The constitution

Statements, debates and legislation in Plenary on this brief, newest first. Oral question sessions are counted in the contributions below.

1. 9 July 2024Legislation

   Stage 4 of the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd13 contributions

2. 2 July 2024Legislation

   Stage 3 of the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd1 contribution

3. 25 June 2024Legislation

   Motion to vary the order of consideration of Stage 3 amendments to the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd4 contributions

4. 8 May 2024Legislation

   Stage 4 of the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill

   Debate

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd27 contributions

5. 30 April 2024Legislation

   Related amendments for the purposes of Part 2 of the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill (voting system at Senedd general elections and allocation of seats) (Amendment 2)

   Group 5

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd3 contributions

6. 16 April 2024Legislation

   Motion to vary the order of consideration of Stage 3 amendments to the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill

   Opened by Y Dirprwy Lywydd / The Deputy Presiding Officer3 contributions

7. 6 February 2024Legislation

   & 9. The general principles of the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill and the financial resolution in respect of the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill

   Opened by Y Llywydd / The Llywydd36 contributions

8. 31 January 2024Legislation

   Motion under Standing Order 26.17(iii) in relation to the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill

   Opened by Paul Davies3 contributions

Votes are tagged from their own titles and the agenda item they were held under.

• 23% of Welsh adults said the constitutional future of Wales or Welsh independence would be very important to their vote.

Ipsos asked 747 Welsh adults aged 16+ between 2 April 2026 and 8 April 2026, before the 2026 Senedd election. People could choose as many issues as they liked. More on public opinion.

No written questions on this brief in the Sixth Senedd yet.

No petitions on this brief opened in the Sixth Senedd.

Committee sessions where this brief was on the agenda, newest first.

1. 16 May 2024Local Government and Housing Committee

   Electoral reform regulations (Amendments 105, 106, 21, 22, 23)

   Group 5

   17 contributions

   • Rejected, 2 for, 4 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 105
   • Rejected, 2 for, 4 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 106

2. 16 May 2024Local Government and Housing Committee

   Stage 2 Proceedings

   Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Bill

   5 contributions

3. 18 April 2024Reform Bill Committee

   Evidence session with the Electoral Commission's Welsh Parliament Parties Panel

   Senedd Cymru (Electoral Candidate Lists) Bill

   156 contributions

4. 18 April 2024Reform Bill Committee

   Evidence session with electoral reform organisations

   Senedd Cymru (Electoral Candidate Lists) Bill

   79 contributions

5. 18 April 2024Reform Bill Committee

   Evidence session with the Expert Panel on Assembly Electoral Reform

   Senedd Cymru (Electoral Candidate Lists) Bill

   106 contributions

6. 6 March 2024Committee of the Whole Senedd

   Power to set Senedd election campaign expenditure limits in connection with section 1 and Part 2 of the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill (Amendments 81, 82, 83, 85, 86)

   Group 18

   16 contributions

   • Agreed, 40 for, 14 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 81
   • Agreed, 40 for, 14 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 82
   • Agreed, 40 for, 14 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 83

7. 6 March 2024Committee of the Whole Senedd

   Referendum on the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Act 2024 (Amendments 36, 37)

   Group 16

   41 contributions

   • Rejected, 14 for, 40 against, 0 abstainedAmendment 36

8. 6 March 2024Committee of the Whole Senedd

   Stage 2 Proceedings

   Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill

   6 contributions

1,008 contributions in the Sixth Senedd, newest first.

1. Peter FoxConservative

   14 October 2024, Petitions Committee

   Updates to previous petitions

   …that through legislation has finished. As we know, the gender Bill is not being taken forward, and the Elections and Elected Bodies (Wales) Act 2024 received Royal Assent in September this year. So, most of those legal avenues that are in the hands of the Senedd, for the time being, are closed, and…

   Tagged for: “Elections and Elected Bodies”Official Record

2. Jenny RathboneLabour

   9 October 2024, Plenary

   Debate on the Equality and Social Justice Committee Report, 'Sound the Alarm: The Governance of Fire and Rescue Services'

   …approach, so that clear proposals for more radical reform can be put to the electorate ahead of Senedd elections in 2026.

   Tagged for: “Senedd elections”Official Record

3. Samuel KurtzConservative

   8 October 2024, Plenary

   Statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning: Economic Growth

   …hide in the shadows and point the finger of blame elsewhere. With just over 18 months to go until the Senedd elections—

   Tagged for: “Senedd elections”Official Record

4. Hefin DavidLabour

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …was done for the Government—it was done by the Commission for the Government, I should be clear—for the Senedd reform Act, the staffing costs from that have gone down. So, we've made the case there: 59.9 full-time equivalent to 47.9 FTE, which is a £400,000 saving in that figure, roughly. Where the…

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

5. Rhianon PassmoreLabour

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …to move on to my next question. The budget states that the costs included in the budget relating to Senedd reform in 2025-26 are higher than the cost estimates in the regulatory impact assessment that we discussed last autumn. Could you explain the reasoning for such a significant increase since…

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

6. Hefin DavidLabour

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …gives clear milestones for delivery, but they've got to be linked to the other outside pressures—like Senedd reform, like ways of working and Bay 32—that we've been tasked to deliver, and ad hoc committees that the Government and the Senedd want us to do. They've got to be fitting in with that, and…

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

7. Hefin DavidLabour

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …mentioned—47.9 is the FTE in the budget. In the regulatory impact assessment that accompanied the Senedd reform Act, it was 59.9. So, that came in at £2.1 million. The actual figure for Senedd reform now, in the budget, is £1.7 million. So, we've reduced that right back.

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

8. Manon Antoniazzi

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …You'll notice the staff we're anticipating—the Commissioner mentioned the number of 47.9—to do with Senedd reform, on the other hand, is actually reduced from the regulatory impact assessment. There are other changes, but that's a positive change; we've been able to bring down the total there. And…

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

9. Hefin DavidLabour

   3 October 2024, Finance Committee

   Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

   …grown by four staff, and that’s to service one committee. It will grow by 47.9 full-time equivalent for Senedd reform, but that is an increase that is necessary to deliver a Senedd that is 60 per cent bigger. At the moment, staff aren’t growing—we’re not increasing staff, we’re not adding to that…

   Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

10. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    …But we wouldn’t be able to do our work without that. And I think if you start talking, when we go into Senedd reform, about reducing clerking teams and things like that, when, actually, we’re going to have an increased-size Parliament, that becomes really difficult, doesn’t it, because you’re going…

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

11. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    So, the operational budget would cover project costs. So, the point of the operational budget—it doesn't cover Senedd reform or Bay 32.

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

12. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    Yes, that would be incorporated in the Senedd reform part of things, because the remuneration determination has been set already.

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

13. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    …by their groups, and that is happening and that has directly fed into the shape of the Chamber for Senedd reform. So, the shape of the Chamber has been driven by, not the Commission, but by Members who are not part of the Commission and not part of the Government even, to drive some of this stuff.…

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

14. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    …that the operational budget is about those things that are happening that would happen regardless of Senedd reform. So, I think you make a key point: why has it gone up by 11 per cent when the GDP deflator was something like 6.4 per cent last year?

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

15. Hefin DavidLabour

    3 October 2024, Finance Committee

    Scrutiny of the Senedd Commission Draft Budget 2025-26: Evidence session

    So, don't forget, Senedd reform, ways of working, Bay 32 are outside of the operational budget. So, the operational budget has gone up by—let me just get the figure—11.09 per cent.

    Tagged for: “Senedd reform”Official Record

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