Part of the debate – Senedd Cymru am 5:49 pm ar 28 Mawrth 2023.
I will try to respond to some of Janet's questions in my response now. This supplementary legislative consent motion, like every other LCM, undermines the principles of devolution and fails to adequately address issues surrounding social housing here in Wales. I, therefore, oppose this LCM, and would urge my fellow Members to do so too.
This Bill is an infringement on the powers of the Welsh Government to regulate housing in our country. Housing is a devolved issue, and this Bill interferes with our ability to develop and implement policies that meet the specific needs of our communities. Instead, it seeks to impose a one-size-fits-all approach that may not work for us in Wales. This Bill has not been subject to adequate consultation with the people of Wales. We should be engaging with tenants, housing associations and other stakeholders to ensure that any changes made to the regulation of social housing are in the best interests of the people who rely on these services.
While this sixth LCM looks at very specific issues around the qualifications of managers within social housing in England, it is to do with England. We don’t know if it dovetails with Welsh law, nor if it is appropriate for tenants in Wales. There’s no way of knowing this because we’ve not seen any consultation, and scrutiny has been shockingly inadequate. The fact that there have been so many LCMs demonstrates how the proposed Bill has been changed and adjusted, and how the elected Members of Westminster, and indeed developments in housing in England, are able to influence the Bill—because it is their Bill. But we’ve had almost no voice here in Wales. It will affect the daily lives of tenants who live in Wales, the people who we represent, and yet neither we nor they have had any influence on it. The lack of time to scrutinise and understand the proposed legislation is entirely unacceptable.
The purpose of devolution, as weak as it is, is to give us the power to set policy in specific areas here in Wales, such as health, education, the environment and housing. Transferring those powers back to Westminster is contrary to the will of the people of Wales. It is entirely unacceptable. This Westminster legislation has been designed to meet the needs of England, but we face different challenges here, and Wales must respond to these challenges with our own policy framework. If we’re not able to solve the problems here with the limited powers that we have, then the solution is to demand more powers in order to tackle these challenges, not to surrender them to Westminster.
One of the concerns I’ve previously expressed regarding this LCM is the fact that there is social housing in Wales that comes under the control of housing associations in England, which will be accountable to Westminster legislation instead of being accountable to Welsh legislation. This currently affects around 500 properties, which is not insignificant. Thankfully, the requirements and standards in Wales are higher than in England, and congratulations must go to the Welsh Government for ensuring that. But we must ensure that everyone here in Wales can expect those same standards. Enabling this LCM today means that some social housing in Wales will continue to meet different, and lower, standards. That should not happen, and we must have consistency in terms of our expectations here in Wales.
In conclusion, I urge my colleagues to join me in opposing this LCM on the Social Housing (Regulation) Bill. We need to protect the powers of the Welsh Government to regulate housing in Wales and develop solutions that meet the needs of our communities. Diolch yn fawr iawn.