Senedd Reform: the Next Steps
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Welsh Parliament Committee on Senedd Electoral Reform Senedd reform: The next steps September 2020 www.senedd.wales The Welsh Parliament is the democratically elected body that represents the interests of Wales and its people. Commonly known as the Senedd, it makes laws for Wales, agrees Welsh taxes and holds the Welsh Government to account. An electronic copy of this document can be found on the Senedd website: www. senedd.wales/SeneddReform Copies of this document can also be obtained in accessible formats including Braille, large print, audio or hard copy from: Committee on Senedd Electoral Reform Welsh Parliament Cardiff Bay CF99 1SN Tel: 0300 200 6565 Email: [email protected] Twitter: @SeneddReform © Senedd Commission Copyright 2020 The text of this document may be reproduced free of charge in any format or medium providing that it is reproduced accurately and not used in a misleading or derogatory context. The material must be acknowledged as copyright of the Senedd Commission and the title of the document specified. Welsh Parliament Committee on Senedd Electoral Reform Senedd reform: The next steps September 2020 www.senedd.wales About the Committee The Committee was established on 18 September 2019 to examine the recommendations of the Expert Panel on Assembly Electoral Reform. The Committee will be dissolved following a Plenary debate on its final report. Committee Chair: Dawn Bowden MS Welsh Labour Current Committee membership: Huw Irranca-Davies MS Dai Lloyd MS Welsh Labour Plaid Cymru The following Members were also members of the Committee during its work. Delyth Jewell MS David Rowlands MS Plaid Cymru Brexit Party Senedd reform: the next steps Contents Chair’s foreword ..................................................................................................... 9 Recommendations ............................................................................................... 11 1. Introduction ................................................................................................. 17 Background .............................................................................................................................................................. 17 Our strategic objectives ................................................................................................................................ 19 Evidence gathering .......................................................................................................................................... 20 Impact of COVID-19 on our work ......................................................................................................... 20 2. The capacity of the Senedd ................................................................... 22 Recommendations of the Expert Panel ........................................................................................ 22 Developments since 2017 ........................................................................................................................... 23 Capacity of a 60 Member Senedd ...................................................................................................... 24 An appropriate size for the Senedd .................................................................................................. 28 Maximising the capacity of a 60 Member Senedd............................................................. 29 Implications of the COVID-19 pandemic ....................................................................................... 34 Our view on the capacity of the Senedd ...................................................................................... 36 An appropriate size for the Senedd .................................................................................................. 36 Capacity of the Sixth Senedd ................................................................................................................. 38 Size of the Welsh Government .............................................................................................................. 40 Limit on the number of Welsh Ministers and Deputy Ministers ............................. 40 Our view on the size of the Welsh Government ...................................................................... 41 3. How Members should be elected ....................................................... 42 Recommendations of the Expert Panel ........................................................................................ 42 How Members of the Senedd should be elected ................................................................. 43 Electoral system principles ........................................................................................................................ 43 Political perspectives....................................................................................................................................... 44 Potential electoral outcomes ................................................................................................................. 45 Mixed Member Proportional/Additional Member system ............................................ 47 Flexible List Proportional Representation ................................................................................... 50 Senedd reform: the next steps Single Transferable Vote ............................................................................................................................. 50 Our view on how Members of the Senedd should be elected................................. 54 Designing an STV system for Senedd elections ..................................................................... 55 Our work on the design and operation of STV for Senedd elections ..................57 Vote transfer methodologies and the use of electronic counting .........................57 Ballot paper design .......................................................................................................................................... 62 Our view on the design and operation of STV for Senedd elections .................. 65 Local authority electoral reform ........................................................................................................... 66 Local Government and Elections (Wales) Bill ........................................................................ 66 Our view on local authority electoral reform ........................................................................... 67 4. Electoral boundaries and boundary review ................................... 69 Recommendations of the Expert Panel ....................................................................................... 69 Our work on the Senedd’s electoral boundaries .................................................................. 70 Boundary and seat apportionment reviews ............................................................................... 71 Reviewing boundaries or seat apportionments ...................................................................... 71 Reviewing the Senedd’s boundaries and seat apportionments ............................. 72 Developing boundary review arrangements ............................................................................. 74 Co-terminosity ...................................................................................................................................................... 78 Electoral boundaries in Wales ............................................................................................................... 78 Co-terminosity: risks and benefits ...................................................................................................... 79 Our view on the Senedd’s electoral boundaries and boundary review ............ 81 5. Diverse and inclusive legislatures ...................................................... 83 Recommendations of the Expert Panel ....................................................................................... 83 Why diversity matters in the context of legislatures ......................................................... 83 Defining diversity ............................................................................................................................................... 84 Barriers to participation ............................................................................................................................... 86 The diversity of the Senedd ...................................................................................................................... 88 Composition ........................................................................................................................................................... 88 Culture and ways of working .................................................................................................................. 89 Capacity of the Senedd and how Members are elected ............................................... 90 Senedd reform: the next steps Responsibility for the diversity of the Senedd ......................................................................... 94 Our view on the diversity of the Senedd ...................................................................................... 95 6. Electing a more diverse Senedd ......................................................... 97 Recommendations of the Expert Panel ......................................................................................