LOCAL GOVERNMENT BYELAWS (WALES) BILL 2012 - Reference by the Attorney General for England and Wales

This case involved a reference to the UK Supreme Court by the Attorney General for England and Wales, questioning the legislative competence of the National Assembly for Wales in relation to the Local Government Byelaws (Wales) Bill 2012. The central legal issue was whether sections 6 and 9 of the Bill were within the Assembly’s legislative competence under the Government of Wales Act 2006. Section 6 aimed to remove the requirement for confirmation of byelaws by the Welsh Ministers, while section 9 would empower the Welsh Ministers to add to or subtract from the list of enactments requiring such confirmation. The court had to interpret the relevant provisions of the 2006 Act and determine whether the sections fell within the Assembly's legislative competence. The Supreme Court held that section 6 was within the Assembly's competence as it was incidental to, or consequential on, the primary purpose of the Bill to remove the requirement for confirmation by the Welsh Ministers. The court also held that section 9 was within competence when read narrowly to limit the power conferred on the Welsh Ministers to cases where the enactment concerned identified the Welsh Ministers as having the confirmatory power, or where the removal of the confirmatory power was incidental or consequential. The court made a declaration that sections 6 and 9 of the Bill were within the legislative competence of the Assembly.