Subordinate Legislation
Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc (Scotland) Act 2003 (Treatment of Office or Body as Specified Authority) Order 2012 [Draft]
Under item 4 on the agenda, there is one affirmative instrument for the committee’s consideration. This agenda item gives us an opportunity to take evidence from the cabinet secretary and his officials on the draft order before formally debating the motion to approve it, under the next agenda item.
The Subordinate Legislation Committee has not drawn the Parliament’s attention to the draft order on any grounds within its remit.
I welcome again—he must love being with us—the Cabinet Secretary for Justice, who is accompanied by three Scottish Government officials: Lucy Smith and George Dickson, from the police reform delivery unit; and Kevin Gibson, a solicitor in the Scottish Government.
Officials are allowed to speak during this item, should the minister invite them to do so, but they are not allowed to do so during the debate on the motion.
I invite the cabinet secretary to make a short opening statement.
The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Bill makes provision for Scottish ministers to appoint the chairs and members of the Scottish police authority and the Scottish fire and rescue service. Those appointments are to be regulated according to the code of practice for ministerial appointments to public bodies in Scotland, which is produced by the Commission for Ethical Standards in Public Life in Scotland. Before the Public Appointments Commissioner’s staff can formally engage in the appointments process, those bodies need to be listed within the commissioner’s statutory remit.
The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Bill, which has passed stage 1, as introduced, provides for the Scottish police authority and the Scottish fire and rescue service to be listed in schedule 2 to the Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc (Scotland) Act 2003, which sets out the list of bodies that fall within the commissioner’s remit.
I have listened to stakeholder concerns and noted the recommendation in the committee’s stage 1 report that the chief constable and chief fire officer should be in place at the earliest opportunity. The Scottish ministers agree and want to make the key first appointments to the Scottish police authority and the Scottish fire and rescue service, and to have the chief constable appointed, as soon as possible. That means that the public appointments process will begin before the bill passes through Parliament, which will allow both the organisations time to plan and fully prepare for when the single services go live, which is currently scheduled for April 2013. I strongly agree with the Justice Committee’s recommendation that the appointments of the chief constable and chief fire officer be made as soon as possible.
I am keen to ensure that the new chief constable is appointed by the Scottish police authority, as set out in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Bill. To allow that to happen, the chair must be appointed as soon as possible. To wait until the bill is passed and the amendments to public appointments legislation have come into force would have a significant and detrimental impact on the dates by which we could appoint the chairs and members of the Scottish police authority and Scottish fire and rescue service and would, in turn, delay the appointment of the chief constable by the chair of the Scottish police authority.
That is why I seek the committee’s approval to use the mechanism in section 3(3) of the Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc (Scotland) Act 2003, which provides that, where a public body is to be established and will, when established, be specified as one that falls within the commissioner’s remit, the Scottish ministers may provide that it is to be treated until its establishment as if it already falls within that remit. That will allow the process for the key public appointments to the bodies to formally commence in time to allow for those people to be in place by autumn 2012, which will be well in advance of day one of the new services. We expect the chairs and members of the boards and the chief officers to be in place in autumn 2012, but that relies on the appointment process beginning as soon as possible, which is why I seek Parliament’s approval of the draft order.
As there are no questions, we move on to agenda item 5, which is the formal debate on the draft order.
Motion moved,
That the Justice Committee recommends that the Public Appointments and Public Bodies etc. (Scotland) Act 2003 (Treatment of Office or Body as Specified Authority) Order 2012 [draft] be approved.—[Kenny MacAskill.]
Motion agreed to.
We are required to report to Parliament on the draft order. Are members content to delegate to me authority for the final wording of the report, which will be brief?
Members indicated agreement.
I thank the cabinet secretary and his officials.
Act of Sederunt (Actions for removing from heritable property) 2012 (SSI 2012/136)
Moving swiftly on, we come to agenda item 6, which is an instrument that is not subject to parliamentary procedure. The Subordinate Legislation Committee has not drawn the Parliament’s attention to the instrument on any grounds within its remit. As members have no comments, are we content to note the instrument?
Members indicated agreement.