3. Statement by the First Minister: The Legislative Programme

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 2:59 pm on 5 July 2022.

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Photo of Andrew RT Davies Andrew RT Davies Conservative 2:59, 5 July 2022

Thank you, First Minister, for your statement this afternoon, and I do put on record my thanks to the Government lawyers and the Senedd lawyers who do assist us in our scrutiny of legislation and bringing that legislation forward. We can disagree on the policy positions, but, ultimately, a great deal of legal brain power goes into these pieces of legislation. The reason legislation is so important is it empowers people to have rights, and that is the fundamental narrative of any democracy—that, in law, we as elected lawmakers can put that on that statute book and give people rights.

I do regret the fact that the statement today doesn't have anything in relation to an autism Act, which this side of the Chamber have, obviously, championed on many occasions through debates in the Senedd here. And I also regret that there's no British Sign Language Bill to be brought forward by the First Minister or the Government today. That's another form of empowerment that I would seek support for from the First Minister, if and when Government time allows, or, indeed, to get behind my colleague Peter Fox's legislative proposal on the food Bill, given that, obviously, the legislative statement includes a reference to the agricultural Bill that the Government is seeking to bring forward in September.