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Further Education and Training Bill [HL]

I wonder whether it would be appropriate for me to speak to Clause 26, which is also on Welsh issues. Clause 26 was originally grouped with Amendment No. 56. My noble friend Lord Roberts, who is the authority on Wales in my party, was going to speak on this, but I have also put my name down as opposing the clause. We gave notice of our intention to do so for probing purposes. We want to tease out the implications of the clause, which amends Schedule 5 to the Government of Wales Act and, in effect, transfers legislative power over further education in Wales to the National Assembly. When the Government of Wales Act passed through this House last Session, one of the most contentious parts, as I am sure everyone involved remembers, was the order-making power in what became Section 95, which defined the scope of the Assembly's legislative competence. This allowed the Secretary of State to amend Schedule 5 and increase the scope for Assembly measures by means of an Order in Council. It involved a complex procedure, leading eventually to the approval of both Houses. As the Government have the option of using this order-making power, can the Minister explain why they are not using it? A cynic might speculate that the necessary preparation involved in the Order in Council process is considered too onerous and that this Bill was selected to be the primary legislative vehicle for the quick devolution of legislative powers over further education simply because it offered the easiest way to achieve that end. I am not altogether convinced that Clause 26 is legitimate in its use of statutory powers to change Schedule 5 to the Government of Wales Act. Section 95 of that Act specifies that Part 1 of Schedule 5 may be changed by Order in Council. There is no reference to any other means or source of power to change it. I am sure that the Minister will be very quick to reassure me that Clause 26 is a perfectly proper means of adding to the legislative competence of the Assembly, as he has just said. I should very much like to know what consultation there has been in Wales about this devolution measure and what the results of that consultation were. It would be an extraordinary act of devolution if these steps were taken without any measure of approval from the colleges and institutions that will be affected by it. I should also be interested to know what debates have been held in the National Assembly on this matter. The Order in Council procedure anticipated that the National Assembly would be the instigator of the process, asking Westminster for the legislative powers. Given the apparent absence of that innovative process, I hope that the National Assembly is sufficiently prepared for the extra responsibilities that are about to be foisted on it. I look forward to the Minister’s response.