, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with electoral systems academics
Okay. Thank you. Darren, did you want to come in here?
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with electoral systems academics
If I can just explore one point on the understanding agenda, which is highlighted. If we have a system in Wales in which local authorities do decide to take STV, we have Westminster elections and the police and crime commissioner elections that will be…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with electoral systems academics
Okay. Well, since you've both referred to voter choice, and voter choice has been brought up, I'll hand over to Sarah to start pushing that agenda.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with electoral systems academics
Okay, thank you. Dr Larner.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with electoral systems academics
Okay, item 2 on today's agenda is our first evidence session with academics, relating to the electoral system. Can I welcome both Dr Jac Larner to the meeting, who is a lecturer in politics at Cardiff University, and also we have online Professor Alistair…
, Reform Bill Committee
Introductions, apologies, substitutions, and declarations of interest
Channel 2. Yes, I thought it was. There we are. Okay. There is no scheduled fire alarm today, so, if one does take place, please follow the directions of the ushers to a safe location. Please also ensure your mobile phone or other electronic device is on…
, Reform Bill Committee
Introductions, apologies, substitutions, and declarations of interest
Interpretation is channel 1 and—
, Reform Bill Committee
Introductions, apologies, substitutions, and declarations of interest
Good morning, and can I welcome Members and the public to this morning's session of the committee, where we will continue our evidence gathering for Stage 1 of the Senedd reform Bill? Before we start our business today, we've received apologies from Jane…
, Plenary
Statement by the Minister for Economy: Tata Steel
Minister, can I thank you for your statement, but more importantly thank you for your speedy response last week, when we heard the reports and the discussions we had on Wednesday afternoon? The bombshell that we heard from that report was devastating for the…
, Reform Bill Committee
Motion under Standing Order 17.42 (ix) to resolve to exclude the public for the remainder of the meeting
Therefore, we move on to item 6, which is a motion under Standing Order 17.42 to exclude the public from the remainder of this meeting. Are Members content to do so? Then we will move now into private session.
, Reform Bill Committee
Papers to Note
For Members, we'll move on to item 5 on our agenda, which is papers to note. There are six papers to note, and I'd like to hope that we can note all six papers in one, unless Members object. All agreed. Therefore, we will note those papers.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Thank you for that and thank you for your evidence. You will receive a copy of the transcript of the meeting, and if you identify any factual inaccuracies, can you please let the clerking team know as soon as possible and we'll have them corrected? Once…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Thank you. Do any Members have any other final questions? I've just been passed one. So, the last question: there is a gender quota agenda that was part of the original special purpose committee's recommendations, and we are aware that there will be a second…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
And a final one from me, hopefully. In your work, when you were asked to look at the committees and the effectiveness within the Senedd—. We currently have a single DPO and one Presiding Officer, and the Bill proposes the possibility of an additional DPO. Do…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
I will put a rider in for the public record: of course, for the first three Assembly terms that were four years, the Senedd didn't have primary law-making powers at that time. On residency, have you any views on the Bill's requirement that any candidate, let…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Thank you for that. I'll move on to frequency of elections. Clearly, you did some work on committees and therefore have a good understanding of how the committees operate here, and the workloads upon committees. The proposal is to reduce it back to four…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Can I go back to the question of job sharing? Because clearly there are two aspects of it: there's one that is the job sharing of a role within the Senedd once you've been elected, and there's the job sharing of the role of the Member itself, which I think…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Okay, thank you. Jane.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Can I just ask one question on that? Clearly, the Bill mentions the word, or the terms 'the elements of a healthy democracy are present'. Do you think the Bill should actually have clarification of what it defines as 'a healthy democracy' so that we…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Heledd.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Thank you, Darren. Before I ask Sarah, I will put on record that I was a Chair in the last Senedd as well, and I probably was part of the survey that Professor Stirbu undertook, therefore I won't ask too many questions in that area. Sarah.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with parliamentary academics
Good afternoon. Can I welcome Members and the public back to today's sessions of the committee? We're viewing the Senedd reform Bill, and we're on to our third evidence session this afternoon. Can I welcome Professor Stirbu to the committee, and we'll go…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Llywydd and the Senedd Commission
Diolch yn fawr. And with the end of that session, we will now take a break for lunch, and we will reconvene at 12.45 p.m.
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Llywydd and the Senedd Commission
I'm just concerned, because, as we go through the process on this Bill, that other Bill will be starting its process and we will not have completed one to the other one yet, so the inter-links between the two, and the possible connections, will be important…
, Reform Bill Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Llywydd and the Senedd Commission
Oh, that one, yes.
