Standoff over Brexit powers continues but so do talks
Welsh, Scottish and UK Government ministers are pushing ahead with separate plans that will see a constitutional clash between the three governments despite holding another round of talks aimed at ending a row over how EU powers should be shared out after Brexit.
It now puts pressure on Carwyn Jones, Nicola Sturgeon and Theresa May to reach agreement when they meet in Downing Street next week.
Welsh and Scottish ministers say they put forward practical solutions to the row over the Withdrawal Bill which the UK Government says it will consider.
But ministers in London will table an amendment to the Bill without agreement from the devolved administrations and in turn those administrations will speed through their own emergency legislation aimed at overturning the Westminster bill.
Today's session of the Joint Ministerial Committee had been hastily-arranged after Wales and Scotland rejected a UK Government compromise for not going far enough.
That compromise was described by the UK government as ‘a substantial offer’ which would see the disputed powers transferred to Cardiff and Edinburgh but with a veto for ministers in London in some cases.
They say the veto is crucial to ensure the smooth running of rules and regulations for trading between different parts of the UK.
Welsh and Scottish Governments say the offer doesn’t go far enough as it doesn’t recognise the principle of consent.
They say they understand that some rules and regulations currently run from Brussels will need to be operated on a UK-wise basis but they say such UK-wide systems which overlap devolved areas should be agreed by all administrations.
In return the UK Government says that amounts to giving Wales and Scotland a veto over those UK-wide rules and regulations.
Today's meeting ended without agreement but with a promise of attempts to reach agreement despite the steps being taken in the House of Lords, the National Assembly and the Scottish Parliament which will intensify the dispute.
Developments included:
The UK Government will table an amendment to the Withdrawal Bill based on the rejected offer, without agreement from Welsh and Scottish Governments
Talks between officials will continue and a meeting of First Ministers with the Prime Minister will take place next week
UK ministers leave open the prospect of tabling further amendments if agreement is reached
Welsh and Scottish Governments will push ahead with continuity bills to claim the disputed powers for themselves
A list of the disputed powers will be published by the UK Government 'in due course' but possibly today or tomorrow
Welsh and Scottish Governments will continue to recommend that AMs and MSPs refuse consent to the Withdrawal Bill as it affects Wales
Speaking after leaving the Cabinet Office, Finance Minister Mark Drakeford told me that the Welsh and Scottish Governments had responded to the compromise made by Cabinet Office minister David Lidington last month with a set of three proposals:
Plaid Cymru has criticised the news that the Withdrawal Bill amendment will go ahead without agreement from Welsh and Scottish Governments.
The party's Brexit spokesperson Steffan Lewis, who is credited by the Welsh Government with driving forward the idea of a continuity bill, says it 'wilfully ignores legitimate objections.'