Rejected petition Make the present Oath of Allegiance optional.
Make the present Oath of Allegiance optional in Senedd Cymru.
More details
Welsh MSs should have the option of pledging allegiance to the people of Cymru rather than the King.
They currently have to swear an oath or make an affirmation to the Crown after being elected to take their seats. Still, in Northern Ireland, the rules are different; they can take a pledge of office that does not involve swearing allegiance to King Charles, his heirs and successors.
Welsh Republicans want those taking seats in the Welsh Senedd to have the same option.
This 200-year-old ceremony, initially designed for exclusion to keep out political undesirables, is archaic and undemocratic.
We understand the rules can be changed by legislation in Westminster or by Senedd Cymru if Parliament agrees to transfer the power.
In a modern democratic Cymru, we consider this demand reasonable and wish our Senedd to pursue this request.
Why was this petition rejected?
It’s about something that the Senedd or Welsh Government is not responsible for.
The Government of Wales Act 2006 establishes the extent of the Senedd’s power to make new laws and amend existing law (also known as legislative competence). Schedules 7A and 7B of the 2006 Act set out the issues which are ‘restricted’ or ‘reserved’ - i.e. areas where the UK Parliament, not the Senedd, can legislate.
The requirement to take an oath is set out in section 23(1) of GoWA 2006. As neither the Senedd nor Welsh Government could amend the relevant provision of GoWA without getting consent from the UK Government, it is not possible for the Senedd to amend the requirement that MSs must take an oath to the monarch.
You may wish to consider petitioning the UK Parliament about this issue instead: https://petition.parliament.uk/
We only reject petitions that don’t meet the petition standards
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