The Cabinet Secretary for Transport () is a minister of the

Welsh Government The Welsh Government ( ) is the Executive (government), executive arm of the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of Cabinet secretary, cabinet secretaries and Minister of State, ministers. It is led by the F ...

. The current officeholder is

Ken Skates Kenneth Christian Skates (born 2 April 1976) is a Welsh Labour politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales since March 2024. Skates has represented the constituency of Clwyd South in the Senedd since the elect ...

, since March 2024.

Holders of the role

Background

Following the

2021 Senedd election The 2021 Senedd election took place on Thursday 6 May 2021 to elect 60 members to the Senedd (Welsh Parliament; ). It was the sixth Devolution in the United Kingdom, devolved general election since the Senedd (formerly the National Assembly for ...

First Minister of Wales The first minister of Wales () is the leader of the Welsh Government and keeper of the Welsh Seal. The first minister chairs the Welsh Cabinet and is primarily responsible for the formulation, development and presentation of Welsh Government po ...

Mark Drakeford Mark Drakeford (born 19 September 1954) is a Welsh politician who has served as Cabinet Secretary for Finance since September 2024, having previously held the position from 2016 to 2018. He previously served as First Minister of Wales and L ...

announced in the formation of the next Welsh government, that he would form a "super-ministry" centred on climate change, combining the portfolios of the environment,

energy Energy () is the physical quantity, quantitative physical property, property that is transferred to a physical body, body or to a physical system, recognizable in the performance of Work (thermodynamics), work and in the form of heat and l ...

housing Housing refers to a property containing one or more Shelter (building), shelter as a living space. Housing spaces are inhabited either by individuals or a collective group of people. Housing is also referred to as a human need and right to ...

planning Planning is the process of thinking regarding the activities required to achieve a desired goal. Planning is based on foresight, the fundamental capacity for mental time travel. Some researchers regard the evolution of forethought - the cap ...

and

transport Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

. It would be headed by a

Minister for Climate Change Minister may refer to: * Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric ** Minister (Catholic Church) * Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department) ** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...

(announced to be Julie James MS), with a deputy minister assisting the government division. The position partly oversees transport in Wales, with the position also referred to by derivatives of the old name such as "transport minister". Waters, the holder from 2021, oversaw during his period in the position, the increased introduction of 20 mph zones in Wales, conducting a roads review involving scaling back new road construction, and overseeing the impact of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

on public

transport in Wales Transport in Wales is heavily influenced by the country's geography. Wales is predominantly hilly or mountainous, and the main settlements lie on the coasts of north and south Wales, while mid Wales and west Wales are lightly populated. The m ...

, such as buses.

Responsibilities

The responsibilities of the post are: * Transport ** Transport policy **

Transport for Wales Transport for Wales (TfW; ; ) is a not-for-profit company owned by the Welsh Government and managed at arms length by its appointed board. TfW oversees the Transport for Wales Group (TfW Group) consisting of itself and its subsidiaries: Trans ...

** Roads, including road construction and improvement, as well as the maintenance of trunk roads and motorways. ** Bus services ** Rail services through management of the Wales and Borders franchise ** Overseeing

Cardiff Airport Cardiff Airport () is an airport in Rhoose, Vale of Glamorgan. It is the only airport offering commercial passenger services and cargo services in Wales. The airport is owned by the Welsh Government, operating it at arm's length as a commercia ...

at an arms-length **

Active travel Active mobility, soft mobility, active travel, active transport or active transportation is the transport of Travel, people or Good (economics), goods, through non-motorized means, based around human physical activity. The best-known forms of ac ...

** Road safety; such as creating safer routes to schools; overseeing children's and young people transport; the regulation of on-street parking and pedestrian crossings.

References

{{Wales topics Politics of Wales Ministerial posts of the Welsh Government Environmental issues in Wales Housing in Wales

Holders of the role

Background

Responsibilities

See also

References