, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Diolch. Thank you.
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Say somebody, in that situation that Mark was just talking about, had reached 10 per cent, they'd been removed from office, they have no way of restanding during that Senedd term. Obviously, in a by-election in Westminster, somebody could put their name…
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Diolch, Vikki. Thanks for that, Joe.
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Say we put that arbitrary 10 per cent in, once it had hit 10 per cent, would you close that petition down, or would you have it open for six weeks, I think, or would you have it for longer, or shorter, or what—?
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
And then, on that ballot paper, would it just be for the petition, or would you want it to show that you're dissatisfied with the petition and therefore wanted to keep the person in their role?
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
And from what you're saying there, it would be open to everybody on the voter roll for that constituency, or paired constituency, at that time.
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
If we move on to just how that potentially could be run to get as many people to participate as possible, would you be in favour of opening it up to postal, to proxy, to all the ways that you could vote in the Senedd election? And maybe your thoughts on an…
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Ten per cent for an MP triggers a by-election. So, somebody could in theory win their seat with 40 per cent of the vote, and get removed with 10 per cent of the vote, potentially.
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
You've touched there on some of the potential issues. Ten per cent is the current Westminster petition limit. Does that make sense in this situation, or does it need to vary? Is there a different mechanism that says, potentially, that it has to be higher than…
, Standards of Conduct Committee
Inquiry into Individual Member Accountability: Evidence session 1
Yes. Thank you, Joe. It’s been interesting to listen to your comments and thoughts this morning. Just before we go into some of the mechanics of a petition, is a petition the best way forward in your opinion, given the way that we’re going to be electing…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Exactly. Well, that brings us to our time. Thank you so much. The hour has flown by. It's always a pleasure to have you here. Thank you so much for giving up your morning to be with us and to share your experience and understanding of the different roles that…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
I'm surprised, in Mike's question there, that he didn't use his catchphrase of 'show your workings', because I think that's one of the things that this committee in particular asks.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
I think, in our context, more so it's generally mediating between everybody else and the Treasury, rather than being inter-governmental, because it's within Governments as well that the Treasury holds the purse strings—even dealing with other departments as…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Yes, probably.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
And I suppose giving it some authority.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Okay, thank you.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
And would that body—? I know you're talking of the legislative Houses in Westminster, and then this place and the other devolved Parliaments. Would there be scope, there, to have the voice of some of those mayors and devolved aspects of England as well, just…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
So, they can't say, 'I don't want to turn up'; they're obliged to turn up.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Do you see that body as an arbiter, or as a body of discussion?
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
I think it boils down to having one version of the truth, I suppose, to be able to get to that—. Everybody's agreed on, 'Well, those are the facts', and how you interpret them is different, but it's having one fixed point, so that at least you've got a chance…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Of course we would, yes.
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
One of the things that we have heard in this committee is that, on official level, things might be better than on a political level, and that might be a distinction. That is something that we've heard from different witnesses—that official to official…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Well, if we're challenging that there's not enough coming from Westminster out, is there enough going out, into Westminster, I suppose, or from the devolved nations into Westminster as well?
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
On that point, do you think the other way around as well—so, not necessarily the information and the transparency coming from Westminster, that way, but is enough information sent the other way as well, to allow for inter-parliamentary scrutiny of, not…
, Finance Committee
Fiscal Inter-governmental Relations: Evidence session 6
Sorry, Peter—
