English: Thank you, acting Deputy Presiding Officer. I, too, would like to begin by thanking the committee for their very hard work. This has been an extremely difficult year, and as everyone has pointed out, COVID-19 has absolutely disrupted our processes and taken priority in all of our workloads. But in a time of unprecedented uncertainty where we have all be strained, the committee has produced a very comprehensive report and I'd like to pay particular tribute to the Chair of the committee, Dawn Bowden, for her commitment and hard work in this regard. The reforms that we are talking about are, of course, already under way. The 2021 Senedd elections will be, for the first time in Wales, ones where 16 and 17-year-olds as well as qualifying foreign citizens will be able to play a full part in our democracy. The committee has outlined a number of recommendations to help the Senedd be a more diverse Parliament and better representative of the people it serves. Many of those recommendations are for the next Senedd to consider, but the committee has also identified a few more immediate issues, and today, acting Presiding Officer, in the interest of time, I'll confine my remarks to those. I particularly welcome the committee's recommendations on enabling disabled people to stand for election. We've been working on our diversity and democracy agenda since 2018. We're taking action on this in two respects. First, we are bringing forward legislation this autumn to exempt disability-related expenditure from election campaign spending limits. And second, we're establishing a pilot 'access to elected office' fund. This will provide financial assistance to help disabled people stand for election, and it will be open for next year's Senedd election as well as for the local government elections in 2022. By removing barriers in this way, we aim to help create a much more diverse and representative Senedd. The committee made a number of other linked recommendations, which I think are extremely important. We've already accepted the recommendation about commencing section 106 of the Equality Act 2010, when it was made by the Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee, and we are giving careful consideration to the recommendations about broader expenditure exemptions and financial assistance to help other under-represented groups and those with caring responsibilities. The idea of a larger Senedd is not a new one, and, as everyone has pointed out, has been recommended both the Richard commission in 2004 and the independent expert panel in 2017. The referendum in 2011 gave a resounding platform for this institution, and I don't think we need to revisit it, as a number of people who have contributed to this debate have sought to do. I do intend to publish the Welsh Government's formal response to the committee's recommendations in the coming weeks. The Welsh Government welcomes the committee's insight and once again would like to thank them for producing their report despite the extremely challenging circumstances. It is, of course, acting Deputy Presiding Officer, at times of crisis when we see most acutely the need for a strong and representative Parliament for our nation. The committee's work is a significant contribution to that, and I pay tribute to them. Diolch yn fawr.
Welsh: Diolch, Ddirprwy Lywydd dros dro. Hoffwn innau hefyd ddechrau drwy ddiolch i'r pwyllgor am eu gwaith caled iawn. Mae hon wedi bod yn flwyddyn eithriadol o anodd, ac fel y mae pawb wedi dweud, mae COVID-19 wedi amharu'n llwyr ar ein prosesau ac wedi cael blaenoriaeth ym mhob un o'n llwythi gwaith. Ond mewn cyfnod o ansicrwydd digynsail lle mae pob un ohonom dan straen, mae'r pwyllgor wedi cynhyrchu adroddiad cynhwysfawr iawn a hoffwn dalu teyrnged arbennig i Gadeirydd y pwyllgor, Dawn Bowden, am ei hymrwymiad a'i gwaith caled yn hyn o beth. Mae'r diwygiadau y soniwn amdanynt eisoes ar y gweill wrth gwrs. Bydd etholiadau'r Senedd yn 2021, am y tro cyntaf yng Nghymru, yn rhai lle bydd pobl ifanc 16 a 17 oed yn ogystal â dinasyddion tramor cymwys yn gallu chwarae rhan lawn yn ein democratiaeth. Mae'r pwyllgor wedi amlinellu nifer o argymhellion i helpu'r Senedd i fod yn fwy amrywiol ac i gynrychioli'r bobl y mae'n eu gwasanaethu'n well. Mae llawer o'r argymhellion hynny i'r Senedd nesaf eu hystyried, ond mae'r pwyllgor hefyd wedi nodi ychydig o faterion mwy uniongyrchol, a heddiw, Lywydd dros dro, oherwydd diffyg amser, cyfyngaf fy sylwadau i'r rheini. Rwy'n croesawu'n arbennig argymhellion y pwyllgor ar alluogi pobl anabl i sefyll mewn etholiad. Rydym wedi bod yn gweithio ar ein hagenda amrywiaeth a democratiaeth ers 2018. Rydym yn gweithredu ar hyn mewn dwy ffordd. Yn gyntaf, rydym yn cyflwyno deddfwriaeth yr hydref hwn i eithrio gwariant sy'n gysylltiedig ag anabledd o derfynau gwariant ymgyrch etholiadol. Ac yn ail, rydym yn sefydlu cronfa beilot 'mynediad at swyddi etholedig'. Bydd yn rhoi cymorth ariannol i helpu pobl anabl i sefyll mewn etholiad, a bydd ar agor ar gyfer etholiad y Senedd y flwyddyn nesaf yn ogystal ag ar gyfer etholiadau llywodraeth leol yn 2022. Drwy ddileu rhwystrau fel hyn, ein nod yw helpu i greu Senedd lawer mwy amrywiol a chynrychioliadol. Gwnaeth y pwyllgor nifer o argymhellion cysylltiedig eraill y credaf eu bod yn eithriadol o bwysig. Rydym eisoes wedi derbyn yr argymhelliad ynghylch cychwyn adran 106 o Ddeddf Cydraddoldeb 2010, pan gafodd ei wneud gan y Pwyllgor Cydraddoldeb, Llywodraeth Leol a Chymunedau, ac rydym yn rhoi ystyriaeth ofalus i'r argymhellion ynghylch eithriadau gwariant ehangach a chymorth ariannol i helpu grwpiau eraill heb gynrychiolaeth ddigonol a'r rhai sydd â chyfrifoldebau gofalu. Nid yw'r syniad o Senedd fwy o faint yn un newydd, ac fel y mae pawb wedi nodi, cafodd ei argymell gan gomisiwn Richard yn 2004 a'r panel arbenigol annibynnol yn 2017. Rhoddodd y refferendwm yn 2011 hwb ysgubol i'r sefydliad hwn, ac nid wyf yn credu bod angen i ni ei ailystyried, fel y mae nifer o bobl sydd wedi cyfrannu at y ddadl hon wedi ceisio'i wneud. Rwy'n bwriadu cyhoeddi ymateb ffurfiol Llywodraeth Cymru i argymhellion y pwyllgor yn ystod yr wythnosau nesaf. Mae Llywodraeth Cymru yn croesawu ystyriaeth y pwyllgor ac unwaith eto hoffai ddiolch iddynt am lunio eu hadroddiad er gwaethaf yr amgylchiadau heriol iawn. Wrth gwrs, Ddirprwy Lywydd dros dro, ar adegau o argyfwng y byddwn yn gweld yn fwyaf amlwg yr angen am Senedd gref a chynrychioliadol i'n cenedl. Mae gwaith y pwyllgor yn cyfrannu'n sylweddol at hynny, ac rwy'n talu teyrnged iddynt. Diolch yn fawr.