1. How does the Senedd Commission promote the importance of sustainability and protecting the natural environment on the Senedd estate? OQ61138

I'd like to thank the Member, because it's important that we actually keep the natural environment in everything that we do here in the Senedd Commission. I went to see the bees last week. I believe you've been as well.

Yesterday.

Amazing. I would just say in my response to you that any Member who hasn't been up to see the bees, you must go, and you can buy the honey. 

The Commission takes the sustainability portfolio very seriously. We have an externally verified environmental system in place, and we were the first UK legislature to publish a carbon-neutral strategy. We do publish progress updates in our sustainability annual report. We've made significant reductions to energy consumption over the past two winters, at a time when prices rose significantly, and we’ve provided staff with energy advice when they were themselves facing higher bills at home. We run a bike and environment week for staff in June. This year, we will be helping people with low-carbon travel and clothing repairs. We’ve made extensive improvements to the Senedd estate to support biodiversity, including the wildflower strip alongside the Senedd, extended garden areas, beehives, bug hotels and ponds. We’ve also done work in terms of hedgehog recovery, nature recovery. We’ve run biodiversity and well-being walks for staff in early May to explore those areas, and a local primary school have also visited the beehive earlier this month.

Thank you for that. It’s really pleasing to hear about all that goes on; it would be great to promote it on the Senedd website as well. I did look on the Senedd website and that’s where I heard about the bees, so I went to see them yesterday and really enjoyed the visit—thank you.

I recently sponsored a Senedd biodiversity day, bringing together 25 organisations from across Wales to showcase their hard work and dedication to promoting the importance of biodiversity and protecting our wildlife and natural habitats. I also advertised it to the public as well—it was a public event—and I have discovered that some visitors to the bay didn’t realise before that they can visit the Senedd without booking, and that the entrance isn’t very clear. So, as I said, the event was really well attended and received, by members of the public as well as Members of the Senedd, and it was lovely to see them enjoying it, and each organisation brought in a colourful array of objects as well and displays.

So, would you consider making the Senedd biodiversity day an annual event? Because they’d like to see that happen again. Maybe the first week in May would be really good. And would you look at finding new ways to promoting that the Senedd is open to the public? It was great yesterday, when I came in through the main entrance, to see an A-frame outside saying ‘entrance this way’. And I thought that was a really good initiative.

Thank you. Yes, of course, I’ll take those points on board and, when we next meet as a Commission, I will raise those, but I would like to thank you for hosting the event that you did. In fact, some of my constituents attended that event, so that just shows how you reach out when you hold such an event. As far as having a Senedd biodiversity day again, I can’t see any problem with that, but, again, I will raise it. It seems a no-brainer to have one.

We’ve committed to being an anchor client for the Cardiff Heat Network, which will provide our estate with low-carbon heat. Our connection to the network is currently being constructed. We’ve worked with RSPB Cymru and Buglife to make the Senedd estate an urban buzz area, to promote biodiversity. In our carbon strategy, we’ve committed to doubling the green space on the estate. We’re already making progress with this, with a larger garden strip in Tŷ Hywel car park, incorporating many pollinator-friendly plants. We do not use harmful chemicals to reduce weeds on the estate, instead employing vinegar or mechanical means. Changing the way we cut the vegetation alongside the Senedd has turned the land into—and this is really, really important stuff—an important wildflower strip, including two species of orchid, and many more insects are now present. We publish extensive sustainability data each year, both in the stand-alone report and the annual report and accounts. Our canteen sources food from around Wales where possible, and has recently gained the Soil Association’s Food For Life award. We have low rates of food waste and any leftovers and waste staff food are sent locally for composting. We have converted almost the whole estate to run on more efficient LED lights, and that again is really important work. We promote sustainable and active travel, with extensive facilities for cyclists and electric vehicle drivers, and we’ve recently completed the healthy travel workplace charter as part of the Cardiff public services board group.

In saying all that, I would like to thank the team led by Matthew Jones, because behind us all politicians there are people working in the background. It was Matthew that took me up to see the bees and he and his team are to be commended, and the Senedd Commission, to be fair, for all the work that we’re doing in terms of this. It’s important to us all, as Commissioners. Thank you—diolch.

Question 2 to be answered by Hefin David and asked by Gareth Davies.