Will the Cabinet Secretary confirm whether Welsh Ministers are able to make Welsh language standards specifically applicable to HM Prison and Probation Service without permission from the Secretary of State?
Section 39 of The Welsh Language (Wales) Measure 2011 (‘the Measure’) gives Welsh Ministers a power to make regulations which specify Welsh language standards that are specifically applicable to a body. However, section 43 of the Measure expressly provides that regulations made under section 39 may not provide for a standard to be specifically applicable to a Minister of the Crown unless the Secretary of State consents to that provision.
Given the Secretary of State’s functions in relation to the HM Prison and Probation Service (‘HMPPS’) (by way of the Prison Act 1952 amongst others), the Secretary of State’s consent would be required if the Welsh Ministers prepare Welsh language standards specifically applicable to HMPPS.