Statute Law Revision: Seventeenth Report Draft Statute Law (Repeals) Bill
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[Coat of Arms] The Law Commission and The Scottish Law Commission (LAW COM No 285) (SCOT LAW COM No 193) STATUTE LAW REVISION: SEVENTEENTH REPORT DRAFT STATUTE LAW (REPEALS) BILL Report on a Reference under Section 3(1)(e) of the Law Commissions Act 1965 Presented to the Parliament of the United Kingdom by the Lord High Chancellor by Command of Her Majesty Laid before the Scottish Parliament by the Scottish Ministers December 2003 Cm 6070 SE/2003/313 £xx.xx The Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission were set up by the Law Commissions Act 1965 for the purpose of promoting the reform of the law. The Law Commissioners are: The Honourable Mr Justice Toulson, Chairman Professor Hugh Beale QC Mr Stuart Bridge Professor Martin Partington CBE Judge Alan Wilkie QC The Chief Executive of the Law Commission is Mr Michael Sayers and its offices are at Conquest House, 37-38 John Street, Theobalds Road, London WC1N 2BQ. The Scottish Law Commissioners are: The Honourable Lord Eassie, Chairman Professor Gerard Maher QC Professor Kenneth G C Reid Professor Joseph M Thomson Mr Colin J Tyre QC The Secretary of the Scottish Law Commission is Miss Jane L McLeod and its offices are at 140 Causewayside, Edinburgh EH9 1PR. The terms of this report were agreed on 17 November 2003. The text of this report is available on the Internet at: http://www.lawcom.gov.uk http://www.scotlawcom.gov.uk ii LAW COMMISSION SCOTTISH LAW COMMISSION STATUTE LAW REVISION: SEVENTEENTH REPORT DRAFT STATUTE LAW (REPEALS) BILL CONTENTS Paragraph Page REPORT 1 APPENDIX 1: DRAFT STATUTE LAW (REPEALS) BILL 3 APPENDIX 2: EXPLANATORY NOTE ON THE DRAFT BILL 60 CLAUSES 1-3 60 SCHEDULE 1: REPEALS 61 PART 1 ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE 61 Group 1 - Judicial Committee of the Privy Council 1.2 61 Group 2 - Central Criminal Court (Prisons) Act 1881 1.10 63 Group 3 - Courts Act 1971 1.12 64 Group 4 - General Repeals 1.14 64 PART 2 AGRICULTURE 71 Group 1 Agricultural Development, Production and Marketing 2.2 71 Group 2 General Repeals 2.31 79 PART 3 ALLOTMENTS AND SMALLHOLDINGS 81 PART 4 AVIATION 90 PART 5 DEFUNCT BODIES 97 Group 1 - Armed Forces 5.2 97 Group 2 - Children 5.5 98 Group 3 - Civil Rights and Liberties 5.7 98 Group 4 - Education 5.10 99 Group 5 - Electricity 5.17 100 Group 6 - Fisheries 5.20 101 Group 7 - Gas 5.22 101 Group 8 - Mines, Minerals and Quarries 5.24 102 Group 9 - National Health Service 5.26 102 iii Paragraph Page Group 10 - National Heritage 5.32 103 Group 11 - Northern Ireland 5.35 104 Group 12 - Pensions and Superannuation 5.38 104 Group 13 - Ports and Harbours 5.42 105 Group 14 - Railways 5.46 106 Group 15 - Road Traffic 5.51 107 Group 16 - Savings Banks 5.54 108 Group 17 - Shipping and Navigation 5.57 108 Group 18 - Taxation 5.60 109 Group 19 - Telecommunications, Broadcasting and Films 5.62 109 Group 20 - Weights and Measures 5.67 110 PART 6 ECCLESIASTICAL 112 Group 1 - Clergy, Benefices and Pastoral Schemes 6.2 112 Group 2 - Property 6.10 114 Group 3 - Tithes 6.29 118 Group 4 - The Church in Wales 6.35 120 Group 5 - General Repeals 6.38 121 PART 7 EDUCATION 124 PART 8 EMPLOYMENT 128 PART 9 FINANCE 134 Group 1 - Consolidated Fund 9.2 134 Group 2 - Public Revenue and Expenditure 9.7 135 Group 3 - Public Works 9.13 137 Group 4 - Finance Acts 9.17 138 Group 5 - Car Tax 9.20 138 Group 6 - General Repeals 9.24 140 PART 10 LOCAL GOVERNMENT 143 Group 1 - Local Government Act 1972 10.2 143 Group 2 - Rate Support Grant 10.9 144 Group 3 - General Repeals 10.15 145 PART 11 PENSIONS 152 PART 12 PROPERTY 157 PART 13 PUBLIC HEALTH 161 PART 14 ROAD TRAFFIC 165 PART 15 SCOTTISH ACTS 174 PART 16 TRADE AND INDUSTRY 176 Group 1 - Specific Industries 16.2 176 Group 2 - General 16.17 179 iv Paragraph Page PART 17 MISCELLANEOUS 185 Group 1 - Animals 17.2 185 Group 2 - Banks and Building Societies 17.14 187 Group 3 - Betting, Gaming and Lotteries 17.21 188 Group 4 - Charities 17.31 190 Group 5 - Companies 17.36 191 Group 6 - Debt and Insolvency 17.43 193 Group 7 - Medicine 17.51 195 Group 8 - Mental Health 17.59 196 Group 9 - National Trust 17.66 198 Group 10 - Registration Concerning the Individual 17.74 199 Group 11 - General Repeals 17.84 202 SCHEDULE 2: CONSEQUENTIAL AND CONNECTED PROVISIONS 207 v THE LAW COMMISSION AND THE SCOTTISH LAW COMMISSION STATUTE LAW REVISION: SEVENTEENTH REPORT Draft Statute Law (Repeals) Bill To the Right Honourable the Lord Falconer of Thoroton, Lord High Chancellor of Great Britain, and the Scottish Ministers 1. In pursuance of section 3(1)(d) of the Law Commissions Act 1965, we have prepared the draft Bill which is Appendix 1 and recommend that effect be given to the proposals contained in it. An explanatory note on the contents of the draft Bill forms Appendix 2. 2. The report recommends the repeal of enactments which have been identified, after detailed research and consultation, as being spent, obsolete, unnecessary or otherwise not now of practical utility. 1 The proposals have been widely canvassed with the government departments and other bodies concerned, including ‘the relevant authorities’ throughout Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.2 Full details of the proposals are set out in the Notes on the Bill which are available from the Law Commissions. 3. The report is submitted in pursuance of the Law Commissions’ programme on statute law. The broad objective of this programme is to modernise and simplify the statute book. (Signed) ROGER TOULSON RONALD D MACKAY Chairman, Law Commission Chairman, Scottish Law Commission HUGH BEALE GERARD MAHER STUART BRIDGE KENNETH G C REID MARTIN PARTINGTON JOSEPH M THOMSON ALAN WILKIE COLIN TYRE MICHAEL SAYERS MISS JANE L MCLEOD Chief Executive Secretary 17 November 2003 1 The enactments proposed for repeal are specified in Schedule 1 to the draft Bill. The Schedule is divided into Parts, some of which are subdivided into Groups. The Parts are, in accordance with the drafting practice adopted in Statute Law (Repeals) Acts since 1975, presented according to their alphabetical order of title with a Part at the end dealing with miscellaneous repeals. 2 Where the proposals extend to Wales, those consulted include the Wales Office and the Counsel General to the National Assembly for Wales (referred to in the report as ‘the relevant authorities in Wales’). Where the proposals extend to Scotland, those consulted include the Scottish Executive and the departments responsible for reserved matters in relation to Scotland (referred to in the report as ‘the relevant authorities in Scotland’). Where the proposals extend to Northern Ireland, those consulted include the Northern Ireland Office and the First Legislative Counsel for Northern Ireland (referred to in the report as ‘the relevant authorities in Northern Ireland’). 1 2 Appendix 1 - Statute Law (Repeals) Bill CONTENTS 1 Repeals and associated provisions 2Extent 3Short title Schedule 1 — Repeals Part 1 — Administration of Justice Part 2 — Agriculture Part 3 — Allotments and smallholdings Part 4 — Aviation Part 5 — Defunct bodies Part 6 — Ecclesiastical Part 7 — Education Part 8 — Employment Part 9 — Finance Part 10 — Local government Part 11 — Pensions Part 12 — Property Part 13 — Public health Part 14 — Road traffic Part 15 — Scottish Acts Part 16 — Trade and industry Part 17 — Miscellaneous Schedule 2 — Consequential and connected provisions 3 4 Statute Law (Repeals) Bill 1 DRAFT OF A BILL TO Promote the reform of the statute law by the repeal, in accordance with recommendations of the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission, of certain enactments which (except in so far as their effect is preserved) are no longer of practical utility, and to make other provision in connection with the repeal of those enactments. E IT ENACTED by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present BParliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:— 1 Repeals and associated provisions (1) The enactments referred to in Schedule 1 are repealed, and the instruments referred to there are revoked, to the extent specified in the second column of that Schedule. (2) Schedule 2 (consequential and connected provisions) has effect. 5 2 Extent (1) This Act extends to Northern Ireland. (2) This Act also extends to the Isle of Man. (3) Her Majesty may by Order in Council provide— (a) that the repeal by this Act of any enactment specified in the Order shall 10 on a date so specified extend to any of the Channel Islands or any British overseas territory, and (b) that any provision of Schedule 2 specified in the Order shall on a date so specified extend to any of the Channel Islands or any British overseas territory subject to any modification so specified. 15 (4) Except as provided by an order under subsection (3), this Act does not repeal or amend any enactment so far as the enactment forms part of the law of a country outside the United Kingdom and the Isle of Man. 5 2 Statute Law (Repeals) Bill (5) Subsections (3) and (4) apply to revocation of the whole or part of an instrument as they apply to repeal of an enactment. 3 Short title This Act may be cited as the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2004.