LABOUR’S Welsh Government was yesterday accused of “capitulating” to Theresa May over her demands on the transfer of devolved powers from Brussels after Brexit.

The criticism was made by the SNP’s Pete Wishart a day after an agreement was announced between Westminster and Cardiff over changes made to the controversial Clause 11 of the EU Withdrawal Bill.

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Speaking at Scotland Questions in the Commons, the Perthshire MP pressed Scottish Secretary David Mundell on the UK Government’s decision to take legal action over Holyrood’s alternative Brexit legislation, passed by MSPs last month.

Like Holyrood, the Welsh Assembly passed its own EU continuity bill, but it will now repeal this after reaching an agreement on amendments to the Westminster legislation.

Wishart asked: “Does the secretary of state think that taking the Scottish Parliament to court to overturn the democratic decision of that Parliament will help to strengthen the ties between Scotland and the rest of the United Kingdom?”

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After Mundell replied “No”, Wishart added: “For the first time ever, I probably agree with the secretary of state. It comes as no surprise to us that Welsh Labour has so easily capitulated to the Tories on this issue. We will never stop defending the integrity of our Parliament, and we will never allow the Tories to diminish our Parliament’s powers.”

He went on to ask whether the new amendments would mean the UK Government could overrule Holyrood if it did not give its consent to new legislation based on the repatriated powers.

Mundell did not directly answer the question, insisting the UK Government still wanted to secure the agreement of the Scottish Government on the Clause 11 amendments, adding that he hoped there would be further discussions between the two sides next week.

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Under the new proposal, the majority of 64 Welsh Assembly powers currently operated by the European Union in Brussels will transfer to Cardiff after Brexit.

The rest – 24 powers in all – will be held in Westminster for a period of up to seven years so that UK-wide systems can be created for matters such as animal welfare and food standards.

The deal includes a political agreement – not a legal one – that the UK Government will seek the Assembly’s consent before changing any of those powers held in London.

In Cardiff, Welsh Secretary Mark Drakeford insisted enough progress had been made to agree to the changes.

However, he added: “This outcome is not perfect. We would have preferred there to be no Clause 11 and for each of the governments to trust each other’s undertakings not to legislate in areas where we agree UK-wide frameworks are needed until such frameworks have been agreed.

“We have repeatedly been clear we were prepared to give such assurances and to accept similar assurances from the other governments.

“Others have sought stronger reassurance that no one part of the UK – including England – could develop its own legislation in relation to these areas where a UK-wide framework is needed until such a framework has been negotiated and agreed.”

He added: “Of course there are those who argue that it is unacceptable that – even in extreme circumstances – Parliament can act to impose constraints on devolved competence. But until a new constitutional settlement for the whole United Kingdom is negotiated – for which this government has long argued – it is the constitutional reality that Parliament is sovereign.”

The deal has been welcomed by the Welsh Conservatives, but Plaid Cymru accused Labour of selling Wales “down the river”. Plaid MP Liz Saville Roberts raised a point of order in the Commons yesterday asking for an oral statement on the agreement: “Despite the profound significance of this backroom deal it is being raised by the UK Government by written statement only,” she said.