Future generations and long-term politics: A study on the well-being of future generations (wales) act

Abstract

In 2015, the National Assembly for Wales passed the Future Generations Welfare Act. The Act, in force since 2016, whose objective is to guarantee the well-being of future generations, established the Commissioner for Future Generations of Wales as the body in charge of supervising and auditing that public administrations orient their policies towards previously well-being objectives agreed and based on the principle of sustainable development. In the fourth year of its establishment, the Commissioner has published its first evaluation report (2020) on the fulfilment of the welfare objectives of future generations. This article aims to analyse Welsh law for the welfare of future generations, the Commissioner, and the possibilities that this type of institution opens up to safeguard the interests of future generations and mitigate the problems associated with political short-termism.