Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:45 pm on 20 October 2020.
Diolch, acting Llywydd. We considered the draft Order at our meeting last week. As always, our report is available to Members via today's agenda, and Members will see that our report contains two merits points. The first merits point highlights the work of our predecessor committee, as the First Minister has already mentioned—a fact that is also acknowledged in the explanatory memorandum that accompanies the draft Order. The memorandum highlights that in 2014, the fourth Assembly's Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee carried out an inquiry into the rules regarding disqualification from membership of the Senedd. That report made 21 recommendations to the Welsh Government and proposed an overhaul of the legislative framework surrounding disqualifications from membership of the Senedd. In response to that report, the Welsh Government made a commitment to consult on the National Assembly for Wales (Disqualification) Order 2015, and by consulting on this draft Order, 2020, we noted that it is continuing to honour that commitment. The criteria for determining which offices were to be included in the National Assembly for Wales (Disqualification) Order 2015 were based on the principles set out in the fourth Assembly Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee's report, with some additional considerations by the Welsh Government. We have noted that this same criteria has continued to be used for the draft Order. Our second merits point notes the Welsh Government consultation that was carried out on the draft Order during the summer and the subsequent new offices that have been added to the draft Order as disqualified offices. These new disqualified offices include the secretary of the Boundary Commission for Wales, the Information Commissioner, the commissioners and non-executive board members of the Law Commission, commissioners of the Judicial Appointments Commission, and the Judicial Appointments and Conduct Ombudsman. Diolch, acting Llywydd.