, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
You raise all the rationales as to why this is an issue broadly in industry, as well as within Parliaments. I think the point is, though, that that's really a matter now for the next Senedd to explore. What we are doing via this legislation is just ensuring…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I think it would be difficult to justify, if that were the case. I would have thought that the whole concept of job sharing is to look at better ways of ensuring that people can participate within representative democracy, but also can share…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
The view I take is that it's not appropriate to have any modelling or to actually address that because the Bill, the legislation, won't change by any stretch the issue of job sharing. What it does is facilitate a debate. It ensures that, by the tabling of a…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
So, I don't envisage that there is any cost implication to that.
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, when you think about that, it's an interesting question. I can't see any circumstances where it should be more expensive to have women Members as opposed to male Members—
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
We're absolutely happy to make that available. I just really came across it as we were reading through the various documents and the various reports. So, somewhere or other, it is in those various things—it's just bringing these things to light. And, of…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, you raise, I think, a very important point. I'll perhaps go to Will in a minute on this. But during the various considerations, the special purpose committees and so on, in terms of seeking evidence and views from specialist areas, one of the natural…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Yes. I think because each Parliament and each country—its circumstances, the facts relate to those individual countries internationally. I suppose, really, what we do know is good governance leads to better outcomes, and that's why, as I said earlier, the…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I think it takes us back to what I said earlier, that this is work in progress, and it's far better to bring figures forward when that further information is actually known and can be properly assessed. I think that's the main reason, and because we'll…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, those figures are there—. That figure is there at the moment and, of course, there's a larger figure there for the previous year that already has been allocated in terms of preparation for this legislation, as is normal. The areas that we need to really…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I think what it means is that, on the basis that that work is already there, officials are doing that work—it's the way in which that work is then able to be utilised by both the Senedd and by the Ministers themselves. So, you will have greater capacity…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I think the things you're looking at, really, are, if there are additional Ministers, there will be, potentially, in the Senedd, more committees. So, there's attendance at committees, there's the support for Ministers in terms of the briefings for those…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
There are certain areas where, obviously, you're looking at it in terms of the demands that would be for the future, whether it be things like security, whether it be the IT support, and so on. But on the basis that the resources we have currently provide for…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
In some ways, there is always a process going on of having to look at emerging priorities and changes that are taking place, just in the very nature of governmental work and indeed Senedd work. So, for example, the ongoing legislative programme, not only of…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Yes. Yes, of course. And of course, not only that; there is of course the review that is going to be set up as a result of this legislation. In fact, two reviews: one on the job-sharing issue, but the one in terms of the operation of the Bill generally. It…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
If there are any significant or substantial changes that need to be made in terms of the best estimates that we have at the moment, then of course those need to be done. Those need to be before the Senedd. So, that will obviously happen.
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
And some won't be known until after 2026—so, for example, the number of Ministers that there might or might not be and so on.
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I think the answer is 'yes'. I think this is work in progress. This isn't a static assessment, because as more becomes known, then obviously—. I mean, this is a best estimate now, but as more information becomes known, when we know about the pairing…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I can't see any reason why there would be any change in that. This begins to overlap a little bit, doesn't it, also, into the other piece of legislation coming through, which will be on elections reform, automatic registration and so on, and the issue or…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Yes. The savings, essentially, the bulk of them, relate to—. Firstly, in terms of the operation of the elections themselves, there will be only one ballot paper, so we're saving—. The bulk, if I remember correctly—and this is over the eight-year period, so it…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
It's interesting, in the terminology of this, of course, the terminology of opportunity costs comes in and I’ve had to think very carefully about what that actually means. Basically, I think what we’re talking about is that none of this is related to…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
That's right.
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Basically because the way I’ve seen my role in this is to basically—. There is a bit of semantics as to whether it’s a Senedd Bill or a Government Bill; I think this is actually a Senedd Bill, but it’s been put together, constructed, on behalf of the Senedd…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Of course. The first thing to say is, of course that this issue and this type of reform has been looked at in general through many different commissions and so on, so there has been engagement over many, many years with various bodies and so on. But the key…
, Finance Committee
Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill: Evidence session with the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I think this comes back to the very essence of the legislation in the first place. It's an investment, I think, in democracy. Also, I suppose, if I just take that a little bit further, I think it's value for money not only because, overall, it will deliver…
