Wednesday 12 October 2011

Petitions Committee call for evidence

My petitions were, of course, for the filming of council meetings and the publication of local authority spending details over £500. The petitions committee at the Senedd has written to the local papers (not sure if it appears elsewhere) including the South Wales Evening Post and the Carmarthen Journal asking for interested parties and individuals to submit evidence for consideration by November 3rd. (number 3. is not mine);

"The Petitions Committee of the Assembly has recently received petitions on wind turbines, the filming of council meetings and local authority spending. These petitions have now finished collecting signatures and are before the Petitions Committee for consideration. We are interested in receiving views from individuals, groups and organisations on the subjects of these petitions. They are as follows:

1. Filming and recording of council meetings. This petition calls for councils across the country to allow the public to film proceedings. We would like to know whether it is felt that the actions called for in the petition are reasonable and/or feasible.

2. Local authority spending details over £500. This petition calls for details of local authority expenditure over £500 to be made public. Do your readers feel that this information should be published? If so, should this be mandatory or encouraged as best practice? What barriers could there be to providing this information publicly? Do people feel that £500 and over is the appropriate level of spend to be published?

3. Control of noise nuisance from wind turbines. This petition calls for restrictions on the noise caused by wind turbines in Wales. We would like to know what the public and those with particular knowledge of wind energy have to say about this issue.

Any views received will be used as evidence by the Petitions Committee in its consideration of the petitions — and I would just like to emphasise that we are looking for evidence on the subjects of these petitions, rather than support, or otherwise, for them.

If your readers would like to submit evidence, we would be grateful to receive it by November 3. Further guidance on the submission of evidence can be found at http://www.senedd.assemblywales.org/

William Powell
Chair Petitions Committee
National Assembly for Wales"

No comments: