Janet Finch-Saunders
In welcoming the report, I have to say I’m not quite sure just how much this report will mean to the many who work in our public services across Wales, and particularly those hard-working, front-line deliverers of our vital services in our local authorities. You’ve made particular reference to the Williams commission, and I think I’m not alone among Members here in feeling that the Williams commission was indeed a lost opportunity. Would the Minister just confirm whether he did actually say that he’s implemented 60 of the 62 recommendations, or did I just—? I can always check the Record, but I’d like you to confirm whether you did in fact just say that. If you have, then I think some of us missed that along the way. [Interruption.]
Y Dirprwy Lywydd / The Deputy Presiding Officer
Order. You will have your turn.
Janet Finch-Saunders
I think really the disappointment with this is that there’s a lot of rhetoric in here, Minister, and there’s certainly a great deal of spin, but there is very little—in fact, no mention—as to how public services are delivered in our rural communities, and the difficulties facing those. Of course, your recent settlement has actually just proved once again that you really are not a Government that supports our rural areas.
We talk about the local government reorganisation as being a key, instrumental way of involving and improving our public services, but, again, those plans are in complete disarray. As we stand here today, you have no democratic mandate, there is no guarantee that you’re going to have a democratic mandate after the Assembly elections, and so really it’s fair to say that it’s almost like the blind leading the blind on a document like this.
I can’t disagree about the openness, transparency and democratic accountability that is so important. The Welsh Conservatives have made it very clear—[Interruption.]
Y Dirprwy Lywydd / The Deputy Presiding Officer
Order. The Member is making her contribution.
Janet Finch-Saunders
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. But certainly, where transparency, accountability and financial probity are concerned, you have a great deal of work to do on that—I would say some authorities more than others, and we all know who those are.
Alun Davies
Go on, tell us.
Janet Finch-Saunders
I’ve been scribbling away here.
You mentioned that public services delivered by public servants are best. Now, I would challenge you, Minister, on that statement, because here in Wales, unless our public bodies work more with the third sector, the voluntary sector and indeed the private sector, then I’m afraid that you are literally going to be going around in circles. Public services, with the cuts that you have imposed, cannot continue in the way that they’ve been doing it—spinning around, as my colleague to my left has said.
You spoke of the alternative delivery model in the public service delivery action plan, which mentions the potential for asset or service transfer to a not-for-profit or community group, yet you are so reluctant as a Government to adopt the Localism Act in its full measure, and actually adopt the community right to bid—something that would make a great deal of difference to our local communities, empowering members of the community and allowing local assets, instead of falling into disrepair, to actually remain thriving areas where people can meet and carry out other kinds of work.
In terms of senior salaries, you mentioned that the Welsh Government will manage these in the run-up to mergers in a strategic way, and yet, what did you do in your Local Government (Democracy) (Wales) Act 2013? You voted against us and you would not allow any of our amendments when we said we wanted to roll it out more across the senior managers, and now you say you want to do that.
I do welcome, Minister, that you intend to look at moving away from hypothecated grants for local authority budgets, because for many years now, over the border, they’ve been way ahead of you in terms of actually cutting down on a lot of the administrative costs for some of these grants. For some of them, actually, the administrative costs are actually larger than the actual grants themselves, which is ridiculous.
I do still have concerns that your draft budget allocations do fail to take into account the unique pressures on our rural authorities and no measure of the support for our rural infrastructure.
Finally, you mentioned that you will review the way in which the Welsh Government monitors the performance of local government, and, indeed, I think that there are other public service bodies that need to be monitored. But it’s not about that, is it, Minister? It’s one thing to monitor them, it’s one thing to guide them, but what we need here in Wales is true leadership from the Welsh Government and true leadership from the Minister who actually has the responsibility for delivering our public services across Wales. Thank you.
Leighton Andrews
I have to say, I wonder whether the Member actually listened to a word I said in the statement, because the statement outlined a whole host of actions that this Government has taken to strengthen public services in Wales since the publication of the Williams commission and the Silk commission reports. I’m not going to repeat that, Dirprwy Lywydd, I’m sure you’ll be glad to hear. Let me just pick up a couple of the points that the Member has made that are worth responding to.
In respect of the Williams commission, I said we are implementing 60 out of the 62 recommendations and that is well under way. In respect of having a democratic mandate, I might remind the Member that, in the autumn, this Assembly passed the local government paving Bill. So, it’s very clear that we have a mandate backed by this Assembly. We’re currently consulting on the draft local government Bill and on the preferred map, and we will have the consultation responses in by the middle of February and we’ll report back to the Assembly subsequently on that.
In respect of alternative delivery models, the Minister for Economy, Science and Transport and I actually commissioned the work in this area to identify what can be done, the best practice that’s out there, what can be done to assist community groups, and what can be done to assist local authorities in the delivery of alternative delivery models where they are appropriate.
In respect of senior manager salaries—well, I said in the statement that the Act that we passed obviously strengthens the role of the independent remuneration panel in that area. In respect of monitoring local government, well, again, as I gave evidence on this to committee last week, we have moved to make a raft of information available on the Welsh Government’s website that allows comparison in terms of performance between local authorities, and I think the provision of data and transparency in that area is key.
In respect of the local government settlement, which she spoke about, I will state again, for the record, that the formula that is in place is one that is agreed with local government. There are representatives of local authorities on the distribution sub-group, representatives of Welsh Government, and there are independent Members. That formula has been agreed with local government. I have to say, in respect of rural authorities, it’s important to remember that an authority like Powys, for example, is funded, on a per-head basis, more than authorities such as Cardiff or Swansea. So, we’re clear about the formula.
Let’s be clear about what the Welsh Conservatives are actually talking about. I see my colleague, the Member for Cardiff North, in her place: the Welsh Conservatives are talking about taking money away from Thornhill, from Llanishen, from Whitchurch and from Gabalfa. I see my colleague, the Member for the Vale of Glamorgan, in her place: the Welsh Conservatives are talking about taking money away from Barry. I see my colleague, the Member for Gower, in her place: the Welsh Conservatives are talking about taking money away from Gower. That’s the implication of what the Welsh Conservatives are saying here today.