‘Brexit means the UK has to change’ – MPs
THE UK Government has come under fire for its lack of Brexit consultation with the Welsh Government, with a crossparty group of MPs stating that the way devolution works will have to change.
Preparations to leave the EU have exposed unresolved issues about how power and sovereignty is shared between the UK Parliament and the Assembly and early Brexit legislation was condemned by the Welsh and Scottish First
Ministers as a “naked power grab”.
Today’s report from the Public Administration and Constitutional Affairs Committee calls for a fullscale rethink about how the different governments work together and calls for a review which would examine whether the Wales Office is still needed.
Clear that the status quo is not an option and calling on the UK Government to publish a devolution policy for the union, it states: “Leaving the EU means that the UK will have to change its constitutional arrangements.”
The MPs say it is “highly regrettable” there was “little consultation” with the devolved governments ahead of the EU Withdrawal Bill. Months of argument followed over whether powers held by Brussels today would be transferred straight to the Assembly or held by Westminster.
Their report also calls on the UK Government to make clear it understands that under the “reserved” system of devolution which now exists in Wales powers are automatically devolved unless specifically retained by Westminster, stating: “We urge the Government to make clear its understanding that the reserved powers model of devolution means that powers devolve by default to the devolved institutions and are not conferred by the UK Parliament.”
It argues that earlier consultation “could have possibly avoided much of the acrimony” and the MPs also warn: “There is a growing consensus that the current inter-governmental relations mechanisms in the UK are not fit for purpose. The absence of formal inter-governmental relations mechanisms has been the missing part of the devolution settlement since its establishment and they should be understood to be as important to the devolution settlement as the powers held by the devolved institutions.
“A new system of inter-governmental relations needs to be agreed between the UK and devolved Governments and set out in statute.”
They make the case for an “independent secretariat” and insist the new mechanisms must not be “just talking shops to air grievances”.
It wants new intergovernmental bodies to have oversight of the rules – known as frameworks – which will govern how the different UK nations will interact and trade together after Brexit.
The report warns that a “coherent” policy on how the frameworks will operate is urgently needed.
And it will not make easy reading for the civil service at the heart of the UK Government machine.
The report states: “We heard evidence that Whitehall has a tendency to hold on to power and that there is a continued institutional lack of understanding of devolution. In individual departments, there have been some attempts to inform officials, but the structure and culture of Whitehall generally still takes little account of the realities of devolution in the UK.”
The MPs press for a review in the year following Brexit of how Whitehall is structured and relates to the Welsh Government, stating: “This review should also consider whether the role of the territorial offices in Whitehall and corresponding Secretaries of State are still necessary and, if they are, whether they might be reformed to promote better relations across Whitehall with the devolved administrations.”
The committee wants “formal communication mechanisms between the UK’s parliaments and assemblies” to be established.
It also wants committees in Westminster and the Assembly to be able to meet jointly and for “interparliamentary committees” to be set up.