English: Many congratulations to you on your appointment. I look forward to working with you, Jeremy. You will know that I will be scrutinising your work in detail and I'll be challenging you where necessary in order to improve the experiences of children and young people in Wales and those who support them. I very much hope that you will be willing to meet regularly. Doing so with your predecessor was very valuable indeed. Thank you very much for your statement this afternoon. There is a great deal of work to be done in dealing with the impacts of the pandemic, as you have already said, but, unfortunately, COVID has not gone away, and there is a risk of a third wave, and that is becoming increasingly likely. That, of course, could lead to further disruption in education. Unfortunately, there are gaps in the data and information available in terms of the India variant in schools. We've heard that teaching unions in England are very concerned about the lack of transparency from the UK Government in terms of the impact and spread of that variant in school settings. If we are to see the variant starting to spread in Wales, then we need to understand it, before it becomes a problem and has an impact on education. So, my first question this afternoon is: has the Welsh Government seen data on the spread of the India variant and the impact, or likely impact, of that on schools in Wales? Schools have had to close their doors in certain areas of England recently, and this has also started to happen in Wales too, unfortunately. On Monday, we saw 335 pupils in West Park school in Porthcawl having to self-isolate, and there is a very real risk that we will see disruption similar to what we saw in previous lockdowns. So, I would like to know what the Welsh Government's plans are to mitigate the impacts of self-isolation and losses in terms of learning on the progression and well-being of pupils in Wales. We, of course, hope it doesn't happen, but we must have assurances that you have plans in place related to connectivity and dealing with issues around the equipment and space necessary for teaching and learning. And I do hope that there will be an opportunity for you this afternoon to outline exactly what that plan entails. In your statement you set out a vision of supporting children and young people from deprived backgrounds, and I agree entirely with you on that. Child poverty continues to restrict the progress and well-being of our learners and is damaging to all aspects of child development here in Wales. It's perhaps greater than any other factor in that regard. I am going to turn now to the benefits of free school meals for all. We know that a nutritious school meal provided regularly can improve performance within schools and can also lead to improvements in child health more generally, but we also know that half of the children living in poverty in Wales are missing out on free school meals - over 70,000 children. The pandemic, of course, has exacerbated that poverty, including child poverty, and is therefore having an even greater impact on the education and well-being of our young people. So, my final question this afternoon is: will you do the just thing, namely expand the qualification for free school meals to children from families in receipt of universal credit? When will you outline your timetable for delivering that? Thank you.
Welsh: Llongyfarchiadau mawr ichi ar eich penodiad. Dwi'n edrych ymlaen at gydweithio efo chi, Jeremy. Byddwch chi'n gwybod y byddaf i'n craffu ar eich gwaith chi'n fanwl, yn herio pan fydd angen, a hynny er mwyn gwella profiadau plant a phobl ifanc Cymru a'r rhai hynny sydd yn eu cefnogi nhw. Gobeithio y byddwch chi'n barod i gyfarfod yn rheolaidd. Roedd gwneud hynny efo eich rhagflaenydd yn werthfawr iawn. Diolch ichi am eich datganiad y prynhawn yma. Mae yna lawer o waith i'w wneud i ddelio ag effeithiau'r pandemig, fel rydych chi'n ei ddweud, ond, yn anffodus, dydy COVID ddim wedi mynd, ac mae yna risg o drydedd don, a hynny'n gynyddol debygol. Gallai hynny, wrth gwrs, arwain at amharu pellach ar addysg. Yn anffodus, mae yna fylchau yn y data a'r wybodaeth o ran yr amrywiolyn India mewn ysgolion. Rydym ni wedi clywed undebau athrawon yn Lloegr yn pryderu'n fawr am ddiffyg tryloywder gan Lywodraeth y Deyrnas Unedig o ran effaith a lledaeniad yr amrywiolyn mewn lleoliadau addysgol. Os ydym ni i weld yr amrywiolyn yn dechrau lledaenu yng Nghymru, mae angen inni ei ddeall o, cyn iddo fo ddod yn broblem ac amharu ar addysg eto. Felly, fy nghwestiwn cyntaf i chi prynhawn yma ydy: a ydy Llywodraeth Cymru wedi gweld data ar ledaeniad yr amrywiolyn India ac effaith hynny, neu effaith tebygol hynny, ar ysgolion yng Nghymru? Mae ysgolion wedi gorfod cau eu drysau mewn ardaloedd o Loegr yn ddiweddar, ac mae hyn wedi dechrau digwydd yng Nghymru hefyd, yn anffodus. Ddydd Llun, fe welwyd 335 o ddysgwyr yn ysgol West Park ym Mhorthcawl yn gorfod hunanynysu, ac mae yna beryg go iawn y gwelwn ni aflonyddwch tebyg i'r hyn a brofwyd dros y cyfnodau clo diwethaf. Felly, hoffwn i wybod beth ydy cynlluniau Llywodraeth Cymru i liniaru ar effeithiau hunanynysu a cholledion dysgu ar gynnydd a lles dysgwyr Cymru. Rydym ni yn gobeithio na fydd hyn ddim yn digwydd, ond mae'n rhaid cael sicrwydd fod gennych chi gynlluniau penodol yn ymwneud â chysylltedd, yn ymwneud â phrinder offer, gofod, amgylchiadau addas sy'n angenrheidiol i ddysgu. A gobeithio bod yna gyfle y prynhawn yma i chi amlinellu yn union beth ydy'r cynllun yna. Yn eich datganiad chi rydych chi'n gosod gweledigaeth o gefnogi plant a phobl ifanc o gefndiroedd difreintiedig, a dwi'n cytuno yn llwyr efo chi ar hynny. Mae tlodi plant yn parhau i gyfyngu ar gynnydd a lles ein dysgwyr ni ac yn niweidio pob agwedd ar ddatblygiad plant yma yng Nghymru, o bosib yn fwy nag unrhyw ffactor arall. Dwi yn mynd i droi at fanteision pryd bwyd ysgol am ddim i bawb. Rydym ni'n gwybod y gall pryd maethlon rheolaidd wella perfformiad plentyn yn yr ysgol ac iechyd y plentyn yn gyffredinol, ond rydym ni hefyd yn gwybod bod hanner y plant sydd mewn tlodi yng Nghymru yn colli allan ar brydau ysgol am ddim - dros 70,000 o blant. Mae'r pandemig, wrth gwrs, wedi gwaethygu tlodi, gan gynnwys tlodi plant, ac felly'n effeithio ymhellach ar les ac addysg ein pobl ifanc ni. Felly, fy nghwestiwn olaf i brynhawn yma ydy: a wnewch chi wneud y peth cyfiawn, sef ehangu cymhwysedd prydau ysgol am ddim i blant o deuluoedd sy'n derbyn credyd cynhwysol? Pryd fyddwch chi'n amlinellu eich amserlen chi ar gyfer cyflawni hyn? Diolch.