Regional Committees
I agreed with the Assembly Presiding Officer's comments on the Assembly in one area: Regional Committees are pretty pointless. However, we are stuck with them until May 2007 at least, and as one of the few Labour back-benchers in the South Wales Central region, I have become chair of the Committee for the next twelve months, since it's Labour's turn to chair it.
Instead of the normal pointless debates which merely replicate the National Assembly's plenary, I will be pushing the Committee to look at areas of policy that are meaningful for the region. The first of these is commuter train services in the region, and we will be meeting in the Cwmaman Institute from 10.00 - 12.30 this Friday 26th May with witnesses including Arriva Trains. The meeting is open to the public and you can put your own questions.