47.Section 21 requires the Welsh Ministers to prepare a report setting out the way in which, and the extent to which, the Welsh Ministers’ exercise of their functions under the Act over the reporting period has contributed to achieving the objectives in section 4. (This requirement does not encompass the Welsh Ministers’ functions relating to commencement of the Act, however.)
48.The report must be published and laid before Senedd Cymru no later than 12 months after the end of the reporting period. In relation to the first report, the reporting period is the period of two years starting with the date on which the duty to secure services under section 5(1)(c) comes into force to any extent. (So that for instance if section 5(1)(c) is first brought into force as from a particular date in relation to a particular area, the period will start to run as from that date.) Subsequent reporting periods are successive periods of four years.
Commentary on Sections Reporting requirements