Memorandum submitted by The Welsh Local Government Association (WLGA) (VC 5)

Vulnerable Children and Child Poverty LCO

1. Is the LCO request in the spirit and scope of the devolution settlement?

The devolution settlement has evolved to include the Government of Wales Act 2006, which includes the mechanism of an LCO - it is therefore within the scope of the statutory settlement.

Welsh Ministers already have wide ranging executive responsibilities in the field of social welfare as do local authorities through their statutory duties to safeguard, promote and secure the wellbeing of all children and young people, including those in need, in care and care leavers. The WLGA supports the LCO as further strengthening these powers by adding legislative competence to the current executive responsibilities and thereby providing accountability to the National Assembly for future legislative change. This would be within the scope of the devolution settlement.

2. Is the use of the LCO mechanism in accordance with the Government of   Wales Act 2006?

The Act provided the mechanism to devolve legislative competence, as such the use of the LCO is entirely within the scope and order of the Government of Wales Act 2006, by definition the one is in accord with the other.

3. Is the use of an LCO more appropriate than, for example, the use of framework powers in a Westminster Bill?

The mechanisms for adding to the legislative competence of the National Assembly include both the LCO mechanism and the potential for framework clauses in Westminster Bills. The two mechanisms are complementary. If a Bill was in prospect which covered the scope of the proposed legislative competence there would be a good case for employing that Bill to achieve the intended objective through a framework clause. No such bill is in prospect and it is for this circumstance that the LCO mechanism was introduced by the 2006 Act; it appears therefore to be entirely appropriate for the LCO mechanism to be used in this case.

4. The extent to which there is a demand for legislation on the matter(s) in question?

The WLGA supports the pursuance of this LCO as providing increased legislative competence within the field of social welfare of children and young people to the Assembly Government. We support in principle the stated objective of the Welsh Assembly Government to employ the enhanced competence to achieve the legislative coherence necessary to work towards the ambitions set out in the policy document "Towards a Stable Life". There will need to be a substantial consideration and consultation in developing measures within the scope of this LCO and the WLGA will be a full contributor to those considerations. There is no need at this stage to anticipate the detail of those measures.

5. To what extent might the transfer of functions proposed have wider implications for the UK budget?

There is no connection between the devolution of additional legislative competence to the Welsh Assembly and the UK budget. The allocation of grant to the Welsh Assembly Government is calculated through the Barnett formula and takes no account of any change in legislative competence. The Block Grant only changes as a result of changes in executive competence, a transfer of function, and this is not proposed in this case.

6. To what extent might the transfer of functions impact on reserved functions?

As set out in the answer to the previous question this proposed order does not alter the functions for which the Welsh Assembly Government is responsible. It proposes only to enhance the legislative competence which the National Assembly will have in the exercise of those existing functions. It is possible that in the exercise of this enhanced legislative competence there may in time be a greater policy diversity between Wales and England but we do not believe that such diversity will have an impact on the execution of any reserved matter.

7. Are there any cross-border issues relating to the LCO? (Would legislation subsequently be required in England?)

Welsh local authorities procure services for vulnerable children from providers in England and local authorities in England procure services from providers in Wales. Enhanced legislative competence may result in greater divergence in the standards required in those services. In so far as future Measures may alter the regulation of services for vulnerable children in Wales this will manifest itself in the contracts that Welsh local authorities make with providers in England. The cross border flow of service users, and the variation of standards, will be managed through the contractual relationships. There is nothing new in this arrangement in that different local authorities in both England and Wales can already make different requirements in their contracts and providers already respond to such differences.

Currently through the amendment of secondary legislation and the development of distinct policy frameworks, divergence between England and Wales already exists and the WLGA works in partnership with border authorities to ensure effective service delivery.

8. Would the proposed LCO necessitate the formation or abolition of Welsh institutions and structures? If so, where does the legislative competence to exercise such changes lie?

An LCO cannot form or abolish anything; it provides competence for the Assembly to legislate on some defined matters. Whilst we do not anticipate that a measure deriving from this particular competence will lead to a measure proposing the formation or abolition of any particular institution, should such a measure be proposed its vires would be tested against the competence provided by this LCO.

28 April 2008