Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee
Meeting date: Tuesday, January 10, 2017
Official Report 373KB pdf
Contents
- Attendance
- Instruments subject to Negative Procedure
- Instruments not subject to Parliamentary Procedure
Instruments not subject to Parliamentary Procedure
Housing (Scotland) Act 2014 (Commencement No 6 and Transitional Provision) Order 2016 (SSI 2016/412 (C 42))
The order brings into force various provisions of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014. The date that is appointed for the coming into force of the remaining provisions in part 5 of the act, which relates to mobile home sites with permanent residents, is 1 May 2017.
The date that is appointed for the coming into force of the majority of the provisions in part 4 of the act, which relates to letting agents, is 31 January 2018. The order provides that section 44 of the act, which establishes the offence of operating as a letting agent without registration, will come into force on “31st September 2018”. The intention is to give a period of eight months from the date on which the register of letting agents is established before the offence provision comes into force.
Article 3 of the order aims to ensure that the offence provision will not apply if, by the specified date, an application has been made but has not been finally determined. Article 3(1) purports to make a transitional provision when a person has, “before 31st September 2018”, made an application under section 30 of the act for registration in the register of letting agents. The last entry in column 3 of the schedule to the order purports to commence section 44 of the act on that supposed date. The date that should have appeared in those provisions is 30 September 2018.
Accordingly, does the committee agree to draw the order to the Parliament’s attention on reporting ground (i), as it appears that article 3(1)(a) and the last entry in column 3 of the schedule are defectively drafted?
Members indicated agreement.
Does the committee also agree to note that the Scottish Government intends to correct those provisions before they have effect, in the next commencement order for the Housing (Scotland) Act 2014, which will be made this year?
Members indicated agreement.
Does the committee wish to indicate that, although such correction would be acceptable, given that the order refers in two places to a non-existent date, it would be preferable to correct the provisions as soon as practicable?
Members indicated agreement.
Thanks.
Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2016 (Commencement No 3 and Saving Provision) Order 2016 (SSI 2016/426 (C 44))
No points have been raised by our legal advisers on the instrument. Is the committee content with it?
Members indicated agreement.
At our next meeting, which will be on 17 January, we will among other things discuss Scottish statutory instruments and return to our consideration of the Limitation (Childhood Abuse) (Scotland) Bill. We look forward to that with bated breath.
Meeting closed at 10:12.