, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
President of Welsh Tribunals: Annual Report 2021-22
I'm interested in your remarks there. I was interested particularly in that you qualified the assertion that a judge as chair of the board would guarantee an arm's-length independence, in terms of perception at least, you said.
, Plenary
Group 1: Social Partnership Council (SPC): pursuit of well-being goals (Amendment 45)
I think there'd be widespread support for your position across the Chamber, whatever the voting advice happens to say. I think most people want to see a globally responsible Wales and a Wales that reaches out and doesn't look inwards. I think that's something…
, Plenary
Group 1: Social Partnership Council (SPC): pursuit of well-being goals (Amendment 45)
Will you give way?
, Plenary
Debate: The Final Budget 2023-24
Deputy Presiding Officer, the Member opposite both intervenes and answers her own intervention. There hardly seems any point in me allowing that to happen. But, I will say to her that I don't think that this Parliament needs lectures from the Conservatives on…
, Plenary
Debate: The Final Budget 2023-24
I'm grateful to you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Like others this afternoon, I'd like to start by congratulating the Minister on bringing this budget in front of us. I think she opened her remarks this afternoon by saying that it was a difficult budget for…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
Thank you. First Minister, your own personal commitment to the communities in the Heads of the Valleys has always shone through, both as First Minister and prior to that as well. You will remember the visit that you paid to Blaenau Gwent during the last…
, Plenary
Questions to the First Minister
4. Will the First Minister provide an update on the Welsh Government's progress on an economic strategy for the Heads of the Valleys? OQ59233
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
But you are making a very strong case for a single procurement regime, I have to say.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
And our values are very different to the values of the Government in London, so I would want to see a significant capacity for divergence as well, if and where that is necessary to enable us to maintain a publicly operated service. That's what—. And…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
But also, of course, procurement is a reflection of our values.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
So, I take 'no' from that, then, and that's important for us as a committee, because we've received evidence on a number of different inquiries that there is very good and close and positive work taking place between the two Governments. So, if it's not…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
But if the Minister's intent is to provide the level playing field and the mirror images you've said, then what's important is not simply to understand the timescales, but also to understand the content. If that is the case, I would have anticipated our…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
Can I just clarify in my own mind, then? There is work taking place between the department of health here and the department of health across the border. Officials are talking to each other about these regulations.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
We've seen the chaos around pieces of legislation in London at the moment. So, that's not an unforeseeable issue. That means if the Welsh Government is waiting for that to happen before conducting any work of its own, that means the amount of time available…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
Because my concern is this, Minister: we know things are pretty chaotic in London, to say the least. Now, it is quite possible that the UK Government could deliver their regulations very, very late.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
But you will have given instructions to lawyers in terms of drafting about what you want to see, because you're putting the Bill through. So, I would assume that the intent is—
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
So, you are waiting for the English regulations before starting work on anything here.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
Now, that implies to me a greater importance for the scrutiny of those regulations, and I presume that you've started work to scope out what those regulations will look like in terms of delivering the model, in terms of policy intent and the rest of it. I…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
We are rattling through it, and in fact we're going to go even quicker, because the Minister has largely covered the area that I was actually interested in. But, I would want to press her a little further, if I could, on the points that she made to James and…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
Through consequential amendments?
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
I've got no issue about the outcomes. I don't disagree with you at all on that, Minister. It's, again, the process of amending something that isn't yet law.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
The final point I'll raise with you, Minister—thank you for that—in this section is about section 2 of the Bill, which amends the Procurement Bill currently in the UK Parliament. I can't remember a piece of legislation that amends legislation that's not…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
In terms of the wider issues around, for example, UK common frameworks, you've clearly had discussions with the UK Government. Have you had discussions with other UK administrations regarding how this legislation will impact upon the common frameworks and how…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
But normally the complexity is added by a more complex process that is being followed by Government, rather than following, perhaps, a simpler process, which would have been a single procurement Bill.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Health Service Procurement (Wales) Bill: Evidence session
It's the accessibility point that I find quite curious, because we've got two UK Bills, we've got two Welsh Bills. That doesn't feel very accessible. One of the issues that we've explored in this committee over the period since the last election has been the…
