27th February 2003

Richard Commission
Caradog House
1/6 Saint Andrews Place
CARDIFF
CF10 3BE

Dear Sir

I write in a personal capacity in response to the Richard Commission Consultation on the Powers of the National Assembly for Wales. The Trust has made its own formal response, which includes some of the following points: -

• In what practical ways do the powers of the Assembly, or the limits on its powers, impinge on you, your organisation or the people whom you serve and what are the best examples of this from your point of view?

There remains confusion as to what aspects of public service are under the auspices of the Assembly and what lies beyond its remit. The confusion is compounded where public sector systems operate with different structures, under different funding arrangements aiming to meet different targets. This is most obvious in the case of the NHS where co-operation and joint working in border regions is being undermined by this incompatibility. This leads to intense frustration as staff devote time and energy to overcoming administrative problems and a sense of deprivation amongst staff and patients when the imbalances in service provision and opportunity are observed. This recognition of imbalance also affects the ability of Trusts to recruit from a relatively mobile professional workforce.

• Does the Government of Wales Act provide the Assembly with the powers it needs to operate effectively and meet the expectations of the people of Wales?

No, as with the Assembly only having partial influence across the public sector, it is unable to deliver consistent and integrated services. However, further extension of the Assembly's powers is unlikely to improve matters. The Principality is too small, and the variation in local needs too great, to enable these needs to be effectively met through a process of further devolution. I do not believe that Wales has the economic strength to accommodate tax-varying powers.

• If the Assembly were to acquire greater law making powers, is it inevitable that it would need to be reconstituted on the parliamentary model?

Strengthening the powers of the Assembly would necessitate the size of the Assembly being increased, both amongst elected members to achieve the intellectual critical mass required to enable informed debate, and amongst its supporting staff to accommodate the consequent workload. I do not believe that the additional cost of this would yield commensurate benefits for the people of Wales.

• How effective has the Assembly been in influencing UK Government policy making in relation to Wales - what are the practical examples which illustrate the strengths and weaknesses of the process?

I am not aware of any instance in which the Assembly has been able to influence decisions in Westminster.

• What are the advantages and disadvantages in principle of having a law making process which is shared between Cardiff and Westminster and what are the respective contribution of AMs, MPs and Peers?

The disadvantages include the prospect of confusion, lack of clarity over responsibilities and increased delay in the passing of legislation. I find it difficult to evaluate the respective contributions of AMs, MPs and Peers because of the inherent confusion of the current arrangements.

• What would be gained or lost if powers to make fundamental policy chi3nges through primary legislation were passed from Westminster to Cardiff?

As noted above, further divergence of policy will undermine the provision of services that have to operate across national borders or that have to cooperate with equivalent bodies working within a different system within England.

• How should we evaluate the costs and benefits of moving to a different form of devolution in Wales?

Any process of evaluation must be open and transparent. The calculation of costs and benefits should embrace all populations, not just those close to the new powers. Benefits should also reflect the tangible outcomes and results of initiatives and not just measure the levels of investment. I also believe that a starting point should be the experience of the past four years - within an NHS context it appears clear that Wales has lost out considerably in comparison to England in new investment and consequent ability to tackle waiting times.

• Funding Streams

The differences in funding streams within the NHS in England and Wales are not made clear to the electorate, resulting in inappropriately raised expectations which local providers are left to resolve.

I trust that you find the above responses and comments helpful.

Yours sincerely

HILARY PEPLER
CHIEF EXECUTIVE