, Plenary
Statement by the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution: The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill
Thank you for those questions, and perhaps just one statistic to put in to add to those: of course, within Wales alone, in one year—or, I think, in the last two years—there have been produced an estimated 100 million plastic cup lids. So, that’s an…
, Plenary
Statement by the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution: The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill
Can I firstly thank the Member for the earlier comments? The point I think I do agree with is that the issue of single-use plastic, the contamination of our environment, the need to tackle that challenge, is a global one, but it's one where we have to do what…
, Plenary
Statement by the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution: The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill
People and businesses in Wales are already making changes. As a Government, we are committed to supporting them, building on their enthusiasm for change. People are demanding that this Government and their Senedd builds on their efforts, and that is what this…
, Plenary
Statement by the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution: The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill
Plastic products have supported technological development in areas like healthcare, workplace safety and energy efficiency. Yet, these benefits have come with a growing environmental cost that is not sustainable. As part of developing a more responsible…
, Plenary
Statement by the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution: The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Today, the Minister for Climate Change laid the Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Wales) Bill together with the explanatory memorandum before the Senedd. I am making this address, as she cannot be…
, Plenary
Short Debate: Votes at 16: Giving young people the tools to understand the world in which they live, and how to change it, through political education
Giving our young people the tools to realise what it means to become ethical, informed citizens of Wales and the world is a fundamental part of civic education. It involves teaching about democracy, our society and how we can all take part, and it's also…
, Plenary
Short Debate: Votes at 16: Giving young people the tools to understand the world in which they live, and how to change it, through political education
Thank you, Dirprwy Llywdd. I'd like to thank the Member for bringing the debate forward today on votes at 16.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
Thanks, everyone.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I'm happy to have engagement on anything that helps to build up our understanding of this process to make it work as effectively as possible. So, the answer is 'yes'. Obviously, there is clear delineation in respect of the scrutiny of the Executive and…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
No, I think it's one that's obviously got to engage. Individual Members' Bills belong to the Members and to the Senedd itself. I think it's very important for two reasons: so people, hopefully, will all be on board with the whole concept of consolidation of…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
Well, thanks for that. I mean, you're right—a lot of the questions today have dealt very much with a lot of quite technical aspects. The areas that we'll be looking at in terms of—. I will be making a further statement or further report in the autumn, where I…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
On the powers point, generally, I think the overall effect of this consolidation Bill is that we would be relying on subordinate legislation far less than we actually do now. We have, within the Bill, omitted some powers to make subordinate legislation that…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
Thanks. Well, if we deal with that first point with regard to section 100, because the reason for the change in section 100 is basically to just improve the consistency. But I'll go to James on this, on that part, and then perhaps go on to the other point…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
Well, you see within all the papers that are in front of you, you've got the drafters' notes, you've got the tables of origins and derivations et cetera. Those are incredibly detailed and I think are very helpful. I think, generally, as far as subordinate…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I think, as you say, the panel has never been set up. I suppose the question is whether there was any realistic prospect that it ever would be set up, and I think the view that's been taken is that there was no realistic prospect that that would happen. So…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I will defer on this in a minute, perhaps to James, but, of course, this has been an area, from time to time, where, when legislation is passed, what it actually does do is it actually puts into that statute—it incorporates what the common law legal position…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
There will be a need for discussions. My intention is to certainly explore the ways in which the Senedd Standing Orders can be, I suppose, put into good effect, used to promote good practice. Because what we need to ensure as well is that the process of…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
It's a good question, and I'll answer it, hopefully, without mentioning the word 'taxonomy', which used to emerge very regularly. [Laughter.] The intention is that this Bill will be the main piece of historic environment primary legislation, and any future…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
Thank you for that. That is important; it is important the judiciary know and understand, as well as, in fact, lawyers. So, we notified the Lord Chief Justice's office; we informed them of the Bill. We've sent a copy of the justice impact assessment. That, I…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I think that's another aspect, isn't it? Of course, there will, from time to time, be minor consequential amendments that don't impact on the substance of legislation, and that's, again, one of those things to be made aware of as and when they might emerge.
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I'm not aware of anything that is coming forward from the UK side that is likely to impact on this. It's a moving feast, often, with UK Government legislation, and the things that get added in and amendments that get proposed. In certain legislation recently…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
If there was a piece of legislation that was passed that actually changed the law in a devolved area that we had not consented to, at every stage—. There would have to be an LCM in any event under our Standing Orders, and, in all the engagement that we would…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
It is something, within the context of everything that is happening and with UK Government legislative programmes, that you have to continually monitor and keep an eye on in terms of what's happening. And again, as you know from the many times we've discussed…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
I understand also there were some stakeholders during the engagement process that advocated certain changes in terminology, and those were rejected—whether it was substituting 'conservation' for 'preservation', and what the implications of that would be. I…
, Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee
Historic Environment (Wales) Bill: Ministerial evidence session
It goes over many people’s heads. You don’t have to not be a lawyer for a lot of these terms to go over your head. I always seem to remember the Rumpole formula, which was that an understanding of the law was a distinct disadvantage to a lawyer, and it…
