8.6 The Welsh Act in action

It means that Wales is actively working to build a circular economy through incentives to support reuse, repair and remanufacturing of products and materials. Already, this small country has become a world leader in terms of recycling rates and the capacity of renewable energy projects in Wales (based on electricity and heat) has nearly quadrupled over the last decade. The 2021 Wales Circular Economy Strategy, Beyond Recycling describes next steps, including sustainable public sector procurement, a Circular Economy Fund for Business to help businesses adopt circular economy processes and improve their resource efficiency, a Net Zero Skills Plan to build circular economy knowledge and skills across all sectors, expansions of the Repair Café network and ‘Libraries of Things’ (which offer people an opportunity to borrow items they need, sharing resources that are already in their local area), redistribution of surplus food, and a programme of legislation to implement Extended Producer Responsibility as well as further bans on single-use plastics.  

Wales has placed the climate and ecological emergency at the heart of decision-making on future infrastructure spending. In 2017, Sophie Howe successfully challenged plans for a £1.1bn M4 motorway relief road. She argued that the proposal should be rejected on the grounds that the trade-offs required for the project promoted the domain of economic wellbeing at the expense of social and environmental wellbeing, meaning it was not in line with the spirit of the Well-being of Future Generations Act. The proposed motorway was ultimately rejected and in June 2021, Welsh deputy Minister for Climate Change, Lee Waters, announced a freeze on all new road building plans, arguing that “We need a shift away from spending money on projects that encourage more people to drive, and spend more money on maintaining our roads and investing in real alternatives that give people a meaningful choice” [1].

Wales is further piloting a Basic Income scheme for their most vulnerable young people and has invested in a four-year evaluation of the pilot, running from 2022 to 2026, to gain valuable insights into its effectiveness. Meanwhile, the number of people feeling that they can influence decisions affecting their local area has increased from 19% to 30% between 2018-19 and 2021-2022. And 16- and 17-year-olds now have a right to vote in Welsh Parliament and Local Government elections, enabling them to have a say on their future. 

All in all, it tells an inspiring story of how a small nation can act big on redesigning governance for intergenerational wellbeing.