Part of 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 2:06 pm on 19 October 2021.
Well, Llywydd, I’m very much in favour of citizen engagement. I think, in the interviews that he has given in the last day, Dr Rowan Williams has himself emphasised his wish to make sure that the commission works in a way that is genuinely accessible to and engaging of the citizens of Wales. But, it will be for the independent commission to decide on the method of that engagement, and a citizens' assembly is just one way in which that can be done.
I may be old-fashioned here, Llywydd, but I always thought that when I came here I was coming to the people's assembly, and that that is what we are. When we turn up here, we have been elected by people to be here. That does not mean for a minute that we have an exclusive right to express opinions, and there are many other ways in which people can be involved. But I do want the commission to have the freedom to decide on the best way to achieve a shared ambition, because I very much agreed with what Adam Price said on the ambition of engagement, and more than engagement, a sense of ownership of our own future in Wales.