MSs reject referendum on reforms
MEMBERS of the Senedd have rejected calls for the public to be given the final say on contentious plans to expand the Senedd and change the electoral system.
Labour, Plaid Cymru and the Lib Dems voted down a Conservative amendment for a referendum on the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Bill following stage two of its debate.
Under the bill, the Senedd would increase from 60 to 96 members and a full form of proportional representation would be used in elections from 2026.
The 32 constituencies in the next general election will be combined to create 16 for the next Senedd poll, with each returning six members.
The Conservatives’ shadow constitution minister Darren Millar argued the overwhelming majority of the public do not support expanding the Senedd or changing its electoral system.
He disputed claims there is a public mandate for the reforms as he criticised “scant” references to Senedd reform in Labour and Plaid Cymru’s manifestos.
He accused Plaid Cymru of abandoning a commitment to pursue the single transferable vote electoral system, which would allow voters to rank candidates.
Mr Millar said: “It is abundantly clear that neither Labour nor Plaid Cymru voters at the last Senedd elections have given the green light for the reforms this bill seeks to introduce.”
He told the chamber: “The reality is you’re all frightened of a referendum because you know full well that those proposals would be roundly rejected by the people of Wales.”
Mike Hedges, a Labour backbencher, pointed out there was no vote on the method of election for police and crime commissioners or mayors in England.
Heledd Fychan, for Plaid Cymru, told the chamber more than 63% of the vote in the 2021 election went to parties that had committed to Senedd reform. She said: “It is beyond any reasonable doubt that there is a democratic mandate.”
Wales’ constitution minister Mick Antoniw, the member in charge of the bill, said a compelling case for reform had been made in expert reports which were endorsed by three of the four political parties.
Mr Antoniw told MSs the Wales Act 2017, which gave the Senedd control over its electoral system for the first time, does not include any referendum requirement.
MSs voted down the Tory amendment. Following the two-day two-stage debate, the bill now moves on to stage three – which will see further amendments debated and is expected to be held in late April.