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Saturday
21  December

£18m annual cost for larger Senedd

 
20/12/2024 @ 10:12

Plans for a larger Welsh Parliament with more members, including several covering a new Gwynedd Maldwyn constituency, have been slammed by the local Senedd Member.

Plans have been published to add another 36 members to the Senedd and to change the name of new constituencies, including Gwynedd Maldwyn for the current Montgomeryshire area.

The Democracy and Boundary Commission Cymru will make a final decision in March next year.

Russell George, MS for Montgomeryshire, said: “The proposed new constituency of Gwynedd Maldwyn is a vast area, linking very different parts of Wales. No longer would just one member represent a constituency, but several Senedd Members would represent a much larger area. 

"In my view, the link between constituent and the Senedd member will be lost. Voters understand and expect to have a close relationship with their constituency member and to be able to hold them accountable if not.
 
"There is no public mandate for either a larger Senedd or for the proposed changes to the voting system, so none of these proposals should be implemented, and certainly not without the public having their say in a referendum.
 
"All this will cost up to £18 million a year, or the equivalent of 650 nurses. Not once have I knocked on a door and spoken to a resident that thinks the solution to Wales’ problems is to spend countless millions in perpetuity on more politicians, and it’s my view that we do not need more politicians, what we really need is more doctors, dentists, and teachers.”