Counsel General for Wales

Wales

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The Counsel General for Wales advises the Welsh Government on Welsh legislative matters and advises on legislative competency. The position of the Counsel General for Wales is described in the Government of Wales Act 2006 and controlled in Standing Order 5 ^[1].

The Counsel General is a member of the Welsh Government; he or she is its chief legal adviser and is a political appointee, not a civil servant. The Counsel General is appointed by Her Majesty on the recommendation of the First Minister and may be removed from office by Her Majesty on the recommendation of the First Minister.

From 1998 to October 2003, Winston Roddick CB QC fulfilled this role while the Executive and legislature were combined, and was Counsel General to the National Assembly for Wales. As such he had responsibility for advising the Assembly on all legal matters including, in particular, public and constitutional law, employment and disciplinary tribunals, information law, including the Data Protection Act.

The Counsel General may intervene in the public interest in any proceedings relating to the functions of the Welsh Ministers and/or the First Minister^[2]. In Westminster, the closest equivalent to this role is the Attorney General, although this is not a perfect comparison.

List of office holders

Name		Picture	Entered office	Left office	Political party	Government
	Carwyn Jones AM		19 July 2007	9 December 2009	Labour	Labour/Plaid Cymru Coalition
	John Griffiths AM		December 2009	27 May 2011	Labour	Labour/Plaid Cymru Coalition
	Theodore Huckle QC [3]		27 May 2011		Labour party appointment	Labour

References

1. ^ http://www.assemblywales.org/bus-home/bus-committees/bus-committees-second/bus-committees-second-cso-home/bus-committees-second-cso-agendas/5c6f74fdbdf20c1aa78ffb9c14307e6e.pdf?langoption=3&ttl=CSO(2)-23-07%3A%20Paper%2006%20-%20Counsel%20General%20to%20the%20Welsh%20Assembly%20Government
2. ^ Government of Wales Bill
3. ^ BBC Wales news item