National Assembly for Wales

National Assembly for Wales
Name	National Assembly for Wales
Foundation	1999
Dissolved	2020 (reconstituted as Senedd Cymru)
House type	Devolved legislature
Leader1 type	First Presiding Officer
Members	60
Voting system	Additional Member System
Last election	2016
Meeting place	Tŷ Hywel, Cardiff Bay

National Assembly for Wales was the devolved legislature for Wales from 1999 until its reconstitution in 2020 as Senedd Cymru (Welsh Parliament). Established after the Welsh devolution referendum, 1997, it sat at Cardiff Bay in buildings including Tŷ Hywel and the Senedd building. The Assembly exercised legislative competence in many devolved areas following successive statutes including the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the Government of Wales Act 2006, and it operated within the UK constitutional framework defined by the United Kingdom Parliament and accepted precedents from the House of Commons and House of Lords.

History

The Assembly's creation followed the campaign by the Labour Party (UK) in Wales and the 1997 referendum overseen by Gwynfor Evans's legacy and debated by figures like Rhodri Morgan and Geraint Howells. The 1998 Act, enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, established the body and its initial powers, first exercised after the 1999 election contested by Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru, the Conservative Party (UK), and the Liberal Democrats (UK). The Assembly's early years involved the development of executive arrangements overseen by leaders including Alun Michael and Rhodri Morgan, while opposition roles featured politicians such as Ieuan Wyn Jones and Leighton Andrews. The Government of Wales Act 2006 reformed the institution, introducing clearer separation between the Welsh Government (then the Welsh Assembly Government) and the legislature, reflecting debates involving David Cameron and Gordon Brown at the UK level. In 2011, following the Welsh devolution referendum, 2011, the Assembly gained direct law-making powers in devolved areas without needing approval from the United Kingdom Parliament. The Assembly's evolution culminated in the Wales Act 2017 and the 2019-2020 process that saw it renamed in statute as Senedd Cymru, a change linked to activity by the UK Government and Welsh parties including Plaid Cymru and Welsh Labour.

Structure and Powers

The Assembly had a unicameral composition and a membership formula set at 60 Members of the Assembly, reflecting arrangements comparable to other devolved institutions such as the Scottish Parliament and the Northern Ireland Assembly. Its powers derived from statutes such as the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the Government of Wales Act 2006 and were constrained by the continuing sovereignty of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and the prerogative of the Monarch of the United Kingdom. Devolved competencies included areas legislated under Welsh statutes parallel to functions overseen nationally by institutions like NHS Wales and bodies corresponding to Ofsted in England; the Assembly also had budgetary control subject to the Barnett formula and fiscal arrangements negotiated with the HM Treasury. The 2011 referendum removed the need for Orders in Council for many measures, enabling the Assembly to pass Measure of the National Assembly for Wales legislation and later Acts of Senedd Cymru equivalents as powers expanded. Interactions with European frameworks involved obligations under the European Union pre-2020 and post-Brexit arrangements involving the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 debates.

Membership and Elections

Members were elected by the Additional Member System combining First-past-the-post constituency seats and regional list representatives across five electoral regions similar in concept to arrangements used in the Scottish Parliament electoral system. The electoral cycle was nominally four years and later adjusted to five years in line with shifts affecting the Local elections in Wales and other UK cycles. Prominent assembly members over time included Carwyn Jones, Andrew R.T. Davies, Leanne Wood, Mark Drakeford, and Dafydd Elis-Thomas. The Assembly's political composition reflected party competition involving Welsh Labour, Plaid Cymru, the Conservative Party (UK), the Liberal Democrats (UK), and smaller parties and independents such as UKIP during certain election cycles. Electoral administration was overseen by the Electoral Commission (United Kingdom) and local returning officers such as those in Cardiff and Swansea.

Procedures and Committees

Procedural practice in the Assembly mirrored legislative norms found at the House of Commons and the Scottish Parliament, including stages for debating proposals, committee scrutiny, question time and motion debates. The Assembly operated a range of subject committees analogous to committees in other legislatures, for example committees overseeing health, education, and finance; chairs and members included politicians like Jenny Randerson and Christine Chapman. Committees conducted inquiries, summoned witnesses from organizations such as NHS Wales and the Public Health Wales, and produced reports that influenced Welsh Ministers including First Minister of Wales officeholders. The Assembly also established cross-party groups and ad hoc committees to examine legislation and policy, employing officials from the Welsh Parliamentary Service and relying on legal advice from counsel comparable to services used by the Attorney General for England and Wales.

Relationship with the UK Government and Devolution

The Assembly's existence and competences were defined within the UK devolution settlement shaped by negotiations with the Cabinet Office, the Treasury, and UK political leaders such as Tony Blair and John Major historically. Intergovernmental relations involved the Joint Ministerial Committee and mechanisms for dispute resolution with the UK Government and other devolved institutions including the Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive. Controversies over reserved matters, legislative consent motions invoked by the Sewel Convention, and statutory limits were litigated in courts including the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom in cases touching on the assembly's competence. Fiscal and constitutional debates involved parties such as Plaid Cymru advocating extended powers and UK parties setting different positions during negotiations over Brexit, the Wales Act 2014 and subsequent Wales Acts.

Buildings and Facilities

The Assembly met in the purpose-built Senedd building designed by Richard Rogers in Cardiff Bay alongside supporting offices in Tŷ Hywel and administrative facilities at Pierhead Building. The estate included committee rooms, voting lobbies, and public galleries for visitors from institutions such as Cardiff University and community groups across Wales. Security and access arrangements were coordinated with local authorities in Cardiff Bay, the Metropolitan Police Service for certain events, and the Welsh Parliamentary Service managed broadcasting suites used to transmit proceedings to outlets such as the BBC and S4C.

Category:Politics of Wales