Will the Assembly Commission confirm a) what security checks (for example, the Disclosure and Barring Service checks, vetting checks etc) are in place for prospective members of Assembly staff and b) what organisation or organisations are responsible for carrying out those checks?
The National Assembly for Wales complies with UK National Security Vetting guidelines. Baseline Personnel Security Standard checks are carried out by the National Assembly Vetting Unit. However, higher level National Security Vetting checks, are referred to UK Security Vetting in the Ministry Of Defence.
Currently the National Assembly of Wales does not undertake checks with the Disclosure and Barring Service. However, this is likely to change with the advent of the Youth Parliament and discussions are ongoing to explore this further.