Decision details

Debates are one of the most frequent items of business on the Plenary agenda. Many types of debate are brought forward in Plenary, including:

• Opposition party debates on a topic of their choice;

Other than in the case of Government debates, the time allocated for all other types of debates and their frequency are determined by the Business Committee

The item started at 16.45

 

Voting on the motion and amendments under this item was deferred until Voting Time.

 

A vote was taken on the motion without amendment:

 

NDM5710 Elin Jones (Ceredigion)

 

To propose that the National Assembly for Wales:

 

1. Believes that Wales's level of self-government should not be secondary to any other part of the UK;

 

2. Regrets that the UK Government has failed to deliver equality of powers and esteem for Wales during its tenure;

 

3. Calls for full parity of powers and funding for Wales with Scotland;

 

4. Calls for the transfer of responsibility for Wales's constitution to the National Assembly for Wales through a new home rule Bill;

 

5. Asserts that the home rule Bill should include the full devolution of responsibility of Wales's natural resources;

 

6. Further calls for the creation of a Welsh legal jurisdiction and the devolution of policing, prisons, courts and criminal justice; and

 

7. Believes that the National Assembly for Wales should be empowered to support those requiring social protection through increased powers on welfare benefits as recommended by the Smith Commission for Scotland.

 

For	Abstain	Against	Total
9	0	35	44

The motion without amendment was not agreed.

 

The following amendments were tabled:

 

Amendment 1 - Aled Roberts (North Wales)

 

Delete all and replace with:

 

1. Welcomes the substantial steps forward in the devolution settlement for Wales taken since 2010 including:

 

a) a referendum on law-making powers for the National Assembly for Wales;

 

b) the establishment of the Silk Commission;

 

c) the delivery of the Wales Act 2014 which has devolved stamp duty, business rates and landfill tax to the National Assembly for Wales and provided for a referendum on whether an element of income tax should be devolved.

 

2. Welcomes the St. David's Day announcement which proposes:

 

a) devolving the responsibility for all energy planning development consents for projects up to 350 MW onshore and in Welsh territorial waters;

 

b) devolving speed limits, bus and taxi regulations, and the functions of the Traffic Commissioner;

 

c) introducing a Reserved Powers model;

 

d) devolving port development;

 

e) devolving powers relating to Assembly and local government elections;

 

f) devolving competence over equality duties for devolved public sector; and

 

g) devolving the licensing of onshore oil and gas extraction in Wales.

 

3. Believes that we must go further in securing Home Rule for Wales and calls for:

 

a) full devolution of the remaining Silk Part 1 proposals on financial powers for Wales;

 

b) full devolution of the remaining Silk Part 2 proposals on legislative powers for Wales;

 

c) the devolution of funding of Network Rail in relation to the Wales network;

 

d) the devolution of drink drive limits;

 

e) devolution of the responsibility for funding public expenditure to S4C to the Assembly;

 

f) the devolution of youth justice, policing and in the longer term other justice powers;

 

g) the transferral of powers to manage the Crown Estate's economic assets;

 

h) the transferral of control over a range of benefits for older people, carers and disabled people;

 

i) the devolution of powers to lower the voting age to 16 in Welsh national and local elections;

 

j) the Welsh Government to be allowed to set its own bank holidays; and

 

k) the Children's Commissioner for Wales to be given the power to examine issues that affect children in Wales but are not within the control of the Welsh Government.

 

4. Calls for the establishment of a UK-wide constitutional convention to draft a plan for a new union.

 

A vote was taken on Amendment 1:

For	Abstain	Against	Total
3	0	41	44

Amendment 1 was not agreed.

 

Amendment 2 - Jane Hutt (Vale of Glamorgan)

 

Delete all and replace with:

 

1. Notes the Assembly's resolution, supported by all parties and approved on 22 October 2014, setting out its aspirations for the future of devolution in Wales;

 

2. Notes the publication by the UK Government of a Command Paper setting out proposals for the next stages of devolution;

 

3. Recognises that progress has been made against some of the Assembly's agreed aspirations for devolution, including  a reserved powers model for Wales, and new powers for the Assembly on transport, natural resources and elections;

 

4. Welcomes the recognition by the UK Government that Wales should have a fairer funding settlement, but expresses disappointment that this falls short of the Assembly's unanimous request for the UK Government to commit to a specific mechanism to stop further convergence;

 

5. Expresses disappointment about the lack of progress on devolving other powers recommended by the UK Government's Commission on Devolution in Wales; and

 

6. Calls on the next UK Government to address these outstanding matters following the UK General Election.

 

 A vote was taken on Amendment 2:

For	Abstain	Against	Total
26	0	18	44

Amendment 2 was agreed.

 

As amendment 2 was agreed, amendment 3 was de-selected

 

A vote was taken on the motion as amended:

NDM5710 Elin Jones (Ceredigion)

 

1. Notes the Assembly's resolution, supported by all parties and approved on 22 October 2014, setting out its aspirations for the future of devolution in Wales;

 

2. Notes the publication by the UK Government of a Command Paper setting out proposals for the next stages of devolution;

 

3. Recognises that progress has been made against some of the Assembly's agreed aspirations for devolution, including  a reserved powers model for Wales, and new powers for the Assembly on transport, natural resources and elections;

 

4. Welcomes the recognition by the UK Government that Wales should have a fairer funding settlement, but expresses disappointment that this falls short of the Assembly's unanimous request for the UK Government to commit to a specific mechanism to stop further convergence.

 

5. Expresses disappointment about the lack of progress on devolving other powers recommended by the UK Government's Commission on Devolution in Wales; and

 

6. Calls on the next UK Government to address these outstanding matters following the UK General Election.

 

For	Abstain	Against	Total
35	0	9	44

The motion as amended was agreed.