Wales Office

Wales Office Welsh: Swyddfa Cymru
Royal Badge of Wales (Red Dragon version)
Wales Office, Gwydyr House in Whitehall, London
Department overview
Formed	1999[1]
Preceding Department	Welsh Office
Jurisdiction	Wales
Headquarters	1 Caspian Point, Caspian Way, Cardiff, CF10 4DQ & Gwydyr House, Whitehall, London, SW1A 2NP
Annual budget	£6 million for 2011-12 [2]
Minister responsible	David Jones MP, Secretary of State for Wales
Website	www.walesoffice.gov.uk

The Wales Office is a United Kingdom government department. It replaced the former Welsh Office, which had extensive responsibility for governing Wales prior to Welsh devolution in 1999.^[1]

In the past it has been called "Wales' voice in Westminster and Westminster's voice in Wales". However, it is significantly less powerful since the Government of Wales Act 2006: it is primarily responsible for carrying out the few functions remaining with the Secretary of State for Wales that have not been transferred already to the National Assembly for Wales; and for securing funds for Wales as part of the annual budgetary settlement.^[3]

The Secretary of State for Wales has overall responsibility for the office but it is located administratively within the Ministry of Justice (until 2007, the Department for Constitutional Affairs).

Ministers

The Wales Office Ministers are as follows:^[4][5]

Party		Minister	Rank	Portfolio
	Conservative	David Jones MP	Secretary of State	Overall strategic direction, constitutional affairs, general economic policy, foreign affairs, EU, Welsh language, Royal Matters, Business, Inward Investment, Silk Commission
	Conservative	Stephen Crabb MP	Parliamentary-Under Secretary of State	Defence, Environment, Energy, Welfare, Transport, Borders, incl Immigration, Broadcasting, Local Government, Law and Order
	Liberal Democrat	The Baroness Randerson	Parliamentary-Under Secretary of State	Health, Education, Elections, Public Appointments, Rural Affairs, Equality, Human Trafficking, Culture, Tourism, Big Society

Unlike Scotland and Northern Ireland, Wales does not have its own Law Officers of the Crown; it is part of the England and Wales legal jurisdiction. The Attorney General for England and Wales therefore advises the United Kingdom Government on its law.^[6] His deputy is the Solicitor General for England and Wales.

Future

Following the 'yes' vote in the 2011 referendum on giving the Assembly direct law-making powers, some politicians in Wales, particularly from Plaid Cymru, have called for the abolition of the Wales Office.^[7] Dafydd Elis-Thomas, Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales said

I think it would be very useful to [wind up the Wales Office] before we start the next Assembly; that would be the logical time because that is the time when our new powers will become fully operational. The relationship then would be inter-governmental and inter-parliamentary. In other words it would be between the National Assembly and the Parliament at Westminster, where there are issues on laws which are made in Westminster which impinge on Wales and vice versa.^[8]

However, Lord Elis-Thomas was accused of following a "separatist agenda" by Cheryl Gillan, current Conservative Secretary of State for Wales. She was supported by her Labour predecessor Peter Hain, who declared that Wales "still needs a voice around the Cabinet in Westminster".^[7]

References

External links

• Official website

v t e Wales Office Headquarters: Gwydyr House, Whitehall, London and Caspian Point, Cardiff Bay Secretary of State David Jones, MP Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of State Stephen Crabb, MP Lady Randerson Parliamentary Private Secretary Daniel Kawczynski, MP Attorney General Dominic Grieve, MP Predecessor: Welsh Office

v t e Secretaries of State for Wales Wales Office 1964–1970 Griffiths Hughes Thomas 1970–1974 Thomas 1974–1979 Morris 1979–1997 Edwards Walker Hunt Redwood Hunt Hague 1997–2010 Davies Michael Murphy Hain* Murphy Hain 2010–present Gillan Jones *Also Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (2005–2007)

v t e Departments of Her Majesty's Government of the United Kingdom Ministerial Attorney General's Office Cabinet Office Department for Business, Innovation and Skills Department for Communities and Local Government Department for Culture, Media and Sport Department for Education Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Department for International Development Department for Transport Department for Work and Pensions Department of Energy and Climate Change Department of Health Foreign and Commonwealth Office Her Majesty's Treasury Home Office Ministry of Defence Ministry of Justice Northern Ireland Office Office of the Advocate General for Scotland Office of the Leader of the House of Commons Office of the Leader of the House of Lords Scotland Office UK Export Finance Wales Office Non-ministerial Charity Commission for England and Wales Commissioners for the Reduction of the National Debt Competition and Markets Authority Crown Prosecution Service Food Standards Agency Forestry Commission Government Actuary's Department Her Majesty's Land Registry Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs National Crime Agency Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills Office of Fair Trading Office of Gas and Electricity Markets Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation Office of Rail Regulation Ordnance Survey Public Works Loan Board Serious Fraud Office Supreme Court of the United Kingdom The National Archives Treasury Solicitor's Department UK Statistics Authority UK Trade & Investment Water Services Regulation Authority Category  Commons

v t e Devolution in the United Kingdom Devolved areas London Northern Ireland Scotland Wales Referendums London 1998 North East England 2004 Northern Ireland 1998 Scotland 1979 1997 Wales 1979 1997 2011 Heads of devolved governments London (Mayor) Northern Ireland (FM and dFM) Scotland (FM) Wales (FM) Devolved legislatures Northern Ireland Assembly National Assembly for Wales Scottish Parliament Devolved administrations Greater London Authority London Assembly Northern Ireland Executive Scottish Government Welsh Government Organisations and laws of the legislatures and governments of the UK and the devolved areas Commissions (UK Parliament) Kilbrandon Commission Holtham Commission Silk Commission McKay Commission Commissions (devolved legislatures) National Assembly for Wales Richard Commission Holtham Commission Scottish Parliament Calman Commission Devolution acts Greater London Authority Acts 1999 2007 Northern Ireland Acts 1998 2006 Government of Wales Acts 1998 2006 Scotland Acts 1998 2012 Select committees Northern Ireland Affairs Scottish Affairs Welsh Affairs Grand committees Northern Ireland Scottish Welsh Departments and Territorial Offices (MOJ) Cabinet Office - Devolution Secretariat Ministry of Justice - Devolution Directorate-General Office of the Advocate General for Scotland Northern Ireland Office Scotland Office Wales Office Elections London Northern Ireland Scotland Wales Related articles Current Agreements/Treaties Anglo-Irish Treaty Good Friday Agreement Barnett formula Constitution of the United Kingdom Reserved and excepted matters West Lothian question Proposals UK-wide Block grant Cornwall Cornish Assembly Revived Cornish Stannary Parliament Devolved English parliament Scotland Full fiscal autonomy Historical Administrations of London London County Council Greater London Council Administrations of Northern Ireland 1922–72 1974 Legislatures of Northern Ireland 1922–72 1973–74 1982–86 Northern Ireland-related legislation of the UK Parliament Ireland, 1886 Ireland, 1893 Ireland, 1914 Ireland, 1920 Irish Free State, 1922 Northern Ireland, 1974 Irish Home Rule movement Prime Minister of Northern Ireland Scotland Act 1978 Scottish Office Sunningdale Agreement Wales Act 1978 Welsh Office Note: Rejected referendums are italicised. Category