Commentary on Sections Part 4 – General Section 6 – Activities to improve accessibility of Welsh law
218.Section 6 of this Act amends section 2 of the 2019 Act. That section requires the Welsh Ministers and the Counsel General to develop a programme of work designed to improve the accessibility of Welsh law in each Senedd term.
219.Although the specific content of a programme is a matter for the Welsh Ministers and the Counsel General, section 2(3) requires each programme to make provision to consolidate and codify Welsh law, maintain codified law, promote awareness and understanding of Welsh law, and to facilitate use of the Welsh language.
220.The amendment made by section 6 of this Act to section 2(3) of the 2019 Act means that each programme must also make provision correcting any errors and resolving any ambiguities in Welsh law. Section 2(7) of the 2019 Act requires the Counsel General to make an annual report to Senedd Cymru on progress against the programme. Once the amendment made to section 2(3) of the 2019 Act is in force, future reports will need to include updates on the measures taken on correcting any errors or resolving ambiguities. To date the Counsel General’s reports have been written papers published on the Welsh Government’s website, but as noted in the Explanatory Notes to the 2019 Act, the report could be made as a statement to the Senedd.