AFC0074

Written evidence submitted by the Welsh Government

Thank you for your letter of the 26th of February regarding the Armed Forces Covenant inquiry and the potential impact of an extension of the Covenant legal duty to central government and devolved governments.

My department is engaging with the Ministry of Defence to ensure that the extension of the Covenant legal duty delivers for Wales. An important part of this, as reflected in the letter you received from the Minister for Veterans and People, is the engagement with the Welsh Government as the Covenant applies to devolved and reserved responsibilities in Wales.

I am very supportive of the Covenant, as it is important that the brave members of our Armed Forces and those that have served are not disadvantaged wherever they live in the UK including Wales.

I work with Cabinet Members and ministerial colleagues to ensure support is provided where needed. My approach is informed by an Armed Forces Expert Group which I Chair and includes representation from those who advocate support for the Armed Forces Community in Wales. I report on our activity, to Senedd Members, through the Cross-Party Group on Armed Forces and Cadets related issues and also through Senedd Business and through the UK Covenant Annual Report with other Devolved Governments.

We worked with the UK Government on the introduction of the Duty of Due Regard in 2022 and I welcome the early engagement by the MOD with my officials and I look forward to Ministerial engagement on plans in due course.

The desire to back our Armed Forces Community is one that Welsh Government wants to play its part in and one which also receives broad support across the Senedd. Our population and its large percentage of veterans here reflects a tradition of Service in the Armed Forces and a community in Wales that has seen service and conflict across different generations. We also contribute significantly in terms of those serving across the Armed Services now. Our Service People are engaged in operational deployments and face an uncertain world. They need to be assured that across the UK they and their families are being looked out for.

In terms of impact, I would expect this legal duty to help focus minds more broadly across Welsh Government in planning, preparing and reviewing policy and I welcome that. To date, our efforts have been concentrated in defined devolved areas within the Covenant, those of health, education and housing. Should the duty extend in greater depth into existing areas, or cover new ones, such as social care, we will need to respond to that. We are already planning for this eventuality and considering how such a duty might sit alongside the other component parts of our Integrated Impact Assessment process. Clearly there will be a process impact with the need to resource and adopt new ways of working. The shared challenge across UK and the Devolved Governments will be how changes to processes can lead to better delivery, and in turn, better outcomes, for the Armed Forces Community. This is something I would hope we can work on across UK and the Devolved Governments.

Ken Skates AS/MS

Ysgrifennydd y Cabinet dros Drafnidiaeth a Gogledd Cymru

Cabinet Secretary for Transport and North Wales

14th March 2025