Clause 3 - Trial period and review
Daylight Saving Bill
3:45 pm
Edward Davey (Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Employment Relations, Consumer and Postal Affairs), Business, Innovation and Skills; Kingston and Surbiton, Liberal Democrat)
It is not for a Minister of the Crown in this Parliament to say what votes should or should not take place in the Scottish Parliament or the Welsh Assembly. I imagine—as a politician, I am sure the hon. Gentleman will accept this—that if the Scottish and Welsh Governments were consulted, they would wish to debate the matter to get the opinion of their Parliament or Assembly. I am not saying the Government require that; it would be up to the Scottish and Welsh Governments. That seems to me the normal way of doing things. I cannot bind the Scottish and Welsh Governments, but I believe that a vote would make an awful lot of sense. I think that it would give greater legitimacy to whatever opinion the Scottish and Welsh Governments wished to give during the consultation, but it is not for me to say there must be a vote.