The Chief Whip () is a member of the

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filin ...

in 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

Jane Hutt Jane Elizabeth Hutt (born 15 December 1949) is a Welsh Labour politician serving as Welsh Government Chief Whip since 2023, Trefnydd of the Senedd since March 2024 and Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice since July 2024. She has served as ...

since May 2023.

Chief whips

Responsibilities

The main responsibility of Chief Whip is to ensure the Welsh Government's business can go through the Senedd, in particular securing the majority of votes the government holds to vote on its legislative and policy programmes. The chief whip attends the cabinet, and works with the business minister to timetable and secure passage of legislative competence orders and

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) (formerly measures). They also have the role to successfully complete the government's programme of legislation. To maintain their responsibilities, whips use various methods. They manage the attendance of members in Senedd votes, and persuade them to vote with the government. The chief whip is also an important link not only between the government and the parliamentary (majority) party, but also between the government and opposition parties or the Assembly Parliamentary Service (now

Senedd Commission The Senedd Commission () is the corporate body for the Senedd of Wales. The commission is responsible for ensuring the property, staff and services are provided for the Senedd. The commission consists of the Llywydd of the Senedd and four memb ...

) and presiding office. The chief whip would attends regular weekly meetings with key figures to discuss the Senedd's business arrangements, as well as cabinet meetings. They have daily contact with these key figures to deal with ongoing matters, timetabling and agenda issues. When legislation is to be passed, or for some other government business, discussions may arise between the chief whip and opposition whips, the minister overseeing Senedd business, or the whips' designated "shadow" counterpart, to resolve difficulties arising with amendments, the timing of a vote, and to resolve such issues a deal may be reached. The chief whip also has contact with other whips concerning various matters, such as "pairing" and the intermittent filling of committee vacancies. The chief whip also manages the membership of committees and sub-committees. Discussions may follow these channels for other matters, such as changes coming from or presented to the Business Committee. The chief whip also ensures that backbenchers use their electronic votes correctly. The whip (document) is circulated each week by whips of each party to their members and sets out the list of business for the following week, as well as the party's expectations for when Senedd members are to vote. To minimise the persuasion required for backbenchers to support the government, the Chief Whip advises the cabinet over the likely acceptability of any of its legislative proposals.

References

{{Wales topics Politics of Wales Ministerial posts of the Welsh Government Political whips

Chief whips

Responsibilities

See also

References