Our first report, which we laid before the Senedd last November, summarised our consideration of the Welsh Government's original memorandum on the Bill, as well as memorandum No. 2. Now, in that report, we arrived at a number of conclusions that informed the recommendations that we subsequently made to the Minister. To date, we're still awaiting a formal response to that report from the Minister, which is obviously disappointing to the committee and the Senedd. But, the Minister may want, in his remarks, just to put something on record today by way of explanation. He's mentioned that this Bill has been somewhat convoluted, and sometimes he has had to respond in a last-minute fashion to some amendments put forward in Westminster, but it would help.

Now, Members will be aware that memorandum No. 3 was laid on 10 December, just before the Christmas recess. We did, however, manage to report on this further supplementary memorandum by yesterday afternoon. We made just two recommendations in the first report for the Minister to consider. Given the time that has now passed, these recommendations, as we've just heard, have actually been superseded by recent developments in the UK Parliament, as the Bill has been amended during its parliamentary passage. Just in passing, we note that this highlights the understandable complexity of scrutiny generally, but also the additional complexity of scrutiny here in the Senedd of legislation that originates and evolves within the UK Parliament.

Recommendation 1 in our first report asked that the Minister, in advance of the Senedd’s debate on the relevant consent motion, confirm what amendments the Welsh Government would need to see made to clauses 1 and 4 of the Bill in order for it to recommend that the Senedd provides its consent to the Bill. Of course, amendments have now been made to the Bill that have led the Welsh Government to determine that the Senedd's legislative consent is no longer required in respect of those clauses 1 and 4.

Now, whilst we do agree with the Welsh Government's most recent assessment regarding clauses 1 and 4 as amended, can we just suggest that it would have been preferable, in order to assist the Senedd's scrutiny of the legislative consent memoranda, if the Minister had provided further detail at the outset regarding the specific changes that he wished to see made to the Bill, if this were possible at that stage? Now, he may argue that he couldn't foresee it at that time, but it would be helpful to know that.

Recommendation 2 in our first report asked the Minister to confirm why the Senedd's consent should not be sought for new clause 25, which was added to the Bill at the Lords Report Stage. While memorandum No. 3 confirms that the clause was removed from the Bill by the House of Commons, the fact remains that it was a relevant clause for the purpose of our consent procedures when memorandum No. 2 was laid at the end of October last year.

Our first report also included our conclusion that, while omitted from the Welsh Government's original memorandum, the consent of the Senedd should be sought for clause 35 of the Bill. Indeed, the UK Government's explanatory notes to the Bill confirmed that the clause related to a devolved matter. As the Minister has mentioned, we are aware that this issue was raised in an exchange of correspondence between the CYPE committee and the Minister. And, as our first report makes clear, we do not agree with the Minister’s position. The Minister asserts, as he's done today, that this clause makes no change to existing law; it restates existing provision. But, as a committee, we draw attention to the wording of Standing Order 29.1(i), which states that it does not make any distinction between new law or a restatement of the existing law, only that a provision in a UK Bill is a relevant provision for the purpose of the Senedd's consent process if it makes provision for any purpose within the Senedd's legislative competence.

Given that the Bill has gone through several amending stages in the UK Parliament, as things stand, this clause, as has been mentioned by the Minister, is now numbered clause 31. Our single recommendation in our report laid yesterday reiterates the view we expressed last November, and asked the Minister to confirm, before this afternoon’s debate, why the Senedd's consent should not be sought for the clause in the Bill. He has made an explanation this afternoon, but we may need to agree to differ still after his further explanation. But I look forward to hearing any further ministerial response this afternoon to these points, and also to receiving the formal written response to our reports from the Minister as soon as possible. Diolch yn fawr iawn, Llywydd a Gweinidog.