Access concerns see Welsh Government target online encyclopaedia of law

The Welsh Government has revealed that it is working with a legal publisher to provide an online encyclopaedia of Welsh law, after concerns were expressed that the legislation was inaccessible.

Theodore Huckle QC, the Counsel General, told the National Assembly that the Government was also collaborating with the National Archive in order to improve access to Welsh law on the legislation.gov.uk website.

This will involve signposting the territorial application of existing legislation, he added. 

Huckle said: "For the rule of law to prevail, legislation must be effective and accessible. I am concerned that Welsh legislation is not sufficiently clear and accessible – not only because of its complexity and volume, but also because it is not effectively published.

"The existing body of law is an interconnected patchwork of legislation - some of which is decades, or in some cases even centuries old. Devolution has added to the complexity of statute law.”

The encyclopaedia, which is to take the form of a bilingual, explanatory narrative, is expected to be made available in 2013.

The Counsel General will also consider the feasibility of developing a separate programme of simplifying and consolidating legislation which already applies in Wales.

Huckle added: "The people of Wales have a right to easy access to the laws which govern their lives in a readily understandable form. While good progress has been made already, much more needs to be done to promote, clarify and improve access to law.

"This could be improved significantly by gradually moving towards free-standing Welsh legislation - or a Welsh statute book. This would involve revising, codifying and consolidating the law that applies only to Wales. This has indeed been the feature of a number of Bills that the Welsh Government has introduced or is consulting upon. Wherever possible, the Welsh Government now prefers to make stand alone provision for Wales.”

The Counsel General said that these initiatives would accelerate the development of a substantial body of stand-alone Welsh law. 

“This work will also be essential as we consider whether or not we should seek to develop a separate legal jurisdiction for Wales,” he argued.