English: Thank you for the statement. Today's statement, of course, confirms what was reported in the press following the WLGA conference in Llandudno, which, of course, is that you are giving up on your plans to force council mergers - for the time being, at least. So, thank you for making the statement in the Chamber, which is the appropriate place for announcing important policy changes. The Green Paper was deficient in that there was no cost analysis carried out. Your summary of the responses to the consultation on the Green Paper states that a third of the respondents had commented on the financial case. It was suggested that that case hadn't been made and that the costs in the Green Paper weren't complete, that people believed that the costs of merger would be higher than anticipated, or that the savings anticipated had already been made by local authorities. This is the argument that I've put forward consistently over the past few weeks, and one that I heard regularly from council leaders across Wales. I have to say that I never understood the purpose of the change of direction from the regionalisation approach of your predecessor. Through introducing the Green Paper, valuable time was wasted, and uncertainty was created that was unnecessary. Therefore, we have taken a step backwards once again, and you are looking to create legislation around enabling voluntary mergers. But, as far as I can see, there are only two councils that are willing to consider that, and they are Swansea and Neath Port Talbot. But, even there, there is disagreement on the timetable, with Swansea wanting to merge swiftly whilst Neath Port Talbot sees some merit in merging with Swansea by 2026. So, it is clear that councils aren't willing to merge voluntarily. So, my first question is this: how confident are you that any councils would be willing to undergo a voluntary merger as a result of this legislation? Now, as the legislation won't bring any radical proposals forward in terms of reorganising councils, perhaps we should turn our sights to other aspects of the new legislation, and try and see to what positive end we can turn this new Bill. Now, perhaps there may be opportunities in creating provisions for electoral reform. I know that you, like me, support proportional voting as a way of bringing life to elections and enhancing participation. Your predecessor mentioned introducing proportional voting to local government elections, but it wasn't to be mandatory. Now, for me, this should happen across Wales so that there is no postcode lottery created. If it isn't made mandatory across councils in Wales, then there's a risk that it won't happen at all. So, my second question is this: will you introduce proportional voting that will be mandatory for local government elections as part of this legislation? The new legislation could also start to tackle the lack of diversity in local government. At the moment only 20 per cent of Welsh councillors are female, and we need far-reaching changes if the desire of the First Minister for a feminist Wales is to be made a reality. The Equality, Local Government and Communities Committee has started an inquiry into this, looking specifically at how we can overcome some of the barriers that exist. Why don't you also think about means of generating change through this new legislation - introducing quotas, for example, or allowing job sharing among councillors? So, to conclude, will you commit to introducing electoral changes as part of this new Bill that will create a more diverse and equal local government? Thank you.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr am y datganiad. Mae'r datganiad heddiw, wrth gwrs, yn cadarnhau beth adroddwyd yn y wasg yn sgil cynhadledd y WLGA yn Llandudno, sef, wrth gwrs, eich bod chi yn rhoi'r gorau i'ch cynlluniau i orfodi cynghorau i uno - am y tro, o leiaf. Diolch am wneud y datganiad yn y Siambr, sef y lle priodol ar gyfer cyhoeddi newidiadau polisi pwysig. Mi oedd y Papur Gwyrdd yn ddiffygiol o ran nad oedd dim dadansoddiad costau wedi'i wneud. Mae'ch crynodeb chi o'r ymatebion i'r ymgynghoriad ar y Papur Gwyrdd yn dweud bod un rhan o dair o'r rheini a ymatebodd wedi gwneud sylwadau am yr achos ariannol. Awgrymwyd nad oedd yr achos ariannol wedi'i wneud ac nad oedd y costau yn y Papur Gwyrdd wedi'u cwblhau, bod pobl yn credu y byddai costau uno yn uwch nag y rhagwelwyd, neu fod yr arbedion a ragwelwyd eisoes wedi'u gwneud gan lywodraeth leol. Dyma'r ddadl y bues i yn ei chyflwyno'n gyson dros yr wythnosau diwethaf yma, ac un y gwnes i ei chlywed yn aml iawn gan arweinwyr cyngor ar draws Cymru. Mae'n rhaid imi ddweud, wnes i erioed deall pwrpas y newid cyfeiriad o drywydd rhanbartholi eich rhagflaenydd. Drwy gyflwyno'r Papur Gwyrdd, fe wastraffwyd amser gwerthfawr ac fe grëwyd ansicrwydd diangen. Felly, rydym ni yn cymryd cam yn ôl unwaith eto, ac rydym ni yn edrych - neu rydych chi yn edrych - i greu deddfwriaeth o gwmpas galluogi uno gwirfoddol. Ond, hyd y gwelaf i, dim ond dau gyngor sydd yn fodlon ystyried hynny, sef Abertawe a Chastell-nedd Port Talbot. Ond, hyd yn oed fan hyn, mae anghytundeb am yr amserlen, efo Abertawe eisiau uno yn gyflym tra bod Castell-nedd Port Talbot yn gweld rhywfaint o rinwedd uno ag Abertawe erbyn 2026. Felly, mae'n amlwg nad ydy cynghorau yn barod i uno yn wirfoddol. Felly, fy nghwestiwn cyntaf i ydy hwn: pa mor hyderus ydych chi y bydd unrhyw gynghorau yn fodlon gwirfoddoli i uno yn sgil y ddeddfwriaeth yma? Gan na fydd y ddeddfwriaeth newydd yn dod â chynigion radical gerbron, felly, o ran ad-drefnu cynghorau, efallai y dylem ni droi ein golygon at agweddau eraill o'r ddeddfwriaeth newydd a cheisio gweld i ba ddiben positif y gellid troi'r Bil newydd. Efallai, yn wir, bod yna gyfleon wrth greu darpariaeth ar gyfer diwygio etholiadol. Rydw i'n gwybod eich bod chi, fel fi, yn cefnogi pleidleisiau cyfrannol fel ffordd o fywiogi etholiadau a chynyddu cyfranogiad. Fe soniodd eich rhagflaenydd am gyflwyno pleidleisiau cyfrannol i etholiadau lleol, ond nid oedd o am wneud hynny'n fandadol. I mi, mi ddylai hyn ddigwydd yn gyson ledled Cymru fel nad oes yna system cod post yn cael ei greu, ac, os nad yw'n cael ei wneud yn fater mandadol ar draws cynghorau Cymru, mae perig na fydd o'n digwydd. Felly, fy ail gwestiwn i ydy hyn: a wnewch chi gyflwyno pleidleisio cyfrannol mandadol i etholiadau lleol fel rhan o'r ddeddfwriaeth newydd yma? Fe all y ddeddfwriaeth newydd hefyd ddechrau mynd i'r afael â'r diffyg amrywiaeth mewn llywodraeth leol. Ar hyn o bryd, dim ond 27 y cant o gynghorwyr Cymru sydd yn ferched, ac mae angen newidiadau pellgyrhaeddol os ydy breuddwyd y Prif Weinidog am Gymru ffeministaidd yn mynd i ddod yn fyw. Mae'r Pwyllgor Cydraddoldeb, Llywodraeth Leol a Chymunedau wedi cychwyn ymchwiliad i hyn, gan edrych yn benodol ar sut i orchfygu rhai o'r rhwystrau sydd yn bodoli. Beth am i chithau feddwl am ddulliau i greu newid drwy'r ddeddfwriaeth newydd - cyflwyno cwotâu, er enghraifft, neu ganiatáu rhannu swyddi ymhlith cynghorwyr? Felly, i gloi, a wnewch chi ymrwymo i gyflwyno newidiadau etholiadol yn y Bil newydd a fydd yn arwain at greu llywodraeth leol mwy amrywiol a chydradd? Diolch.