Agenda and minutes

The Llywydd welcomed Members to the committee.

The Minutes of the previous meeting were agreed for publication.

Tuesday

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

·         Plenary is unlikely to run past 6.45pm.

Wednesday

• Voting Time will take place before the Short Debate
• Plenary is unlikely to run past 6.40pm.

Heledd Fychan asked whether consideration was being given to a statement on reporting of A&E waiting time figures, following concerns raised by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine. The Trefnydd indicated that officials were considering the claims made and that she would be discussing the matter further with the Minister for Health and Social Services. 

The Trefnydd informed Business Managers of the following changes to the Three-Week Timetable of Government Business.

Tuesday 24 October 2023

·         Statement by the Minister for Education and Welsh Language: Attendance Guidance (30 mins)

·         The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Act 2023 (Commencement No. 1) Order 2023 (5 mins)

The following additions were agreed to the Three-Week Timetable of Senedd Business:  

Wednesday 15 November 2023 -

• Motion to approve the Senedd Commission’s Budget for 2024-25 (30 mins)
• Debate on a Member's Legislative Proposal – Jenny Rathbone (30 mins)
• Time allocated to the Welsh Conservatives (60 mins)
• Short Debate: Delyth Jewell (South Wales East) (30 mins)

Business Committee considered the proposed motions for debate and agreed to schedule the following motion on 25 October:

Alun Davies

NNDM8381 

To propose that the Senedd: 

1. Believes that the Holodomor was a predetermined crime committed and led by Stalin and the Soviet Government against the people of Ukraine. 

2. Regards the Holodomor as an act of genocide. 

3. Notes the crucial role of Welsh journalist Gareth Jones in bringing the cruelty of the Holodomor to the attention of the world. 

4. Continues to stand with the people of the Ukraine as they face Putin's illegal war. 

And the following motion for a date to be confirmed in November:

Mark Isherwood

NNDM8385 

To propose that the Senedd: 

1. Notes: 

a) that November is Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month, and that 16 November 2023 is World Pancreatic Cancer Day; 

b) that the survival rates in Wales and the UK still lag behind much of the rest of Europe and the world; 

c) pancreatic cancer is tough to detect and that diagnosis takes too long with slow processes and multiple tests leaving people in the dark; 

d) once spotted, people face huge obstacles getting the information and care they need to be well enough to have treatment with many people feeling written off with no support plan in place, and no help to manage symptoms; and 

e) once diagnosed, only 3 out of 10 people get any treatment, the lowest proportion of all cancer types, and that half of people die within a month of diagnosis. 

2. Understands that people with pancreatic cancer urgently need a faster, fairer, funded pathway throughout their diagnosis, treatment and care. 

3. Supports Pancreatic Cancer UK’s efforts to ensure implementation of such a pathway.  

4. Commends all of the charities and activist organisations and their dedicated supporters for their tireless efforts to raise awareness of pancreatic cancer, and wishes everyone involved with Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month every success in their endeavours. 

Business Committee agreed the Public Accounts and Public Administration Committee’s request for its Members to be excused from Plenary on Wednesday 22 November in order to undertake committee business in Edinburgh.

Jane Dodds registered her concern with committees taking internal flights in light of the climate emergency.

Business Committee considered and agreed proposed changes to guidance on Topical Questions, relating to the publication process, the provision of supporting information by Members and the maximum number of Topical Questions that will ordinarily be accepted per session.

Business Committee noted a paper on the introduction of time limits for ministerial answers in the Scottish Parliament and agreed to return to a further discussion on this subject once more information about the effect of the change in Scotland is available.

The Trefnydd highlighted a late finish that is currently anticipated for proceedings on Tuesday 21 November. Business Committee discussed several potential options for mitigating this and the Trefnydd agreed to consider further ahead of proposing government business for that date at the following meeting.