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The St David's Day Agreement, also known as the St David's Command Paper, is a command paper which set out the proposals of the UK coalition government. It was published in the
The St David's Day Agreement, also known as the St David's Command Paper, is a command paper which set out the proposals of the UK coalition government. It was published in the command paper
A command paper is a document issued by the UK Government and presented to Parliament.
White papers, green papers, treaties, government responses, draft bills, reports from Royal Commissions, reports from independent inquiries and various govern ...
''Powers for a purpose: Towards a lasting devolution settlement for Wales''. The document was announced on 27 February 2015, by Prime Minister
A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...
David Cameron
David William Donald Cameron (born 9 October 1966) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 2005 to 2016. He previously served as Leader o ...
and Deputy Prime Minister
A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...
Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British media executive and former Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom who has been president for global affairs at Meta Platforms since 2022, having previously been vicepr ...
at the Millennium Stadium
The Millennium Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm y Mileniwm), known since 2016 as the Principality Stadium ( cy, Stadiwm Principality) for sponsorship reasons, is the national stadium of Wales. Located in Cardiff, it is the home of the Wales national rug ...
in Cardiff
Cardiff (; cy, Caerdydd ) is the capital and largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Cardiff ( cy, Dinas a Sir Caerdydd, links=no), and the city is the eleventh-largest in the United Kingd ...
, Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
.
Recommendations
The document's recommendations include: *Energy projects up to 350megawatts
The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named after James Watt ...
should be decided by the Welsh Government
The Welsh Government ( cy, Llywodraeth Cymru) is the Welsh devolution, devolved government of Wales. The government consists of ministers and Minister (government), deputy ministers, and also of a Counsel General for Wales, counsel general. Minist ...
. This would include most offshore wind farms
Offshore wind power or offshore wind energy is the Wind power, generation of electricity through wind farms in bodies of water, usually at sea. There are higher wind speeds offshore than on land, so offshore farms generate more electricity per ...
and renewable technologies to harness tidal power
Tidal power or tidal energy is harnessed by converting energy from tides into useful forms of power, mainly electricity using various methods.
Although not yet widely used, tidal energy has the potential for future electricity generation. Ti ...
and fracking
Fracking (also known as hydraulic fracturing, hydrofracturing, or hydrofracking) is a well stimulation technique involving the fracturing of bedrock formations by a pressurized liquid. The process involves the high-pressure injection of "frack ...
.
*The National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repre ...
should have powers over the development of ports to improve Wales' transport infrastructure.
*The National Assembly should have the power to lower the voting age to 16 for Assembly elections. The Assembly already had the power to lower the voting age to 16 for a referendum on devolving income tax powers.
*All powers relating to National Assembly and local government elections should be devolved. This includes deciding the electoral system, the number of constituencies, their boundaries, the timing of elections, and the conduct of the elections themselves.
*The Welsh Government should have the power to appoint one member of the Ofcom
The Office of Communications, commonly known as Ofcom, is the government-approved regulatory and competition authority for the broadcasting, telecommunications and postal industries of the United Kingdom.
Ofcom has wide-ranging powers acros ...
board to represent Welsh interests.
*A review should be carried out of Air Passenger Duty
Air Passenger Duty (APD) is an excise Duty (tax), duty which is charged on the carriage of passengers flying from a United Kingdom or Isle of Man airport on an aircraft that has an authorised take-off weight of more than 5.7 tonnes or more than ...
which could open the door for it to be devolved to Wales.
*The agreement says the Welsh Government should be able to set its own speed limits and transport regulation for ports, taxis and buses.
The majority of the recommendations of the second report by the Commission on Devolution in Wales
The Commission on Devolution in Wales ( cy, Comisiwn ar Ddatganoli yng Nghymru), also known as the Silk Commission, was an independent commission established by Welsh Secretary Cheryl Gillan on 11 October 2011. The commission was based at the W ...
, commonly known as Silk II, have gone into this command paper
A command paper is a document issued by the UK Government and presented to Parliament.
White papers, green papers, treaties, government responses, draft bills, reports from Royal Commissions, reports from independent inquiries and various govern ...
.
Criticism
The command paper was criticised by the Welsh Government for "not reating Waleswith the same respect as being afforded to Scotland".Plaid Cymru
Plaid Cymru ( ; ; officially Plaid Cymru – the Party of Wales, often referred to simply as Plaid) is a centre-left to left-wing, Welsh nationalist political party in Wales, committed to Welsh independence from the United Kingdom.
Plaid wa ...
, a Welsh nationalist
Welsh nationalism ( cy, Cenedlaetholdeb Cymreig) emphasises and celebrates the distinctiveness of Welsh culture and Wales as a nation or country. Welsh nationalism may also include calls for further autonomy or self determination which includes ...
party, called the recommendations "3rd rate devolution".
See also
*Welsh devolution
Welsh devolution (Welsh: ''Datganoli i Gymru'') is the transfer of legislative power for self-governance to Wales by the Government of the United Kingdom. Wales was conquered by England during the 13th century; the 1284 Statute of Rhuddlan caused ...
Notes
{{reflist Government of Wales Welsh Government Politics of Wales