The Senedd's debate on policing and justice has centred on the Plaid Cymru Government's aim to devolve policing and justice, alongside UK Government police reform. Conservative and Reform Members ask the Government to show delivery with its existing powers. Other debates covered the summer wildfires and fire and rescue capacity, a Wales-wide grooming gangs inquiry, prisons and early release, and youth justice.
The main arguments
Dafydd Trystan Davies (Plaid Cymru) said policing should be devolved in principle, citing the Silk, Thomas and constitutional commissions. Counsel General Elfyn Llwyd called the case 'open and shut'. Carrie Harper (Plaid Cymru) and Mike Hedges (Welsh Labour) said Wales has fewer powers than Greater Manchester. Contributions: [1][2]
Peter Fox (Welsh Conservatives), Steven Rodaway and Paul Marr (Reform UK) said the Government should show delivery with existing powers before seeking more. Cristiana Emsley (Reform UK) asked what test youth justice devolution must meet to improve outcomes for children. Contributions: [1][2][3][4]
Dafydd Trystan Davies said UK police reform is an opportunity, and that any single national force would need local accountability at least as strong as now. Art Wright (Reform UK) asked how the replacement for police and crime commissioners would avoid another layer of bureaucracy. Contributions: [1][2][3][4]
Conservative Members (Peter Fox, Darren Millar) and Reform Members (Paul Marr, Cristiana Emsley, Llŷr Powell) backed a Wales-wide grooming gangs inquiry. Huw Thomas (Welsh Labour) and Delyth Jewell (Plaid Cymru) said Wales is within the UK statutory inquiry and pointed to Welsh safeguarding strategy. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5][6]
Jayne Bryant (Welsh Labour) and Laura Anne Jones (Reform UK) criticised the Government's wildfire response. First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth said established arrangements worked and firefighters contained all outbreaks. Fire Brigades Union general secretary Steve Wright told a committee members felt inadequately trained and equipped. Contributions: [1][2][3][4]
Jane Dodds (Welsh Liberal Democrats) said Welsh women are held in England far from home. Darren Millar (Welsh Conservatives) raised HMP Parc and early release. Minister Sioned Williams said prisons are reserved, and officials meet the prison service weekly. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
Counsel General Elfyn Llwyd said youth justice should be an early step in devolving justice. He also said legal aid cuts have left communities without local advice, citing Law Society figures. Niamh Salkeld (Plaid Cymru) said funding powers alone fall short of devolution. Contributions: [1][2][3]
Where the parties stand
Plaid CymruShifted
Its Ministers say policing and justice should be devolved, citing the Silk, Thomas and constitutional commissions. They want to use UK police reform to advance that case and are meeting the UK Government, police leaders and the Hogan-Howe review. Contributions: [1][2][3][4]
How this has shifted: In June the emphasis was on making the case for devolution through police reform. By October it also covered force structures and local accountability.
Welsh Conservatives
Members say the Government should use existing powers before seeking more, and criticise what Peter Fox called obsessive calls for devolution. They press for a Wales-wide grooming gangs inquiry and raise HMP Parc, early release and wildfire preparedness. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
Reform UK
Members say trust and delivery should come before new powers, and question the Government's record. They back a Wales-wide grooming gangs inquiry, raise safeguarding, anti-social behaviour and youth justice, and press ministers on wildfire costs. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5][6]
Welsh Labour
Mike Hedges called policing an anomaly in the settlement and cited his 2013 debate. Huw Thomas stressed the benefits of the Union. Members also criticised the wildfire response and pressed on safeguarding and the fire summit. Contributions: [1][2][3][4][5]
Welsh Liberal Democrats
Jane Dodds said devolving justice and policing has human consequences, especially for women held far from Wales, and asked for a plan and timetable. She also asked about wildfire resilience planning for 2027. Contributions: [1][2]
What the government is being pressed on
1Jane Dodds asked for a plan and timetable to secure powers. Dafydd Trystan Davies said meetings are arranged with the UK policing Minister, police and crime commissioners, chief constables and Lord Hogan-Howe. Minister Sioned Williams said early commitment is being sought. Contributions: [1][2][3]
2Steve Bayliss (Reform UK) asked for a costed wildfire plan by 31 October. First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth said he could not promise that date, pointing to the 22 October summit. Lynne Neagle (Welsh Labour) asked about funding and who is invited. Contributions: [1][2][3][4]
3Darren Millar asked what discussions had taken place with the inquiry chair and whether ministers would commit to a Wales-wide inquiry. Counsel General Elfyn Llwyd said the Government is working constructively with the statutory inquiry and will provide evidence and witnesses. Contributions: [1][2][3]
4Darren Millar asked whether funding was provided for devolved services affected by prison early release. Mike Connolly, an official, said no direct funding has been received. He pointed to a UK-chaired taskforce and a regional partnership group. Contributions: [1][2]
5Art Wright asked how replacing police and crime commissioners in 2028 would avoid more bureaucracy. Minister Sioned Williams said governance depends on whether Wales has one force or four, and that devolution is the preferred route. Contributions: [1][2]
What the public is asking for
Three open petitions touch on this subject: stronger licensing for high-occupancy visitor accommodation (1,768 signatures), a public inquiry into school safeguarding failures in North Wales (115) and a review of social housing rules on anti-social behaviour affecting disabled tenants (9).
Who ministers are meeting
Ministers have met police forces, police and crime commissioners, the Policing Partnership Board for Wales and the Police Federation. They have also met UK Government policing Ministers, the Home Office police structures review, the prison and probation service, the Youth Justice Board, probation groups, a fire and rescue service, the tribunals president and an academic.
In the Sixth Senedd (2021 to 2026)
From the previous Senedd's record, for issues that run across both. The rest of this analysis covers the Seventh Senedd only.
In the Sixth Senedd, debate on policing and justice turned on the Thomas commission's case for devolution. Welsh Labour and Plaid Cymru Members backed devolving policing, while Welsh Conservatives opposed it. Debates also covered women in prison, HMP Parc, and failings in the fire and rescue service.
Jane Hutt (Welsh Labour) said the Welsh Government supported a 2022 motion to devolve policing, citing the Thomas commission. Delyth Jewell (Plaid Cymru) said policing should be local and that governing it elsewhere made no sense. Contributions: [1][2]
Mark Isherwood (Welsh Conservatives) argued that Welsh geography and history differ from Scotland and Northern Ireland, and that further devolution was unnecessary. He cited earlier police merger costs. Contributions: [1][2]
Counsel General Mick Antoniw published 'Delivering Justice for Wales' in 2022, focusing on better delivery rather than who runs the system. UK minister Lord Bellamy said wholesale devolution would involve considerable upheaval. Contributions: [1][2]
Jane Dodds (Welsh Liberal Democrats) said 56 per cent of women given custodial sentences reoffend within a year. Sioned Williams (Plaid Cymru) described the deaths at HMP Parc in 2024 as a scandal, though prisons are reserved. Contributions: [1][2]
Written by AI on 30 October 2026 from 194 contributions in the Senedd between 19 May 2026 and 22 October 2026, with the petitions and ministers' meetings on this brief. Each point links to the contributions it draws on; check them before quoting. How the analysis is written.
What the government has promised
The Programme for Government 2026 to 2030 belongs to the Seventh Senedd. Choose the Seventh Senedd to see how often each commitment has come up.
Demanding fairness from Westminster: Powers for a purpose
Pursue the full devolution of justice and policing to Wales with the urgency this deserves.
Establish a national approach to coordinate crime prevention and diversion across police forces, NHS Wales, local authorities, schools, and third‑sector partners – sharing best practice and addressing the root causes of crime.
Bring forward a Welsh Tribunals Bill early in the Senedd term, to create a clearer, more coherent and more independent tribunals system – with modernised procedures, stronger accountability, and a sharper focus on improving the experience of service users.
Source: Welsh Government, Programme for government 2026 to 2030: New ambition for Wales, first published on 10 September 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Mentions are found by matching the names of plans, bodies and schemes; a mention says nothing about progress.
In the news
The latest headlines on this brief, linking to each outlet's story.
Each bar is the share of that party's speeches and questions in the Sixth Senedd that touched this brief, so large and small parties can be compared. The upright line marks the chamber as a whole: 0.97%.
Ministers' meetings with outside organisations and their engagements on this brief, from the register the Welsh Government publishes every three months. 8 since the 2026 election; the latest:
24 September 2026
Welsh Probation Development Group with Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
Meeting, Cabinet Minister for Government Effectiveness and the Constitution
24 September 2026
Wales Probation Development Group
Meeting, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
3 September 2026
Ian Barrow, His Majesty's Prison and Probation Service with Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
Meeting, Cabinet Minister for Government Effectiveness and the Constitution
22 July 2026
Neath Port Talbot Youth Justice Facillity with Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
Meeting, Cabinet Minister for Government Effectiveness and the Constitution
22 July 2026
Youth Justice Service visit with CMGEC
Meeting, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
6 July 2026
Youth Justice Board for England and Wales with Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
Meeting, Cabinet Minister for Government Effectiveness and the Constitution
6 July 2026
CMGEC and Youth Justice Board
Meeting, Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Minister for Social Justice and Equality
40% of Welsh adults said crime and policing 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.
Written questions
54 written questions to the Welsh Government on this brief in the Sixth Senedd, 54 answered so far. The latest:
As the Sixth Senedd comes to an end, reform of the Welsh Tribunals remains unfinished business. Despite commitments made by the Welsh Government, legislation was not introduced to deliver the reforms.
Welsh Government policy has taken a distinct approach to youth justice - one that prioritises prevention, rehabilitation, and the rights of children over punitive measures.
In October 2019, the Commission on Justice in Wales published its review of the justice system in Wales and concluded that “the people of Wales are being let down by the justice system in its current state”.
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 1 and Legislative Consent Motion on the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill: Motion 2
Tagged from the title of its item or question: “Legal Aid”Official Record
Month by month
168
46
202120222023202420252026
Contributions tagged in each month of the Sixth Senedd. No sittings were held in August 2021, August 2022, August 2023, December 2024, February 2025, March 2025, April 2025, May 2025, June 2025, July 2025, August 2025, September 2025, October 2025, November 2025 and December 2025.Show the numbers
Month
Contributions
May 2021
1
June 2021
6
July 2021
5
August 2021
No sittings
September 2021
19
October 2021
14
November 2021
116
December 2021
10
January 2022
87
February 2022
44
March 2022
50
April 2022
4
May 2022
55
June 2022
45
July 2022
21
August 2022
No sittings
September 2022
5
October 2022
50
November 2022
126
December 2022
How this brief is put together
This brief follows the Programme commitments listed above and tags the record with the phrases below. Keyword matching can miss business that discusses the issue in other words, and can tag a passing mention.
Show the phrases it uses
A contribution is tagged when its English text contains one of these phrases. Capital letters don't matter, except in abbreviations, which must match exactly. It is also tagged when the title of the agenda item or question it was part of contains one, as long as the contribution is at least 30 words long. The brief is also tagged whenever one of its themes is.
