Questions Without Notice from Party Spokespeople

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Social Justice – in the Senedd at 1:42 pm on 9 November 2022.

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Photo of Joel James Joel James Conservative 1:42, 9 November 2022

Thank you, Deputy Minister, for your answer, but I'm conscious of what I've said, that it's most likely that, in most cases, you are going to get that compromise, but I think, with all the will in the world, you will always still get disagreements that cannot be resolved, and, without a proper mechanism in place, I fear that this Bill could have the potential to grind procurement for public bodies to a halt, and even for them to be held to ransom if unrealistic demands are made. For example, the future generations commissioner has set a precedent for the encouragement of a four-day working week, which trade unions or other worker representatives could ask for, which is, as you no doubt agree, just not achievable for a public body. So, with this in mind, I would like to understand what the Welsh Government's plan is if a trade union has initiated strike action against a public body. If there is a dispute, in my mind, trade unions can quite willingly withhold or withdraw from sign-off unless their conditions were met, which would mean that public bodies would fail to meet their statutory duties. So, with this in mind, Deputy Minister, what is stopping trade unions from using the statutory powers within this Bill as leverage in trade union disputes?