may still be able to earn their place if we use them actively to learn about how earlier generations viewed the world, to reflect on the different way we view the world today, and to provoke thought rather than division. The recent re-interpretations of Thomas Picton, through information panels adjacent to the monument in Carmarthen and through the re-framing of his portrait in Amgueddfa Cymru, are intended to do just that.

And, just as we have inherited these legacies that tell us something about the values of the past, so we should consider bequeathing something to future generations that presents what we value as we strive to achieve a more equal Wales. We can do that through the way we treat existing commemorations, we can do it through who we choose to commemorate in future, but we must also do it through the way in which decisions about commemorations are made. The guidance assumes that decisions should be made locally, grounded in inclusive practices that encourage public bodies to listen and respond to the full diversity of our communities.

Development of the guidance itself was fully informed by a series of workshops attended by a broad spectrum of stakeholders with relevant lived experience. I'd like to thank the workshop attendees and all those who gave their time to contribute to the development of this guidance, including Gaynor Legall who led the original task and finish group and kindly commented on earlier drafts. The public consultation exercise that starts today gives another opportunity for different voices to be heard. Diolch yn fawr.