Read: Full text of Jeremy Miles’ ‘vision for Wales’ speech

Diolch yn fawr – Patience, thank you very much for such a wonderful introduction.

Friends – a very warm welcome to Swansea! Croeso mawr i chi i gyd i Abertawe.

Mae’n hyfryd i weld shwd gymaint o chi yma heddi. It’s wonderful to see so many of you here with us today.

What a fabulous location this is! A truly modern, forward-looking university campus, part of a university which is all about access and providing the communities it serves with opportunities, and developing the skills our young people need to thrive and to play their part in the future success of our country.

My thanks to the university for hosting us today. Diolch o galon i chi.

And that’s what I’m here to talk to you about today – our future as a nation, and as a party… and the role I believe I can play as your next leader and first minister of Wales.

But I want to begin by paying tribute to Mark Drakeford.

From Brexit, through covid, to the cost-of-living crisis, mark has led the nation, the Welsh government and our party through some of the most difficult periods we’ve faced in modern times – all the while demonstrating that integrity, dignity and strength that has inspired us all.

Mark has always put people first and has done everything he can to do the right thing for Wales. Diolch mark i ti am dy arweinyddiaeth, thank you for your leadership. Our country and our party owe you a huge debt of gratitude.

Friends – a teenage Jeremy Miles would never have believed I would be standing here before you here today, launching a campaign to lead the party I’ve been a proud member of since I was a 17-year-old schoolboy.

My family are here today. They have heard me say this before. Growing up as a young gay man in our loving, working class family in Pontarddulais – not that far away from where we are today actually – I really struggled to see how I would fit in to the world, a world where at that time, Margaret Thatcher and the Tories deliberately promoted hatred against people like me, in order to frighten people into voting for them.

This instilled in me, the need to fight for the values we all hold dear – equality and fairness.

I was brought up to believe that public service can make a difference. There was something both inspiring and exciting to me in hearing my grandfather – a Labour councillor – talk about the campaigns he had been a part of to get a new doctor’s surgery, a library, to bring a Welsh medium primary school, alongside the English medium school to our village.

I was never under any illusion but that it was very hard work, but I was enthused by the sense that we can change people’s lives for the better, through practical political action.

We were brought up to believe that everyone was equal, whatever their background.

I went to Ysgol Gyfun Ystalyfera – a Welsh medium comprehensive school just north of here in the Swansea valley in the Neath constituency I’m proud to represent in the Senedd – in the 1980s, in the days when you had to travel huge distances to make that choice.

It was a school where the sons and daughters of miners from Cwmgors or a painter and decorator from Pontarddulais like me – mixed with the children of consultants and academics from Gower.

And with a mix like that, it was obvious in the 80s that not everyone was getting the same start in life.  This was an incredibly tough time for lots of families, and plenty of children in school, their parents often striking miners were struggling, visibly – and that left a deep mark on me.

I say these things, not because I think these are in themselves good reasons for you to support me to become the leader of Welsh Labour – after all, everyone has their own story.

But so that when I tell you about my commitment to equality, and to raising the aspirations of all our young people, to an inclusive society which celebrates the wonderful diversity of our communities, about the need for public services which deliver the best for people and an economy that offers everyone a chance at prosperity  – you know that it is deeply felt, long-standing, and very personal.

I’m standing to be Welsh Labour’s next leader and Wales’ First Minister because I believe I can unite our party and take us forward into the next quarter century of devolution, and because I have the fresh ideas, the determination and the support to shape Wales’ future – for the better.

My upbringing shaped who I am today. It’s shaped my political views. It’s shaped how I see the world around us.

Before I set out my vision for Wales, I want to say a few words about my own political beliefs.

I’m proudly Welsh, and proudly Labour.

I put myself on the centre-left of the party, and I see myself in the Jim Griffiths tradition of Welsh Labour politics – a profound commitment to equality matched by a commitment to a stronger voice for Wales in the union of the UK   – through an ambitious devolution settlement.

I believe the Welsh language is an asset to our nation and communities, something which can unite us – and which belongs to us all, whether we speak it or not.

And I believe Welsh Labour and the Welsh government must continue to speak for the people and communities of all parts of Wales -north, south, west and east.

So, my vision of Wales?

I want a Wales where we can all live well, where our next generation inherits prosperity, and grows up in a just and inclusive country where we all feel at home.

Our public services, our economy and our wider society should give us all a fair chance to fulfil our potential and live the life we want. No one should be left behind.

I am deeply proud of how Welsh Labour has shaped Wales. We are a country of free and universal healthcare, education and cultural institutions.

A commitment to prosperity and solidarity, and the stewardship of our natural resources – can mean that we achieve both greater equality and more wealth to share.

Wales should be a nation where young, brilliant people want to come to live, work and raise families, and where citizens of all agesknow they can live in dignity and respect.

As a country that looks outwards confidently, which celebrates the richness of its heritage and the diversity of its communities, the nation I want to lead is one where everyone has a chance to prosper.

But the world is changing rapidly – and right before our eyes.

As Wales embarks on the next quarter century, the context is very different from the last. But our Welsh Labour values endure.

The last 25 years have laid the foundation for our future. We have found a confident sense of identity with a national parliament. Welsh Labour has led the way in charting a progressive course.

But over the years ahead, as the next Welsh Labour government builds on the foundations laid by its predecessors, new challenges will demand new approaches.

We are still too poor a country. Our NHS is stretched to points uncomfortable for all of us who are committed to universal healthcare, and the changes from an ageing society and from scientific advances mean that in order to protect it as we absolutely must – as a publicly-owned service free at the point of care, we must put it on a footing of stable funding and work with our brilliant health workforce to help it adapt, alongside our plan to work towards a national care service.

We face a decline in the working age population – so we need to attract young people to live, work, and help us strengthen our economy across all of Wales.  As trade unionists we know that work has become more uncertain even for those in a job, and the need for a highly skilled workforce has never been more urgent.

On top of this, the constitutional future of the United Kingdom is increasingly fragile, threatened by the actions of a Tory UK government which is reckless about the future of the union.

The Welsh budget, set by the UK government, has fallen dramatically in real terms and we can’t realistically expect that to be reversed overnight even with an incoming UK Labour Government as it wrestles with a dreadful tory economic inheritance.

Against this backdrop, our aim should be nothing less than transformation as we start the next chapter in the story of Wales.

People rightly expect us to prioritise the fundamentals of everyday life that they rely upon today – and we will do so – but, at the same time, we must prepare for the challenges and opportunities that we and future generations will face tomorrow.

So how do we build on what our party has achieved in the first 25 years of devolution, meet these challenges head on, and turn the vision I’ve set out into reality?

The first of my six pledges is about our economy.

There is no route to the more compassionate country that we want to be which doesn’t pass through the more prosperous country that we need to be.

My twin ambitions for the Welsh economy are to enhance our prosperity and to increase solidarity between each of us. It is only by mutual support, public and private, government and business, trade unions and employers, communities and individuals, that we can succeed together and ensure our nation is successful.

Creating decent jobs, ending poverty, tackling the inequalities it causes and truly sustainable economic growth are the greatest legacies we can pass on to future generations. This is why unleashing the potential of the Welsh economy will be my top priority.

But we must do this in a way which is truly sustainable, which helps create a Wales which is resilient in the face of the climate and nature emergencies that are upon us, and which are transformative for Wales. And which helps us ensure that – as we transition our economy to that more sustainable future, we do so in a way where the benefits and burdens of doing so are fairly shared – where people can see the chances it offers as well as the changes it demands. A just transition.

So, a Welsh Labour government I lead will deliver a green economic stimulus: this will target all Welsh government capital and procurement spending – alongside new funding models, in partnership with local government – to create quality, sustainable jobs and tackle the climate emergency.

My second pledge is for education. Investment in education is the best economic policy and it is the best social justice policy – because a good education is the most precious asset, we can give anybody in today’s world.

Every child’s capacity to aspire is equal. So, we will do our all to give each child the best start in life, whatever their background, from nursery and early years right along their school journey– because it is the right thing to do, and the best and biggest investment in our future as a nation.

Under my leadership, we will have unapologetically high expectations in education.

So that’s why I’m pledging to increase investment in education – by raising into the future, the percentage of the Welsh government budget spent on schools.

We will drive up standards of literacy and numeracy as the best way to access the richness of our new curriculum, and opportunities in life, and by driving down unnecessary workload as I have done as minister together with unions and councils — and freeing teachers and teaching assistants to focus on the needs of their learners.

And we will build on our strong commitment to further education — and the delivery of vocational qualifications, and apprenticeships will match our commitment to academic excellence in higher education and research. As minister, I brought in the most far-reaching reforms to post-16 education – putting my vision for a vibrant sector into law for the first time, with a commitment to lifelong learning, which in our party we all value so deeply – on the face of the act.

And as Education Minister, I have also been motivated by an absolute conviction that means should never be a bar to study. I delivered our universal primary free school meals programme, expanded our schools’ essentials grant, and brought in rules for cheaper school uniforms. I increased the Education Maintenance Allowance – Wales is the only nation in the United Kingdom to do so.

My third pledge relates to our party’s most prized achievement – our national health service.

A life free of the fear both of untreated illness and unmet care needs, should be the most fundamental aim of a decent society.

The pressures facing our health service are enormous. In order to make sure the NHS is there to care for future generations, we have a fundamental responsibility to help it better withstand those pressures.

So, my key pledge in health – and my immediate priority – is to cut NHS waiting lists by establishing dedicated orthopaedic centres for knee and hip replacements to clear backlogs. We know that this can be done and that it will alleviate pressures in other parts of the system too.  So, we will deliver this.

The NHS, like our other public services, faces huge funding pressures, but funding isn’t the only support the NHS needs.

The best way to maintain a public NHS, free at the point of care for the next 75 years – as we absolutely must and as we have for the last 75 years – is to bring the same level of fresh thinking that led to its founding by our party in 1948 – to transform the Welsh NHS into an acknowledged beacon of innovation – embedded in all it does, everywhere, always looking for the new and better ways of doing this and sharing across Wales. And we will do this by working with and drawing on the insights and experience of the healthcare workforce and patients.

Doing this will help us attract talent and research excellence, and to give the people of Wales into the future the kind of pioneering healthcare which led to the founding of our most beloved institution.

And the NHS cannot exist without a strong social care system. So, we will continue our work to establish a national care service, and we will expedite the integration of social care and health, exploring innovative relationships between the NHS and local authorities to deliver this.

My next two pledges are about ensuring Wales is a great place to live and work.

A decent home in a flourishing, well-connected community is a fundamental expectation of modern life.

So, my fourth pledge is to ensure decent housing in our communities. We will do this by expanding cooperative housing and tackle barriers to providing social homes, whether that’s land availability, or planning constraints. We will focus our efforts on unblocking these obstacles.

And Wales needs a transport network which allows people to travel conveniently, affordably, and comfortably. One which supports both our climate change goals and our economic goals.

We must build on the good work that we have done to date to deliver affordable public transport options, while pressing ahead quickly with plans to meet the particular challenges we have in north east and south east Wales.

So, my fifth pledge is to introduce fairer fares: this will mean simpler, fairer bus fares to encourage travel and sustain our public transport network across Wales, as we re-regulate our bus network.

My sixth and final pledge is about ensuring a stronger voice for the people of Wales: I will always stand up for Wales. I’m committed to strengthening the Senedd, devolving further powers both to and within Wales and giving Welsh Labour members a bigger opportunity to share their ideas with us as a government.

The journey of devolution is only part way through friends. And I am absolutely committed to ensuring Wales has a stronger voice within the United Kingdom. A better, more powerful settlement with powers which give us the chance to better deliver for the people of Wales our vision for the outcomes they need and deserve, along with a fair funding mechanism which enables us to make it a reality.

But as we look to the future of devolution, it is as important for us to argue for devolution of powers within Wales as to Wales.

And Wales is a more complex nation to govern than a country of three million people needs to be – we will make it easier for citizens and others to engage with government.

And we will take forward reform of the Senedd so that the people of Wales get the stronger democracy they deserve– and we will work to ensure the Senedd reflects the diversity of modern Wales.

So, I’ve set out some of my ideas about what I want to do. There’ll be far more to follow in the coming weeks.

I now want to turn to how we’ll get it done.

From day one, I will bring a sense of urgency and purpose to taking forward my ideas. Some can be taken forward quickly; others will be delivered over the longer term.

The current budget situation poses real limitations on new spending initiatives in the short term. All ministers across the Welsh government have had to take decisions on spending over the next year which they would not want to take, and which don’t reflect our longer-term preferences.

But this will not limit our ambitions nor detract from the need for radical and imaginative approaches.

That’s why we must think afresh about how we run our government to respond to the challenges we will face.

A more enterprising, start-up economy will need a government to match. In an era of extreme budget pressures, it is even more important that we improve the effectiveness and performance of government.

A new strategy or a new piece of legislation is not always the answer to every problem: a relentless focus on delivery and effective implementation is absolutely crucial.

To do this, we need a smart, enabling state – a government which leads confidently but which also listens – this is our vision for devolved government, and we will make this a source of competitive advantage for Wales.

We will set bold goals and empower others on the front line to help us meet them. We will aim to ensure decision-making is faster and that dealing with the Welsh state is simpler.

Our focus will be on outcomes more than inputs, and we will want to be measured on our results, not our rhetoric. We will encourage the best talent, the best behaviours and the best ideas.

We will embrace the principles of openness and accountability and reflect this in both our policies and our practice – and we will expect the same of others.

Colleagues – 2024 is going to be a huge year for our party, and for our country.

With a UK general election on the horizon later this year, and the election of a new Welsh Labour leader and first minister – we’re not only determining the future direction of our party, but that of our country too.

A Labour victory at the next general election is crucial for that more positive future. Because a UK Labour government led by Keir Starmer, working with our Welsh labour government, can achieve so much more for Wales.

Our public services need two Labour governments that want to invest in them, so that our people receive the services they need and deserve.  And our workers and trades unions need two Labour governments that want to work with them in social partnership to improve working conditions and supporting individuals to achieve their potential.

I hope we will see a good discussion about policy in the weeks ahead. Ideas are important. Maybe particularly so in challenging times of the kind we live in today. But for me, public service is about people.

As we look for imaginative solutions to the challenges we face, and to put ourselves in the best position to flourish in the future – the creativity, the practical experience, the deeply-rooted values which are essential to that task, are all there in the lives of people across Wales – in schools, in universities, in hospitals, in businesses, in our trade unions, in third sector organisations. In all of Wales.

That is why I am hopeful for Wales’ future.

I hope that you are too. Because if you are, I really believe that together, we can help build that future.

Diolch yn fawr iawn.