Senior councillors warn Senedd increase could drown out voices of local authorities
Alec Doyle, Local Democracy Reporter
Senior councillors say the increasing number of Senedd members will make it harder for authorities to make their voices heard.
As counting gets underway to decide which candidate will take the 96 seats in the next Senedd and who will govern Wales, the leader of Flintshire County Council and deputy leader of Wrexham County Borough Council say the expanded Senedd poses real democratic challenges.
Both authorities will be represented by more Members of the Senedd (MS) than they have councillors in their leadership groups after the Welsh Government increased the number of MS from 60 and introduced a new proportional representation election system.
Flintshire – which currently has a Cabinet of nine councillors – is split in half across both Fflint Wrecsam and Clwyd Senedd constituencies and will have 12 MS.
For Wrexham – which has an Executive Board of 10 councillors – being covered by Fflint Wrecsam, Clwyd and Gwynedd Maldwyn constituencies means the authority will have 18 Members of the Senedd going forward.
“You’ve got an extra 36 MS is coming in,” said Flintshire Council leader Cllr Dave Hughes. That was not debated. That should have gone to a referendum in my view, but it didn’t.
“Are the 36 MS all going to be bringing in more legislation? If so who’s going to deliver all that change because the local authorities haven’t got the staff to do any more.”
Cllr Hughes said so many additional members – Flintshire previously had just six – did pose a real challenge.
Both Flintshire and Wrexham have recently argued successfully with the Senedd for improved financial settlements and other additional funding support – arguments both councils fear will now be more difficult to make.
“Will it be more difficult to break through and make Flintshire’s voice heard in Cardiff? Yes, potentially. But I think what you’ve got to do is find a way through it.
“All I need to know is who is the senior one who’s holding which portfolio? That’s who I will be dealing with, I won’t bother with the rest. That’s the only way you can do it.
“My stance will still be the same. You’ve got to hold their feet to the fire.”
Deputy leader of Wrexham County Borough Council Cllr Dave Bithell agreed that the increased number of MS was a challenge.
“This council didn’t make that political decision to increase the Senedd by 36,” he said. “On a personal level, I don’t agree with it.
“From a politician’s point of view, locally, it’s hard enough getting things done now and making representation to Welsh Government.
“I just hope it’s doesn’t make things even harder. Truthfully it’s really difficult now with the amount of red tape that we have to go through, but time will tell.”
Structure
Chief Executive of Wrexham Council Alwyn Jones said that he was hopeful that the Welsh Government had foreseen the issue when it decided to increase the number of Senedd members.
“I would hope that they will come up with a way to organise this,” he said. “Hopefully someone from Wrexham won’t go to 18 different people.
“There’ll be a structure in place in terms of how local people can actually go to a Senedd member. I’m sure they can organise that.”
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Oh, so the turkeys are gobbling already, are they? No one asked for the 22 councils that the Tories imposed on Wales in 1996 either, especially since their so-called ‘executive members’ are paid vast sums to lord it over their self-erected empires. Reducing Wales’ local government to a reasonable size again would be a massive step forward, maybe the previous eight?
Local government needs to feel local otherwise it’s pointless. There’s certainly room for consolidation because the modern world is bigger but it should be driven from the grass roots not as a top down reorg that looks good on a PowerPoint presentation in a windowless office in Cardiff Bay. Perhaps some sweeteners to encourage mergers could be put on the table and see what happens.
Bit confused here. How does having twice the number of voices in Cardiff Bay make it harder for Flintshire to be heard?
Certainly a strong argument for fewer Councils and a good opportunity now that Labour are out. However Welsh Government delivers very little itself and depends on local government to do so. Pretty much everything outside of the NHS. Fewer Councils with more autonomy is the way forward in my view; but Cardiff Bay hasn’t wanted to relinquish power hitherto.
A rise from 60 to 96 Senedd members will drown out voices of local authorities? What absolute poppycock! Would the leaders of Flintshire County Council and deputy leader of Wrexham County Borough say the same of Westminster where there’s 650MPs? I think not. Stop the rage and start to engage.
Chances of a cozy back scratch they had with the previous MS for Wrexham is more remote now. Ken Skates MS is the last man standing. He was previously the train controller for Cheshire. They now need to engage with Carrie and Marc. Not difficult. Ironically the chairman of the boundary commission who decided the Senedd constituency boundaries was the previous chief executive of Wrexham CBC. Perhaps they were shocked at the election result?
‘Senedd increase could drown out voices of local authorities’
More Senedd members representing their local areas is surely more likely to have the opposite effect?
I just do not follow the two councillors’ ‘argument’.