Diolch yn fawr, Dirprwy Lywydd. Mae dechrau’r broses o ddatganoli trethi, yn anochel, wedi cymryd llawer o amser y Cynulliad Cenedlaethol. Yn 2015, fe gafodd y cyfrifoldeb am ardrethi annomestig ei drosglwyddo i Gymru. Ym mis Mawrth 2016, fe gyrhaeddodd Deddf Casglu a Rheoli Trethi (Cymru) 2016 y llyfr statud. Ym mis Rhagfyr y llynedd, fe wnaethom ni gytuno ar fframwaith cyllidol newydd gyda’r Trysorlys. Fis diwethaf fe gafodd Deddf Treth Trafodiadau Tir a Gwrthweithio Osgoi Trethi Datganoledig (Cymru) 2017 Gydsyniad Brenhinol. Yr wythnos nesaf, byddwn yn cyrraedd Cyfnod 3 o’r broses graffu ar gyfer y dreth gwarediadau tirlenwi. Dros yr haf, bydd Prifysgol Bangor yn gweithio ar yr asesiad annibynnol cyntaf o ragfynegiadau trethi Llywodraeth Cymru. Erbyn 1 Hydref eleni, byddaf yn cyhoeddi’r set gyntaf o gyfraddau a bandiau ar gyfer y dreth trafodiadau tir a’r dreth gwarediadau tirlenwi. Ar ddechrau mis Ebrill y flwyddyn nesaf, bydd Awdurdod Cyllid Cymru yn gweithredu'n ymarferol, yn casglu a rheoli'r trethi hynny yng Nghymru. Y bwriad yw y bydd y broses o ddatganoli treth incwm yn rhannol yn dechrau ym mis Ebrill 2019.

Dirprwy Lywydd, at that point, when that extensive timetable has reached its conclusions, decisions made in this National Assembly will shape the policy and practical actions to raise £5 billion-worth of revenue on which our public services, and the nature of the society we aim to be, will be founded. International best practice, endorsed by the OECD, suggests that responsibilities of this scale ought to be discharged within a clear policy framework, published openly to citizens, in all our different guises, with clarity about the approach being taken—in our circumstances, by the Welsh Government towards Welsh taxes.

Dirprwy Lywydd, let me place on record again the fact that this Government sees no attractions whatsoever in the low tax, low pay, low investment, dog-eat-dog economy of the neo-liberal imagination. Taxes are the admission price that each one of us pays to live in a civilized society. And, Dirprwy Lywydd, every single adult in Wales—and many children, too—are tax payers, with our poorest citizens very often, and far too often, paying a higher proportion in tax of their inadequate incomes than those who have more money than they will ever need. That is why taxes are also an investment in our collective future. What we depend on today owes much to the taxes that have been paid in the past by our parents and grandparents. These public services are benefits that define our society and underpin its values. They would not be possible without taxation. Good taxes should be efficient and effective, producing maximum benefit for the cost incurred and they should acknowledge Wales’s position, both within the United Kingdom and be compatible with the UK and wider international taxation framework.

The tax policy framework, which the Government has published, builds on the five principles previously set out for Welsh taxes, that taxation should raise revenue to support public services as fairly as possible; taxation should help deliver wider fiscal and policy objectives, including jobs and economic growth; taxation should be simple, clear and stable; taxation should be developed through engagement with taxpayers and wider stakeholders; and taxation should contribute directly to the Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015 goal of creating a more equal Wales.

Wales’s new suite of tax powers will ensure that people here have a genuine choice—for the first time—both about the level of taxes paid and about the quality and quantity of devolved public services. My party’s manifesto included a commitment not to increase income tax during the lifetime of this Assembly. It will be for political parties to set out their plans for tax rates ahead of the next Assembly elections in 2021. In this Assembly term, we will carefully consider other tax rates and their impacts collectively, to ensure they continue to generate sufficient revenue to fund public services, while remaining fair and supporting economic growth.

Taxation can also play a role, as we know, in influencing behaviour. We will consider whether new Welsh taxes can be introduced in an efficient way to operate alongside our existing or new policy tools. A debate on new taxes has been scheduled in Government time to be held before the end of this summer term.

Dirprwy Lywydd, land transaction tax and landfill disposals tax will be collected and managed by the Welsh Revenue Authority, which becomes operational in 2018. The authority will work in partnership with local authorities across Wales and other tax authorities in the United Kingdom to build a comprehensive picture of the delivery of tax services, compliance and tax policy development. It will work to join up activity for the benefit of taxpayers.

Delivering a tax policy for Wales will need a steady, consistent and informed approach. The main task for the Welsh Government in this Assembly, I believe, will be to embed the new tax arrangements and build the evidence base so that we can understand how we can best use our tax powers in the future. This will require input from a wide range of interested parties—from individuals, businesses, third sector organisations and, of course, from the National Assembly's own Finance Committee.The views of tax specialists and other professionals will be important to this work, but it will also be important to hear directly from citizens throughout Wales about what they think about the level and extent of revenue raising and taxation in Wales. To stimulate that engagement and debate, a work plan, which sets out the priority areas for the year ahead and some longer term research issues to inform tax policy in the years to come, has been published alongside the tax policy framework.

I am also committed to an annual process for tax policy in Wales. Decisions about tax policy will be published alongside the Welsh Government's budget, reflecting the direct link between taxes and resources available to fund Welsh public services.

Dirprwy Lywydd, mae ein pwerau trethu, am y tro cyntaf, yn caniatáu inni ddatblygu dull gweithredu sy'n adlewyrchu anghenion ac amgylchiadau Cymru. Cyhoeddi'r fframwaith polisi trethi a'r cynllun gwaith yw cychwyn y broses hon. Rwy'n edrych ymlaen at glywed barn yr Aelodau yn y Siambr heddiw ac i weithio gydag Aelodau a gyda phobl Cymru yn ystod y blynyddoedd nesaf wrth i'n pwerau trethu ddatblygu. Diolch yn fawr.