Lord Falconer: Reform of Welsh Assembly

The Department for Constitutional Affairs has unveiled high-profile bills on criminal justice and reform of postal voting, as well as an extension of the powers of the Welsh Assembly.

But the Queen's Speech contained no Bill on House of Lords reform, just a pledge to "bring forward proposals" which would be examined by a committee of both Houses of Parliament.

There was also a reiteration of the commitment to a power-sharing executive in Northern Ireland.

But it was accompanied by a warning to the IRA and other paramilitaries that the government "would not promote such an outcome while one party was linked to an organisation carrying out paramilitary and criminal activity".

Devolution

The Queen told parliament: "Legislation will also be introduced to reform the National Assembly for Wales."

The Government of Wales Bill would provide for enhanced legislative powers for the Assembly and make some changes to the body's electoral system, which has attracted some criticism.

It would also change the 'corporate status' of the Assembly and ensure that the legislature and executive were legally separate entities.

Wales received two specific Westminster Bills. The Transport (Wales) Bill and the Commissioner for Older People (Wales) Bill were both were introduced in the last session but fell because of a lack of time.

It is believed the Welsh Commissioner for Older People would be the first of its kind in the world.

The Queen's Speech also contained a promise to continue to work closely with the Scottish Parliament.

Postal Voting Reform

Measures to encourage higher voter participation in elections were promised, but with more safeguards to hold down electoral fraud.

An Electoral Administration Bill would introduce a new marked register for postal votes and establish a raft of new electoral fraud offences.

The qualifying age for standing in an election would also be lowered to 18 and Returning Officers would be granted new powers to provide voting information in different languages.

Criminal Defence Savings

A range of reforms were also announced to the Criminal Defence and Legal Aid systems, with the aim of saving £35m from a total budget of £1.1bn.

The Criminal Defence Bill would reintroduce the means-test for criminal cases in Magistrates' Courts, meaning the court could ask defendants who were found guilty to make a contribution to the cost of their defence - as is currently the case in the Crown Courts.

The responsibility for awarding Legal Aid in criminal cases would also be transferred from the courts to the independent Legal Services Commission.

Legal Reform Plans

The speech included a draft Bill on Legal Services, signalling the Government's intention to embark on major regulatory reform of the legal services industry to "put the consumer first".

Proposals include bringing professional bodies such as the Bar Council and the Law Society (which regulates solicitors) under a single oversight body, and introduce a single complaints authority, the Office for Legal Complaints.

The government announced its intention to publish detailed proposals in a White Paper later this year, with consultations not planned until 2006.

Other measures

The Department for Constitutional Affairs's other proposed laws include reforms of the National Lottery to achieve more efficient distribution of funds to charities, and a measure to bring judges' pensions into line with current HM Customs and Revenue rules.

There was also a Bill to reform coroners' courts, and a promise to introduce a Bill to "combat the perception of a compensation culture" by ensuring invalid claims are resisted.