Jeremy Miles: Well, the analysis of the Member is correct that that’s the process: that is, we need agreement. The Cabinet Secretary has said several times that it’s about ensuring that we have a system that works and that we collaborate in a system, and that’s what’s important about this process. I would endorse the Cabinet Secretary’s comments on that, and I intend to collaborate with him to...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for her question. I fully support the Welsh Government's commitment to improving air quality across Wales and its various initiatives for tackling air pollution specifically. The Member will be aware, as she says, of the recent High Court litigation, which was heard on 25 January and in relation to which judgment is awaited. The Welsh Government has accepted that its...
Jeremy Miles: The Member's questions involve a number of points of policy, which it would be inappropriate for me to comment on specifically, but in relation to how this was dealt with in the court action, which may answer part of her question, because of the Welsh Government's acceptance that the 2017 plan did not comply with its duties, it made that representation in court, and so the discussions between...
Jeremy Miles: As the Member has already said, a number of the rights protecting the environment emanate from European legislation. Welsh Government have stated clearly that we wish to see those regulations continuing to be relevant in Wales and for those rights to come here to the Assembly and not be reserved to Westminster. So, we wish to ensure that people have the right to secure those standards for Wales.
Jeremy Miles: Thank you for the question. We are considering the implications at present, and officials have met the Solicitors Regulation Authority to discuss the proposed new qualification and the implications for Wales, including the devolution settlement and use of the Welsh language. A further meeting is being set up to widen that discussion to include our law schools and the legal profession.
Jeremy Miles: Certainly. A meeting has already been scheduled and has taken place with the officials of the SRA where these specific issues were discussed. I’m meeting the SRA again in a few weeks’ time and I intend to continue that discussion with them. There are two points arising here. The first is the role of devolved law in the new qualification, and we have to encourage law schools in Wales to...
Jeremy Miles: I think the answer to that question is that it may have the potential to do that. At this point in time, obviously, although the new qualification is being consulted on, the detail of how it will operate in practice and how it will relate to the academic stage and the work experience stage is not entirely clear, and that's one of the issues I want to explore when I meet with the SRA. The...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for the question. The decision whether or not to prosecute in relation to non-payment of council tax lies, of course, with the local authority and not with the Welsh Government. So, local authorities and local magistrates will seek their own legal advice when they need it. That said, the Welsh Government clearly has an interest in ensuring that council tax arrears are...
Jeremy Miles: I'm absolutely happy to discuss further. Just to be clear, the decision found that the system itself is not unfair. There were two issues in the proceedings: one related to the individual decisions of the magistrates' courts on committal to prison, and one was whether the system was capable of being fair. And actually the Welsh Ministers successfully defended their position in relation to the...
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for his question. The Welsh Government is committed to complying with the law relating to personal data.
Jeremy Miles: Thank you for that supplementary question. As the Member’s colleague in the front row will know, parliamentary convention here prohibits me from discussing any specific advice given, or even the fact that I gave any advice at all. The Member will know that Welsh Government’s view is clear on this that no offence had been committed under the 1998 Act, and that’s a matter of public record...
Jeremy Miles: The Member is a highly experienced parliamentarian, and will know full well that's not an appropriate question for the Counsel General to comment upon, and so I won't.
Jeremy Miles: The Welsh Government has taken every opportunity to raise with the UK Government our concerns that access to legal services is currently beyond the means of those victims of crime who have low or modest incomes, and this raises serious issues, both of access to justice and social justice more broadly.
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for the question. It highlights a very grave injustice that victims of domestic violence in particular face. As her question recognises, thousands of women find themselves in family courts representing themselves in person against their own abusers. That is not something that is permitted any longer in the criminal courts, but it still remains a very real experience for...
Jeremy Miles: Thank you for the question. In this Assembly, the Welsh Government has incurred £20,486.30 in external legal costs, excluding value added tax. Further such costs are anticipated in relation to the Welsh Government’s recent appearance before the High Court, along with the claimants’ costs, to be capped in accordance with the Aarhus convention.
Jeremy Miles: As a former solicitor, of course, I am aware that the expenditure on legal costs and court costs are of necessity unpopular, and I can well understand the reason why that is so. When the Government finds itself in a position where somebody brings a case against the Government, we have to ensure that when the Government has a good case to fight, that that happens, and that's important in terms...
Jeremy Miles: I welcome the decision of the Crown Prosecution Service to review all active rape and sexual offence cases in Wales and England that are currently ongoing to ensure that disclosure procedures are being properly applied. It is essential that action is taken to ensure that we can have faith, trust and confidence in our criminal justice system.
Jeremy Miles: Yes, we have actually contacted them. I can’t make any comments on individual cases, of course. I’m sure the Member will accept that. We welcome the review. We have to ensure that all the regulations are followed. One of the challenges is keeping abreast of the use of technology and training in the courts, and the growth in the use of social media specifically does mean that that is now...
Jeremy Miles: As the Member will be aware, the Welsh Government’s preference is for an EU withdrawal Bill that respects devolution. However, we are ready to introduce a continuity Bill should it prove impossible to amend satisfactorily the Bill currently before Parliament. We are working very closely with the Scottish Government, as he's aware, on these issues.
Jeremy Miles: Well, as I've made clear in previous answers to questions on this subject matter, the Welsh Government's strong preference is for the UK's EU withdrawal Bill to be the basis on which the charter of fundamental rights remains part of our jurisprudence here in Wales. However, if the Welsh Government's forced into a position where we were bringing forward our own legislation, we'd want to make...
