6. Will the Counsel General clarify what legal advice the Welsh Government has sought in relation to introducing a gender quota for the 2026 Welsh Parliament election? OQ58657

Thank you for the question. The special purpose committee reported on 30 May and made 31 recommendations, including one relating to the introduction of gender quotas. At present, officials are developing policy for legislation in relation to those recommendations.

Thank you. There are clearly serious legal and constitutional questions as to whether the Welsh Government indeed has any such power to introduce radical changes to our electoral laws. Attempting to enforce these quotas at a national level on all parties is completely without precedent in our democracy. It also raises the question of those who do not identify as either male or female and thus would not place themselves in either category. This actually demonstrates the issue with trying to select elected members on the basis of arbitrary—I can never say this word—arbitrary characteristics, where particular groups or cross-sections of society will always feel excluded in some way. That is why, in this country, we have always thrived on the uniting principle of meritocracy—basically meaning the best person gets the job. I find personally, as a woman of 28 years—

Can you ask the question, please, Janet?

I am doing. As a woman in politics for over the last 28 years elected, I find this insulting, what you propose going forward. Will the Counsel General make public any legal advice concerning the power of the Welsh Government to make this unprecedented intervention in the way in which politicians in Wales are elected? Diolch.

Thank you for the supplementary question. Perhaps I'll deal with the point you raised when you said the best person gets the job. You might want to explain to me why it is, then, that only 18 per cent of the Tory membership in this Senedd is female. I'm not sure what conclusions we should draw from that. I'll leave that there, because the special purposes committee recommendation 11 was that the Senedd should be elected—

Can the backbenchers please stop to talking with one another so I can hear the answers from the Counsel General?

Recommendation 11 was that the Senedd should be elected with statutory gender quotas. Recommendation 17 of the report was that the Welsh Government take appropriate steps to ensure that our recommendations on Senedd reform for 2026 are not put at undue risk of a Supreme Court referral. So, effectively, officials have been undertaking work to develop a detailed policy aimed at giving effect to recommendation 11, whilst also being mindful of recommendation 17. Now, the purpose of the recommendations that were made by the special purpose committee, and the overarching aim in introducing gender quotas is to make provision, the aim of which is to ensure that elected Members of the Senedd broadly mirror the gender diversity of the Welsh population. In my position as law officer and as Counsel General, I'll be mindful of the need to ensure that the Senedd reform legislation as a whole is going to be clear, is going to be robust and that it will be within competence.

Question 7 [OQ58644] is withdrawn. Question 8, Alun Davies.