The Welsh Assembly has launched a consultation seeking comments on its newly-published Sustainable Development discussion paper which sets out current thinking on legislation needed to create a single Sustainable Development body for Wales.
The Welsh Government’s Legislative Programme 2011-16 set out in July this year included a commitment to create an independent sustainable development body for Wales.
The Government now plans to formally consult on the purpose and extent of a Sustainable Development Bill during 2012 and introduce the Bill to the National Assembly the following year.
Last week Environment and Sustainable Development Minister, John Griffiths, outlined his plans for a Sustainable Development Bill to 100 representatives from Wales’ public, private and the third sectors.
Speaking at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium the Minister said:
“Wales is one of only a few administrations in the world which has a statutory duty to sustainable development. We now want to strengthen this duty to ensure that sustainable development is absolutely central to our thinking and to that of the broader public sector in Wales. We think it is a vital commitment to make.
“It demonstrates that we will use sustainable development to make better decisions, across all Ministerial portfolios, to help us achieve our ambition of being a truly sustainable nation.
“The Sustainable Development Bill must make a discernable difference to the everyday lives of our citizens, now and in the future. Our approach to sustainability must be relevant to the way in which public services across the board are shaped and delivered in the future.
“To advise, guide and challenge us on this we are also proposing the creation of a new, statutory independent sustainable body to serve Wales. This is a mark of our strong commitment to sustainable development, and this approach helps set us apart as a nation.”
A Bill to create the new body will be introduced into the National Assembly for Wales in Autumn 2013.
Click here to download the Sustainable Development discussion paper.
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