Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 5:28 pm on 9 July 2024.
The discussions between Peter and the Cabinet Secretary and myself around this amendment have been very productive, but that amendment wasn't able to be taken forward. But this one is, and we're happy to support this amendment, which would remove the provision currently contained in the Bill to disapply the statutory requirement for councils to publish council tax changes in printed local newspapers. Not only would this be a retrograde step in terms of upholding the rights of the public to access information, especially those that are digitally excluded, as often highlighted by the Older People's Commissioner for Wales, we also believe that it would deprive local journalism of a vital source of revenue at a time when such media sources are under sustained financial pressure. Wales is particularly poorly served by its media environment, caused in part by the retreat of local journalism from our communities over recent years. This provision of the Bill would undoubtedly compound the issue, which brings with it broader detrimental implications for the democratic health of our nation.