Section 47: Relevant national authorities
225.This section defines who is the “relevant national authority” in relation to trading schemes, and in doing so sets out the scope of the powers available to each national authority.
Subsection (2) allows the Scottish Ministers to make trading schemes within the scope of the legislative competence of the Scottish Parliament (that is, to the extent that the Scottish Parliament would have been able to make a trading scheme of its own accord).
Subsection (3) allows the Welsh Ministers to make trading schemes in relation to matters that relate to limiting, or encouraging the limiting of, activities in Wales that consist of the emission of greenhouse gases, with the exception of activities in connection with offshore oil and gas exploration and exploitation. If the National Assembly for Wales gains legislative competence that would enable it to make trading schemes of its own accord, the power of the Welsh Ministers to make trading schemes under this Part will extend to match the scope of that legislative competence. Subsection (4) defines “offshore oil and gas exploration and exploitation” to have the same meaning it has in the National Assembly for Wales (Transfer of Functions) Order 2005 (S.I. 2005/1958) and defines “Wales”, for the purpose of subsection (3), by reference to section 158(1) of the Government of Wales Act 2006 (c.32). This definition includes the sea adjacent to Wales out as far as the seaward boundary of the territorial sea.
Subsection (5) allows the Secretary of State or the relevant Northern Ireland department to make trading schemes in relation to reserved matters under the Northern Ireland Act 1998 (c.47); the relevant Northern Ireland department may make trading schemes covering reserved matters, but only with the Secretary of State’s consent (see section 48(6)).
Subsection (6) allows the relevant Northern Ireland department to make trading schemes in relation to all other matters within the scope of the legislative competence of the Northern Ireland Assembly (that is, to the extent that the Northern Ireland Assembly would have been able to make a trading scheme of its own accord on “transferred matters” under the Northern Ireland Act 1998).
Subsection (7) provides that the Secretary of State has the power to make trading schemes in relation to all other matters.
