English: Can I say that I'm absolutely delighted to be able to speak in this debate as part of the celebration of International Women's Day? It's celebrate that I actually want to do. Today, we have heard, and we will hear, about a number of inspirational women - the famous and the not so famous - all of whom have made their mark, not just in Wales but across the world. For my contribution I want to mention just a few. In sport, the shining example of Tanni Grey-Thompson, who probably did more than any other person to advance the cause of disabled sport in this country. During her career, she won a total of 16 Paralympic medals, including 11 golds, held over 30 world records and won the London marathon six times. She later became a TV presenter and is now an active member of the House of Lords. In politics, women had to fight for the right to vote. A leading Welsh suffragette was Margaret Haig Mackworth, who blew up a post box in Risca Road, Newport to show how strongly she felt about votes for women. The general election of 1929 was, of course, the first in which all women above the age of 21 were able to vote. Not only could women now vote, they could also stand for election to Parliament, and out of the three who stood in Wales, the one who succeeded in being elected, of course, was Megan Lloyd George, daughter of the former Prime Minister, David. She was elected as the Liberal MP for Anglesey, later seeing the light, of course, and becoming the Labour MP for Carmarthen. Of course, we shouldn't forget Julia Gillard, a former Australian Prime Minister born in Barry, who came back to Wales to address the Assembly in 2015, the event being so popular that it had to be shifted from the Pierhead to the Senedd and was broadcast on senedd.tv for those who were unable to get tickets. In industry, not surprisingly, given the rich industrial heritage of Merthyr Tydfil, there were women pioneers in industry from the town. One was Lady Charlotte Guest, wife of John Josiah Guest, owner of the world's largest ironworks in Dowlais, and Merthyr's first MP. When he died in 1852, Charlotte took control of the business, and although she is best remembered for her philanthropic concerns for the workers in the area, she continued to run the works until she remarried in 1855. Another was Lucy Thomas, known as the mother of the coal industry, who took over the running of her husband's business when he died in 1833, leaving her with an estate of under £1,000. He'd discovered a rich coal seam in Merthyr, and it became one of the most successful mines in Wales. By the time of her death in 1847, she'd increased the worth of that business to over £11,000. And more recently, there was the fashion designer Laura Ashley, born in a modest terraced house in Dowlais in Merthyr Tydfil, and who went on to become one of the world's leading clothing and furnishing designers and manufacturers. There are so many other inspirational Welsh women I could talk about, but it's not just about individuals. In the time that I've got left to me, I want to also pay tribute to women who have acted collectively in their trade unions, making a difference to the lives of so many. The record of women acting collectively is a proud one: from the match girls' strike in 1888, which led to the banning of dangerous white phosphorus matches and improvements in their working conditions, to the general strike of 1926, when women first took to the streets to defend men's right to a decent wage. In 1934, when the Government took action against the rising cost of paying dole and benefits to the unemployed - does that sound familiar - a hunger march left Tonypandy and among the hundreds of Welsh miners were a dozen women wearing rucksacks and red berets. They'd been coached in public speaking to be able to address meetings on their overnight stops on the way to Cardiff. Of course, during the miners' strike of 1984, women protested alongside their husbands, fathers and brothers to oppose the closure of 28 south Wales pits. As well as protesting about the loss of jobs, they were fighting to protect their communities. Women joined the picket lines, they marched at rallies and they provided food parcels. Women Against Pit Closures politicised women like never before in these coal-mining communities, and one of them, Siân James, went on to become the Labour MP for Swansea East. Women in trade unions have relentlessly campaigned on issues that affect them disproportionately, pursuing equal pay claims, equal rights for part-time, fixed-term, agency and low-paid workers, and, as we debated last week, fighting the exploitation of the use of zero-hours contracts, which also affects women more than men, and of course campaigning for equality and affordable childcare, which this Government is seeking to address. Llywydd, I feel extremely privileged to have been elected to the Welsh Assembly, and I owe an immense debt of gratitude to those women who went before me and blazed a trail in politics and in the trade union movement, making it possible for me and other women like me to be here today. Our responsibility now is to pave the way for the next generation of women who will make their mark in Welsh life.
Welsh: A gaf i ddweud fy mod yn hapus iawn o'r cyfle i siarad yn y ddadl hon fel rhan o ddathlu Diwrnod Rhyngwladol y Menywod? Mae'n ddathliad yr wyf yn wirionedd eisiau ei wneud. Heddiw, rydym wedi clywed, a byddwn yn clywed, am nifer o fenywod ysbrydoledig - yr enwog a'r nad ydynt mor enwog - bob un ohonynt wedi gwneud eu marc, nid yn unig yng Nghymru ond ledled y byd. Yn fy nghyfraniad i, rwyf yn awyddus i grybwyll rhai ohonynt. Yn y byd chwaraeon, yr enghraifft ddisglair o Tanni Grey-Thompson, a wnaeth fwy nag unrhyw un arall fwy na thebyg i hyrwyddo achos chwaraeon anabl yn y wlad hon. Yn ystod ei gyrfa, enillodd gyfanswm o 16 o fedalau Paralympaidd, gan gynnwys 11 aur, roedd yn dal dros 30 o recordiau byd ac enillodd ras marathon Llundain chwe gwaith. Yn ddiweddarach daeth yn gyflwynydd teledu ac mae bellach yn aelod gweithgar o Dŷ'r Arglwyddi. Ym myd gwleidyddiaeth, roedd yn rhaid i fenywod ymladd am yr hawl i bleidleisio. Swffragét flaenllaw o Gymru oedd Margaret Haig Mackworth, a ffrwydrodd flwch postio yn Heol Rhisga, Casnewydd i ddangos pa mor gryf yr oedd hi'n teimlo am bleidlais i ferched. Etholiad 1929, wrth gwrs, oedd y cyntaf lle'r oedd pob menyw dros 21 oed yn gallu pleidleisio. Nid yn unig gallai merched nawr bleidleisio, ond gallent hefyd sefyll i gael eu hethol i'r Senedd, ac allan o'r tri oedd yn sefyll yng Nghymru, yr un a lwyddodd i gael ei hethol, wrth gwrs, oedd Megan Lloyd George, merch y cyn Brif Weinidog, David . Fe'i hetholwyd yn Aelod Seneddol Rhyddfrydol dros Sir Fôn, gan weld y goleuni yn ddiweddarach, wrth gwrs, a dod yn AS Llafur dros Gaerfyrddin. Wrth gwrs, ni ddylem anghofio Julia Gillard, cyn Brif Weinidog Awstralia a aned yn y Barri, a ddaeth yn ôl i Gymru i annerch y Cynulliad yn 2015. Roedd y digwyddiad mor boblogaidd fel y bu'n rhaid ei symud o'r Pierhead i'r Senedd ac fe'i darlledwyd ar senedd.tv ar gyfer y rhai nad oeddent yn gallu cael tocynnau. Ym myd diwydiant, nid yw'n syndod, o ystyried treftadaeth ddiwydiannol gyfoethog Merthyr Tudful, bod arloeswyr benywaidd ym myd diwydiant yn hannu o'r dref. Un oedd yr Arglwyddes Charlotte Guest, gwraig John Josiah Guest, perchennog y gwaith haearn mwyaf yn y byd yn Nowlais, ac Aelod Seneddol cyntaf Merthyr. Pan fu farw ym 1852, cymerodd Charlotte reolaeth dros y busnes, ac er ei bod yn cael ei chofio orau am ei gofal dyngarol dros weithwyr yn yr ardal, parhaodd i redeg y gwaith nes iddi ailbriodi ym 1855. Un arall oedd Lucy Thomas, a elwir yn fam y diwydiant glo, a gymerodd drosodd y gwaith o redeg busnes ei gŵr pan fu yntau farw ym 1833, gan adael iddi ystad a oedd yn werth llai na £1,000. Roedd wedi darganfod gwythïen lo gyfoethog ym Merthyr, a daeth yn un o'r mwyngloddiau mwyaf llwyddiannus yng Nghymru. Erbyn adeg ei marwolaeth hi ym 1847, roedd gwerth y busnes hwnnw wedi cynyddu i dros £11,000. Ac yn fwy diweddar, roedd y cynllunydd ffasiwn Laura Ashley, a aned mewn tŷ teras dinod yn Nowlais ym Merthyr Tudful, ac a aeth ymlaen i fod yn un o ddylunwyr a gwneuthurwyr dillad a dodrefn mwyaf blaenllaw'r byd. Mae cymaint o fenywod ysbrydoledig eraill o Gymru y gallwn siarad amdanynt, ond nid yw hyn yn ymwneud ag unigolion yn unig. Yn yr amser sydd gennyf ar ôl, rwyf hefyd am dalu teyrnged i fenywod sydd wedi ymddwyn ar y cyd yn eu hundebau llafur, gan wneud gwahaniaeth i fywydau cymaint. Mae'r hanes am ferched yn gweithredu ar y cyd yn un balch: o streic y merched matsis ym 1888, a arweiniodd at wahardd matsis ffosfforws gwyn peryglus a gwelliannau yn eu hamodau gwaith, at streic gyffredinol 1926, pan ymladdodd menywod am y tro cyntaf i amddiffyn hawl dynion i gyflog teg. Ym 1934, pan gymerodd y Llywodraeth gamau yn erbyn y gost gynyddol o dalu'r dôl a budd-daliadau i'r di-waith - a yw hynny'n swnio'n gyfarwydd - gadawodd gorymdaith newyn Donypandy ac ymhlith y cannoedd o lowyr roedd dwsin o fenywod yn gwisgo sachau teithio a berets coch. Roeddent wedi eu hyfforddi mewn siarad cyhoeddus fel y gallent annerch cyfarfodydd mewn mannau aros dros nos ar y ffordd i Gaerdydd. Wrth gwrs, yn ystod streic y glowyr 1984, protestiodd menywod ochr yn ochr â'u gwŷr, eu tadau a'u brodyr i wrthwynebu cau 28 o byllau yn ne Cymru. Yn ogystal â phrotestio am golli swyddi, roeddent yn ymladd i amddiffyn eu cymunedau. Ymunodd menywod â llinellau piced, roeddent yn gorymdeithio mewn ralïau ac roeddent yn darparu parseli bwyd. Fe wnaeth Menywod yn Erbyn Cau Pyllau wleidyddoli menywod mewn ffordd nas gwelwyd erioed o'r blaen yn y cymunedau glofaol hyn, ac aeth un ohonynt, Siân James, ymlaen i fod yn AS Llafur dros Ddwyrain Abertawe. Mae menywod mewn undebau llafur wedi ymgyrchu yn ddiflino ar faterion sy'n effeithio arnynt yn anghymesur, gan fynd ar drywydd hawliadau cyflog cyfartal, hawliau cyfartal i weithwyr rhan-amser, cyfnod penodol, asiantaeth a'r rhai ar gyflog isel, ac, fel y dadleuwyd yr wythnos diwethaf, ymladd yn erbyn ecsbloetio contractau dim oriau, sydd hefyd yn effeithio ar fenywod yn fwy na dynion, ac wrth gwrs ymgyrchu dros gydraddoldeb a gofal plant fforddiadwy, y mae'r Llywodraeth hon yn ceisio mynd i'r afael ag ef. Lywydd, rwy'n teimlo yn hynod freintiedig o fod wedi cael fy ethol i Gynulliad Cymru, ac rwy'n eithriadol o ddiolchgar i'r menywod a aeth o fy mlaen i ac arloesi mewn gwleidyddiaeth ac yn y mudiad undebau llafur, gan ei gwneud yn bosibl i mi a menywod eraill fel fi fod yma heddiw. Ein cyfrifoldeb ni yn awr yw paratoi'r ffordd ar gyfer y genhedlaeth nesaf o fenywod a fydd yn gwneud eu marc ym mywyd Cymru.