Subordinate Legislation Committee, 29 Nov 2005

Meeting date: Tuesday, November 29, 2005

Official Report 208KB pdf

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Instruments Subject to Annulment

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Instruments Subject <br />to Annulment

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Act of Sederunt (Fees of Sheriff Officers) 2005 (SSI 2005/583)

Item 5 is consideration of instruments subject to annulment. Although no substantive points arise on the instrument, there are a few minor points that we can deal with in an informal letter. Are members agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

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Criminal Legal Aid (Scotland) (Fees) Amendment (No 2) Regulations 2005 <br />(SSI 2005/584)

I should declare that, technically, I have a direct interest with regard to these regulations and will take no part in any discussion on them.

Thank you, Gordon.

The regulations amend the Criminal Legal Aid (Scotland) (Fees) Regulations 1989 to increase the fees and outlays payable to counsel in certain specified types of cases. The committee will note that regulation 2(1) provides that the new fees and outlays will apply

"only in respect of proceedings concluding on or after 4 April 2005".

It appears that that might give retrospective effect to proceedings that concluded on or after 4 April but that commenced prior to the coming into force of these regulations on 10 December 2005. However, the enabling powers cited in the preamble to the regulations do not appear to provide for that retrospection.

Are members content to write to the Executive for an explanation of the vires of regulation 2(1)?

Members indicated agreement.

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Bovine Products (Restriction on Placing on the Market) (Scotland) (No 2) Regulations 2005 (SSI 2005/586)

I have some additional information on these regulations. The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments recently criticised regulation 3 and expressed doubts about the implementation of the European Union directive on this matter. As a result, we might want to raise the same issues with the Executive. Are members agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

The regulations cover cream and butter when they are not supposed to.

Indeed, they cover not only cream and butter but cheese, yoghurt, crowdie and so on.

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Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland Amendment Regulations 2005 (SSI 2005/589)

No substantive points arise on these regulations.

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Protection of Water Against Agricultural Nitrate Pollution (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2005 (SSI 2005/593)

No points arise on these regulations, although we should note that they correct an error that we identified earlier this year.