National Assembly for Wales
Funding an Assembly that helps to make a better Wales - the National Assembly for Wales Commission Budget for 2008/9
The Assembly Commission
Created by the Government of Wales Act 2006, the Assembly Commission provides services to support Assembly Members and ensure the National Assembly for Wales can function properly as a democratically elected institution.The purpose of the Assembly Commission is to make the Assembly an accessible and effective parliamentary body that inspires the confidence of the people of Wales.
The Government of Wales Act 2006 maintains that membership of the Assembly Commission will include the Presiding Officer and four other Assembly Members.
The Commission’s Strategic Aims
The Commission’s Strategic Aims are set out below. Providing clear direction for the future of the Assembly, the vision helps prioritise spending plans to ensure that resources are focused on achieving our aims:
We will promote and widen engagement in devolution
The next four years must demonstrate that the Assembly is working for all citizens and encouraging greater and more active participation in the democratic process. We will emphasise the positive impact of the Assembly upon the lives of people in Wales. There will be greater incremental devolution through the 2006 Act, and there may be a referendum for greater legislative competence, we will be ready to grasp these challenges enthusiastically.
We will show unity, leadership and a bold response to constitutional change
The Assembly will show confidence and competence in embracing its new powers. We are united in securing scrutiny and legislation of the best quality, and in supporting Members in all that they do as elected representatives.
In all our work, we will demonstrate respect, probity and good governance
All that we do must be capable of intense external scrutiny, be transparent and should reflect the diverse nature of Wales and its languages in how it deals with and involves the citizen.
We will work sustainably
We will show leadership in how we manage our work and estate, and we aim to provide the highest achievable level of sustainability in both.
We will ensure that the Assembly has the best service, provided in the most effective way
We will take the services provided for Members and the people of Wales to a higher level, whilst demonstrating wise and effective use of its resources and value for money. The ethos of service, to Members and anyone who engages with the Assembly drives everything that we do.
The Commission's services are delivered by the the Assembly Commission Directorates.
Budget overview - the context
We are working in a period of significant change as we get to grips with the challenges of the Government of Wales Act 2006 and the new powers it brings to Wales.
We have planned carefully for the new workload, and restructured the Assembly Parliamentary Service earlier in 2007 to deliver more co-ordinated, streamlined, efficient services. A case in point, even though there was a significant increase (58%) in the business activity of the Assembly during September/October 2007 compared to the same period of 2006, our costs in supporting them have not increased at the same rate.
The 'Welsh block’ budget from HM Treasury is around £15 billion for 2008/9. 0.3% of this is committed to providing the facilities for the National Assembly for Wales. Our new spending plans for 2008/9 add £4.4m (or 10.6%) to the budget for the Commission, and are aligned with the Commission’s strategic priorities. Some of our new spend relates to an increase in staffing backed up with a sound business case. We’ll have circa 360 funded posts in place at April 2008, compared with 337 at April 2006.
Efficiency and value for money are important to us. A full review was undertaken in preparing the 2007/8 budget, identifying £1.4m in efficiencies and savings. The Commission has agreed Procurement Values which balance a number of factors, such as sustainability, with value for money.
Starting point - the 2007/08 Budget
Our Budget Proposals indicate our budget will increase from £33.6m in 2007/8 to £46.2m in 2008/9, but this isn’t comparing like with like, so we explain in the document the four step changes between the two figures:
| Starting point - the 2007/8 budget: | £33.6m | |
|---|---|---|
Step 1 |
In-year adjustments: We expect our budget to be increased in the current year, 2007/8, through a Supplementary Budget Motion. We face new commitments which could not be accurately estimated at the time we set the budget back in October 2006. We flagged these uncertainties in our budget proposals last year, rather than actually seek a budget for them. We’ve now quantified them more accurately, and they have been scrutinised by the Finance Committee. Also, we are taking on about £5m of costs which have previously been met by the Welsh Assembly Government. This isn’t a 'new’ cost - just an adjustment, moving the cost from one organisation to another, recognising the new accounting responsibilities of the Commission. The costs mainly relate to accounting charges for fixed asset investment and usage. |
£8.2m |
Step 2 |
One-offs/exceptional costs: We take off costs which were one-offs during 2007/8, and which won’t recur in future years (£1.4m). We don’t need the budget for these anymore. |
-£1.4m |
Step 3 |
Inflation: We add price and pay inflation. There is no link to step two - the figures are similar by coincidence only. |
£1.4m |
| This gives a 2007/8 comparative budget for 2008/9: | £41.8m | |
Step 4 |
New spending plans: We add the cost of new plans, as explained in the document. |
£4.4m |
| This gives the budget for 2008/9: | £46.2m |
So, comparing the £46.2m with the £41.8m gives a budget increase of just over 10%.
The 2008-2009 Budget
What do the Commission’s Budget Proposals, laid before the Assembly on 21st November 2007 cover? The following outlines the bigger costs:
Financial support for Assembly Members - including salaries, allowances and staff for the 60 elected Assembly Members. |
(pay) £6.7m (allowances) £6.9m |
Assembly staff costs |
£12.7m |
Facilities costs including provision of accommodation, lighting, heating. |
£5.8m |
Accounting charges on fixed assets, reflecting depreciation, and notional interest as required by HM Treasury. |
£4.8m |
Information & Communications Technology - computers, the voting system, broadcasting etc. |
£3.4m |
'Other’ costs - such as engaging with schools, promoting the work of the Assembly to the public, translation services, police costs to provide a security presence; the purchase of stationery and supplies. |
£5.9m |
We also get a small amount of income from renting out space in our offices, and selling Assembly merchandise and Wales-branded goods from our shops in Cardiff Bay and North Wales.
Financial Support for Assembly Members
The levels of salaries and allowances are set out in the Assembly’s Determination, which is updated annually.
Salaries for Assembly Members are as follows:
Assembly Member This is set at 76.6% of an MP’s salary. It is paid to all Assembly Members. The following salaries for office holders are paid in addition to the Assembly Members’ salary. |
£46,496 |
Presiding Officer This amount is comparable with the Scottish Parliament’s and Northern Ireland Assembly’s rate. |
£39,939 |
Deputy Presiding Officer This amount is comparable with the Scottish Parliament’s rate. |
£25,121 |
First Minister This amount is comparable with a Cabinet Minister of the UK Government. |
£76,996
|
Deputy First Minister, Ministers and the Counsel General This amount is comparable with a Minister of State. |
£39,939 |
Deputy Minister This amount is comparable with a Junior Minister in the Scottish Parliament. |
£25,121 |
Committee Chair where applicable (Note - not all Committee Chairs receive this salary) |
£5,819 |
| Leader of the largest Party without an executive role | £39,939 |
Added to salaries are the costs of pensions and national insurance contributions.
Allowances cover the following types of expenditure:
- Travel and subsistence (£0.5m);
- Office costs - to cover the costs of Members furnishing and maintaining an office in the area which they represent (£1.8m);
- Additional costs - reimburses Members for expenses necessarily incurred in staying overnight away from their main home for the purpose of performing their duties as a Member (£0.4m);
- Support staff salaries - each Member can employ up to 3 full time equivalent staff to assist with administrative, clerical or secretarial capacity or to undertake research and casework. Party groups of 3 or more Members are entitled to an allowance to assist them in the discharge of their work in the Assembly (£4.2m).
Every year we publish the amounts paid in allowances to Assembly Members in the preceding year.
What happens next?
The Assembly’s Finance Committee endorsed our budget proposals, following scrutiny of our Draft Budget in October.
The Commission’s revised budget proposals submission was laid 21 November 2007. This revised document takes account of the Finance Committee’s report on the draft budget proposals.
These updated proposals were debated in Plenary on 28 November 2007 and will be included in the Annual Budget Motion to be laid by the Welsh Assembly Government. Once the Annual Budget Motion is agreed, again in Plenary, the Commission will have a green light for its spending plans for 2008/9.
But, this isn’t the end of the process. We keep a keen eye on our finances throughout the year, linking financial performance with service delivery, and reviewing the effectiveness of our work against the aims and objectives agreed.
We hope you find our budget proposals are informative, transparent and, above all, realistic.
