Government of Wales Bill

Despite the honourable and valiant attempt of the hon. Member for Chesham and Amersham (Mrs. Gillan) to build consensus with Plaid Cymru, there are two separate points here. The first is that Parliament is ultimately in charge, and has to be. I do not think that amendment No. 31—under which the Assembly would be in charge, and Parliament would simply rubber-stamp the wording on which it had decided—is acceptable. Clause 102(6) requires the Secretary of State to consult widely, and those consulted will obviously include the Assembly. The Secretary of State will also have to consult the Electoral Commission on the referendum question in the draft Order in Council. That procedure was established by section 104 of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000. As the draft Order in Council will have to be approved by at least two thirds of Assembly Members, I put it to the hon. Member for Carmarthen, East and Dinefwr (Adam Price) that the Assembly’s support will be needed. Consensus will be built into the whole process. I think that the Bill would handle the matter much better than either amendment No. 31 or amendment No. 194. It is not in the interests of the Government, when about to embark on a referendum to trigger primary powers for the Assembly, to create controversy around the question. There will be enough controversy around the issue at the time. Through the consultation requirements with the Electoral Commission built into the Bill, the requirements of the Political Parties, Elections and Referendums Act 2000 and consultation with the Assembly, a consensus will emerge that it is in no one’s interest to disturb.