The Senedd, officially known as the Welsh Parliament in English and Senedd Cymru in Welsh, is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Wales. A democratically elected body, it makes laws for Wales, agrees to certain taxes, and scrutinises the Welsh Government. It is a bilingual institution, with both Welsh and English being the official languages of its business. From its creation in May 1999 until May 2020, the Senedd was officially known as the National Assembly for Wales and was often simply called the Welsh Assembly.
A legislative consent motion is a motion passed by either the Scottish Parliament, Senedd, or Northern Ireland Assembly, in which it consents that the Parliament of the United Kingdom may pass legislation on a devolved issue over which the devolved government has regular legislative authority.
In the United Kingdom, devolved matters are the areas of public policy where the Parliament of the United Kingdom has devolved its legislative power to the national legislatures of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while reserved matters and excepted matters are the areas where the UK Parliament retains exclusive power to legislate.
The Senedd constituencies and electoral regions are the electoral districts used to elect members of the Senedd to the Senedd, and have been used in some form since the first election of the then National Assembly for Wales in 1999. New boundaries were introduced for the 2007 elections and currently consist of forty constituencies and five regions. The five electoral regions are: Mid and West Wales, North Wales, South Wales Central, South Wales East, and South Wales West, with the forty constituencies listed below. Voting last took place in all districts in the 2021 Senedd election, and is not used for local government.
Welsh law is an autonomous part of the English law system composed of legislation made by the Senedd. Wales is part of the legal jurisdiction of England and Wales, one of the three legal jurisdictions of the United Kingdom. However, due to devolution, the law in Wales is increasingly distinct from the law in England, since the Senedd, the devolved parliament of Wales, can legislate on non-reserved matters.
The Counsel General for Wales is the Welsh Government's Law Officer, which means the government's chief legal adviser and representative in the courts. In addition to these "lawyer" roles the Counsel General also works to uphold the rule of law and integrity of the legal community in Wales, and has a number of important specific statutory functions, some of which are to be exercised independently of government and in the public interest.
A Measure of the National Assembly for Wales is primary legislation in Wales that is a category lower than an Act of Parliament. In the case of contemporary Welsh law, the difference with acts is that the competence to pass Measures was subject to 'LCOs' or Legislative Competence Order, which transferred powers to the Assembly by amending Schedule 5 of the Government of Wales Act 2006.
In Wales, a Legislative Competence Order was a piece of constitutional legislation in the form of an Order in Council. It transferred legislative authority from the Parliament of the United Kingdom to the National Assembly for Wales. The LCO had to be approved by the Assembly, the Secretary of State for Wales, both Houses of Parliament, and then the Queen in Council.
The National Assembly for Wales Order 2007, also known as the "Conduct Order" is a Legislative Competence Order and amendment of the National Assembly for Wales Order which made provision for the conduct of elections and the return of members to the National Assembly for Wales. It was put in place by the Secretary of State for Wales in 2007. In 2017, the enabling powers for the Order were devolved to the Welsh Government. The Welsh Government has further amended the order since.
An Act of Senedd Cymru, or informally an Act of the Senedd, is primary legislation that can be made by the Senedd under part 4 of the Government of Wales Act 2006. Prior to 6 May 2020 any legislation was formally known as an Act of the National Assembly for Wales or informally, an Act of the Assembly.
The Wales Act 2017 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It sets out amendments to the Government of Wales Act 2006 and devolves further powers to Wales. The legislation is based on the proposals of the St David's Day Command Paper.
A Welsh statutory instrument is subordinate legislation made by the Welsh Ministers, as well as subordinate legislation made by public bodies using powers provided to be exercisable by Welsh statutory instrument. WSIs are the main form of subordinate legislation in Wales, being used by default to exercise powers delegated to the Welsh Ministers, the Counsel General, and the King-in-Council.
