3. Legislative Consent Motion on the Energy Prices Bill

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 3:31 pm on 19 October 2022.

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Photo of Julie James Julie James Labour 3:31, 19 October 2022

Diolch, Llywydd. I'm very grateful to Members who've contributed to the debate. I share the Member's concerns about the process that's led us to where we are now, and I do share—as I shared, in fact, for the single-use plastics Bill—the concern about the lack of scrutiny. And that's not something that I welcome either here or at the UK level. But we knew about this the night before. It was introduced on 12 October, so this really isn't any scrutiny at all. We certainly didn't have a draft Bill or anything else.

We do understand the urgency. I don't agree with Janet's summation of the level of urgency, but we do understand that there is a level of urgency in getting support for customers that can be rolled out from November. We would much prefer, though, the United Kingdom Government, as Jenny and others have pointed out, to have realised that this was happening considerably earlier in the year, when everybody else realised it, and have done something, rather than having a ridiculous leadership competition all summer, with the current Prime Minister doing God knows what, instead of stepping up to his responsibilities.

Nevertheless, we are where we are, and if we do not consent to this, then there is a real danger that the people of Wales will be left out from being able to benefit from the scheme. So, I am recommending that we consent to the legislation, although there is considerable reluctance because of the way that the Bill is organised. But, nevertheless, we're not prepared to put ourselves in a position where the people of Wales could not receive the support that the UK Government is proposing; it's very important that they do so.

I just want to correct something that Janet said. There is not a cap of £2,500 on energy. I think it's really important that people don't think that, no matter how much they use, there is somehow a cap. It's actually an average cost, it is not a cap, and it's very important that people understand that. Many people will face bills of more than £2,500 over the winter.