Legislating for Wales

by Thomas Glyn Watkin, Daniel Greenberg

Overview

This book addresses from a Welsh perspective the knowledge and skills that are required for the successful production of legislative policies and proposals, and the relationship of democratic principles to law-making. It provides a critical description and evaluation of how laws are made for Wales, including the most recent changes made by the Wales Act 2017, which came into effect in 2018. It also analyzes and assesses the process of preparing and drafting legislation for Wales in terms of the requirements of democratic processes and respect for the rule of law. Legislating for Wales will be of considerable interest and importance to all those wishing to enhance their understanding of law-making in Wales.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781786833006
Publisher:	University of Wales Press
Publication date:	02/15/2019
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Thomas Glyn Watkin is an honorary professor at Bangor University and at Cardiff University; he was formerly professor of law at both institutions.

 

Table of Contents

Series Preface v

Foreword xi

Preface xiii

Acknowledgements xvii

Table of Cases xix

Assembly Standing Orders xx

Table of Assembly Measures xx

Table of Assembly Acts xx

Table of Assembly Bills xxi

Table of United Kingdom Acts xxii

Table of Statutory Instruments xxv

1 Legislation and Legislatures 1

Legislation: the word and its meaning 1

Implications of these meanings 1

The phases of legislation as an activity 4

Terminology 7

The legislative initiative 8

The authority to enact: deliberation and decision-making 9

The executive branch of government 14

The government of the United Kingdom 15

The history of Welsh devolution 18

The Welsh Government and the Welsh Ministers 25

The Civil Service and the Assembly Commission 28

The challenge of legislating for Wales 28

2 From Ideas to Policy 31

Legislation, government and the rule of law 31

The need for legislation 32

Ideas for legislation 33

Properly thought through policy 39

Policy: the word, its meaning and the implications 40

The action and its consequences 40

Efficacy and impact 42

Answering the questions: evidence and analysis 45

The case for change 46

Generating options 48

The preferred option 48

3 From Policy to Proposal 51

The changes to the law chat can be made 51

Freedom and legislation 52

Freedom or liberty as the default position 53

The principle of proportionality 54

Legal ditties 60

Enforcing legal duties and claim rights 60

Methods of enforcement 62

Fundamental legal concepts: the static set 62

The concept of a legal power 64

Fundamental legal concepts the dynamic set 65

Classifications of legislation 67

Choices of legislature and of kinds of legislation 70

4 The National Assembly for Wales: Competence and Constraints 79

Territorial limitations 79

Subject-matter competence 81

Enforcement 94

Incidental and consequential provisions 97

General restrictions 100

Extent 107

Compatibility with EU law and human rights 108

Challenges to legislative competence 109

Secretary of State intervention 112

5 People and Preparation 115

The bill team: its composition and functions 115

Persons with an interest in legislation 122

Preparation of instructions 125

The structure of a legislative proposal 130

Responding constructively to drafts 131

The content of a legislative provision 134

6 From Proposals to Provisions 135

Long title and short title 135

The bill's provisions 136

Enforcement and implementation 144

Multi-purpose legislation 149

Overview provisions 152

Purpose provisions 153

Interpretation 155

Provisions amending other legislation 160

Transitional and saving provisions 164

Commencement or coming into force 165

Extent 167

7 Process and Promulgation 169

The introductory phase 169

The deliberative phase 174

The decision-making phase 186

Special procedures 191

8 Implementation and Interpretation 197

Commencement or corning into force 197

Subordinate legislation 198

Judicial interpretation 208

9 Other Legislatures and Their Legislative Processes 223

Legislative process in the Westminster Parliament 223

European Union legislation 232

Afterword 239

Select Bibliography 245

Index 247

Editorial Reviews

This volume is essential reading for anyone who wants to understand the fundamental changes devolution has brought to the governance of Wales, and in particular how Welsh Government and the National Assembly came to be defined as a permanent part of the constitutional arrangements of the UK."

Lord Elis-Thomas

As Wales starts to establish its own legal jurisdiction and embraces the process of codification, this is an invaluable and essential publication for all who want to understand, teach, practice and access Welsh law.”

Mick Antoniw AM

Authoritative, clear and engaging, Legislating for Wales is a true milestone in the development of public law in Wales. Giving an unrivalled view of contemporary legislative behaviour in a young representative institution, it deserves to be widely read not only in but also outside Wales.

Richard Rawlings

As we approach the twentieth anniversary of devolution, Legislating for Wales will stand as a sparkling contribution to the understanding of the National Assembly. Both Thomas Glyn Watkin and Daniel Greenberg believe that citizens should have meaningful access to the law, and in this book we are blessed with two masterful guides.”
 

David Melding

This book is an invaluable resource from one of Wales’s pre-eminent constitutional experts and an expert Parliamentary lawyer at a time of unprecedented constitutional flux. It will serve legislators and citizens alike and provides a comprehensive overview of the process of the development of law in Wales.”

Eluned Morgan AM