House of Lords House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights Scrutiny of Bills: Final Progress Report Seventeenth Report of Session 2002–03 Drawing special attention to: Hunting Bill European Parliamentary and Local Elections (Pilots) Bill Company Directors’ Performance and Compensation Bill Consumer Protection (Unsolicited E-mails) Bill Corporate Responsibility Bill Fishery Limits (United Kingdom) Amendment Bill Medical Practitioners & Dentists (Professional Negligence Insurance) Bill Street Furniture (Graffiti) Bill HL Paper 186 HC 1278 House of Lords House of Commons Joint Committee on Human Rights Scrutiny of Bills: Final Progress Report Seventeenth Report of Session 2002–03 Report, together with formal minutes and appendices Ordered by The House of Lords to be printed 17 November 2003 Ordered by The House of Commons to be printed 17 November 2003 HL Paper 186 HC 1278 Published on 24 November 2003 by authority of the House of Lords and the House of Commons London: The Stationery Office Limited £0.00 JOINT COMMITTEE ON HUMAN RIGHTS The Joint Committee on Human Rights is appointed by the House of Lords and the House of Commons to consider matters relating to human rights in the United Kingdom (but excluding consideration of individual cases); proposals for remedial orders, draft remedial orders and remedial orders. The Joint Committee has a maximum of six Members appointed by each House, of whom the quorum for any formal proceedings is two from each House. Current Membership HOUSE OF LORDS HOUSE OF COMMONS Lord Bowness Mr David Chidgey MP (Liberal Democrat, Eastleigh) Lord Lester of Herne Hill Jean Corston MP (Labour, Bristol East) (Chairman) Lord Parekh Mr Kevin McNamara MP (Labour, Kingston upon Hull) Baroness Perry of Southwark Mr Richard Shepherd MP Baroness Prashar (Conservative, Aldridge-Brownhills) Baroness Whitaker Mr Paul Stinchcombe (Labour, Wellingborough) Mr Shaun Woodward MP (Labour, St Helens South) Powers The Committee has the power to require the submission of written evidence and documents, to examine witnesses, to meet at any time (except when Parliament is prorogued or dissolved), to adjourn from place to place, to appoint specialist advisers, and to make Reports to both Houses. The Lords Committee has power to agree with the Commons in the appointment of a Chairman. Publications The Reports and evidence of the Joint Committee are published by The Stationery Office by Order of the two Houses. All publications of the Committee (including press notices) are on the internet at www.parliament.uk/commons/selcom/hrhome.htm. A list of Reports of the Committee in the present Parliament is at the back of this volume. Current Staff The current staff of the Committee are: Paul Evans (Commons Clerk), Thomas Elias (Lords Clerk), Professor David Feldman (Legal Adviser), Róisín Pillay (Committee Specialist), Duma Langton (Committee Assistant) and Pam Morris (Committee Secretary). Contacts All correspondence should be addressed to The Clerk of the Joint Committee on Human Rights, Committee Office, House of Commons, 7 Millbank, London SW1P 3JA. The telephone number for general inquiries is: 020 7219 2467; the Committee=s e-mail address is [email protected]. 1 Contents Report Page Summary 3 Government Bills 5 1 Hunting Bill 5 Background: earlier versions of the Bill and the Committee’s earlier consideration of them 5 The Bill as introduced to the House of Lords 7 Relevant differences between the Bills introduced to the House of Commons and the House of Lords 8 The effect on property rights 8 Respect for private life 10 2 European Parliamentary and Local Elections (Pilots) Bill 12 Private Members’ Bills 13 3 Company Directors’ Performance and Compensation Bill 13 4 Consumer Protection (Unsolicited E-mails) Bill 14 5 Corporate Responsibility Bill 15 6 Fishery Limits (United Kingdom) Amendment Bill 16 7 Medical Practitioners & Dentists (Professional Negligence Insurance) Bill 17 8 Street Furniture (Graffiti) Bill 18 9 Bills which enhance protection for human rights 19 Bills which raise no human rights issues 20 10 Government Bills 20 Northern Ireland (Monitoring Commission etc) Act 2003 20 11 Private Members’ Bills 20 Formal Minutes 21 Appendices 22 Appendix 1: Hunting Bill 22 Appendix 2: European Parliamentary and Local Elections (Pilots) Bill 31 Appendix 3: Company Directors’ Performance and Compensation Bill 36 Appendix 4: Consumer Protection (Unsolicited E-mails) Bill 37 Appendix 5: Corporate Responsibility Bill 40 Appendix 6: Fishery Limits (United Kingdom) Amendment Bill 42 Appendix 7: Medical Practitioners and Dentists (Professional Negligence Insurance) Bill 44 Appendix 8: Street Furniture (Graffiti) Bill 44 Public Bills Reported on by the Committee (Session 2002-03) 46 3 Summary In the 2002-03 Session the Joint Committee on Human Rights has reported on all Bills presented to Parliament. The Committee examines each Bill with regard to its compatibility with Convention rights as defined by the Human Rights Act 1998, and for compatibility with other human rights instruments which bind the UK. The Committee has not in general published separate reports on each Bill which raises human rights questions. For the most part it has published regular progress reports on the scrutiny of Bills, usually setting out any initial concerns and, subsequently, the Government’s responses to these concerns and any further observations it may have on these responses. The aim is to complete initial consideration of a Bill before its second reading in the second House. Occasionally the Committee has returned to a Bill that it has previously considered when new matters are raised, either by way of submissions to the Committee or by way of amendments made to the Bill during its passage through Parliament. In this 2002-03 Session, the Committee has published eleven reports on Bills before both Houses.1 It has considered a total of 110 Public Bills, including 36 Government Bills. In addition, it has reported on Private Bills2 presented during this session; and on the Draft Civil Contingencies Bill, the Draft Corruption Bill and the Draft Mental Incapacity Bill.3 The Committee has also carried out fuller pre-legislative scrutiny of the Draft Gender Recognition Bill.4 This is the Committee’s final Progress Report of the 2002-03 session. The Annex at the back of this report sets out details of where our comments on each individual Bill can be found. In this report the Committee reports on the human rights implications of Bills introduced in the 2002-03 session on which it has not previously reported, and reports further on the Hunting Bill. 1 First Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Progress Report, HL Paper 24/HC 191; Second Report, Session 2002-03, Criminal Justice Bill, HL Paper 40/HC 374; Third Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 41/HC 375; Fourth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 50/HC 397; Seventh Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 74/HC 547; Eighth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 90/HC 634; Eleventh Report, Session 2002-03, Criminal Justice Bill: Further Report, HL Paper 118/HC 724; Twelfth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 119/HC 765; Thirteenth Report, Session 2002-03, Anti-social Behaviour Bill, HL Paper 120/HC 766; Fifteenth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 149/HC 1005 2 First Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Progress Report, HL Paper 24/HC 191, Third report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 41/HC 375; Fourth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 50/HC 397; 3 Eighth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 90/HC 634, Fifteenth Report, Session 2002-03, Scrutiny of Bills: Further Progress Report, HL Paper 149/HC 1005 4 Nineteenth Report, Session 2002-03, Draft Gender Recognition Bill, HL Paper 188-I&II/HC 1276-I&II 4 In relation to the Hunting Bill, the Committee draws attention to the implications of the absence from the Bill as introduced to the House of Lords of any compensation scheme for people who are deprived of property or whose rights are affected by the proposed prohibition of the hunting of wild mammals with dogs. In relation to a number of private Member’s Bills, the Committee draws attention to possible incompatibilities with rights under the European Convention on Human Rights. Other Bills are listed as enhancing rights, or as raising no human rights issue requiring to be drawn to the attention of either House. Relevant pieces of correspondence are appended to the Report. 5 Government Bills Bills drawn to the special attention of each House 1 Hunting Bill Date introduced to the House of Commons 3 December 2002 Date introduced to the House of Lords 10 July 2003 Current Bill Number House of Lords 95 Previous Reports 3rd & 7th Background: earlier versions of the Bill and the Committee’s earlier consideration of them 1.1 This is a Government Bill, published with explanatory notes.5 It carries a statement of compatibility made by Lord Whitty under section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998. The Bill was originally introduced to the House of Commons. In its original form, it would have: a) prohibited hare coursing; b) prohibited the hunting of stags with dogs; c) prohibited the hunting of other wild mammals with dogs, unless the hunting was either (i) registered in accordance with clauses 2 and 8, or (ii) exempt in accordance with clause 3; d) put in place a registration system for the purposes registered hunting; and e) made transitional provision for the period when the new arrangements were being put into effect.