Mick Antoniw MS, the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution, has made two important statements to the Senedd regarding the historic environment consolidation Bill, including how it will make to improving the accessibility of the law.
In July, [Mick Antoniw] confirmed that the Bill would be part of the Welsh Government’s legislative programme for the year ahead. Introduction of the Bill to the Senedd is planned for spring 2022.
…significant contribution that consolidation will make to improving the accessibility of the law…
Cadw writes:
Mick Antoniw MS, the Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution, has made two important statements to the Senedd regarding the historic environment consolidation Bill. In July, he confirmed that the Bill would be part of the Welsh Government’s legislative programme for the year ahead. Introduction of the Bill to the Senedd is planned for spring 2022.
On September 21, the Counsel General addressed the Senedd after the publication of the Welsh Government’s first programme to improve the accessibility of modern Welsh law, as required by the Legislation (Wales) Act 2019.
In his speech, he used the historic environment consolidation Bill to illustrate his remarks on the significant contribution that consolidation will make to improving the accessibility of the law.
‘The work that has already been done on the draft Bill shows the benefits that consolidation will bring. Legislation for listed buildings and scheduled monuments has been brought together and restated to make it more logical, easier to read and more internally consistent across the various provisions. In future, users will be able to turn to one piece of primary legislation for the law on the management and the protection of the historic environment, and that law will be made for Wales alone and will be fully bilingual.’
Working with our colleagues in the Office of the Legislative Counsel and Legal Services, we have now considered the drafting for roughly half of the new Bill, including the chapters on designation and consents for scheduled monuments and listed buildings. The Welsh drafting of the Bill is also proceeding well.
Much, however, remains to be done. In addition to the drafting of the remainder of the Bill, we need to prepare the explanatory notes and memorandum and the other documentation that must accompany the legislation on introduction. Since the Bill is scheduled for the first year of the Welsh Government’s legislative programme, we have some very tight deadlines to meet. If all goes according to plan and the Bill meets with the Senedd’s approval, it should receive Royal Assent early in 2023. We shall turn our attention to the implementation of the legislation, once we have a complete draft Bill.
Keep checking the New Legislation section of the Cadw website for further information on our consolidation project.
