Plaid Cymru’s Kiera Marshall shared her experience during the Senedd Commission’s first questions session following the summer recess on Wednesday, September 23.
The Caerdydd Penarth MS, who is a new mother, said she struggled to find somewhere suitable to pump when she first started working at the Senedd.
She said: “I was initially offered the medical room, but it only had a bed in it and you can’t pump lying down and I do need a desk and chair to work and I couldn’t possibly lose two hours of my working day.
“I was then offered the quiet room, but if you look on the intranet, this room is listed as a place for prayer and contemplation, so that wasn’t appropriate.
“I then had to use a printing room which had no lock on the door until I got in touch with the Senedd estate and it also had no access then to the fridge that was in the medical room.”
Noting that the Senedd aims to be ‘family-friendly and inclusive,’ she called for the commission to create a dedicated space to allow mothers to continue working while expressing.
Huw Irranca-Davies, the Senedd’s Llywydd (presiding officer) and chair of the commission, thanked Ms Marshall and pledged to take her suggestions forward.
Questions over the future of Tŷ Hywel, the red-brick building next to the Senedd which houses MSs and staff, were also raised in the session by Reform’s Caerdydd Penarth MS Joe Martin.
In 2032, the 25-year lease for Tŷ Hywel will expire – meaning the Senedd must decide its next steps regarding the building – with the project dubbed ‘Bay 32’.
Mr Irranca-Davies said that following a competitive procurement, the best value option was a major refurbishment and lease renewal of Tŷ Hywel, with the potential for commission ownership.
Previously owned by Kuwaiti investors, the building was bought by Equitix – a London-based infrastructure fund manager – in 2019.
He said: “Equitix is the preferred bidder and its proposal includes more than £50 million of landlord investment in the building.
“This is planned to include increasing the amount of usable space in Tŷ Hywel by 25 per cent. The project is now in detailed design during a pre-development phase with capped costs to the commission.”
Catherine Cullen, Reform MS for Blaenau Gwent Caerffili Rhymni, challenged the commission over access to ‘range of news media platforms’ across the Senedd estate.
GB News was removed from the Senedd’s internal TV system in 2023.
At the time, a spokesperson for then presiding officer Elin Jones said it was because of a ‘deliberately offensive’ broadcast by TV actor-turned right-wing commentator Laurence Fox.
In response, Mr Irranca-Davies confirmed staff and members can access all major news outlets on Senedd devices and laptops.
He added that internal television broadcasting remains under ongoing discussion by commissioners.
