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Conservation of Salmon (Annual Close Time and Catch and Release) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2014 (SSI 2014/357)
I welcome members to the first meeting in 2015 of the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee. As always, I ask everyone to switch off mobile phones.
The purpose of these amendment regulations is to amend an error in the schedule to the Conservation of Salmon (Annual Close Time and Catch and Release) (Scotland) Regulations 2014 (SSI 2014/327). The error was reported by the committee following its consideration of the instrument on 9 December.
With the laying of these amendment regulations, there has been a failure to observe the requirements of section 28(2) of the Interpretation and Legislative Reform (Scotland) Act 2010. As the regulations will come into force on 9 January 2015, the requirement to leave a minimum of 28 days, excluding recess dates, between the laying of an instrument and its coming into force has not been complied with. However, the committee might wish to find the breach acceptable in this instance, as the Scottish Government is seeking to make corrections in order to satisfy the committee’s report on the previous instrument.
Does the committee therefore agree to draw the instrument to the Parliament’s attention on reporting ground (j), as there has been a failure to observe the requirements of section 28(2) of the Interpretation and Legislative Reform (Scotland) Act 2010? However, does the committee also agree to report that it finds the breach of the rule to be acceptable?
Members indicated agreement.
Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (Scottish Public Authorities) Amendment Order 2014 (SSI 2014/354)
No points have been raised by our legal advisers on the instrument.
On this freedom of information order, I return to a subject that I have commented on before.
This order does something very simple—it updates a list in an act—but it is perfectly clear from reading the updates that the list in question is now in a state of what I might call considerable update. We have only to look at article 2(d), which refers to removing “entry 62ZZA”, to see the state to which the list has been amended over a considerable period of time. Article 2(c), which mentions “entry 94”, indicates how long the list is without our having to go back to look at it.
It would be much more helpful if the list were to be republished in total more often than appears to be the case, because I suspect that it would defy the wit of any layperson to go through the huge number of amendments that have been made to the list and work out what today’s list looks like. I simply put that comment on the record in the hope that it might be noticed and responded to.
I am going to have to agree with you. This is not about wit; it is just about having to do unnecessary work.
Is the committee content with the instrument?
Members indicated agreement.
Victims and Witnesses (Scotland) Act 2014 (Prescribed Relatives) Order 2014 (SSI 2014/360)
No points have been raised by our legal advisers on the instrument. Is the committee content with it?
Members indicated agreement.
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