Meeting Note 27 March 2026

Aberdare Hall, Cardiff University

NICW Dr David Clubb, Chair Aleena Khan, Commissioner Helen Armstrong, Commissioner Nick Tune, Commissioner Dr Eurgain Powell, Commissioner   Programme Office / Welsh Government Stuart Ingram, NICW Programme Office Nicola Britton, NICW Programme Office

Apologies Dr Jenifer Baxter, Deputy Chair Eluned Parrott, Commissioner

• Welcome

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

• Declarations of Interest

Nick Tune has a new advisory role with Cardiff Capital Region beginning on 1 April.  He is also planning to relinquish his role on the Transport for Wales Inclusive Travel Board, which opens up the opportunity to other commissioners.

Action
Update Register of Interest on Website – Chair
Circulate details of TfW travel board – Nick Tune

• Notes from previous meeting

The notes from the previous meeting were noted and agreed.  Actions from previous meeting were discussed however some were postponed until next meeting due to Commissioner absence.

• Risk register: risk of the month – Media Scrutiny or Criticism

This was discussed in depth concluding existing controls were robust and no further measures were needed.

Aleena Khan raised the issue of ‘key person’ availability highlighting gaps created by the chair planning to step down in the summer. This issue has been added to the risk register

• Invitations to events
• The Chair has received an invitation to The Metro and Us taking place on, Thursday 4 June
• Sponsorship of a screening of the National Emergency Briefing at the Cardiff People Planet Pint was discussed. Commissioners agreed, as the film is nonpolitical it could be sponsored.  It was also agreed all political parties will be invited to attend.

Action
Liaise with Sylvia Davies and ensure that all political parties are invited to screening: Eurgain Powell
Circulate joining instructions for The Metro and Us event: Chair

• Infrastructure Cymru 2026; feedback and implications for future work programme

Feedback on the event was positive with a sense it delivered on engagement and high energy.  The conversation focused on how to build on the impact, with ideas covering:

• The practicality of an annual event.  Acknowledgment this would be resource heavy but could be an option for a future minister to consider.
• Creation of a webpage hosting all the information on the event?
• Development of briefing for Senedd research teams.
• Consider including live streaming of events in future comms contracts?
• NICW hosting more in person events such as quarterly or bi-annual networking sessions with industry stakeholders.  Again, this was seen as an issue to consider based on resource allocations. 

The importance of building a forward work programme to build on momentum was discussed and an early work planning/development day is required.

Action
Include option for annual infrastructure event to briefing paper: Chair
Update website about event once all graphics received: Chair
Arrange development day spring 2026:Programme Office

• Work Programme

Year 1 Renewable Energy Report

No more work is progressing on this until after the election. However Nick Tune is interested in how the building regs regulatory landscape is changing, and how current international events highlight energy security /resilience issues.  He will consider writing a blog or letter on these issues.

Year 2 Flooding

It was noted there was a Welsh Government statement about progress on NICWs flooding recommendations.  NICW had not been formerly informed of this.  Eurgain Powell is in touch with Liz Jenkins the new welsh flood forum development manager.  She also noted Roisin Wilmott the new chair of the flood forum is keen to engage with NICW.  It was noted NRW have not responded to our letter.

Year 3 Climate Change Adaptation Communication

The legacy work is ongoing, with a report anticipated by next meeting. There is a meeting on 31 March with Welsh Government regarding their response to the report.

Year 4 – Infrastructure Assessment

Year 4 – Infrastructure Delivery Research

There was a continuation of the discussion about Infrastructure Cymru, focusing on the reports. The creation of a dashboard was identified as a first step in utilising the assessment report.  In addition, the Chair will contact key organisations in each sector with a copy of the report.  To facilitate this the importance of developing and maintaining a stakeholder map was noted

Action

Compare manifesto pledges against report recommendations as a success measure: Programme offic

Draft letter/blog about energy security, and the changing regulatory landscape around wind and home PV: Nick Tune

Update briefing for new minister on energy recommendation: Chair/Deputy Chair

Arrange briefing session with building regs team: Programme Office

Contact WG Flood Team to highlight the issue, highlighting comments in the Senedd committee and the letter from the Chair: Chair

Follow up with NRW Flood Report: Chair

Explore options for creating a dashboard: Chair and Nick Tune

Budget

There is a small overspend for 25/26, however an underspend is forecasted for 26/27.

• Commissioner Updates

The Chair talked about the new recruitment process for public appointments. 

• KPIs for next Commission (provisional, pending new Minister perspective)

The Chair prepared a discussion paper. The conversation emphasised the need to highlight ownership, control, and specificity. Stakeholder relationships and influence were recognised as crucial, but further consideration is needed on how to express them as manageable KPIs.

• AOB

Stuart Ingram will circulate guidance on the pre-election period to Commissioners.

It was noted that Steve Brooks term as a commissioner will be formally terminated on 8 April.