| Nick Bourne, leader of the Welsh Conservatives
in the National Assembly, and AM for Mid & West Wales
will, on Friday (28th February 2003), give
his evidence to the Richard Commission at 10.30 am at
Cardiff Museum. |
| Key points that Mr Bourne will make will
include: |
- The need to fight to make the National Assembly
work
|
- The need for the National Assembly to properly use
it’s existing powers
|
- The need for the National Assembly to address the
real issues of concern to the people of Wales
|
- The need for the National Assembly to show muscular
devolution
|
| The following speech, entitled The Future,
will form the basis of Nick Bourne’s evidence to
the Richard Commission: |
| THE FUTURE |
| "The Assembly is here to stay. The
proper question for Conservatives to ask is how can it
work more effectively. How can it deliver? I want to look
at some key areas which, I believe, demand attention. |
| Communication between Cardiff and
Westminster |
| There must be a more effective relationship
between Cardiff and Westminster. Despite concordats with
Westminster departments and promises that the Labour-led
government would work closely with the UK Labour government,
it is clear that at several key moments there have been
severe communication difficulties. |
| Communication between Cardiff and
Westminster |
| There must be a more effective relationship
between Cardiff and Westminster. Despite concordats with
Westminster departments and promises that the Labour-led
government would work closely with the UK Labour government,
it is clear that at several key moments there have been
severe communication difficulties. |
| The confusion surrounding the important
issue of student finance highlighted a complete breakdown
in communication. First, it was reported that the Assembly
Government was to receive the power to go its own way
on top-up fees. Then, Charles Clarke assured the House
of Commons that no decision has been made. Meanwhile,
the Secretary of State for Wales Peter Hain, was abroad
as ‘Euro’ minister when this key issue demanded
attention. It later emerged, in response to a written
question by Jonathan Morgan, that the Education Minister
had not met in person with Charles Clarke to discuss this
weighty issue at all – and she still has not done
so. |
| There has clearly been a strained relationship
between the Home Office and the Assembly. In evidence
to the Richard Commission, finance Minister Edwina Hart
attacked "arrogant" English civil servants who
she claimed treat the National Assembly like a "large
local authority" that was a "nuisance"
to have to deal with. She said there were "real problems"
at the heart of the system, and singled out the Home Office
as the most difficult. The head of local government and
finance at the Assembly, civil servant Adam Peat, said
Whitehall departments "resent having to keep us informed".
Differences have emerged over policing and asylum issues.
The Finance Minister once gave police £1.5 m to tackle
drug trafficking. The Assembly is not responsible for
police funding but there was disappointment at the £500,000
handed to police in South Wales by Home Secretary David
Blunkett. Edwina Hart also expressed her disapproval of
the Home Office’s policy of housing asylum seekers
in Cardiff prison. |
| The lack of cohesion between Westminster
and Cardiff is a cause for concern. I feel that there
must be an increased presence by the Secretary of State
for Wales at the Assembly to improve the lines of communication
between Cardiff and Westminster. To date we have been
treated to the occasional (usually annual vice-regal)
visit. The Secretary of State should be available to Assembly
Members on a regular and frequent basis. |
| Awareness of powers |
| At several times it has been clear that
there has been confusion over the extent of Assembly powers.
A lack of proper consultation between Cardiff and Westminster
became apparent over the issue of tourism. After nearly
two years of discussions on whether the Assembly should
introduce statutory registration of tourist accommodation
(B & Bs etc), it turns out that such a policy could
only be implemented on a UK-wide basis. The Tourism Act
of 1969 does not allow the creation of a Wales-only registration
scheme. How much time, effort and money was wasted on
the assumption that we had the power? |
| There is also little clarity over whether
the Assembly has the power to stop the planting of genetically-modified
crops in Wales, or whether such responsibility lies in
Westminster or Brussels. Despite denials from Ministers,
Friends of the Earth Cymru claim the Assembly has the
law on its side in its efforts to declare Wales GM-free,
and with European directives clouding the issue, there
is still confusion as to with whom ultimate power resides. |
| I believe there must be much greater clarity
concerning the powers of the Assembly. The Welsh Conservatives
would consider the establishment of a policy unit to ensure
the powers of the Assembly are used to their full potential
and to fully develop policy options. |
| Legislation |
| Campaigners argued that devolution would
enable greater scrutiny of secondary legislation. Unfortunately,
this has not happened. In response to written questions
tabled by David Melding, it was revealed that most of
the secondary legislation going through the Assembly is
never debated. 70% of legislation is never debated. Only
2.3% of legislation has been examined by a subject committee. |
| The Welsh Conservative Party would require
the Assembly government to outline a scheme of work for
key Acts of Parliament that generate secondary legislation
and establish a mechanism to allow the National Assembly
to influence key Parliamentary Bills that affect Wales. |
| We also believe that it is necessary to
establish a Finance Committee to scrutinise the work under
the remit of the Finance Minister. The Finance Minister
is currently the only Cabinet Minister not scrutinised
by committee. Given the significance of this role, we
believe an additional committee would be valuable and
could explore priorities and policy options. |
| Making the Assembly work more effectively
for the people of Wales |
| The Welsh Conservatives would end unnecessary
political correctness. At present, plenary ends at 5.30
pm and Members often simply return to their desks or the
Members Tea Room. We believe that when plenary meets it
should be possible to debate important issues until 7
pm, with prior notice. |
| Many people in Mid, West and North Wales
feel disillusioned with the Assembly. This feeling is
not helped by the composition of the present cabinet,
consisting of Members entirely from South Wales. We believe
it would be beneficial for members of the cabinet to be
drawn from all geographical regions in Wales. In addition,
we would ensure that plenary convenes annually in North
Wales. There is a real danger of isolation and alienation
in North Wales. |
| Conclusion |
| I believe there is widespread disenchantment
with the lack of delivery from the Lib-Lab government
of Wales. This is not the fault of the institution. I
believe that with proper policies the National Assembly
could make a positive difference for Wales. I differ very
much from the approach of other parties on substantive
issues on health, jobs, agriculture etc but, I hope the
thoughts I have set out on reforms to process and procedure
may attract wide support. |
