Mick Antoniw MS, Counsel General and Minister for the Constitution
Our programme to improve the accessibility of Welsh law seeks to tackle problems with the complexity and the disorganised state of our vast and sprawling statute book. One of the causes of that complexity is the way legislation can be amended, re-amended and re-made in inconsistent ways over time. Sometimes those changes can result in legislative provisions which are no longer necessary. Provisions can also fall out of use or are never commenced (often because other circumstances have rendered them unnecessary).
Today I am launching a consultation on the Statute Law (Repeals) (Wales) Bill which will remove unnecessary provisions from the Welsh statute book, to help “declutter” it and bring clarity about the extent to which those provisions are relevant to Wales. This simplification of the law helps avoid people being misled by obsolete legislation.
Through this consultation, I am keen to understand if the proposed repeals are helpful, and whether there are any consequences of repeal that we need to be aware of. I also welcome views on whether there are other provisions we should consider including in this or a future Bill.
Bills such as this one used to be a regular feature in the UK Parliament, but unfortunately, we have not seen one being taken through there for a number of years now. I anticipate a Statute Law (Repeals) Bill will feature in most Senedd terms.