Senedd members could lose their seats under new plans recommended to the Welsh government.
Currently, there is no mechanism in place to unseat a member of the Senedd (MS) if they are found to have breached the members’ code of conduct.
In Westminster, legislation was introduced in 2015 to remove MPs found guilty of certain offences.
To trigger a by-election, 10% of the electorate need to sign a recall petition within a six-week period.
A recall system is also set to be introduced in the Scottish parliament, with legislation currently being debated at Holyrood.
But the proposed system in Wales would be a ballot rather than a petition, and it would only give voters one day to vote on whether to keep the current member or replace them with the next candidate on the party’s list.
If a recall was recommended as a sanction by the standards committee, it would first need to be ratified by a vote in the Senedd.
The standards of conduct committee heard concerns a seat would remain vacant in the event an independent member of the Senedd with no party affiliations was recalled.
The report calls on the Welsh government to introduce the legislation so recall mechanisms are in place after the next Senedd election in May next year.
Political donations and banning deliberate deception within Welsh politics are also under consideration by the committee as part of a wider inquiry.
The number of members of the Senedd will increase from 60 to 96 at next year’s election.
The voting system will also change, with six members elected to represent 16 regions across Wales.
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Hannah Blythyn, chair of the standards committee, said politicians “must act with decency and integrity” and “should be accountable to the public” if they don’t.
“It’s important that we create a robust system that means that MSs are fully answerable to the people of Wales,” she added.
Ms Blythyn said introducing legislation would “strengthen” the system and “reinforce public confidence in members of the Senedd”.
A Welsh government spokesperson said: “We will consider the committee’s recommendations in detail and respond in due course. We look forward to the committee’s further report on deliberate deception.”
