The Welsh Assembly Government is introducing its Local Government Legislative Competence Order today. They are seeking to draw down quite specific powers to legislate on areas that include community councils (their constitution, structure, procedures, capability and service delivery), community reviews, the relations between tiers of local government, councillor allowances and the recruitment and retention of councillors.
It is not clear as yet whether these powers would facilitate the much threatened reorganisation of local government but there are two clear exceptions that appear to have been put for ideological reasons. Apparently the Welsh Government do not want to acquire the power to legislate on the local government franchise or the voting system for the return of members at an election.
That means that there will be no opportunity in the near future to reduce the voting age to 16, a measure that has wide support in the Assembly or for the introduction of fair voting. It means that the contribution both of these policies can make to the other objects of the legislation will be lost.
I can understand a conservative party such as Welsh Labour not wanting to rock the boat but where is Plaid Cymru in all of this? They are meant to be partners in this government and they have long-standing policy on both the voting age and fair voting. Have they not tried to put their point of view? Why are they so content to allow this opportunity to be missed to give the Assembly the full range of powers over local government for the future?
Does this mean that when the next coalition comes to be negotiated we will be reduced to setting up more reviews on fair voting rather than getting on with doing it? Does it mean that at best we will get a commitment to draw down the powers over a four year period without actually doing anything about it? The LCO process is like pulling teeth at the best of times without having to put up with such limited ambitions on the part of the two governing parties.
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