Minutes

Proposed venue: Presiding Officer’s office, 4th floor - Tŷ Hywel. View directions

Contact: Aled Elwyn Jones 

Items
No. Item

1.

Introductions, apologies and substitutions

Minutes:

Neil Hamilton sent his apologies, due to attending a Memorial Service in London. Gareth Bennett was present as a substitute.

2.

Minutes of the previous meeting

Minutes:

The minutes for the meeting were agreed by the Committee for publication.

3.

Organisation of Business

3.1

This Week's Business

Minutes:

Tuesday

 

·         Voting Time will take place after the last item of business.

 

Wednesday

 

 

·         No topic has been tabled for the Short Debate. Voting Time will take place as the last item of business.

3.2

Three Week Timetable of Government Business

Minutes:

Business Managers queried the time allocated to government statements on 27th November, given that some Assembly business had been moved to that day to accommodate the Stage 3 debate on the Childcare Funding (Wales) Bill during Assembly time on 5th December. The following statements will now be allocated 30mins each:

·                Statement by the Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Public Services: Update on the Our Valleys, Our Future Delivery Plan

·                Statement by the Leader of the House and Chief Whip: Update on Implementation of the Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence (Wales) Act

3.3

Three Week Timetable of Assembly Business

Minutes:

Business Committee determined the organisation of Assembly business and agreed to schedule the following items of business:

 

Tuesday 20 November 2018

·         Statement by the Chair of the Children, Young People and Education Committee: United Nations Universal Children’s Day (30 mins)

 

Tuesday 27 November 2018

·         Time allocated to the Welsh Conservatives (60 mins)

·         Time allocated to Plaid Cymru (60 mins)

Wednesday 5 December 2018 –

·         Time allocated to the Welsh Conservatives (60 mins)

3.4

Letter from CYPE: request for a statement on Universal Children's Day

Minutes:

Business Managers agreed the request.

 

3.5

Member Debates: Selection of Motion for Debate

Minutes:

·         Business Managers selected the following motion for debate on 21 November:

NNDM6862 - Bethan Sayed

 

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

 

1. Regrets that funding for further education has been under significant pressure in recent years as a result of funding cuts.

 

2. Notes that the further education sector has been placed under extra demand, in part due to the Welsh Government’s policies relating to lifelong learning, skills and employability, which have been clarified in the recent employability plan updated in a written statement in September 2018.

 

3. Expresses concern that staff in further education institutions are considering strike action over insufficient pay and concerns over heavy workloads.

 

4. Proposes that there be no further reduction in the amount of funding received by the further education sector and that its position as key to productivity, skills, training and employability in the Welsh economy be recognised.

 

Supporters:

Mohammad Asghar

Sian Gwenllian

Helen Mary Jones

 

·         Business Managers agreed to return next week to the issue of when to schedule the next Member Debate.

4.

Legislation

4.1

Letter from Finance Committee: Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Bill

Minutes:

Business Managers agree to extend the Stage 2 deadline to 8 February 2019.

4.2

Timetable for consideration of the Legislation (Wales) Bill

Minutes:

Business Managers agreed in principle to refer the Legislation (Wales) Bill to CLA Committee for consideration.

 

Business Managers agreed to defer a decision on the timetable for the Bill in order to consult the CLA Committee, and return to the matter at a future meeting.

4.3

Letter from CCERA: UK Agriculture Bill LCM

Minutes:

Business Managers agreed to extend the reporting deadline on the LCM to 4 January 2019. Members also noted the Committee’s comments regarding the timetabling of LCMs and Ministerial availability for scrutiny.

5.

Committees

5.1

The effect of a Member resigning and leaving a group

Minutes:

Business Managers discussed the paper and agreed that further discussions should take place outside of committee, with a view that a motion to fill the CCERA vacancy be tabled and considered in Plenary this week.

6.

Assembly Business

6.1

Review of Oral Assembly Questions

Minutes:

The Llywydd re-iterated her intention to call UKIP last for Leaders and Spokespeople questions and alternate the Conservatives and Plaid in the ration 6:5, as the first questioners, as of this week.

 

Business Managers agreed to return to the two other proposals of changing the number of questions asked and timing.

6.2

Christmas tabling arrangements

Minutes:

Business Managers agreed the proposed tabling arrangements during the Christmas recess period.

Any Other Business

Gareth Bennett informed Business Managers that UKIP would like to re-nominate Neil Hamilton as a member of the Assembly Commission. Business Managers again indicated that they had no reason to think their Members would vote any differently in Plenary this time, and therefore agreed that there was no point in Business Committee tabling such a motion. That being the case, Gareth Bennett informed Business Managers that UKIP would like to nominate David Rowlands as a member of the Assembly Commission and Business Managers agreed to table a motion to be added to tomorrow’s Plenary agenda.

 

He also informed Business Managers that UKIP would like to nominate David Rowlands as their alternate member of the Standards of Conduct Committee. A motion will be tabled and added to tomorrow’s Plenary agenda.