Peter Hain, the Secretary of State for Wales, will be speaking at Cardiff University this afternoon, arguing that the current devolution settlement (devised by him) is working well. In the Western Mail today he said, yes, LCOs (the process by which Wales acquires new powers) take time, but so do parliamentary bills. This is not a sign of failure, just a fact of parliamentary process and scrutiny.
That would be fine, except what you have to remember is that once an LCO is done and dusted, nothing will actually change in the real world. An administrative change will have occurred; a legislative power will lie with one body rather than another, but as far as you or I are concerned, we will see no difference. The process will then begin all over again for whatever law the Welsh government has in mind.
But forgetting for a moment that no real law has been passed after an LCO is finished, the Secretary of State is also quite plainly wrong that LCOs receive as much scrutiny as a parliamentary bill – they receive far, far, more.
How about this for a series of obstacles: legislative committees in the Assembly, the Constitution Committee of the Lords, the Welsh Affairs Committee in the Commons, the Welsh Grand Committee (occasionally), the floor of all three of the House of Commons, the House of Lords and the National Assembly for Wales – and of course, the desk of the Welsh Secretary, who can scupper the whole process at the stroke of a pen.
Do parliamentary bills really have to battle with this level of scrutiny?
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It was interesting to hear Mr Hain’s defence of his Act on the radio after his speech. He emphasised the latent provisions for a Scottish-style government, and avoided discussion of LCOs.
It’s a pity that Peter Black is not blogging at present.