Meeting Note – 24 April 2026

Aberdare Hall, Cardiff University

NICW
Dr David Clubb, Chair
Aleena Khan, Commissioner (from 10:45)
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    
  • Welcome

The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting.

  • Notes from previous meeting

The notes from the previous meeting were noted and agreed.  The outstanding actions were updated as follows:

  • The Chair will update the website regarding:
    • The register of interest
    • Graphics from the Infrastructure Cymru Event;
  • Chair will meet with the deputy chair to discuss and finalise the energy briefing for the new government;
  • Nick Tune’s blog about energy security will be reconsidered after the Senedd election;
  • The chair discussed the response he received from the Welsh Government Flood Team.
  • Risk register

Key personnel issue discussed and noted

  • Development day

Helen Lequoq, from Landed Futures joined the meeting to discuss the proposal for a development day.  Commissioners discussed the proposal, making suggestions and refinements to ensure the day remains focused on performance indicators and future proofed remits. 

  • Work Programme

Year 1 Renewable Energy Report

Topics for blog posts were discussed, including

  • the impact of the renewable report.
  • Building regulations and impact on energy efficiency
  • hosting data centres in Wales

Year 2 Flooding

The response from the Welsh Government has already been discussed, discussion therefore focused on the refresh of the Flood and Coastal Erosion Committee under its new chair Dr Roisin Willmott.  Eurgain Powell also noted she has met with Liz Jenkins about the development of a Welsh Flood Forum.

Year 3 Climate Change Adaptation Communication

Helen Armstrong reported that three reports funded as part of the legacy project had been received. It was agreed they would be published on the NICW website, and Helen will arrange for copies to be sent to the Welsh Government’s adaptation team.

The formal letter from the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs was noted. Commissioners discussed next steps, including continuing to challenge Government and strengthening relationships to support meaningful engagement with reports across Welsh Government. There was consensus on revisiting the reports with the new Government.

It was noted that the resilience aspect of the report requires an advocate following Steve Brooks’ departure. The Chair will consider this.

Year 4 – Infrastructure Assessment

Year 4 – Infrastructure Delivery Research

An action was noted to follow up with and thank attendees at the Infrastructure Cymru event once all information is on the website.

Action

Draft blog post about impact of NICW reports: Chair/Deputy Chair

Draft blog post on building reg and or data centres: Chair/Nick Tune

Send legacy report to Adaption Team: Helen Armstrong

Follow up with and thank Infrastructure Cymru event attendees – Secretariat

Nature on Board

The Chair outlined ideas for developing his ideas for a nature guardians resource. 

  • Budget

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

  • Senedd Elections

The briefing paper prepared by Stuart Ingram was discussed, including how to engage with a new government. Building relationships with Senedd Research staff was identified as a way to strengthen influence in the next term. The likelihood of NICW being asked to advise on digital infrastructure was noted, and it was agreed that an early meeting with officials in this area should be arranged.

Action

Arrange meeting with digital leads: Secretariat

  • June 2026 visit

Ideas for a fact-finding visit in June were discussed.  A strong contender was a visit to Port Talbot/Swansea Bay.  The secretariat will investigate.

AOB – none