English: Thanks to the Minister for his statement today. In UKIP, we do broadly support the right to buy, but we also recognise the practical difficulties that this policy has led to. It's interesting that the right to buy has become an ideological battleground between Labour and the Conservatives, because it was actually Labour that first proposed this kind of scheme in their 1959 general election manifesto under Hugh Gaitskell. However, Labour lost that election and it was the Conservatives who eventually, 20 years later, began to enact the sale of council houses, and it proved to be a popular policy, as David Melding has articulated earlier today. However, sometimes it does take a distance of a few years before we can see if a policy has really worked or not. So, has right to buy helped to facilitate more home ownership in the UK? Well, up to a point, it certainly has. In 1980, when the Act came in, 55 per cent of British householders owned or mortgaged their own home. After the Act, this steadily rose, peaking at 71 per cent in 2003. Unfortunately, since then the figure has declined to its current level of less than 64 per cent, which means that, for the first time, we actually have lower home ownership rates than in France. So, it is a bit of a mixed message and I can see your concerns over right to buy. The figures do become more concerning when they apply to the young. In 1990, 45 per cent of 25-year-olds were on the property ladder. In 2000, that figure had gone down to 34 per cent, and in 2010, it stood at 21 per cent. So, it certainly seems that today the young are being priced out of the property market. Indeed, the flip side of the 1980 Housing Act seems to have been that the severe restrictions on councils' ability to build new council houses has ended up in a shortage of housing. Revenue from council house sales was directed by the central UK Government to go to reducing councils' debt. So, we have had a period in which councils have been severely restricted in their ability to build council houses. We now enter a period in Wales when, as you, Minister, elucidated earlier, we are now seeing some council houses built again, which is a welcome development. But you are now addressing the problem of the depletion of stock, and that seems to be principally why you want to end the right to buy in Wales. We in UKIP think that there should be ring-fencing of revenue from the council house sales, with councils obligated to reinvest this into either new-build council houses or regeneration of existing stock. We need to continue to push for job investment away from the major coastal towns and cities as far as we can, because this could then help to address the problem of the depopulation of the Valleys.
Welsh: Diolch i'r Gweinidog am ei ddatganiad heddiw. Yn UKIP, rydym yn cefnogi'r hawl i brynu yn fras, ond rydym hefyd yn cydnabod bod y polisi hwn wedi arwain at anawsterau ymarferol. Mae'n ddiddorol bod yr hawl i brynu wedi dod yn faes y gad ideolegol rhwng Llafur a'r Ceidwadwyr, oherwydd Llafur mewn gwirionedd a gynigiodd y math hwn o gynllun gyntaf yn eu maniffesto ar gyfer etholiad cyffredinol 1959 dan Hugh Gaitskell. Fodd bynnag, collodd Llafur yr etholiad hwnnw ac, yn y pen draw, y Ceidwadwyr, 20 mlynedd yn ddiweddarach, ddechreuodd ddeddfu ar werthu tai cyngor, ac fe brofodd i fod yn bolisi poblogaidd, fel y mynegodd David Melding yn gynharach heddiw. Fodd bynnag, weithiau mae'n cymryd rhai blynyddoedd cyn y gallwn weld a yw polisi wedi gweithio mewn gwirionedd ai peidio. Felly, a yw'r hawl i brynu wedi helpu i hwyluso mwy o berchnogaeth cartrefi yn y DU? Wel, i raddau, ydy yn sicr. Ym 1980, pan gyflwynwyd y Ddeddf, roedd 55 y cant o ddeiliaid tai Prydain yn berchen ar, neu wedi morgeisio, eu cartref eu hunain. Ar ôl y Ddeddf, cododd hyn fesul tipyn, gan gyrraedd uchafbwynt o 71 y cant yn 2003. Yn anffodus, ers hynny mae'r ffigur wedi gostwng i'w lefel bresennol o lai na 64 y cant, sy'n golygu, am y tro cyntaf, fod gennym gyfraddau perchentyaeth is na Ffrainc. Felly, mae'n neges gymysg braidd a gallaf weld eich pryderon am yr hawl i brynu. Mae'r ffigurau hyn yn dod yn fwy pryderus pan maent yn ymwneud â phobl ifanc. Ym 1990, roedd 45 y cant o rai 25 mlwydd oed ar yr ysgol eiddo. Yn 2000, roedd y ffigur hwnnw wedi gostwng i 34 y cant, ac yn 2010, roedd yn 21 y cant. Felly, mae'n sicr yn ymddangos heddiw bod yr ifanc yn cael eu prisio allan o'r farchnad eiddo. Yn wir, ymddengys mai ochr arall i Ddeddf Tai 1980 yw bod y cyfyngiadau difrifol ar allu cynghorau i adeiladu tai cyngor newydd wedi arwain at brinder tai. Cafodd refeniw o werthiannau tai cyngor ei gyfeirio gan Lywodraeth ganolog y DU i fynd at leihau dyled y cynghorau. Felly, rydym wedi cael cyfnod lle mae'r cynghorau wedi cael eu cyfyngu yn ddifrifol yn eu gallu i adeiladu tai cyngor. Rydym bellach yn cychwyn ar gyfnod yng Nghymru pan, fel y gwnaethoch chi, Weinidog, esbonio yn gynharach, rydym yn awr yn gweld rhywfaint o dai cyngor yn cael eu hadeiladu eto, sydd yn ddatblygiad i'w groesawu. Ond yr ydych yn awr yn mynd i'r afael â'r broblem o leihad mewn stoc, ac ymddengys mai dyna pam yn bennaf eich bod eisiau rhoi terfyn ar yr hawl i brynu yng Nghymru. Rydym ni yn UKIP yn credu y dylid clustnodi'r cyllid o werthu tai cyngor, gyda chynghorau yn gorfod ail-fuddsoddi hwn naill ai mewn tai cyngor a gaiff eu hadeiladu o'r newydd neu adfywio'r stoc bresennol. Mae angen i ni barhau i bwyso am fuddsoddi swyddi i ffwrdd o'r trefi a'r dinasoedd arfordirol mawr cyn belled ag y gallwn, oherwydd gallai hyn wedyn helpu i fynd i'r afael â phroblem diboblogi'r Cymoedd.