English: Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer, for calling me to speak in this very topical debate, as we move into an even more nail-biting time over our future relationship with the European Union. I'm not a member of the committee, but I did give evidence to the committee as chair of the Wales programme monitoring committee, along with Sioned Evans, the chief executive of WEFO, and Grahame Guilford, EU funding ambassador. The report certainly makes a strong case for the continuation of funding, at least at the level of the present European structural funds. And, in fact, as the Chair has already said in his introduction, Wales receives considerably more structural funds per person than any other part of the UK, so Brexit could hit Wales particularly hard. Many organisations cited in the report gave evidence about the value of the funds, and many drew attention to the cross-cutting themes that have to be adhered to when European funding is agreed - the cross-cutting themes of equal opportunities and gender mainstreaming, sustainable development and tackling poverty and social exclusion. That is one of the great things, I think, about the European funds that we have had - that these themes have been built into all the projects. Chwarae Teg in particular drew attention to the projects that had been set up to look at women in the workforce and to tackle inequalities. I think it's important to remember that, in WEFO, there is a whole section of staff that is devoted to promoting the cross-cutting themes and ensuring that they're embedded at the beginning in all of the projects that are agreed to have EU funding. I think it is absolutely essential that, in any future funding that comes through the shared prosperity fund, these themes are also built in. We must make sure that tackling inequality is one of the main issues of these themes. I think it is also important to remember, as the Chair of the committee also said, about the huge amount of expertise that has been built up in Wales over nearly 20 years of EU funding - and that is recognised in the report - because the Welsh Government has been responsible for managing EU structural funds since April 2000 and, of course, has an in-depth knowledge of local views, local situations and local partnerships. It is vitally important that this is not lost, and it cannot be replicated by a Whitehall-down approach. One of the most striking things in the report that struck me reading it was how it highlighted what an unequal country the UK is. I was particularly struck by the bit in the report that said that: The UK currently has the largest regional economic disparity in GDP per person of any of the 28 EU Member States', with Inner London West having a GDP per head of 611 per cent of the EU average, while West Wales and the Valleys has a GDP of 68 per cent. I think it is very worrying that there are such extremes of wealth in the UK and that we have such an unequal society across the UK, because an unequal society will never be a cohesive society, and obviously the financial crash and austerity, which has followed, has made the gap between rich and poor get even wider. But it was very good to hear in the committee report the strong support for the view that Wales should not be a penny worse off than it would have been within the EU, because this was, after all, one of the 'leave' campaign's promises to voters before the referendum. Now, I know there have been pre-consultation meetings between different organisations in Wales in the Wales Office ahead of the formal consultation on the shared prosperity fund, which I'm told is planned to start before Christmas. It was interesting to hear in First Minister's questions, when I asked the First Minister about a meeting that was supposed to take, that did take, place last Friday - this was a meeting with third sector organisations and I know there was some concern amongst the third sector about who was being involved and who wasn't being involved in discussing the shared prosperity fund, but the First Minister said that his officials here were informed, but only the day before. So, I think, in response to Nick Ramsay's comments, that we only know a little bit and pretty late in the day. So, I think it is a matter of great concern. I think there is concern amongst organisations, and particularly organisations working on promoting equality and helping women to achieve and prosper are very concerned that there may be any change of emphasis if the UK Government controls the levers of the shared prosperity fund. So, I am very pleased that the Welsh Government is quite clear that anything that comes from the shared prosperity fund to Wales must be controlled and made in Wales.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr iawn, Ddirprwy Lywydd, am alw arnaf i siarad yn y ddadl amserol hon, wrth inni symud i adeg fwy ansicr byth hyd yn oed o ran ein perthynas â'r Undeb Ewropeaidd yn y dyfodol. Nid wyf yn aelod o'r pwyllgor, ond rhoddais dystiolaeth iddo fel cadeirydd pwyllgor monitro rhaglen Cymru, gyda Sioned Evans, prif weithredwr WEFO, a Grahame Guilford, llysgennad cyllido'r UE. Mae'r adroddiad yn sicr yn gwneud achos cryf dros barhau cyllid, ar lefel bresennol y cronfeydd strwythurol Ewropeaidd fan lleiaf. Ac yn wir, fel y dywedodd y Cadeirydd eisoes yn ei gyflwyniad, mae Cymru'n cael swm cryn dipyn yn uwch o gronfeydd strwythurol y pen nag unrhyw ran arall o'r DU, felly gallai Brexit daro Cymru'n arbennig o galed. Rhoddodd nifer o sefydliadau a nodwyd yn yr adroddiad dystiolaeth ar werth y ffrydiau cyllido, a thynnodd llawer ohonynt sylw at y themâu trawsbynciol sy'n rhaid cydymffurfio â hwy pan gytunir ar gyllid Ewropeaidd - themâu trawsbynciol cyfle cyfartal a phrif ffrydio rhywedd, datblygu cynaliadwy a threchu tlodi ac allgáu cymdeithasol. Dyna un o'r pethau gwych, rwy'n meddwl, am y cyllid Ewropeaidd a gawsom - fod y themâu hyn wedi'u hymgorffori'n rhan o'r holl brosiectau. Amlygodd Chwarae Teg yn arbennig y prosiectau a sefydlwyd i edrych ar fenywod yn y gweithlu ac i fynd i'r afael ag anghydraddoldebau. Rwy'n credu ei bod hi'n bwysig cofio bod adran gyfan o staff yn WEFO wedi'i neilltuo ar gyfer hyrwyddo themâu trawsbynciol a sicrhau eu bod wedi'u sefydlu ar y dechrau ym mhob un o'r prosiectau y cytunwyd i roi cyllid yr UE ar eu cyfer. Rwy'n meddwl ei bod hi'n gwbl allweddol fod y themâu hyn yn cael eu hymgorffori mewn unrhyw gyllid a ddaw drwy'r gronfa ffyniant gyffredin hefyd. Rhaid inni wneud yn siŵr fod mynd i'r afael ag anghydraddoldeb yn un o'r prif faterion yn y themâu hyn. Hefyd mae'n bwysig cofio, fel y dywedodd Cadeirydd y pwyllgor, am yr arbenigedd enfawr a ddatblygwyd yng Nghymru dros bron i 20 mlynedd o gyllid yr UE - a chydnabyddir hynny yn yr adroddiad - oherwydd mae Llywodraeth Cymru wedi bod yn gyfrifol am reoli cronfeydd strwythurol yr UE ers mis Ebrill 2000 ac wrth gwrs, mae ganddi wybodaeth fanwl am safbwyntiau lleol, sefyllfaoedd lleol, partneriaethau lleol. Mae'n hanfodol bwysig nad yw hyn yn cael ei golli, ac nid oes modd i ddull sy'n deillio o Whitehall ei efelychu. Un o'r pethau mwyaf trawiadol yn yr adroddiad a'm trawodd wrth i mi ei ddarllen oedd y modd yr amlygai pa mor anghyfartal yw'r DU fel gwlad. Yn fwyaf arbennig, fe'm trawyd gan y rhan yn yr adroddiad a oedd yn dweud: 'Ar hyn o bryd, yn y Deyrnas Unedig y mae'r gwahaniaeth economaidd rhanbarthol mwyaf mewn Cynnyrch Domestig Gros y pen o unrhyw un o'r 28 o Aelod-wladwriaethau'r Undeb Ewropeaidd', gyda Gorllewin Llundain Fewnol â chynnyrch domestig gros y pen o 611 y cant o gyfartaledd yr UE, tra bo cynnyrch domestig gros Gorllewin Cymru a'r Cymoedd yn 68 y cant. Mae'n destun pryder mawr yn fy marn i fod y fath eithafion o gyfoeth yn y DU a bod gennym gymdeithas mor anghyfartal ar draws y DU, oherwydd ni fydd cymdeithas anghyfartal byth yn gymdeithas gydlynol, ac yn amlwg, mae'r chwalfa ariannol a'r cyni a'i dilynodd wedi gwneud y bwlch rhwng y cyfoethog a'r tlawd hyd yn oed yn fwy. Ond roedd hi'n braf iawn clywed yn adroddiad y pwyllgor am y gefnogaeth gref i'r farn na ddylai Cymru fod geiniog ar ei cholled nag y byddai wedi bod o fewn yr UE, oherwydd wedi'r cyfan, dyna oedd un o addewidion yr ymgyrch dros adael i bleidleiswyr cyn y refferendwm. Nawr, rwy'n gwybod bod cyfarfodydd cyn-ymgynghorol wedi bod rhwng gwahanol sefydliadau yng Nghymru yn Swyddfa Cymru cyn yr ymgynghoriad ffurfiol ar y gronfa ffyniant gyffredin y deallaf fod bwriad iddo ddechrau cyn y Nadolig. Roedd yn ddiddorol clywed yn y cwestiynau i'r Prif Weinidog, pan ofynnais iddo ynglŷn â chyfarfod a oedd i fod i ddigwydd, ac a wnaeth ddigwydd ddydd Gwener diwethaf - cyfarfod oedd hwn â sefydliadau trydydd sector a gwn fod peth pryder yn y trydydd sector ynglŷn â phwy oedd yn rhan a phwy nad oedd yn rhan o'r broses o drafod y gronfa ffyniant gyffredin, ond dywedodd y Prif Weinidog fod ei swyddogion yma wedi cael gwybod, ond nid tan y diwrnod cynt. Felly, mewn ymateb i sylwadau Nick Ramsay, credaf mai ychydig yn unig a wyddom, a hynny'n eithaf hwyr yn y dydd. Felly, mae'n fater o bryder mawr yn fy marn i. Mae pryder ymysg sefydliadau, ac mae sefydliadau sy'n gweithio ar hybu cydraddoldeb a helpu menywod i gyflawni a ffynnu, yn enwedig, yn bryderus iawn y bydd newid pwyslais os yw Llywodraeth y DU yn rheoli liferi'r gronfa ffyniant gyffredin. Felly, rwy'n falch iawn fod Llywodraeth Cymru yn gwbl glir fod yn rhaid i unrhyw beth a ddaw o'r gronfa ffyniant gyffredin i Gymru gael ei reoli a'i wneud yng Nghymru.