Local government in Wales is suffering from a lack of community engagement. This lack of engagement has led to voter apathy and poor voter turnout in successive local elections. At the last local election in 2012, average voter turnout was under 39 per cent—a fall of 4 per cent from the previous election in 2008. According to the national survey for Wales, 88 per cent of people had not contacted their councillors in the last 12 months. More worryingly, 59 per cent of respondents either disagreed or strongly disagreed with the statement that they could influence a decision affecting their local area. This apathy towards local government is in marked contrast to public campaigns and demonstrations when local authority assets are threatened with closures.

The Welsh Government had a chance of addressing this problem when the UK Government passed the Localism Act 2011. It is disappointing, therefore, that the Welsh Government has failed to implement the community rights agenda in Wales. Community rights are about empowering communities, so that they have a bigger say in the issues that matter to them. By a series of measures, the Localism Act set out to achieve a substantial shift of power to local people. Two of these measures were the community right to challenge and the community right to bid.

First, the community right to challenge, Minister. Local authorities in Wales facing budgetary constraints may attempt to relieve the pressure by letting go of assets such as leisure centres. Without a community right to challenge, allowing communities to take over the running of services, these assets could be lost permanently. The best councils in Wales are constantly on the lookout for new and better ways to design and deliver local services. Many recognise the potential of social enterprises and community groups to provide high-quality services at good value. They should work together to deliver these services.

Secondly, the community right to bid. Every community is a home to buildings or amenities that play a vital role in local life. These include community centres, libraries, swimming pools, village shops, markets and pubs. The closure of these assets can present a local loss to the community. Community groups often need more time to organise a bid and to raise money than the private enterprise that may be bidding against them. The community right to bid provides a six-week opportunity for communities to express an interest in buying an asset. If they do so, a further four-and-a-half-month window of opportunity is open to allow communities the time to raise funds to buy the asset. To assist community groups, we need a list of assets of community value nominated by the local communities themselves. However, councils in Wales do not have to keep a register of assets of community value and they are not obliged to undertake community asset transfers. I believe these rights enjoyed in England should be extended to Wales to enhance the existing community asset transfer and the community facilities and activity programmes.

Deputy Presiding Officer, allowing communities to challenge these local authorities over services they provide or buildings they own will greatly enhance community involvement and engagement. I hope the Cabinet Secretary will embrace the community rights agenda and implement the Localism Act in full in Wales.

And finally, Deputy Presiding Officer, there’s one area that I regularly get a problem with in my office. When people come to get in touch with the council, there’s always a local telephone call. In Newport, it’s 656656 for a call centre. Normally, no less than 10 minutes somebody has to wait and listen to music and then, half of the time, you never get in touch with the right person you have to speak to. I’d like to find out how much money the local council are making from people waiting on the telephone when they ring the councils. I think the councils should realise that poor people ring about their problems—not for the cost of staying to put their problems to the councils. I think this is an area where connectivity between the people and the councils is also lacking in Wales. Thank you.