General Overview of the Act Part 1 .The Social Partnership Council Section 7- Meetings, procedures and administrative support
28.This section deals with the operation of the SPC. It specifies certain procedures – the frequency of meetings, the chairing of the SPC by the First Minister where possible and arrangements where this is not possible. In circumstances where the SPC is not to be chaired by the First Minister, the SPC will be chaired by another Welsh Minister or Deputy Minister nominated by the First Minister.
29.It also requires that the Welsh Ministers specify and publish all other procedures to be followed by the SPC, together with the quorum for SPC meetings, within six months of section 7(4) coming into force. The publishing of the SPC’s procedures will ensure the greatest possible transparency. The Welsh Ministers may, having consulted with the SPC, amend any of the procedures they have specified and any amendments must be published.
30.The section also specifies matters which the procedures to be published by the Welsh Ministers must deal with and requires the Welsh Ministers to provide administrative support to the SPC.
31.The intention is to provide for a basic framework of procedures without being so prescriptive as to impair the flexibility of the SPC’s work.