Second Report - The constitutional relationship with the Crown Dependencies

The government rejected the recommendation for more regular, proactively offered meetings between senior Ministry of Justice officials and their Crown Dependency counterparts, stating that meeting attendance should be based on relevance and need rather than seniority.

The government has introduced an additional Grade 7 official to the Crown Dependencies team, creating two sub-teams to manage workload, but stated any further staffing increases would depend on other priorities. They will also explore the feasibility of work placements for officials.

The government is developing a comprehensive education program for civil servants on the UK's constitutional relationship with Crown Dependencies, including new resources and exploring a learning module. The Lord Chancellor will also write to Cabinet colleagues after the general election to remind them of their responsibilities.

The government believes intergovernmental placements are valuable and has established an intergovernmental placement working group in 2023 to address barriers and unlock benefits, but did not commit to specific secondments or a timeline.

The government agreed that working relationships should be underpinned by early and regular engagement and consultation, and committed to reviewing and updating the Ministry of Justice's 'How-To-Notes' to reflect this emphasis.

The government acknowledges that the Ministry of Justice normally coordinates cross-departmental issues affecting Crown Dependencies and will continue to work to ensure their interests are represented across Whitehall.

The government will carefully consider developing a formal framework for the relationship with Crown Dependencies and seek their views, expressing caution about codifying it, but does not directly commit to a Cabinet Office role for urgent matters.

The government responded by discussing the importance of services to Crown Dependency economies and its commitment to continue seeking extension mechanisms in free trade agreements, completely sidestepping the recommendation on formalising a framework for the MoJ-CD relationship.

The government notes the importance of engagement and states that the Department for Business and Trade already has well-established processes, including regular consultation with Crown Dependencies, engagement with negotiators, and routine sharing of draft UK negotiating texts.

The government acknowledges its duty to represent Crown Dependency interests and details existing processes, including dedicated officials and a central hub within the Department for Business and Trade, to ensure their interests are considered and consulted upon during trade negotiations.

The government notes the recommendation and states that it already has well-established processes for regular and timely consultation with the Crown Dependencies, including sharing draft negotiating texts to ensure their interests are considered. They do not commit to identifying new guiding principles or placing officials in the room as conduits.

The government states that its current free trade agreement negotiation teams already include specified officials with an understanding of the Crown Dependencies' interests, who lead on territorial application and consult with CD officials, alongside established processes to ensure engagement.

The government merely acknowledged the Committee's recognition of positive direct engagement, without addressing its duty to represent Crown Dependency interests in cases of conflict or the proposal for specifically designated officials.

The government states that the Department for Business and Trade is open to Crown Dependencies demonstrating compliance in any effective way, not necessarily mirroring UK legislation, and will continue to engage on different approaches. They also state that comprehensive feedback on compliance assessments is routinely and promptly provided through presentations and detailed written responses.

The government responded by agreeing on the importance of early and regular engagement between departments and Crown Dependencies for UK policymaking, entirely failing to address the recommendation to activate existing extension mechanisms promptly.

The government accepts the recommendation, committing the Ministry of Justice to work with Crown Dependencies and across Whitehall to streamline the entrustment process, raise awareness, and provide clear guidance. Specifically, they will produce a new ‘How-To-Note’ on entrustments and include the topic in training for government departments.

The government notes the recommendation and will continue to consider the use of general entrustments on a case-by-case basis, balancing flexibility for Crown Dependencies with UK responsibilities and ongoing complexities, maintaining dialogue on the issue.

The government provided a general statement about the Ministry of Justice's role in coordinating cross-departmental issues affecting Crown Dependencies, entirely unrelated to the recommendation about streamlining Jersey's Royal Assent process.

The government agrees that consultation with Crown Dependencies should occur before including a Permissive Extent Clause (PEC) in legislation. However, they reject the Committee's criticism of the PEC in the Fisheries Act 2020 and maintain that PECs do not constitute legislating for Crown Dependencies, reserving the right to use them in exceptional circumstances, particularly for international obligations, without prior agreement.

The government agrees on the importance of ongoing consultation and commits to updating the Ministry of Justice’s “How-To-Note” guidance to emphasize that departments must keep Crown Dependencies informed throughout the passage of a bill.

The government notes the recommendation and states that existing Cabinet Office guidance already requires departments to consider and consult on legislative implications for Crown Dependencies. The Ministry of Justice will re-emphasise adherence to this guidance across government.

The Department for Business and Trade highlights data limitations hindering a formal assessment of the Crown Dependencies' contribution, and will only *consider* whether publishing additional information in strategic approaches would support trade negotiation objectives.