Part of 1. 1. Questions to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government – in the Senedd at 1:42 pm on 15 February 2017.
Diolch, Lywydd. Cabinet Secretary, your White Paper on local government reform deviates considerably from the proposals outlined in the previous draft Bill by having 24 such proposal either omitted, and 13 amended. Some of these would have allowed reporting mechanisms that would enable the electorate to be far better informed, and also far more able to hold their elected members to account. Now, we very much support the proposals for council leaders to hold an annual public meeting and for elected councillors to produce an annual report, and yet you now consider these to be too rigid. The Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011, put in place by your Government, supported this guidance for such democratic accountability. Why are you now rejecting it?