As you're aware, my advice to the Senedd is that we should not give approval to the Bill in its current form. The Bill was developed at speed by the UK Government, and the majority of this activity took place during our pre-election period, which prevented Ministers from engaging in the development of the Bill. This rapidly turned the development of a non-legislative common framework, which is our preferred option to manage mutual recognition of professional qualifications, into a Professional Qualifications Bill rushed forward into the House of Lords with little opportunity for Welsh Ministers to comment. I do see that clause 5 arguably is necessary as a helpful way of modifying legislation consequent on EU departure, but the process left little time for regulatory bodies, including the Education Workforce Council and Social Care Wales, to properly consider the implications of the Bill on their regulatory functions. The passage of the Bill so far in the House of Lords has also indicated that many other regulatory bodies across the UK have concerns about the Bill and the impact it will have on their autonomy and existing arrangements to facilitate recognition of qualifications.

However, my main concern with this Bill is the inclusion of concurrent powers. These powers have been written into the legislation with no meaningful explanation from the UK Government as to why they're necessary in the area of regulated professions, leading, I'm afraid to say, to the conclusion that this is another move by the UK Government to act in areas that are clearly devolved. In view of the type of concurrent powers included in the Bill, as well as the speed at which the Bill has been developed by the UK Government, an early debate has been brought to the Senedd to clearly set out our position against any attempt by the UK Government to threaten the devolution settlement. Our starting point is that concurrent functions should not be created. However, if the UK Government is determined, as it may well be in this case, to create them, then at the very least we would expect a consent provision. It is the Welsh Government's conclusion that provisions 1 to 10 and 12 to 19 in the Bill fall within the legislative competence of the Senedd. The Bill cannot be allowed to progress as it currently stands. We must see the amendments that we have sought. I therefore move the motion, and I urge all Members of the Senedd to reject the motion and deny the Bill our consent.