Jeremy Miles: There is obviously a significant piece of work in relation to the qualifications make-up of the public sector workforce across Wales generally, including in the education sector, and that has been the basis of a lot of the representations we've made in the Brexit context particularly to the UK Government and beyond. But this is an area where work is absolutely under way at the moment. I know...
Jeremy Miles: Well, at this time, Qualifications Wales is working on a report in relation to this. It will be presented to the Minister for Education, who I know will be making announcements at that point. The publication, I think, of the final report is intended currently to be over the summer. But, in relation to the future arrangements, clearly this is part of the discussions that are ongoing between...
Jeremy Miles: And I've answered it several times, with respect.
Jeremy Miles: The First Minister outlined yesterday Welsh Government policy and I will repeat it again if the Member isn't clear what that is. The health Secretary has said that he supports another referendum. That is part of the Welsh Government's policy position: if we can't get the deal that we've advocated for, then a referendum is the means of breaking that deadlock.
Jeremy Miles: The Minister for Education fully supports the current re-referencing of the credit and qualifications framework for Wales to the European qualifications framework alongside Scotland, England and Northern Ireland, to ensure continued comparability and portability of qualifications, and to facilitate the mobility of learners and jobseekers to and from Wales.
Jeremy Miles: Well, I think that's a profoundly important question, if I may say so. I think I reflect that the debates around Brexit often take one of two different paths, don't they? One is the high politics of what's happening in Parliament, what's happening in the European Union; and then the other is the question of preparing for different outcomes and the practical aspects in people's daily lives of...
Jeremy Miles: The Welsh Government’s priorities remain unchanged. The UK Government must remove the 'no deal' cliff edge and seek the close relationship with the EU that we set out in 'Securing Wales’ Future' with participation in a customs union and the single market together with dynamic alignment with the social, environmental and labour market standards of the European Union.
Jeremy Miles: Well, we are living in a global economy, which is shifting very dramatically. That's precisely the point. That's why we think that taking the view that the Member takes, which is crashing out of the European Union with no deal, is particularly catastrophic. At a time when we are all managing global change, seeking the kind of traumatic change that he's advocating for would be completely...
Jeremy Miles: Well, I'm not answering questions in my capacity as the Counsel General, but I will assert the privilege that I'm inclined not to use usually and I will just remind him that I don't disclose advice that I give to the Welsh Government in relation to this.
Jeremy Miles: Certainly, the issue around the legal implications of an extension are one of the consideration that I know are live in the minds of European Union partners. Clearly, there is a point at which the constitution of the new Parliament at the end of June/early July, poses very significant change in the environment. And there are concerns, I think, around whether, if the UK was a member beyond...
Jeremy Miles: Well, I will make the point clear again to the Member: what I said this morning to the UK Government in a telephone conference is that there needs to be a fundamental change in the way the UK Government is approaching this question. What they're doing is completely irresponsible. If 30 June is the extent of the extension, which the EU will consider—. By the way, as we stand here today, it...
Jeremy Miles: Well, I'm glad to see the Member now being very clear about her policy. Plaid Cymru has held three different policies in as many months on this question, so good to have her clarifying her position. What I think is disappointing is that the Prime Minister has sought an extension to the end of June, and is clearly pursuing a strategy that is completely irresponsible, of ploughing on...
Jeremy Miles: Well, as I've just mentioned, I'm absolutely clear that the Government's policy on this is very clear. The First Minister and the health Minister have responded about this. There is no question about the Government policy on this, as I've articulated a number of times already today.
Jeremy Miles: Might I give the Member a little bit of advice? If he's going to choose to attack us on the basis of consistency, I suggest he looks a little closer to home. And I think a bit more focus on the national interest, as opposed to simply the party interest, would have meant that this country was not in the position that it is in now, of three years of wasted time, while his Prime Minister was not...
Jeremy Miles: Well, that's a complete mischaracterisation both of the health Minister's position, the First Minister's discussion yesterday in the Chamber and Welsh Government policy, which is, as I say, completely clear and was made again clear in the Chamber yesterday by the First Minister. We've been very clear that a referendum is one of the options for resolving this. We have also described the kind...
Jeremy Miles: The First Minister was very clear yesterday in the Chamber about the Welsh Government's policy in relation to Brexit. We see two options for the future. One is the kind of deal that we've been describing in 'Securing Wales' Future' for the last more than two years and, failing that, a referendum.
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that supplementary. She has raised this with me a number of times in the Chamber. I know how vital the automotive sector is in her constituency and in other parts of Wales. There is a very, very constant stream of communication—two-way communication—between Welsh Government, the Minister for Economy and Transport and officials with companies who are car producers,...
Jeremy Miles: A 'no deal' Brexit would be catastrophic for Wales, but we are working at full capacity on preparedness, building on the arrangements reported to the Assembly on 22 January. This includes support to organisations from the European transition fund, with an additional £1.7 million for business resilience announced last week.
Jeremy Miles: I thank the Member for that supplementary. I know there are many organisations in her constituency that have benefited from EU funding, including the Blackwood Miners' Institute and other organisations. We've been consistent in our insistence that the UK Government should deliver on its promise that Wales would not lose a penny of the income it receives currently from the EU after we leave,...
Jeremy Miles: The Welsh Government and its agents are continuously assessing the potential impact and implications of Brexit on all aspects of Welsh society, including the arts and culture, to ensure that no area of Wales, including Islwyn, loses out as a result of the UK leaving the EU.
