Equality in the Law

Part of 2. Questions to the Counsel General & Brexit Minister (in respect of his 'law officer' responsibilities) – in the Senedd at 2:43 pm on 7 January 2020.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Jeremy Miles Jeremy Miles Labour 2:43, 7 January 2020

(Translated)

Well, we as a Government, of course, are calling for the devolution of powers on justice here to Wales, so that we can provide a justice system that is fair for all sectors of society here and ensure—Siân Gwenllian mentioned the role of women and ethnic minorities in the justice system—that we have an alternative system available to address issues for both cohorts. For example, we've been very clear as a Government that we don't believe that there are sufficient facilities for women here in Wales. We don't want to see a women's prison, but we want to see alternative provision in centres where it would be possible for women to keep in touch with their families and their children, for example. There are too many women in the prison system generally, and having this alternative provision here in Wales would help us to deal with some of those important challenges.

There are also important recommendations in the report, by the way, about the access to the law through the medium of Welsh. Chapter 11 deals with bilingual provision in our courts, in our legal education, in the coroners' courts and so on. That's an important part of the commission's agenda, and one of the things that the Cabinet committee that the First Minister has established will look at early on.