Concise Minutes - Finance Committee

Meeting Venue: Hybrid - Committee

room 4 Ty Hywel and video conference

via Zoom

Meeting date: Thursday, 10 October 2024

Meeting time: 09.30 - 12.24
This meeting can be viewed
on Senedd TV at:
http://senedd.tv/en/14127

Hybrid

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Attendance

Category	Names
Members of the Senedd:	Peredur Owen Griffiths MS (Chair) Peter Fox MS Mike Hedges MS Rhianon Passmore MS
Witnesses:	Michelle Morris, Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Chris Vinestock, Chief Operating Officer and Director of Improvement, Office of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Katrin Shaw, Katrin Shaw, Chief Legal Adviser and Director of Investigations, Office of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales Mark Drakeford MS, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language, Welsh Government; Sharon Bounds, Deputy Director, Financial Controls, Welsh Government   Emma Watkins, Deputy Director, Budget and Government Business, Welsh Government
Committee Staff:	Owain Roberts (Clerk) Sian Giddins (Second Clerk) Mike Lewis (Deputy Clerk) Owen Holzinger (Researcher)

<AI1>

Registration

</AI1>

<AI2>

Private Pre-meeting

</AI2>

<AI3>

1 Introductions, apologies, substitutions and declarations of interest

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

1.2 Mike Hedges MS declared that he is Chair of the Public & Commercial Service Union cross-party group in the Senedd.

</AI3>

<AI4>

2 Paper(s) to note

2.1 The Committee noted the papers.

</AI4>

<AI5>

2.1 PTN 1 - Letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language: Welsh Rates of Income Tax Outturn Statistics 2022-23 - 3 October 2024

</AI5>

<AI6>

2.2 PTN 2 - Letter from the Minister for Children and Social Care: Health and Social Care (Wales) Bill - 3 October 2024

</AI6>

<AI7>

2.3 PTN 3 - Letter from the PCS Union: Senedd Commission Draft budget 2025-26 - 7 October 2024

</AI7>

<AI8>

3 Review into the operations, processes and investigations carried out by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales: Evidence session

3.1 The Committee took evidence on the review into the operations, processes and investigations carried out by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales from Michelle Morris, the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales; Chris Vinestock, Chief Operating Officer and Director of Improvement, Office of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales; and Katrin Shaw, Chief Legal Adviser and Director of Investigations, Office of the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales.

3.2 The Public Services Ombudsman for Wales agreed to provide the following:

· A timeline of actions that it intends to undertake, following the Independent review of investigations by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales into Code of Conduct complaints.

</AI8>

<AI9>

Break

</AI9>

<AI10>

4 Welsh Government First Supplementary Budget 2024-25: Evidence session

4.1 The Committee took evidence on the First Supplementary Budget 2024-25 from Mark Drakeford MS, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Welsh Language, Welsh Government; Sharon Bounds, Deputy Director, Financial Controls, Welsh Government and Emma Watkins, Deputy Director, Budget and Government Business, Welsh Government.

</AI10>

<AI11>

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.

</AI11>

<AI12>

6 Welsh Government First Supplementary Budget 2024-25: Consideration of evidence

6.1 The Committee considered the evidence received.

</AI12>

<AI13>

7 Review into the operations, processes and investigations carried out by the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales: Consideration of evidence

7.1 The Committee considered the evidence received.

</AI13>

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