English: I've given four minutes of my time away, to Peter Fox, Mike Hedges, James Evans and Laura Jones for this debate. First of all, I want to place on record my thanks to all at the British Heart Foundation, in particular Gemma Roberts, for highlighting this important campaign and for their work in helping me to bring this debate to the Senedd today. Research, development and innovation are absolutely essential to any thriving economy. Research has the ability to support our economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. There are huge opportunities to bring money and talent into Wales. But, right now, Wales is missing these opportunities, and we're missing these opportunities because our universities are underfunded. The role research plays in our economy should not be underestimated. Recipients of research funding purchase goods and services in order to undertake their research. That in itself generates activity in their supply chains and across the whole Welsh economy. Research boosts output and productivity in an economy with new technologies, medicines and processes. And, as new methods and technologies are discovered, there are knowledge spillovers into the public, private and third sectors. This boosts productivity and economic growth and could, ultimately, help drive a new economic recovery. But if Wales is ever to reap the benefits of research, our universities need to achieve external investment and win competitive funding bids, and, to do this, our universities need infrastructure, and it's the duty of the Welsh Government to fund that infrastructure. Wales is simply not achieving its potential in medical research. We have world-class universities, but they're not being properly funded by the Welsh Government. According to the Office for National Statistics, out of the three devolved nations of the UK, and each of the nine regions of England, Wales has proportionally the lowest expenditure on research and development. We are the lowest performing of the 12 UK nations and regions. Wales has only 2 per cent of the R&D spend in the UK. We make up nearly 5 per cent of the population, so shouldn't we have 5 per cent of the research spend? Wales only wins 3 per cent of competitive funding, but, again, we make up 5 per cent of the population of the UK, so we should be winning at least 5 per cent of competitive funding. But, because of low levels of investment in Welsh universities, we're not attracting our population share of funding. Low investment is inhibiting economic success and the contribution of research to our economic recovery. But this is not a new problem. In 2018, the Welsh Government itself commissioned a review of the research environment. That was called the Reid review, and it found that low levels of infrastructure funding in Welsh universities had been a source of, and I quote, 'structural weaknessfortwo decades'.
Welsh: Rwyf wedi rhoi pedwar munud o fy amser, i Peter Fox, Mike Hedges, James Evans a Laura Jones ar gyfer y ddadl hon. Yn gyntaf oll, rwyf am gofnodi fy niolch i bawb yn y British Heart Foundation, yn enwedig Gemma Roberts, am dynnu sylw at yr ymgyrch bwysig hon ac am eu gwaith yn fy helpu i ddod â'r ddadl hon i'r Senedd heddiw. Mae ymchwil, datblygu ac arloesi yn gwbl hanfodol i unrhyw economi ffyniannus. Mae gan ymchwil allu i gefnogi ein hadferiad economaidd o bandemig COVID-19. Mae yna gyfleoedd enfawr i ddod ag arian a thalent i mewn i Gymru. Ond ar hyn o bryd, mae Cymru'n methu manteisio ar y cyfleoedd hyn, ac rydym yn methu manteisio arnynt am nad yw ein prifysgolion yn cael digon o gyllid. Ni ddylid tanbrisio'r rôl y mae ymchwil yn ei chwarae yn ein heconomi. Mae'r rhai sy'n derbyn arian ymchwil yn prynu nwyddau a gwasanaethau er mwyn gwneud eu gwaith ymchwil. Mae hynny ynddo'i hun yn creu gweithgarwch yn eu cadwyni cyflenwi ac ar draws economi Cymru gyfan. Mae ymchwil yn hybu allbwn a chynhyrchiant mewn economi gyda thechnolegau, meddyginiaethau a phrosesau newydd. Ac wrth i ddulliau a thechnolegau newydd gael eu darganfod, mae gwybodaeth yn gorlifo i'r sector cyhoeddus, y sector preifat a'r trydydd sector. Mae hyn yn hybu cynhyrchiant a thwf economaidd ac yn y pen draw, gallai helpu i sbarduno adferiad economaidd newydd. Ond os yw Cymru'n mynd i elwa ar fanteision ymchwil, mae angen i'n prifysgolion sicrhau buddsoddiad allanol ac ennill ceisiadau cystadleuol am gyllid, ac i wneud hyn, mae angen seilwaith ar ein prifysgolion, a dyletswydd Llywodraeth Cymru yw ariannu'r seilwaith hwnnw. Nid yw Cymru'n cyflawni ei photensial mewn ymchwil feddygol. Mae gennym brifysgolion o'r radd flaenaf, ond ni chânt eu hariannu'n briodol gan Lywodraeth Cymru. Yn ôl y Swyddfa Ystadegau Gwladol, o dair gwlad ddatganoledig y DU, a phob un o naw rhanbarth Lloegr, Cymru sydd â'r gwariant isaf yn gyfrannol ar ymchwil a datblygu. Ni sy'n perfformio salaf o 12 gwlad a rhanbarth y DU. Dim ond 2 y cant o'r gwariant ymchwil a datblygu yn y DU sydd yng Nghymru. Rydym yn ffurfio bron i 5 y cant o'r boblogaeth, felly oni ddylem gael 5 y cant o'r gwariant ymchwil? Dim ond 3 y cant o gyllid cystadleuol y mae Cymru'n ei ennill, ond unwaith eto, rydym yn ffurfio 5 y cant o boblogaeth y DU, felly dylem fod yn ennill o leiaf 5 y cant o gyllid cystadleuol. Ond oherwydd lefelau isel o fuddsoddiad ym mhrifysgolion Cymru, nid ydym yn denu cyfran ein poblogaeth o gyllid. Mae buddsoddiad isel yn atal llwyddiant economaidd a chyfraniad ymchwil i'n hadferiad economaidd. Ond nid problem newydd yw hon. Yn 2018, comisiynodd Llywodraeth Cymru ei hun adolygiad o'r amgylchedd ymchwil. Adolygiad Reid oedd hwnnw, a chanfu fod lefelau isel o gyllid seilwaith ym mhrifysgolion Cymru wedi bod yn ffynhonnell, ac rwy'n dyfynnu, 'gwendid strwythurol dros ddau ddegawd'.