First Minister Mark Drakeford accused the leader of the Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party of “writing off everything our people have done over the last extraordinary 12 months”.

“As we stand here today, Wales has the lowest rate of coronavirus anywhere in the United Kingdom and our vaccination programme is the most successful of any of the four UK nations," said the Welsh Labour leader,

“That’s the work of the NHS.”

“I don’t take kindly to people that suggest to us that things in Wales cannot be controlled by people who live, work and vote in Wales.”

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said coronavirus should provide a “before and after moment” in the way we deal with mental health.

“One silver lining of Covid I think is the focus it’s put on the importance of mental health," he said.

“We need to invest, we've got to raise in real terms the level of spending so we can reflect its importance within the NHS.

"We've lost inpatient beds within the NHS, we know what works - talking therapies - that actually is so important to so many people.

“Unfortunately, at the moment we are often sending people into private hospitals in England far away from their communities.

"So let's actually take this as a before-and-after moment when we finally accept the importance of delivering that parity.”

Welsh Labour leader Mark Drakeford said his appointment of a mental health minister in his cabinet was to demonstrate the “parity of importance between mental and physical ill-health”.

He said young people want “early intervention services”.

“They want those low-level services that give them an adult that they can talk to, to help them with the difficult business of growing up," he said.

Richard Suchorzewski, the leader of the Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party, said the NHS in Wales had been “totally mismanaged” in the last 22 years.

He said before the pandemic, five of Wales’ health boards had been in special measures.

Mr Suchorzewski said control of the NHS should be returned to the UK government.

“There should be one NHS for all – and it should be put it under the guidance of the United Kingdom government”.

Jane Dodds, of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, said there needed to be “parity between mental health and physical health”.

Ms Dodds added there needs to be better diagnostic systems in the community and preventative measures.

She also called for people with mental health conditions “not to be judged”.

Adam Price says that “one of the absolute priorities has to be plugging the shortages” that have been in the NHS “for far too long,” while defending his party’s plan to provide social care free at the point of need.

Asked how his party would rebuild the NHS while funding free social care, Mr Price said it was “absolutely critical” to provide both.

He said this was particularly vital "when we're looking at a situation where sadly with long Covid more and more people may have chronic conditions".

"If you have a chronic condition, where does your healthcare need and social care begin? It should be free," he said.

"We need to be bringing care workers onto the same pay rates as the NHS, which absolutely need a significant meaningful rise because we've had like 10 to 15% cut in NHS.”

Andrew RT Davies says a Welsh Conservative government would make a "commitment in law" to try to retain as many doctors and nurses in Wales as possible.

Mr Davies said: “The staff have been the pinnacle of delivery right the way through the Covid crisis.

"We’re committed to putting an NHS covenant in place, so in law we will be making a commitment to the NHS over workforce practices so we retain as many people as possible within our NHS.”

On pay, he said: “We’re committed to making sure we can live with what the independent pay review body recommends.”

First Minister Mark Drakeford says the Welsh NHS does need to “increase the number of doctors and nurses and other staff”.

But he said numbers working in the health service had increased during the life of devolution.

He said there were fewer than 60,000 people employed in the NHS when devolution began, adding: “Today it's nearly 90,000.”

“Repairing and restoring our health service will be the work of the next Senedd term,” Mr Drakeford said, adding Labour would find £1bn “over and above what would otherwise be invested in the health service”.

Image source, Getty Images

The first question is on the biggest topic of the moment, and arguably the biggest challenge facing the next Welsh Government, the health of the nation post-pandemic.

The question they are being asked to answer:

What will you do to balance the demands of the health service and rebuild the mental and physical health of the people of Wales?

In his opening statement, Richard Suchorzewski, the leader of the Abolish The Welsh Assembly Party, said scrapping the Senedd would provide better public services and also “prevent the break up of the union”.

“We are stronger together as part of the United Kingdom”, he said.

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price has says he wants every child in Wales to be given “the chances" he was given in life.

"I want my parents’ generation to receive in old age the dignity they deserve," he added.

In his opening remarks Mr Price said now was the time to “demand a better future, not to defer it, not to delay a new Wales for another five years, but begin now to build it - we can, we will, we must."

Conservative leader in the Senedd Andrew RT Davies said Wales was a "brave, bold country, with huge ambition and untapped potential".

"After 22 years of Labour running Wales, we can make that change on May 6th," he said, in his opening statement.

"You the people of Wales can make that difference by voting for change.

"We can have a better education system, we can have a health service that responds to waiting times.

"We can create an economy that lifts wages across the whole of Wales and makes a difference.

"What’s the problem with Wales is not the people of Wales. It’s the governments of Labour, Plaid and Liberals over the last 22 years. We can make that difference and you the people are empowered with that on May 6th.”

In his opening speech Mark Drakeford said Welsh Labour was "ambitious for our future".

He said: "In this election a vote for Welsh Labour is to make that choice for trust and ambition - trust because of the way that we have worked together to keep Wales safe during this pandemic, but ambition too.

“Welsh Labour is ambitious for our future ... a Wales where nobody is held back.”

Jane Dodds, the leader of the Welsh Liberal Democrats, kicks off tonight's debate.

She said her party “will put recovery first” and prioritise the economy and mental health.

Ms Dodds added the Liberal Democrats want a Wales “that is stronger, fairer and greener”.

Bethan Rhys Roberts is introducing the BBC Wales Election 2021 Leaders' Debate live from Cardiff's Central Square.

You can watch the programme on BBC One Wales, the BBC News channel and the BBC iPlayer, or via the video link above.

With one week to go before the Welsh Parliament election, the battle for online attention is heating up.

Cyberspace has been an increasingly important election battleground in recent years, especially this time with face-to-face campaigning and public events restricted due to the pandemic.

The hopes and fears of the major parties are highlighted in their adverts and who they target on social media.

Sarah Dickins
BBC Wales Economics Correspondent

Since the start of the pandemic many of us have been working more flexibly, caring for others and shopping differently.

We don't know what "normal life" will be like in the future but - with just a week left of campaigning for the Senedd elections - I've been asking politicians from the four main parties what they think it will be like to live and work in Wales in five years' time.

From whether we will return to offices, or stay working from home, to how our high streets might look after Covid, here is what they had to say.

Image source, Reuters

People will go to the polls in Wales on 6 May this year to elect the Senedd - but what happens after the vote closes?

After all the ballots have been counted, each of the main parties will be hoping to have won more than half the seats so they can form a government and take charge.

But it doesn't always work out that way. If a party doesn't secure an overall majority, they have to work with other parties, often in a coalition.

Tyler Edwards explains how it works.

Laura McAllister, professor of governance at Cardiff University, said that with "very little on-the-ground action" due to Covid restrictions the televised leaders' debate takes on added significance.

"Labour's election strategy has had to change least off the back of the pandemic," she said.

"It's been all about Mark Drakeford as a reassuring presence, a safe pair of hands, with Welsh Labour looking to bank his Covid-handling approval.

"Labour's campaign has been understandably defensive as a result and so Drakeford doesn't need to push hard in this debate.

"Meanwhile, [Plaid Cymru leader] Adam Price does. This wasn't how it was meant to be.

"Covid messed up all of Plaid's best-laid plans to make this a presidential-style contest. The pandemic has realigned public opinion and Plaid has struggled to get much traction.

"Price needs a big performance, delicately balancing an appeal to the emotions and clear credibility on economic recovery. He needs to convince the electorate that this is a time for change, not continuity."

Welsh Conservative leader Andrew RT Davies, Prof McAllister said, would "continue with his straightforward appeal to Tory voters of 2019 in the so-called 'red wall' seats with attacks on the Welsh government's record but maybe feeling slightly less bullish after events at Westminster over the past week".

She added: "It's sure to be a busy and fast-moving hour, and the Welsh Liberal Democrat leader Jane Dodds and Richard Suchorzewski from Abolish the Welsh Assembly Party will be hoping to get some traction for their messages too."

When the polls open next Thursday, 16 and 17-year-olds will be able to vote for the first time in a Welsh election.

But how many of them will turn out to do so?

First-time voters who spoke to BBC Wales said that young people's voices "needed to be heard".

Sixteen-year-old Caitlin, from Brecon, said: "For so long young people haven't had much representation and now we are able to represent ourselves I think it's important to vote for what we feel is important and right."

Meanwhile Joshua, 17, from Newport, said if people did not use their votes it devalued democracy.