Thank you for the opportunity to discuss the background to today's debate on the Trade in Animals and Related Products (Amendment and Legislative Functions) and Animal Health (Miscellaneous Amendments) (Wales) (EU Exit) Regulations 2022. Trade in animals and animal products is regulated by a suite of domestic legislation and retained EU law, and import controls are implemented and enforced at our border by the Trade in Animals and Related Products (Wales) Regulations 2011. These regulations relate to the continuation of the existing trade rules. Imported goods will continue to meet current import health requirements, such as those relating to the health status of the country of origin, appropriate testing and veterinary certification, among others.

While the withdrawal Act retained a good deal of EU law in domestic law, the law in this area was, in part, governed at an EU level by directives that were not retained by that Act. These regulations are the final piece in a long series of statutory instruments that have been made to ensure that all outstanding EU exit-related corrections in the animal health and welfare space are captured in the domestic statute book.

These regulations deal with those parts of the 11 EU directives that we want to retain in the Welsh statute book; specifically, animal health import standards and administrative and legislative powers. These regulations are drafted by reference to the EU directives, as modified by the regulations, and contain new Welsh Ministers’ administrative and regulation-making powers, equivalent to the functions previously held at EU level under these directives. They also make more minor operability amendments.

These regulations are made using the affirmative procedure, utilising powers conferred on the Welsh Ministers by the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018, and in relation to a small number of amendments to domestic legislation, Regulation (EU) 2017/625 on official controls, the official control regulation. They were laid before the Senedd on 22 November and are due to come into force on 16 December should they be approved.

The Legislation, Justice and Constitution Committee has scrutinised the draft regulations and prepared a report, and I recognise the number of scrutiny points raised by the LJC committee in its report, and welcome its valuable feedback and scrutiny. My officials provided a full response to the LJCC report. This has been an extremely long and technically complex 100-page instrument for my officials to draft, which is a consequence of the already complex legislative context that the regulations will operate in, namely 11 EU directives, nine retained EU regulations and two domestic sets of regulations, totalling several hundred pages of legislation.

The Welsh Government has carefully considered the points raised by the LJCC, and understands the committee’s concerns. However, I am confident that they can be resolved, because they do not have a substantial impact upon the operation of the regulations, and on balance, should not prevent the regulations from being made. The Welsh Government has considered the urgent powers under the withdrawal Act as a means of correcting the defective drafting. However, it was not deemed to be a workable solution, and this is explained in the response to the LJCC’s letter of 12 December.

Of the 34 reporting points, it is proposed that a short amending instrument will resolve two of the reporting points. The amending instrument will be made as soon as is practicable. In the short intervening period before the amendment is made, these discrepancies can be managed operationally, and there will be no adverse impact on traders nor any risk of compromising animal health and welfare. Twelve reporting points are minor errors that can be corrected on publication. In relation to 18 points, officials are content that they can provide a rationale for the drafting that should resolve the LJCC’s concerns. The final three reporting points do not require a Government response or action.

I am asking Senedd Members to support the draft regulations because they contain new administrative and legislative powers for the Welsh Ministers, which will be lost if these regulations cannot be made. The enabling powers in the withdrawal Act cease to be available after 31 December 2022. Similar regulations have been made by the Secretary of State that will apply in relation to England and Scotland. If the regulations are not made, Welsh Ministers will not have the same suite of powers as the other UK administrations, which are needed to respond swiftly to dynamic animal disease risks that can affect trade.

These regulations will ensure that the collective legal framework, side by side with the common UK animal health and welfare framework governing imports, is consistent across Great Britain and provides stability and reassurance to traders and authorities throughout Wales.