Item 6 concerns correspondence from the Scottish Government on the consolidation of instruments. Members will have seen the briefing paper, which outlines the Scottish Government’s plans. Members should also note that work is being taken forward by officials in relation to the consolidation of Scottish statutory instruments more generally.
We should welcome the fact that the Government proposes to take forward at least one of our recommendations. We might need to make such recommendations more frequently. Might that be something that we do whenever we come across legislation that is in need of consolidation? Perhaps that is a principle that the committee has already adopted. Nonetheless, I think that we should draw such matters to the attention of the Government whenever we note that they have arisen.
I think that the principle is already established. I believe that we talked to the Government about the matter some time ago and that our legal advisers bring to the Government’s attention instruments in relation to which consolidation might be appropriate. There is a recognition that that has nothing to do with how often something has been amended, but concerns how intelligible it is in its current form.