Written question WQ82518
- Asked by
- Mike HedgesLabour
- To be answered by
- Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
- Tabled
- Due
- Answered
- Time to answer
- 8 days
Question
Following the written statement issued on 27 May, will the Minister provide clarity on whether the Welsh Government will lay a legislative consent memorandum, and table an associated motion, on the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 before it comes into force on 29 June 2021?
Answer
Answered by Minister for Rural Affairs and North Wales, and Trefnydd
A legislative consent memorandum on the Animal Welfare (Sentencing) Act 2021 was laid on 17 February 2021. However, given that the Act has passed into law while the Senedd was in recess, we do not intend to table a legislative consent motion, especially as the Act comes into force automatically on 29 June.
As I set out in my statement of 27 May, consideration of a legislative consent motion would not be a meaningful substitute for consideration of the Bill prior to Royal Assent, given that if the Senedd were to vote against the Bill, it would not be possible to prevent the Bill coming into force. It also fails to recognise that part of the purpose of the Sewel Convention is to facilitate dialogue between the legislatures of the United Kingdom, and its constituent nations – which was recognised by the Supreme Court in Miller as fundamentally important to the UK’s constitutional settlement.