The Wales Office (), known as the Office of the Secretary of State for Wales () between 2017 and 2024, is a department of His Majesty's Government. It replaced the former Welsh Office, which had extensive responsibility for governing Wales prior to Welsh devolution in 1999.
The Secretary of State for Wales has overall responsibility for the office, but it is located administratively within the Ministry of Justice (until 2007, the Department for Constitutional Affairs).
Ministers
The ministers in the Wales Office are as follows, with cabinet members in bold:
{| class=wikitable
! Minister
! Portrait
! Office
! Portfolio
|-
| Jo Stevens
| 100x100px
| Secretary of State for Wales
| Overall responsibility; Welsh Government and Senedd Liaison; Foreign Affairs; Defence.
|-
| Anna McMorrin
|100x100px
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales
| Supporting the Secretary of State in their duties
|-
| Claire Hughes
|100x100px
| Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales
| Supporting the Secretary of State in their duties
|}
Unlike Scotland and Northern Ireland, Wales does not have its own Law Officers of the Crown; it is part of the England and Wales legal jurisdiction. The Attorney General for England and Wales therefore advises the United Kingdom Government on its law. His deputy is the Solicitor General for England and Wales.
Future
Following the 'yes' vote in the 2011 referendum on giving the Assembly direct law-making powers, some politicians in Wales, particularly from Plaid Cymru, have called for the abolition of the Wales Office. Lord Elis-Thomas, Presiding Officer of the National Assembly for Wales, said:
However, Lord Elis-Thomas was accused of following a "separatist agenda" by the Conservative Cheryl Gillan, then Secretary of State for Wales. She was supported by her Labour predecessor Peter Hain, who declared that Wales "still needs a voice around the Cabinet in Westminster".