Meeting Venue:
Committee room 5
Meeting date: Monday, 14 July 2025
Meeting time: 14.00 - 14.50
This meeting can
be viewed
on Senedd TV at:
http://senedd.tv/en/15174
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Category |
Names |
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Members of the Senedd: |
Carolyn Thomas MS (Chair) Rhys ab Owen MS Luke Fletcher MS Joel James MS |
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Witnesses: |
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Committee Staff: |
Gareth Price (Clerk) Lara Date (Second Clerk) Kayleigh Imperato (Deputy Clerk) |
Apologies were received from Vaughan Gething, there was no substitute.
There were no declarations of interest at the start of the meeting. Luke Fletcher MS declared a relevant interest in relation to item 3.1 on the agenda, as he had been working with Epilepsy Action Cymru for some time.
Members noted the matter is under active scrutiny by the Health and Social Care Committee (HSC) who are looking in-depth at GP services. It was agreed to highlight the correspondence on this petition with that Committee and ask for an update on the likely timescales for that inquiry work. The letter would be copied to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care for awareness of the Committee’s action, and the petition would be kept open pending a response from the HSC Committee.
Active travel has been the subject of detailed scrutiny in the Senedd and by Audit Wales and so it was agreed there was not much more the Petitions Committee could do. It was agreed to highlight the petition with the Climate Change, Environment and Infrastructure Committee and the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee, to thank the petitioner and close the petition.
Although Members had every sympathy with the petitioner, the Welsh Government had made its position clear that it would not be taking this Bill forward, and there was little more the Committee could do but encourage the petitioner to engage with the Welsh Government’s work to revise the Code of Practice on Delivery of Autism Services. The Committee thanked the petitioner and closed the petition.
The Committee discussed the petition and acknowledged some would support the petitioner’s views on Senedd reform. However, the legislation had been passed by super-majority and to reverse that decision would require primary legislation to be passed. The Committee thanked the petitioner and closed the petition.
It was noted that the Equality and Social Justice Committee had conducted a lot of work on this issue and the petitioner’s views would be highlighted with that Committee for awareness. The Committee also agreed to write to the Minister for Children and Social Care to highlight the petitioner’s comments and seek a response. The petition to be kept open pending the Minister’s response.
Luke Fletcher MS declared a relevant interest as he had been working with Epilepsy Action Cymru for some time now. The Committee noted the five key actions being requested by Epilepsy Action Cymru and agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care to ask what exactly was being done to address those issues regarding epilepsy service provision. The petition would be kept open pending the Cabinet Secretary’s response.
The Committee noted the petitioners’ disappointment and the uncertainty about delivery of the new stations recommended by the South East Wales Transport Commission (the Burns Commission). It was agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Transport to ask for clarity on the specific timeline for opening those stations and about his discussions with the UK Government on the matter. The petition would be kept open pending the Cabinet Secretary’s response.
The Committee noted that the debate featured a high level of engagement from Members, and had highlighted the feasibility studies and the arguments around the issue. They agreed to thank the petitioner and close the petition.
The Committee felt it was important to note the positive progress that had been made, but that there was not much more the Petitions Committee could now do. It was agreed to thank the petitioner and close the petition.
It was agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs to seek more clarification on the timeline for the work. The clerking team would also contact the petitioner to clarify if he was seeking a meeting with the Committee Chair to discuss his petition or with the Welsh Government that was delivering the work, noting that the Cabinet Secretary’s diary commitments might make it difficult for him to meet with the petitioner. After writing to the Cabinet Secretary about the timeline, Members agreed that the petition would be closed.
Members noted the strength of feeling on the issue and the unhappiness about the Cabinet Secretary’s response to the debate. After discussion the Committee agreed a final step before closing the petition. It was agreed to write to the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning to seek clarity on what evidence would be needed in order to review the relevant Technical Advice Note, MTAN1, as Members had already been provided with much audio, photographic and other physical evidence relating to the quarry. It was also noted that other mothballed quarries in Wales could become active again in the future and so it was a national issue. The petition would remain open pending that response.
The five recommendations in the Committee’s report had been accepted by the Cabinet Secretary for Education, and further active work was being conducted to inform what future policy the Welsh Government would pursue. This was considered quite a positive result for the petition. The petitioner would be thanked and the petition closed.
Members noted the papers.
The procedural motion was agreed.
The Committee considered a decision paper on actions to take as part of reviewing the public petitions process in advance of the Seventh Senedd. It was agreed that a targeted consultation would be undertaken over the summer recess, to seek the views of key organisations and representative bodies in Wales who are regularly called on to respond to petitions.