Explanatory Notes

Government of Wales Act 2006

2006 CHAPTER 32

25 July 2006

Detailed Commentary on Sections in Part 5

Payments into Welsh Consolidated Fund

Section 120: Destination of Receipts

455.This section deals with which sums need to be paid into the WCF, and which do not. The normal position is that sums received by the Welsh Ministers, the First Minister, the Counsel General, the Assembly Commission, the AGW or the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales are to be paid into the WCF (because all those bodies and office-holders are funded out of that Fund - see subsection (1)).

456.However, there are a number of exceptions to this, namely:

a)

where legislation (including this Act) expressly disapplies the general requirement for receipts to be paid into the WCF (see, for an example in this Act , Schedule 8, paragraph 9(3));

b)

where the Assembly has resolved that receipts in the relevant category are, in principle, eligible for retention (as opposed to having to be paid into the WCF) by the Welsh Ministers, the First Minister, the Counsel General, the Assembly Commission, the AGW or the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales; a Budget resolution of the Assembly (for which see section 125) must also have authorised the maximum amount, up to which the person in question can retain the resources for the relevant financial year (subsection (2)).

457.In addition, HM Treasury can effectively override a requirement that sums be paid into the WCF. The Treasury can make an Order under subsection (3) designating certain categories of receipt. The consequence of this is that the Welsh Ministers have to pay an amount equivalent to those receipts into the UK Consolidated Fund, via the Secretary of State for Wales. This power of HM Treasury is outside the Assembly Budget process (for which see below), because the sums involved are charged on the WCF by virtue of subsection (6). This means that they are paid automatically out of the WCF, without the need for Assembly approval in a Budget resolution. Subsection (7) provides that these Treasury Orders are to be made by negative resolution procedure in the House of Commons (in accordance with the convention that the Commons alone controls matters relating to the supply of finance to the executive).