5. What legal advice has the Counsel General provided to the Welsh Government on coal tip safety regulations? OQ57426

I thank the Member for her question. Safeguarding our communities remains the Welsh Government’s top priority and we will continue to discharge our devolved responsibilities to do so. We have commissioned the Law Commission to review the legislation, and we will look to bring forward new legislation to allow us to manage disused coal tips in Wales.

Thank you for that answer. I know that the Welsh Government will be acutely aware of these concerns around coal tip safety. It's something I've raised many times in the Senedd, and I know that, as you have set out, there is work ongoing to find solutions to make the tips that are deemed highest risk, particularly, safe. I would be interested to gain an understanding of the Welsh Government's legal perspective on this. The finance Minister said in a statement in September of last year—and I quote—that:

'The UK Government has a legal and moral responsibility to work with the Welsh Government to address this issue and fund these long-term costs.'

Could you, Counsel General, please explain what these legal responsibilities the UK Government has are, presumably under the Mines and Quarries (Tips) Act 1969, and what role you can play to help ensure that those responsibilities are upheld? Because, as the deputy climate change Minister said at the end of last year, the UK Government is currently abdicating those responsibilities.

And finally, if I may, you referred in your first answer to the consultation being held by the Law Commission, which I welcome. Could you please give us an update on the work undertaken so far and provide a date for us about when you expect them to publish their recommendations, please?

Okay. Thank you for a variety of important points in respect of coal tips, and I think your constituency—your region—and the constituency I represent obviously have a large number of coal tips.

I suppose the starting point, of course, is that when the 1994 legislation came in—and, again, going back, in fact, to the legislation after Aberfan in 1969—the focus was on working mines and operating tips rather than defunct tips. And, of course, a further matter has arisen on that, which is, of course, the difference between reclamation and making tips safe. Because reclamation in many areas are areas where Welsh Government has been engaged in, but, of course, the issue of safety of tips is something that has particularly emerged as a result of climate change, and relates to responsibilities, I believe, that go well before devolution. Now, you will have heard me the last time this was raised—and I believe you participated in the questions at that time—that I believe that, at the very least, there is a moral and a political responsibility of UK Government.

The issue of legal liability becomes much more complex because of, really, the weakness of the legislative framework that was created after 1994, where you have tips that are now in different ownerships. Some are still in the ownership of the Coal Authority, who remain responsible for them. The issues arise as to whether the responsibility only relates in terms of safety risks or broader, longer term risks. Whilst all this is going on and whilst the UK Government has clearly abrogated, I think quite shamefully, any responsibility in respect of the pre-devolution legacy of the coal industry, we, nevertheless, have to ensure that our communities are safe. Consequentially, the Law Commission has been carrying out its work. I believe that work is close to conclusion. They did hold a number of sessions, which I understand were quite well attended, within Wales. I've met with them—with the Law Commission—as well and have discussed the ongoing work, and, of course, it is the intention to legislate in this area. We have to legislate to create a framework.

The arguments in respect of funding will carry on and remain, but, as a Welsh Government, our priority, as I've said, is towards the safety of the people of Wales and our communities. So, within the next three-year budget, there's £44.4 million in there for safety work. We've also provided £800,000 to the Coal Authority in respect of their carrying out inspections of high-risk tips, and there is still work going on in respect of the evaluation and analysis of what those are and where they are and what the levels of safety are. And I understand the Minister for Climate Change has, obviously, commented on that in the past and will no doubt do so in the near future.

As the Counsel General will be aware, there is, presently, inadequate legislation for local authorities to ensure that coal tips on private land are safe. Although the current Act does give local authorities the necessary power to enter private land at any reasonable time in order to inspect and carry out safety tests, a minimum of two days' notice is required. If the landowner refuses, as is their right, there is a requirement for local authorities to obtain a court order to gain entry, and this could take some considerable time. Whilst most landowners, I'm sure, would be more than happy for inspections of disused coal tips, there's nonetheless a legislative limitation that could lead to serious consequences. With this in mind, does the Counsel General believe that this legislation needs to be tightened in order to mitigate any danger to the public due to a delay in disused coal tip inspections, and what considerations has he given to the prospect of amending this aspect of legislation for any new regulatory system? Thank you.

Well, I thank Joel for that question, and, yes, the point you raise in respect of the role of local authorities is right, and also in terms of the obligations of private landowners who have coal tips on their property, or even sometimes part of coal tips, as some of the complications. This is an issue I think that has been identified by the Law Commission and is part of the ongoing work, and I'm sure will be part of something that we need to address in respect of any regulatory regime with regard to coal tips. And when we have the full report and the recommendations and we've had an opportunity to consider those and also the substance of legislation, I'm sure that that will be a significant part of it.