Agenda and minutes

The Llywydd welcomed Members to the meeting. No apologies were received.

The Minutes of the previous meeting were agreed for publication. An amendment was agreed to item 4.2.

Tuesday 

The Business Committee noted the following change:

• Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for Delivery (45 30 mins)

• Voting Time will take place as the last item of business
• Plenary is unlikely to run past 7.05pm.

Wednesday

Plaid Cymru requested that Business Committee table a motion for Lindsay Whittle MS to replace Luke Fletcher MS as a member of the Petitions Committee.

Business Committee noted the following change to Wednesday’s agenda:

• Motion to elect a Member to a committee (5 mins)

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

• Plenary is unlikely to run past 6.35.

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

Tuesday 16 December 2025

·         The Non-Domestic Rating (Chargeable Amounts) (Wales) Regulations 2025 (5 mins)

·         Proposal under Standing Order 12.24 to debate the following items together but with separate votes (30 45 mins):

o   Motion under Standing Order 26C.18 to agree the Planning (Wales) Bill should proceed as a consolidation bill

o   Motion under Standing Order 26C.18 to agree the Planning (Consequential Provisions) (Wales) Bill should proceed as a consolidation bill

The Business Committee noted the inclusion of a debate on the Legislative Consent Motion on The Terminally Ill Adults (End of Life) Bill on 20 January. Business Managers discussed the potential for the Senedd to be required to revisit the question of whether to provide its consent to the Bill, should further amendments subsequently be made at Westminster.

Business Managers agreed the following changes to the Three Week Timetable of Senedd Business:

Wednesday 21 January 2026 –

• Finance Committee Debate: Post-legislative review of the Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Act 2019 (30 mins)
• Debate on the Health and Social Care Committee report: Prevention of ill health - obesity (60 mins)
• Time allocated to the Welsh Conservatives (60 mins)
• Short Debate (30 mins)

The Business Committee considered the proposed motions for debate on 17 December 2025 and agreed to schedule the following motion tabled by Rhys ab Owen:

NNDM9072

To propose that the Senedd:

1. Welcomes the fact that Wales was the first country in the world to legislate for children’s right to play, and that Cardiff is the UK’s first UNICEF-accredited Child Friendly City.

2. Acknowledges that for children under 11, play areas with swings, slides and other equipment to play are really important.

3. Notes that the 'What children say about play in Wales: 2025' report by Play Wales found that in several areas, play equipment was described as outdated, broken or suitable only for younger children, and that many had called for investment in spaces for older children and teenagers, especially in Anglesey, Denbighshire and Caerphilly.

4. Regrets that overall satisfaction with opportunities to play has declined from 84 per cent in 2019 to 71 per cent in 2025, and that a notable 25 per cent are not permitted to play independently.

5. Calls on the Welsh Government to safeguard children’s access to play by:

a) strengthening the duty under section 11 of the Children and Families (Wales) Measure 2010 so that local authorities must secure sufficient play opportunities in a playground for each community;

b) developing ways to publicise safe and local places to play;

c) safeguarding playgrounds from local authority cuts;

d) supporting community groups who have taken over responsibility for playgrounds; and

e) tackling the fact that children, especially disabled, in rural and deprived areas often have greater access to outdoor spaces, but encounter greater issues with maintenance, accessibility and inclusivity.

The Business Committee agreed to refer the Regulations to the Finance Committee and the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee, requesting that they report by 19 January 2026, should they wish to, ahead of a scheduled debate on the regulations on Tuesday 20 January 2026.

The Business Committee returned to the matter of referring the Bill for Stage 2 scrutiny. The Trefnydd stated that the Government’s view remained that Stage 2 proceedings should be conducted by the Member Accountability Bill Committee. On the basis that the Trefnydd held a majority of votes, the Business Committee agreed to refer the Bill back to the Member Accountability Committee for Stage 2 proceedings.

Business Managers considered the issues in relation to scheduling committee meetings previously raised by the Member Accountability Bill Committee in correspondence and agreed to return to consider allocating a specific date(s) to the Committee for the purpose of stage 2 proceedings.

The Business Committee noted the letter and an update from the Trefnydd confirming that the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, the Minister for Children and Social Care and the Minister for Mental Health and Wellbeing will attend a general scrutiny session with the Children, Young People and Education Committee in Spring 2026.

The Business Committee considered a paper containing options for restricting or limiting the ability for party spokespeople to ask tabled questions in the same oral question sessions in which they are called to ask spokespeople questions. Business Managers endorsed a proposal made by the Llywydd that guidance be amended to indicate that the number of questions without notice that a spokesperson would be called to ask would be reduced by one, if they have a tabled question on the order paper for that oral question session.

Business Managers discussed the potential for trialling the introduction of time limits for ministerial answers to spokespeople questions. The Trefnydd agreed to discuss with Ministers the need to ensure that answers given are succinct.

The Business Committee considered a number of matters relating to rules and practices surrounding written questions.

Business Managers noted that:

• the Llywydd has asked the Table Office to implement the three-month period in which the same question may not be asked to the same Minister as a rolling period from January 2026, in place of the current termly approach;
• an AI tool is currently being developed to assist the Table Office in checking all questions against those previously answered; and
• the effectiveness of the AI tool would be assessed prior to making any changes to rules and practices of written questions, such as moving from a three to six-month interval in which the same or similar questions may not be asked.