2. Business Statement and Announcement

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:36 pm on 23 January 2018.

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Photo of Julie James Julie James Labour 2:36, 23 January 2018

Yes, the Member is absolutely right—it is extremely important. I find myself in the uncomfortable position of slightly agreeing with Nigel Farage, but there we are—that's not a place you would very often want to be. The Welsh Government is extremely eager to build on I think our excellent record of keeping the Assembly informed of the latest Brexit developments. Since the referendum result, we've been proactively updating the Assembly, for example, through written and oral statements, following Joint Ministerial Committee meetings, and significant events or developments. For example, we had three written statements during the last sitting week in December on different aspects of the European Union negotiations and policy—on the phase 1 agreement, on the JMC meeting on 12 December and the launch of our regional policy document. Also, both the First Minister and the Cabinet Secretary for Finance have been regularly reporting back on progress to the Assembly's committee system.   

As we move forward into the next phase of the negotiations, we'll continue to build on these established ways of updating the Assembly. However, the Member will know that we need to see really concrete proposals from the UK Government on the Welsh Government's level of engagement during the second phase of negotiations before we can outline in detail how we can ensure there is a fit-for-purpose set of arrangements in which the latest developments and actions taken by the Welsh Government can be reported at both levels. And we've made the case to the UK Government that the model for the second phase should follow the structure by which the UK conducts current EU business, underpinned by the principle that the UK Government will fully involve the devolved administrations in developing UK policy positions on EU issues, so that we can keep the Senedd informed appropriately.