Concise Minutes - Finance Committee


Meeting Venue: Hybrid - Committee

room 4 Tŷ Hywel and video conference

via Zoom

Meeting date: Wednesday, 5 November 2025

Meeting time: 09.30 - 12.01
This meeting can be viewed
on Senedd TV at:
http://senedd.tv/en/15420


Hybrid

------

Attendance

Category

Names

Members of the Senedd:

Peredur Owen Griffiths MS (Chair)

Mike Hedges MS

Rhianon Passmore MS

Peter Fox MS (In place of Sam Rowlands MS)

Witnesses:

Adrian Crompton, Auditor General for Wales, Audit Wales

Ann-Marie Harkin, Executive Director for Audit Services, Audit Wales

Kevin Thomas, Executive Director for Corporate Services, Audit Wales

Dr Ian Rees, Chair of the Wales Audit Office, Audit Wales

Matthew Mortlock, Director, Audit Wales

Dave Thomas, Director, Audit Wales

Committee Staff:

Georgina Owen (Second Clerk)

Sian Giddins (Second Clerk)

Mike Lewis (Deputy Clerk)

Owen Holzinger (Researcher)

 

<AI1>

Registration

</AI1>

<AI2>

Private pre-meeting

</AI2>

<AI3>

1       Introduction, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest

1.1 The Chair welcomed Members to the meeting of the Finance Committee.

 

1.2 Apologies were received from Sam Rowlnds MS. Peter Fox MS substituted for Sam Rowlands MS.

 

1.3 Apologies were received from Rhianon Passmore MS. There was no substitute for Rhianon Passmore MS.

</AI3>

<AI4>

2       Paper(s) to note

2.1 The papers were noted.

</AI4>

<AI5>

2.1   PTN 1 - Welsh Government Draft Budget 2026-27- Written evidence: National Institute of Economic and Social Research - October 2025

</AI5>

<AI6>

2.2   PTN 2 - Welsh Government Draft Budget 2026-27- Written evidence: Professional Association of Self-Caterers UK, Cymru - October 2025

</AI6>

<AI7>

2.3   PTN 3 - Building Safety (Wales) Bill: Additional information from the Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government - 17 October 2025

</AI7>

<AI8>

2.4   PTN 4 - Building Safety (Wales) Bill: Additional information from the Cabinet Secretary for Housing and Local Government to the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee - 30 October 2025

</AI8>

<AI9>

2.5   PTN 5 - Letter from the Office for National Statistics to the Chair of the Finance Committee: Census 2031 - 28 October 2025

</AI9>

<AI10>

2.6   PTN 6 - Homelessness and Social Housing Allocation (Wales) Bill - Welsh Government response to the Finance Committee's report - 30 October 2025

</AI10>

<AI11>

2.7   PTN 7 - Homelessness and Social Housing Allocation (Wales) Bill - Welsh Government response to the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee's report - 30 October 2025

</AI11>

<AI12>

2.8   PTN 8 - Letter from Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Energy and Planning: Tourism Inter-Ministerial Group (IMG) - 31 October 2025

</AI12>

<AI13>

2.9   PTN 9 - Letter from the Cabinet Secretary for the Finance and Welsh Language: Finance:Inter- Ministerial Standing Committee (F:ISC) – 31 October 2025

</AI13>

<AI14>

2.10 PTN 10 - Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets) (Wales) Bill: Welsh Government response to the Finance Committee's report - 31 October 2025

</AI14>

<AI15>

3       Audit Wales - Scrutiny of the Estimate 2026-27 and Interim Report 2025-26: Evidence session

3.1 The Committee took evidence on Audit Wales’s Estimate 2026-27 and Interim Report 2025-26 from Adrian Crompton, Auditor General for Wales, Audit Wales; Dr Ian Rees, Chair of the Wales Audit Office, Audit Wales; Kevin Thomas, Executive Director for Corporate Services, Audit Wales; and Ann-Marie Harkin, Executive Director for Audit Services, Audit Wales.

</AI15>

<AI16>

Break

</AI16>

<AI17>

4       Welsh Government Draft Budget 2026-27: Evidence session 3

4.1 The Committee took evidence on the Welsh Government’s Draft Budget 2026-27 from Adrian Crompton, Auditor General for Wales, Audit Wales; Dave Thomas, Director, Audit Wales; and Matthew Mortlock, Director, Audit Wales.

</AI17>

<AI18>

5       Motion under Standing Order 17.42 (ix) to resolve to exclude the public from the remainder of this meeting

5.1 The motion was agreed.

</AI18>

<AI19>

6       Audit Wales - Scrutiny of the Estimate 2026-27 and Interim Report 2025-26: Consideration of evidence

6.1 The Committee considered the evidence received.

</AI19>

<AI20>

7       Welsh Government Draft Budget 2026-27: Consideration of evidence

7.1 The Committee considered the evidence received.

</AI20>

<AI21>

8       Financial implications of the Building Safety (Wales) Bill: Consideration of draft report

8.1 The Committee considered its draft report on the financial implications of the Building Safety (Wales) Bill and agreed it with no changes.

</AI21>

<TRAILER_SECTION>

</TRAILER_SECTION>

<LAYOUT_SECTION>

1.          FIELD_TITLE

FIELD_SUMMARY

</LAYOUT_SECTION>

<TITLE_ONLY_LAYOUT_SECTION>

2.          FIELD_TITLE

</TITLE_ONLY_LAYOUT_SECTION>

<HEADING_LAYOUT_SECTION>

FIELD_TITLE

</HEADING_LAYOUT_SECTION>

<TITLED_COMMENT_LAYOUT_SECTION>

FIELD_TITLE

FIELD_SUMMARY

</TITLED_COMMENT_LAYOUT_SECTION>

<COMMENT_LAYOUT_SECTION>

FIELD_SUMMARY

</COMMENT_LAYOUT_SECTION>

 

<SUBNUMBER_LAYOUT_SECTION>

2.1          FIELD_TITLE

FIELD_SUMMARY

</SUBNUMBER_LAYOUT_SECTION>

 

<TITLE_ONLY_SUBNUMBER_LAYOUT_SECTION>

2.2          FIELD_TITLE

</TITLE_ONLY_SUBNUMBER_LAYOUT_SECTION>