Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I am happy to move the legislative consent motion before the Senedd today. I had previously advised the Senedd not to give its consent to the motion before us, because the Bill as originally drafted contained a reservation from devolved powers. Regrettably, it was introduced in March this year, with little consultation with the Welsh Government at the time.

ARIA is intended to be a UK-wide funding body to pursue new, novel, high-risk research and invention endeavours in science and technology, and I welcome, as indeed do other Ministers across the UK, the ambition for ARIA and the arm's-length operation model that it has. However, as I indicated, the previous draft of the Bill would have inserted a new reservation into the Government of Wales Act 2006 in respect of research and innovation, and the Bill made no provision for the involvement of devolved Governments in the governance of ARIA. My concerns were shared by counterparts in the Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive. Following later, constructive discussions with devolved Governments, the UK Government has now tabled amendments to the Bill. Those amendments have been agreed within the UK Parliament, and they have removed that new reservation. That therefore that means that our devolved powers in respect of research, development and innovation are preserved in respect of ARIA.

To secure those important amendments, we all agreed a memorandum of understanding. That sets out how, with collaboration between our respective chief scientific advisers in the four Governments, we will jointly oversee the operation of ARIA, whilst allowing it to operate independently. This isn't what I would describe as a perfect outcome, but it does reflect a willingness by all four Governments to work together to agree a mutually beneficial position. The Scottish Government and the Northern Ireland Executive have also agreed the same provisions, with their respective Parliaments considering their own legislative consent provisions today, as are we. And I should recognise that the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy science Minister, George Freeman, since his appointment, has shown a practical 'can do' attitude and keenness to work with me and indeed other devolved Governments to make ARIA a success for all of us.

The funding that ARIA will have access to is about £800 million over the coming period. That's not especially large compared to the total UK research and innovation budget. It should be pointed out that our research excellence in Wales is strong, especially in areas related to the UN sustainability goals, as was recently demonstrated by our own chief scientific adviser. It is essential that ARIA recognises, in a fair and objective way, Welsh research excellence, so that Wales does compete on a level playing field for the funding that is available through this source.

I'm grateful to the Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee, and, indeed, the Economy, Trade, and Rural Affairs Committee for their scrutiny in respect of this Bill. I want to acknowledge the findings that they have made, both for the original Bill as tabled and, indeed, the amended Bill. With the LJC committee, I think we've addressed their recommendations by the removal of the reservation powers and limiting the extent of Henry VIII powers.

Regarding the economy and trade committee's points, I've written to the committee to explain why I do believe that consent is required for clause 5 that they mentioned, and that relates to the national security directions. I sympathise with the committee's views on the governance of ARIA, but for the reasons I've explained, I accept the compromise position that we've reached on this to protect the wider devolution settlement, to give us, through our chief scientific advisers, an opportunity to have insight into the strategic provisions governing ARIA. Therefore, I am now in a position to recommend that the Senedd consents to the relevant provisions within the ARIA Bill. Thank you, Dirprwy Lywydd.