Part of 1. 1. Questions to the First Minister – in the Senedd at 1:44 pm on 17 October 2017.
Leanne Wood
Plaid Cymru
1:44,
17 October 2017
Well, it’s encouraging to hear that you had a more positive meeting, but Plaid Cymru still sees that there is a risk of a power grab in this Bill. Clause 11 of the Bill places restrictions on the devolved administrations on competence relating to EU law, although that’s not the only part of the Bill where we’ve got concerns, as you will be aware. The meeting between Theresa May and Jean-Claude Juncker last night was of crucial importance to Wales. Even more than the withdrawal Bill that I’ve mentioned, the terms of EU exit on trade is vital in terms of Welsh jobs. Last night though, there was no breakthrough. The admission that talks need to accelerate is, in my view, a sign of their failure so far. Will you acknowledge that leaving the EU without a deal is a real and, if that does happen, that it would be bad news for Welsh jobs, for Welsh farming and for Welsh trade?
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.
Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.
During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.
When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.
