Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps the Government has taken to consult the devolved administrations on the UK's future relationship with the EU.

UK Ministers meet regularly with Ministers from the Scottish and Welsh governments, through JMC (EU Negotiations), JMC (Europe), the Ministerial Forum (EU Negotiations), as well as bilateral and trilateral meetings. In the absence of an Executive, we also engage at an official level with the Northern Ireland Civil Service.

Yesterday the Prime Minister met with the First Ministers of Scotland and Wales as part of ongoing discussions to find a consensus around the terms of the UK’s exit from the EU. Both Ministers have been invited by the Prime Minister to attend all relevant meetings of a new Cabinet sub-committee that will bring together work on preparations for the UK’s exit from the EU, spanning both deal and no deal outcomes.

This builds on the increasing engagement in recent months between the UK government and the devolved administrations and our commitment to give them an enhanced role in the next phase of the Brexit process, respecting their vital interests in these negotiations.

UK Ministers will attend the next meeting of the Ministerial Forum (EU Negotiations) in Scotland next week.