Presiding Officer sets out her vision for a strong and clear constitutional settlement
1 March 2013
Rosemary Butler AM, the Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales, has today set out her vision for a strong and clear constitutional settlement for the Assembly and the people of Wales.
In her submission to the UK Government’s Commission on Devolution in Wales (The Silk Commission), she says that changes are needed to ensure:
that the institution has sufficient capacity to fulfil its functions;
that the boundaries of the Assembly’s powers are clear and intelligible; and
that the Assembly has the maximum possible autonomy to act on matters affecting Wales.
She says that delivery of those changes will ‘make the Assembly a strong, accessible and forward-looking democratic institution and a legislature that delivers effectively for the people of Wales.’
The submission reflects the unique position and experience of the Presiding Officer in operating the current system of devolution.
First, commenting on the capacity of the Assembly to hold the Welsh Government to account, to represent the people of Wales and to make laws for Wales, Rosemary Butler says that, ‘Given the weight of responsibility resting with the institution, and the unavoidable scale of the workload faced by Members, I am in no doubt that the number of Assembly Members should be increased from 60 to 80.’
Second, the Presiding Officer provides a uniquely informed analysis of the clarity of the Assembly’s legislative powers. She points to numerous examples in the last year that illustrate how the boundaries of the Assembly’s legislative competence - the policy areas where the Assembly has the power to legislate – are unclear and uncertain.
‘Legal certainty and predictability are desirable characteristics of any democratic system and the Assembly’s legislative competence should be defined to give us greater legal certainty so that we can legislate effectively and with confidence.’
Third, the Presiding Officer says that, as an institution that now has overwhelming public support and legitimacy, the Assembly should have the maximum possible autonomy to act on matters affecting Wales.
‘The pace of constitutional change in Wales has been dramatic and the institution today is very different to the one envisaged by the UK Parliament as recently as 2006.’
‘There should be a fundamental recognition that the Assembly, not the UK Parliament, is best placed to determine certain matters for itself and should not be subject to unnecessary restriction,” she writes.
To reflect the institution’s increasing maturity as a legislature, the Presiding Officer says that it should be described as a Parliament, rather than an Assembly.
She also calls for many of the functions of the Secretary of State for Wales in relation to the Assembly to be removed.
‘For instance, the requirement that the Secretary of State comes before the Assembly in person to present the UK Government’s legislative programme may have been appropriate when the UK Parliament played a significant role in the Assembly’s ability to make laws but, to me, is anomalous today’.