, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, thank you for that. It's an important issue within our electoral reform agenda. Because of the pandemic, we didn't amend the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021, as we had planned to do, to allow certain prisoners from Wales to vote in local…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for that supplementary question. Of course, this particular Bill—it's actually three pieces of legislation that have been put together, which is why it's so complex. And there is an irony that there are some items in it that are certainly worth…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you, again, for raising a very important issue. The Welsh Government's position on the public order provisions contained in Part 3 of the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill is set out in the legislative consent memorandum laid before the Senedd…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for the supplementary point. I'm aware, of course, that the Member has been very active on this particular issue. I suppose the starting point when we come to the root of the matter is that the developers are ultimately the people who should be…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for the question. The Building (Amendment) (Wales) Regulations 2019 were made by the then Minister for Housing and Regeneration as an immediate response to the Hackitt report, following the independent inquiry into the Grenfell tragedy. The Welsh…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Can I thank the Member for the question? I know that additional funding has been made available to councils in respect of flood damage and infrastructure repair. But I do very much welcome the principle he raises, because this is exactly the principle we've…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Can I just say that it's not appropriate for me to give advice as Counsel General as to what the legal rights are of individuals, et cetera? They should, of necessity, if they believe there are issues, raise those with their own legal advisers.
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Our national strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management was published last October and it sets out the roles and responsibilities. These are not always entirely straightforward, hence why we have a measure in the strategy asking the flood and…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Firstly, I look forward very much to the online conference that you refer to, which is a cross-party event, and one that also involves Lord Thomas, but also involves the trade unions, those people who actually work within the justice sector. I think there'll…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you, and thank you for those comments. The answer to that is 'yes'. There are a number of pilots that are in operation and problem-solving courts are a particular issue as well. As someone personally who's been very involved in the childcare area, I…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I thank the Member for this important question. Families can face a range of legal problems that may require support from different services provided by private professionals, state and third sector organisations. Too often, though, there are gaps in that…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I thank the Member for the supplementary question, because it is a very important point, and I don't think there is any silver bullet with regard to turnouts. There clearly is an issue that many people feel disengaged from Government, from the law-making…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for those comments, and I think it's fair to say also that—I think the Member referred to the initiatives under way, the pilots—they've been received with incredible popularity. I think the comments are positive comments, with people saying, 'Yes…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I thank the Member for raising this issue, and for the question. I issued written statements on 29 July and 9 November about our programme of electoral reform. We will use the local government elections next May to test different ways of voting and ensure…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Can I thank him for the comments? They do raise very serious issues in terms of the legislation, the way in which legislation is dealt with and, I suppose, the course we've been on for, really, 10 years as we've learnt to become what I think is an effective…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, thank you. You raise a whole series of points that have always been part of the discussion about what was a very innovative piece of legislation. I think I was involved in the committee that actually scrutinised the legislation that went through. And it…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, thank you for that question. I suppose just one caveat to start with is that you have to take very cautiously and carefully the comments of Mr Michael Gove, because he also said in that same statement that Mark Drakeford was one of his best friends…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, I thank you again for that comment, and of course the reference to the points that were raised by Sir Wyn Williams in his third report. And you do indeed make the case for the devolution of justice very, very strongly, and I endorse that. I think the…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for that. And, obviously, the probation service has been through an incredibly difficult time, and again is an area where there is work that is under way in looking at the way in which it could be better co-ordinated with the various integrated…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Thank you for the question. And it is the case that, obviously, we continue to pursue the issues around the devolution of justice—I won't go into that in detail, we've rehearsed those many times. But there are also many other areas that were identified in the…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, it is a very important question and it's one that I'm hoping will be very much addressed by the Law Council of Wales. And we also must recognise the economic importance, as well as the social importance, of the legal sector within Wales. And I've often…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I thank the Member for his second question. [Laughter.] Law firms and the bar in Wales offer a range of public law advice, and current initiatives being taken forward should support access to such advice. This includes looking at how the public sector…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, listen, thank you for your comments and I agree with all the various points you made, and, of course, one of the key challenges is what actually a universal basic income is and what we mean by it. And what it is as a policy is an opportunity, isn't it…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
I thank the Member for his question. I think he's wrong: I don't think it is about the devolution of powers; it's actually about the devolution of powers with the resources to go along with that, because we have had our fingers burnt many times, where things…
, Plenary
Questions to the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Well, firstly, can I thank the Member for the work he's doing to keep this very important policy initiative on all our radars and in the attention of Welsh Government? And it is certainly met with, I think, a very positive response. You'll be aware, of…
