Timetable to increase number of AMs

The Assembly currently has 60 AMs, though the Senedd was designed with room for 80. Credit: Senedd TV

The Assembly has appointed a panel of experts to look at how many AMs there should be in future, how they should be elected and whether the voting age should be lowered. It's an independent panel but the Assembly Commission, which consists of the Presiding Officer and representatives of the different political parties, are clear that more AMs are needed.

The panel has been told to report by this autumn, after which a group of AMs chaired by the Presiding Officer will decide what is politically feasible. If there's enough agreement, the Assembly will use its new powers under the Wales Act to make the changes in time for the next election in 2021. The members of the expert panel are:

  • Prof Laura McAllister CBE, Wales Governance Centre

  • Prof Rosie Campbell, University of London

  • Prof Sarah Childs, University of Bristol

  • Prof David Farrell, University College Dublin

  • Dr Alan Renwick, University College London

  • Rob Clements, Former Director, House of Commons Service Delivery

  • Sir Paul Silk, Former Chair, Commission on Devolution in Wales