English: I'd like to echo the Minister's statements about his predecessor, about Carl Sargeant. One of the lessons I've learnt from Carl Sargeant about how to deal with Ministers was during the election campaign, when I had a difference of opinion with the Government and I came here, on the invitation of Jeff Cuthbert, to meet with Carl Sargeant, and I said, expecting a big row, 'I have a difference of opinion with you, Minister', and he said, 'Work it out yourself in your constituency and we'll settle the difference when you get back at the ranch', which I very much appreciated. I did manage to set out my opinion, which I was then able to have dialogue on with the Minister subsequently. And I hope that, in his post, the new Minister will also follow that excellent pattern of behaviour. With regard to the children's commissioner's report, I wanted to raise two issues. One is on page 25 of the children's commissioner's report. She references the Welsh Government's childcare offer and says in the second paragraph that: 'Universal childcare should be at the heart of our ambitions for public services in Wales and whilst I am, in principle, pleased with its developments to date, we must recognise the growing evidence base supporting the development of a universal system, which promotes social mobility as well as economic prosperity, by extending entitlement to affordable, high quality childcare and early education.' And that being to children of non-working parents. The only way I can understand that is where it's put into the context of Flying Start areas, and an ideal way of doing that would of course be universal provision of Flying Start. But, given the UK Government's position on austerity, it makes it incredibly difficult to achieve that. But I would like to just notify the Minister of what the children's commissioner said in evidence to the Children, Young People and Education Committee. She said, and I quote: 'I think the programme could be flexed in some way, and could be adapted in some way, to make it a broader offer to more children, because, for me, it's about the impact on children, rather than it just being a service for parents.' I'd like to know what dialogue the Minister plans to have with the children's commissioner to resolve that issue, because one of the things she said she would do is return to committee and give us more specific policy ideas about how she'd proceed. And therefore I think it's really important that the Minister speaks to the children's commissioner about that. The second issue is one that was very close to Carl Sargeant's heart, and that's the issue of adverse childhood experiences and resolving those. Again, the children's commissioner said the concept of ACEs was irrefutable but that she had 'concerns about any discourse that puts most of our response to child povertyjust in this context.' And I'm very encouraged by what the Minister has said in his statement that recognises that. I think my concern would be if we start talking about three or more ACEs that then become a trigger for social services action. I would be concerned that ACEs become less a concept and more a threshold that children must meet in order to trigger action, and I don't think that would be a helpful use of ACEs, because I think it's far more qualitative than that, and one ACE could have a devastating impact on families, and we need to recognise that and see it as a useful concept for understanding childhood experiences but not one for triggering interventions by that criterion. So, all I'd really want the Minister to be able to tell me is: first of all, with regard to that issue of Flying Start, will he open that dialogue with the children's commissioner, and also, with regard to ACEs, will he recognise it as a concept but not as a trigger for action?
Welsh: Hoffwn adleisio datganiadau'r Gweinidog am ei ragflaenydd, am Carl Sargeant. Dysgais wers gan Carl Sargeant ynglŷn â sut i ymdrin â Gweinidogion yn ystod ymgyrch yr etholiad, pan oeddwn yn anghytuno â'r Llywodraeth a des yma, ar wahoddiad Jeff Cuthbert, i gyfarfod â Carl Sargeant, a dywedais, gan ddisgwyl ffrae fawr, 'Rwy'n anghytuno â chi, Weinidog', a dywedodd ef, 'Rhowch chi drefn ar bethau yn eich etholaeth chi ac fe wnawn ni unioni pethau pan ddewch chi'n ôl i'r gweithle'; roeddwn yn gwerthfawrogi hynny'n fawr iawn. Fe wnes i lwyddo i roi fy marn, ac yna cefais ddeialog amdani gyda'r Gweinidog wedyn. Ac rwy'n gobeithio, yn ei swydd, y bydd y Gweinidog newydd hefyd yn dilyn y patrwm ymddygiad rhagorol hwnnw. O ran adroddiad y comisiynydd plant, roeddwn am godi dau fater. Mae un ar dudalen 25 adroddiad y comisiynydd plant. Mae hi'n cyfeirio at gynnig gofal plant Llywodraeth Cymru ac yn dweud yn yr ail baragraff: 'Dylai fod gofal plant cynhwysol wrth wraidd ein huchelgeisiau ar gyfer gwasanaethau cyhoeddus yng Nghymru ac er fy mod, mewn egwyddor, yn hapus â'i ddatblygiadau hyd yn hyn, rhaid inni gydnabod y sail dystiolaeth gynyddol o blaid datblygu system gynhwysol, sy'n hyrwyddo symudedd cymdeithasol yn ogystal â ffyniant economaidd, drwy ymestyn yr hawl i addysg gynnar a gofal plant sy'n fforddiadwy ac o safon uchel.' A hynny i blant rhieni nad ydynt yn gweithio. Yr unig ffordd y gallaf ddeall hynny yw yng nghyd-destun ardaloedd Dechrau'n Deg, ac un ffordd ddelfrydol o wneud hynny, wrth gwrs, fyddai darparu Dechrau'n Deg mewn modd cynhwysol. Ond, o ystyried safbwynt Llywodraeth y DU ar galedi, mae'n anhygoel o anodd cyflawni hynny. Ond hoffwn hysbysu'r Gweinidog o'r hyn a ddywedodd y comisiynydd plant mewn tystiolaeth i'r Pwyllgor Plant, Pobl Ifanc ac Addysg. Dywedodd hi, ac rwy'n dyfynnu: Rwy'n meddwl y gellid ystwytho'r rhaglen mewn rhyw ffordd, a'i haddasu mewn rhyw ffordd, i'w gwneud yn gynnig ehangach i fwy o blant, oherwydd, i mi, yr effaith ar blant sy'n bwysig, nid dim ond y gwasanaeth i rieni. Hoffwn wybod pa ddeialog y mae'r Gweinidog yn bwriadu ei chael gyda'r comisiynydd plant i ddatrys y mater hwnnw, oherwydd un o'r pethau y dywedodd y byddai'n eu gwneud yw dychwelyd i'r Pwyllgor a rhoi syniadau polisi mwy penodol inni ynghylch sut y byddai'n bwrw ymlaen. Ac felly rwy'n meddwl ei bod yn bwysig iawn bod y Gweinidog yn siarad â'r comisiynydd plant am hynny. Mae'r ail fater yn un a oedd yn agos iawn at galon Carl Sargeant, sef profiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod a'u datrys. Unwaith eto, dywedodd y comisiynydd plant fod y cysyniad o brofiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod yn ddiymwad, ond bod ganddi pryderon am unrhyw drafodaeth sy'n rhoi'r rhan fwyaf o'n hymateb i dlodi plantyn y cyd-destun hwn yn unig. Ac rwy'n gweld yr hyn a ddywedodd y Gweinidog yn ei ddatganiad i gydnabod hynny yn galonogol iawn. Rwy'n meddwl y byddwn yn pryderu pe baem yn dechrau sôn am dri neu fwy o brofiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod sydd wedyn yn dod yn sbardun i weithredu gwasanaethau cymdeithasol. Byddwn yn pryderu bod profiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod yn dod yn llai o gysyniad ac yn fwy o drothwy y mae'n rhaid i blant ei fodloni er mwyn ysgogi gweithredu, a dydw i ddim yn meddwl y byddai hynny'n ffordd fuddiol o ddefnyddio profiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod, oherwydd rwy'n meddwl ei fod yn llawer mwy ansoddol na hynny, a gallai un profiad niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod gael effaith ddinistriol ar deuluoedd, ac mae angen inni gydnabod hynny a'i weld fel cysyniad defnyddiol ar gyfer deall profiadau yn ystod plentyndod ond nid fel un i sbarduno ymyriadau yn ôl y maen prawf hwnnw. Felly, a dweud y gwir, y cyfan yr hoffwn i'r Gweinidog allu ei ddweud wrthyf yw: yn gyntaf, o ran Dechrau'n Deg, a fydd ef yn agor y ddeialog honno gyda'r comisiynydd plant, a hefyd, o ran profiadau niweidiol yn ystod plentyndod, a wnaiff ei gydnabod fel cysyniad, ond nid fel sbardun i weithredu?