Did you mean representations -taxation speaker:Elin Jones speaker:Elin Jones?
Elin Jones: ...the Government does not provide opportunities for examination. Those include emergency and topical questions, oral questions and opposition debates, and in addition, I'd say that Members can make representations about proposed Government business through the Business Committee, and I would hope that the leader of the house would give serious consideration to any such representations made...
Elin Jones: Therefore, we move on to group 3, which relates to local authority representations on tax rates and bands. The lead and only amendment in this group is amendment 30, and I call on Steffan Lewis to move and speak to his amendment.
Elin Jones: .... Assembly Members may not use such events for activities that are for financial gain, including fundraising. Should Assembly Members have concerns about these rules, they are at liberty to make representations to the Assembly Commission, and we will consider the policy in the round.
Elin Jones: This brings us to group 14, which relates to representations to public bodies by the citizen voice body. The lead amendment in this group is amendment 41, I call on Angela Burns to move the amendment and speak to the other amendments in the group. Angela Burns.
Elin Jones: We will recommence with item 12 on our agenda, the Representation of the People (Electoral Register Publication Date) (Wales) (Coronavirus) Regulations 2020. I call on the Minister for Housing and Local Government to move the motion. The Minister—Julie James.
Elin Jones: That brings us to item 7, the Representation of the People (Election Expenses Exclusion) (Wales) (Amendment) Order 2020, and I call on the Minister for Housing and Local Government to move the motion—Julie James.
Elin Jones: The next vote is on the Senedd Cymru (Representation of the People) (Amendment) Order 2020. I call for a vote on the motion tabled in the name of Rebecca Evans. Open the vote. Close the vote. In favour 38, nine abstentions, five against. The motion is therefore agreed.
Elin Jones: Item 6 is next, namely the Representation of the People (Amendment) (Wales) (Coronavirus) (No. 2) Regulations 2021. I call on the Minister for Finance and Local Government to move the motion. Rebecca Evans.
Elin Jones: ...in international networks and facilitating programmes for visiting parliamentary delegations, such as the Canadian federal Parliament last week, and welcoming diplomats to this place, such as the representation from Catalonia this morning. Our international framework was recently agreed in a Commission meeting. It sets out the objective of raising the Senedd’s profile and the value of...
Elin Jones: ...Youth Parliament team at the Assembly. We are very much indebted to everyone who ensured that this project has come to fruition. Over 450 young candidates, almost 25,000 registered to vote, with representation the length and breadth of Wales—the statistics speak volumes about their success.
Elin Jones: I think the point that is made in the report is that the international comparisons and those within the United Kingdom show that there is under-representation of the people of Wales in their national legislature. So, the international comparisons demonstrate that that under-representation makes it more difficult for us as a legislature to do our scrutiny work as compared with similar...
Elin Jones: ...no direct involvement in the decision taken in the investment allocation decision that the pension board has just taken, but I think it is appropriate for you, should you wish to do so, to make representations to the pension board. As Assembly Members, we have representatives on that board that we've elected as Assembly Members, and also, of course, the Commission has representatives on...
Elin Jones: ...what you said, Luke Fletcher. If you want to influence the pensions for support staff and the support staff want to look at that as well, then, as I've said, it's important for you to make representations and discuss those with the remuneration board, which is independent and which takes decisions on these issues, and it's not, as it happens, a matter for the Commission. So, I do encourage...
Elin Jones: ...may be, we believe that it is right that, where there are areas that are the responsibility of Senedd Members and Ministers here, those people representing us have the right to speak and make the representations that need to be made on behalf of the people of Wales.
Elin Jones: ...; that we were not able to make individual exceptions at that point. As I said in my answer to Andrew R.T. Davies, if political groups representing the majority view of this Assembly want to make representations on behalf of any matter that the Commission is responsible for, please do so. You are represented on the Commission by Commissioners from all political parties. Please feel...
Elin Jones: ...The policy, as you've referenced, Andrew R.T. Davies, belongs to the Assembly as a whole and to all Members. If political groups wish for this policy to be revised, then I would be happy to discuss representations and proposals made by the political groups and Members to the Commission, with a view to revising our policy, if that is the wish of this Assembly.
Elin Jones: ...now after Christmas that we all face, it's important that the sessions that the Commission holds, and that schools and others hold in schools, are politically balanced and include all political representation for that purpose. That's why the Senedd, in designing our and the Welsh Government resources available to young people, working with the Electoral Commission as well, ensure that...
Elin Jones: ...come first to mind, and I do know that the remuneration board is about to embark on a review of staffing support for Members, and this may well be an issue that Members may be interested in making representation to the remuneration board on, but I would certainly want to work with Members here to see what opportunities are available to us, what partners are out there who might want to work...
Elin Jones: Siân has chosen to focus on one important aspect of this agenda, one that ensures greater diversity of representation in our National Assembly, and within that, she's raised the question as to whether allowing Assembly Members to job share could lead to the creation of a more gender-balanced Assembly. The Member, as she has described, will be aware that this was a matter raised by the expert...
Elin Jones: ...Deputy Presiding Officer are likely to exercise that right this afternoon. Today, we will be voting on extending the franchise to 16 and 17-year-olds for the Senedd elections in 2021. It was the Representation of the People Act 1969 that lowered the voting age from 21 to 18, and, so, the provision to extend the franchise to 16-year-olds is long overdue for some. In May 2013, a clear...
