Diolch, Llywydd. I move amendments 9 and 20, both tabled in my name. When we were debating the amendments in group 7, I explained why it was inappropriate for any legislation in this Senedd to place a duty on future Members of the Senedd or Welsh Parliament office holders. It's regrettable that this Bill introduces such provisions, not just once, but twice.
We have already debated the duties that it seeks to impose upon the Senedd in relation to a review of job-sharing arrangements for office holders. But section 19 of this Bill also includes inappropriate and constitutionally problematic provisions as well. It requires a motion to be tabled within six months after the 2026 Senedd elections, by the Presiding Officer, to propose the establishment of a Senedd committee for the purpose of reviewing and reporting on Parts 1 and 2 of the legislation. And it requires that that work be completed within a period of 12 months from the first meeting of the Senedd after the April 2026 elections.
Now, while I completely agree that we need to ensure that there is a review of the impact of any changes that this legislation will implement, it's not right that any future Senedd, or its officers, should be bound by another in order to undertake any particular piece of work. To provide such requirements on the face of this Bill is not acceptable.
The Government has argued that the primary purpose of this Bill is to increase the scrutiny capacity of this Senedd, yet sections 7 and 19 of the Bill undermine the Senedd's scrutiny capacity, by requiring it to set up two new committees after the 2026 elections, which will absorb any extra capacity that a future Senedd with more Members may have. And it will distract Members from other important scrutiny work, including holding any future Welsh Government to account.
So, it's for these reasons that I have tabled amendment 9, which gives effect to recommendation 41 in the Reform Bill Committee's Stage 1 report, by deleting section 19 of the Bill. Should amendment 9 not be agreed, then I will move amendments 10, 11, 12, 19 and 53, all of which seek to improve section 19.
Amendment 10 would delete a requirement to ensure the extent to which the elements of a healthy democracy are present in Wales, and whether that should be considered by any review undertaken by the committee established to review the operation of the legislation. The Reform Bill Committee recommended, by a majority, the removal of this requirement, as there were mixed views as to whether it would be helpful. There were questions over the definition of a healthy democracy, and there were concerns that consideration of these wider issues could be a distraction for any committee when undertaking a review of the Act.
Amendments 11 and 12 would give effect to the Reform Bill Committee's recommendation 45, by deleting the requirement for the committee to complete its work within 12 months of the first meeting of the Senedd following the 2026 elections, and replacing it to enable the future Senedd to determine a timescale for the completion of the committee's work instead. All of us in this Chamber are acutely aware of the length of time that it can take, post an election, to establish committees. It took months after the 2021 Senedd elections to put our committees together. So, placing a straitjacket on the work of the Senedd in the future could be highly problematic and lead to the work of this particular committee being rushed and being inappropriately constituted.
Amendment 19 would require the committee, should it be established, to engage with stakeholders and undertake a public consultation on its work. Amendment 53 would require the Welsh Government to lay a response to the committee's report before the Senedd, in accordance with the Reform Bill Committee's recommendation 47 in the Stage 1 report.
Turning to my amendment 20, this seeks to enter a new section into the Bill to require Welsh Ministers to undertake a review and to report on the operations and provisions of the legislation. This is a Welsh Government Bill, it is not a Senedd Bill, as implied by the Member in charge throughout the scrutiny process. It's therefore incumbent upon Ministers to ensure that, as is the case in many Senedd Acts, there is a requirement for Ministers to review the operation of the legislation that they bring forward.
With regard to the other amendments in this group, if I can just briefly speak to them, we will not, I'm afraid, be supporting Jane Dodds's amendments 49 and 50, which seek to add to the requirements placed upon a future Senedd committee undertaking a review and setting out even more detailed requirements for Welsh Ministers when undertaking a review. In our view, these provisions are unnecessarily prescriptive and will not afford the sufficient flexibility to either the Senedd or Welsh Ministers to undertake any post-implementation reviews that may be required.
However, should my amendments 9 and 10 fall, then we will support amendment 116 in the name of Heledd Fychan, because that seeks to require a Senedd committee, when conducting a future review, to consider the support available for Members of the Senedd and registered political parties in Wales. This was an issue that cropped up during the evidence sessions at Stage 1, and it does seem clear to me that there's work to be done on this issue, given that the support for political parties at a UK level to assist with policy development and other matters is far more generous than that that's available here in Wales to this Senedd, where we have a significant portfolio of responsibilities that we all need to make sure that proposals are developed for. I look forward to hearing the rest of the debate.