Health and Community Care Committee, 25 Feb 2003

Meeting date: Tuesday, February 25, 2003

Official Report 210KB pdf

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Subordinate Legislation

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Animal By-Products (Identification) Amendment (Scotland) Regulations 2003 (SSI 2003/53)

Agenda item 2 is subordinate legislation. We have three negative instruments to consider. The first is the Animal By-Products (Identification) Amendment (Scotland) Regulations 2003 (SSI 2003/53). The Subordinate Legislation Committee's comments were forwarded to all members of this committee. The Subordinate Legislation Committee has drawn the regulations to our attention because they have not been notified to the European Commission under the technical standards directive. The regulations might contravene European Community law and, if so, that would raise a devolution issue. However, we are a bit tight for time on this one. No members' comments have been received and no motion to annul has been lodged, so the recommendation is that the committee does not make any recommendation on the regulations. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

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Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act 2002 (Transitional Provisions) Order 2003 (SSI 2003/63)

The Subordinate Legislation Committee's comments on the order were forwarded to all members of this committee. The Subordinate Legislation Committee has drawn the order to our attention on the ground that the inconsistency in the drafting approach to the order is such that, in the view of that committee, it could be considered to be drafted defectively. The latest reporting date on the matter for the Health and Community Care Committee is 10 March. If members want to debate the order, we could do so on 4 March. However, no members' comments have been received and no motion to annul has been lodged, so the recommendation is that the committee make no recommendation on the order. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

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National Health Service (General Medical Services Supplementary Lists) (Scotland) Regulations 2003 (SSI 2003/64)

Again, the Subordinate Legislation Committee's comments were forwarded to all members of this committee. The Subordinate Legislation Committee, which raised 13 points of substance on the regulations with the Executive, felt that the regulations were defectively drafted and lacked clarity, and that it was unusual to impose obligations without providing any sanctions for failure to comply with those obligations. That committee was also unclear about why convictions that were obtained in other countries for crimes such as murder should not be relevant.

In response to the Subordinate Legislation Committee's request for comments on those points, the Executive replied that it had carefully considered the extent to which convictions elsewhere in the United Kingdom should be covered by the provisions in the regulations and the analogous provisions in the National Health Service (General Medical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 1995. However, the 1995 regulations extend only to offences that are committed in the UK and the policy intent of the new regulations was to reflect that. The position is under review and the Executive will return to the new regulations in due course to consider a wider range of options. The Subordinate Legislation Committee draws that information to our attention.

The latest date for the Health and Community Care Committee to report on the regulations is 10 March. If members want to debate the regulations, we could so on 4 March. However, no members' comments have been received and no motion to annul has been lodged, so the recommendation is that the committee make no recommendation on the regulations. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.