Part of 2. Questions to the Counsel General and Brexit Minister (in respect of his Brexit Minister responsibilities) – in the Senedd at 2:20 pm on 4 December 2019.
Well, the Member will be aware that the Assembly has had regulations that, effectively, in a 'no deal' scenario, for example, provide on a unilateral basis the recognition of existing qualifications for EU nationals working in all kinds of regulated professions in Wales, and that includes the teaching profession. There are arrangements that that set of regulations provides for existing employees, and also to seek to validate or recognise qualifications for those whose applications are currently in the system and, indeed, for those entering the system after exit. But there is an ongoing risk to UK citizens working in the European Union because, in those circumstances, if we were to leave without a deal—we don't, obviously, know on what basis, if at all, we will be leaving at this point—those relationships will not have the benefit of the reciprocal arrangements that currently exist across the European Union. And so those employees working in different parts of the European Union will depend upon the regulatory regime in each individual member state for recognition of their particular qualifications going into the future.