HOLDING a second referendum into the UK’s membership of the European Union would be “bad for democracy”, first minister Carywn Jones has said.

Speaking at a press conference in Cardiff this morning the first minister said, while he campaigned in favour of the Remain campaign, he respected the result of June’s referendum and was working to ensure it went ahead smoothly.

He added he believed the free movement of goods and services within the current European market remaining in place after the UK has left the EU was an essential part of the process.

“I am not in favour of a second referendum,” he said.

“The result is there and a second referendum would make people think there was some sort of plot to overturn the result and that would be bad for democracy.”

Reiterating his previous comments that he believed Article 50, which begins the process of exiting the EU, should be triggered at the start of 2017, Mr Jones added he believed the Welsh Government should have a “full and active role” in negotiations ahead of the Brexit.

“While the people of Wales voted to leave the EU they didn’t vote to be done over,” he said.

“We mustn’t lose a single penny of the funding we receive.”

Setting out the programme of work the Welsh Government will carry out when it returns from summer recess next month, Mr Jones said new legislation to be introduced in the coming weeks includes a new Public Health Bill, which will not include a ban on using e-cigarettes indoors in public. A previous version of the bill which included the controversial so-called ‘vaping ban’ was voted down earlier this year.

Mr Jones also said other new legislation to be discussed in the immediate future would include the establishment of a Land Transaction Tax and Landfill Disposal Tax, as well as an Additional Learning Needs Bill, a Trade Union Bill and measures to abolish the Right-to-Buy scheme in Wales, which is intended to free up more affordable housing.

But, while he said the long-running revamp of local authorities in Wales was “still on the table”, there was currently no firm timescale around when it would be taken forwards.

Following May’s election the first minister conceded a previous version of the plans which would have seen the number of councils in Wales cut from 22 to eight or nine, including a so-called ‘Super Gwent’ comprising Newport, Monmouthshire, Blaenau Gwent, Caerphilly and Islwyn, would have to be scrapped.

The first minister said central to the Welsh Government’s work was jobs and the economy.

“Too many people still have serious concerns about the availability, security and quality of work,” he said. “That’s what June’s result was about.

“We have been listening to this message for some time and we are working hard to respond to those concerns.”

Mr Jones added he would be travelling to America next week to meet with potential investors, while economy secretary Ken Skates would be visiting Japan in October.

Other announcements made at this morning’s press conference included that an £80m treatment fund would be in place in December, a new business rates relief rates scheme for small businesses would be announced next month and a Welsh Development Bank, which is intended to make it easier for firms in Wales to access funding, would be up and running by the middle of 2017.