Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Act 2024

PART 5 REVIEW OF OPERATION OF ACT ETC. AND GENERAL PROVISIONS

Review of operation of Act etc.

19 Review of operation of Act etc. after 2026 general election

(1) The Presiding Officer must table a motion that complies with subsection (2)—

(a) as soon as practicable after the first meeting of the Senedd following the first general election held after 6 April 2026, and

(b) in any event, no later than six months after the first meeting of the Senedd following that election.

(2) The motion must propose that—

(a) the Senedd establish a committee for the purpose of carrying out a review of—

(i) the operation and effect of the provisions of the 2006 Act that are amended, or inserted into that Act, by Parts 1 and 2 of this Act (the Senedd and its Members, the number of Welsh Ministers, and the voting system in general elections etc.);

(ii) the extent to which the elements of a healthy democracy are present in Wales, and

(b) a report on the review must be completed by the committee no later than twelve months after the first meeting of the Senedd following the first general election held after 6 April 2026.

(3) Subsection (4) applies if, following a review of any of the matters mentioned in subsection (2)(a) by a committee established pursuant to a motion tabled in accordance with subsection (1), a report on the review is laid before the Senedd by the committee.

(4) If this subsection applies, the Welsh Ministers must lay before the Senedd a statement that sets out the Welsh Ministers’ response to the report mentioned in subsection (3).

General

20 Power to make consequential, transitional etc. provision

(1) If the Welsh Ministers consider it appropriate for the purposes of, in consequence of, or for giving full effect to any provision of this Act or made under this Act they may, by regulations, make—

(a) supplementary, incidental or consequential provision;

(b) transitional, transitory or saving provision.

(2) Regulations under subsection (1) may amend, repeal, revoke or modify this Act or any other enactment (whenever passed or made).

21 Power to set Senedd election campaign expenditure limits in connection with section 1 and Part 2

(1) The Welsh Minsters may by regulations, in connection with section 1 and Part 2, amend paragraph 6 of Schedule 9 to the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 (c. 41) (limits on campaign expenditure) to set the limits applying to campaign expenditure incurred by or on behalf of a registered party that contests one or more constituencies at a general election.

(2) Regulations under subsection (1) may set limits by reference to either or both—

(a) the number of constituencies contested by a party at a general election;

(b) the number of candidates on a list submitted by a party under section 7 of the 2006 Act.

(3) Regulations under subsection (1) may make—

(a) supplementary, incidental or consequential provision;

(b) transitional, transitory or saving provision,

and such provision may amend, repeal, revoke or modify this Act or any other enactment (whenever passed or made).

(4) The Welsh Ministers may make regulations under subsection (1) only with the consent of the Electoral Commission.

(5) In this section, “campaign expenditure” and “registered party” have the same meaning as in paragraph 6 of Schedule 9 to the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000.

22 Regulations under this Act

(1) This section does not apply to regulations made under paragraph 9 of Schedule 2.

(2) A power to make regulations under this Act is exercisable by statutory instrument.

(3) A power to make regulations under this Act includes power to make‍ different provision for different purposes‍.‍

(4) A statutory instrument containing regulations‍—

(a) made under section 20 that amend, repeal or modify an enactment contained in primary legislation, or

(b) made under section 21,‍

may not be made unless a draft of the instrument has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, the Senedd.

(5) Any other statutory instrument containing regulations made under section 20 is subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of the Senedd.

(6) In this section, “primary legislation” means—

(a) an Act of Senedd Cymru;

(b) an Assembly Measure;

(c) an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

23 Interpretation

In this Act—

• “the 2006 Act” (“Deddf 2006”) is to be interpreted in accordance with section 1;

• “the 2013 Act” (“Deddf 2013”) is to be interpreted in accordance with section 11(2);

• “general election” (“etholiad cyffredinol”) means an ordinary general election or an extraordinary general election held under Part 1 of the 2006 Act;

• “the Senedd” (“y Senedd”) means Senedd Cymru.

24 Transitional provision relating to Parts 1 and 2

(1) Despite the coming into force, under section 25(2)(a) and (b), of the amendments made by sections 1 and 2 and Part 2, they do not have effect in relation to—

(a) a general election the poll for which is held on or before 6 April 2026;

(b) a Senedd returned at a general election the poll for which is held on or before 6 April 2026 (which includes the Senedd that passed the Bill for this Act);

(c) the return of a Member to a Senedd mentioned in paragraph (b) (at a general election or otherwise).

(2) Despite the coming into force, under section 25(2)(a), of the amendment made by section 6, it does not have effect in relation to a person who is a Member of, or a candidate (whether or not at a general election) to be a Member of, a Senedd mentioned in subsection (1)(b).

(3) If, under section 25(3), section 3 comes into force on the day after the day of the poll for an extraordinary general election, subsection (4) applies for the purposes of determining when the first ordinary general election that follows that extraordinary general election is to be held.

(4) If this subsection applies, section 3(1) of the 2006 Act is to be read as if for the words “the fourth calendar year following that in which the previous ordinary election was held” there were substituted “2030”.

25 Coming into force

(1) The following provisions come into force on the day after the day on which this Act receives Royal Assent—

(a) Part 3;

(b) section 17 and Schedule 2;

(c) this Part, other than‍ sections 19 and 21.

(2) The following provisions come into force at the end of the period of two months beginning with the day on which this Act receives Royal Assent—

(a) sections 1, 2, 6 and 7;

(b) Part 2;

(c) section 18 and Schedule 3;

(d) section 19‍;

(e) section 21.

(3) Section 3 comes into force on the day after the day of the poll for the first general election held after 7 November 2025.

(4) Sections‍ 4 and 5 come into force on the day after the day of the poll for the first general election held after 6 April 2026.

26 Short title

The short title of this Act is the Senedd Cymru (Members and Elections) Act 2024.