What Price Democracy?

In May 2026, 96 Members will be elected to the Welsh Parliament, or Senedd.? I, along with four others on the Independent Remuneration Board, have the task of deciding how much they should be paid, and what resources should be available to them to enable them to do their job effectively.

We do this already for the 60 current Senedd Members, under our guiding principle that funding decisions will be made ‘in the context of Welsh earnings and the wider financial circumstances of Wales.’? The changes planned for 2026 – more Members, different constituencies, a new electoral system – create an opportunity to go back to first principles and conduct a fundamental review of salaries for Members and their staff, what business costs (such as office rental) and travel expenses they should be allowed to claim, and what additional support is needed to ensure Welsh citizens from all walks of life are not deterred by physical or financial barriers from standing for election.? The budget totals less than half of one per cent of the overall Welsh budget.

Members’ Pay: this is the topic which receives most (social) media coverage.? Comment ranges from ‘they shouldn’t be paid anything’ to ‘pay them high salaries to attract the best and deter corruption’.? We, the Board, must find the right balance, offering value for money for the taxpayer while ensuring standing for election isn’t only for the wealthy.? There is no job description for members of any legislature, which makes our task even more difficult: it is up to Senedd Members to carry out their role as they see fit.? But we do know that Members represent and help their constituents, that they must scrutinise legislation, develop policy, that they are responsible for their staff in what is effectively a micro-business, that this is not a typical 9 to 5 job, that many are constantly in receipt of threats, and that it can be very hard for elected politicians to find another job when they step down or lose their seat.?

So – against whom should they be benchmarked to find the right salary level?? Middle managers?? Deputy Head Teachers?? Social workers?? Senior Civil Servants??

And how should those Members with additional responsibilities (Government Ministers, Committee Chairs) be remunerated?

Members’ Office costs: most Members rent offices in their constituency both to house their staff and to provide a focal point for voters needing their help.? Our Board decides what funds should be made available for staff salaries, and what office costs (such as rent, heating, communications, stationery, travel) they may claim for.

Ways of working have changed, particularly following Covid, and are likely to change even more.? From 2026 there will be six Senedd Members for each of 16 constituencies (the 32 Westminster constituencies will be doubled up) – will they all need offices?? The cases they handle for voters in their patch are unlikely to double in volume/complexity overnight, so how will they allocate the workload?? Will some work from home?? Or will they spend more time travelling around the whole constituency holding local ‘surgeries’ to listen to people’s views?? How much time will they spend in the Senedd on plenary and committee work, how much in the constituency?

There are more questions than answers about future ways of working.? So what are the key elements on which we can base an office budget, and how prescriptive should we be (given Members may only claim against receipts) about the proportion to be used on different costs?

Members’ staff: because Members take different views on how to organise their work we set an overall pay budget (based on three full-time staff) but allow them to decide how to allocate it.? Most have some sort of mix of office administration, casework, research, communications and engagement.? We are reviewing the staff pay and grading framework to update the roles Members are likely to want to fill (for instance, communications has become much more prominent as a key job) and ensure the pay is benchmarked against similar roles in the Welsh market.? This will provide us with the evidence we need to establish a staffing budget for 2026.

Political Groups: our Board also makes funds available to party groups within the Senedd to coordinate their Members, provide research and policy formulation to assist with Welsh Government scrutiny, as well as communications and wellbeing support and services.? Two general principles are that opposition party groups should receive more than those in government, and that the funds may not be used for party political activity.

It is likely that the new electoral system will deliver a wider variety of political representatives to the new Senedd than the current one, and that the way the Groups operate may change – but what the changes may be is not yet clear.? ?

So – how do we arrive at a fair level of funding for Groups to assist their Members?? And what is the role of Groups vis-à-vis that of Members?

The Board is consulting widely on all these questions in two parts.? The first – covering office budgets, political group support, and overnight accommodation – closes on 6 December 2024 and can be found at https://remunerationboard.wales/consultations/open-consultations/

The second – covering Members’ pay and Staff pay and grading – will be launched in April/May 2025, available on the same site.

I look forward to receiving all your constructive comments and suggestions.

Dr Elizabeth Haywood FRSA: Chair, Independent Remuneration Board of the Senedd