Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 6:20 pm on 29 March 2022.
Well, with respect to Alun Davies, it's not just a case of having Senedd time, is it? It's about having the capacity within the Government to take a whole Bill through, and those are different things. So, I respectfully disagree with him about the pragmatic judgments that we have faced.
And I just would stress to Members that this is primary legislation. The substance of the enactment will be in secondary legislation, which will all be bilingual, which will be scrutinised and consulted upon, with a role for this Senedd, and the Bill will have the majority of its provisions commenced by Welsh Ministers. So, I think there is a balance to strike. We think we've got the balance right, but I completely understand the unease with this approach. But I'm afraid that Government Ministers, collectively, have to take difficult decisions sometimes on the balance of these things, and notwithstanding the concerns of Members, we think, on this occasion, given the gravity of the issue at hand, we have made the right one, but that's not to say that we disregard or take lightly the concerns raised. But I would urge Members to support the LCM. Diolch.