PART 1 PRELIMINARY

Citation, commencement and application

1. —(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Local Authorities (Overview and Scrutiny Committees) (England) Regulations 2009 and shall come into force on 12th August 2009.

(2) These Regulations apply in England only.

Interpretation

2. —(1) In these Regulations—

“the 1972 Act” means the Local Government Act 1972( 2 );

“the 2000 Act” means the Local Government Act 2000;

“the 2007 Act” means the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007;

(2) In these Regulations references to an overview and scrutiny committee include references to a sub-committee of such a committee.

PART 2 OVERVIEW AND SCRUTINY COMMITTEES OF CERTAIN DISTRICT COUNCILS

Interpretation of Part 2

3. An expression used both in this Part and in section 21E of the 2000 Act (overview and scrutiny committees of certain district councils: functions with respect to partner authorities) has the same meaning in this Part as it has in section 21E of the 2000 Act.

Provisions of executive arrangements of certain district councils relating to overview and scrutiny committees

4. —(1) Executive arrangements( 3 ) by a district council to which section 21E of the 2000 Act applies may enable any of their overview and scrutiny committees to make reports and recommendations to the related county council, or that council’s executive, which relate to any local improvement target which—

(a) relates to a relevant partner authority, and

(b) is specified in a local area agreement of the county council.

(2) Where a report or any recommendation is made pursuant to such executive arrangements, regulations 5 to 7 shall have effect.

Publication of reports and recommendations of overview and scrutiny committees

5. The overview and scrutiny committee may publish the report or recommendations.

Duties of overview and scrutiny committees, etc in relation to reports and recommendations

6. —(1) Where the report or any recommendation relates to a local improvement target that relates to the district council by which the overview and scrutiny committee is established, the overview and scrutiny committee must by notice in writing require the related county council or, as the case may be, that council’s executive—

(a) to consider the report or recommendation,

(b) to respond to the overview and scrutiny committee indicating what (if any) action the county council propose, or the executive proposes, to take, and

(c) if the overview and scrutiny committee has published the report or recommendations under regulation 5, to publish the response,

and to do so within a period of two months beginning with the date on which the county council or its executive receives the report or recommendations or (if later) the notice.

(2) It is the duty of the related county council or, as the case may be, that council’s executive, to which a notice is given under paragraph (1), to comply with the requirements specified in the notice.

Reports and recommendations relating to local improvement targets of relevant partner authorities

7. — Where a notice has been given under regulation 6(1) the overview and scrutiny committee may, by notice in writing, require any partner authority other than—

(a) the county council,

(b) a National Health Service Trust,

(c) an NHS foundation trust, or

(d) a Primary Care Trust,

to which the local improvement target that is the subject of the report or any recommendation relates, to have regard to the report or recommendation in the exercise of its functions.

(2) A notice under paragraph (1) must be accompanied by a copy of the report or recommendation.

(3) It is the duty of the relevant partner authority to which a notice is given under paragraph (1) to comply with the requirement specified in the notice.

Publication etc of reports, recommendations and responses: confidential and exempt information

8. Section 21D( 4 ) of the 2000 Act (publication etc of reports, recommendations and responses: confidential and exempt information) shall apply to the publication or provision under this Part of a document or a copy of a document as it applies to the publication of a document under section 21B( 5 ) of that Act (duty of authority or executive to respond to overview and scrutiny committee) or the provision of a copy of a document under section 21C( 6 ) of that Act (reports and recommendations of overview and scrutiny committees: duties of certain partner authorities).

PART 3 POWERS TO REQUIRE INFORMATION FROM CERTAIN PARTNER AND ASSOCIATED AUTHORITIES

Interpretation of Part 3

9. —(1) In this Part—

“a local area agreement” has the meaning given by section 106 of the 2007 Act (duty to prepare and submit draft of a local area agreement); and

“local improvement target” has the meaning given by section 105 of that Act (“local improvement targets”: interpretation).

(2) An expression used both in this Part and in section 21C of the 2000 Act or for the purposes of subsection (4) of section 22A of that Act (overview and scrutiny committees of certain authorities in England: provision of information etc by certain partner authorities) has the same meaning in this Part as it has in section 21C or, as the case may be, for the purposes of subsection (4) of section 22A.

Provision of information by relevant partner authorities and associated authorities

10. —(1) Subject to regulation 15, a relevant partner authority shall provide to a relevant committee( 7 ) such information as that committee may reasonably require in order to discharge its functions, being information which—

(a) has been requested in writing,

(b) relates to a local improvement target which—

(i) relates to the relevant partner authority, and

(ii) is specified in a local area agreement of the authority by which the relevant committee is established.

(2) Subject to regulation 15, an associated authority shall provide to a relevant district council committee( 8 ) such information as that committee may reasonably require in order to discharge its functions, being information which—

(a) has been requested in writing;

(b) is relevant to a local improvement target which—

(i) relates both to the associated authority and to the authority by which the relevant district council committee is established, and

(ii) is specified in a local area agreement of the county council which is the responsible authority in relation to the district council by which the relevant district council committee is established.

Prohibitions on disclosure

11. —(1) A relevant partner authority may not provide to the relevant committee and an associated authority may not provide to the relevant district council committee—

(a) information that was obtained by the authority from any other person where the provision of that information to the committee by the authority would constitute a breach of confidence actionable by any person;

(b) information the disclosure of which would, or would be likely to, prejudice the exercise of the functions of the authority or the legitimate interests of any person (including the authority holding it);

(c) personal information within the meaning of the Data Protection Act 1998( 9 ), unless the disclosure is permitted by or under that Act; or

(d) other information the disclosure of which is prohibited by or under any enactment.

(2) Where, but for this paragraph, the disclosure of information would be prohibited by paragraph (1)(c), the relevant partner authority or, as the case may be, the associated authority shall—

(a) revise it so that the individual concerned cannot be identified; and

(b) if satisfied that disclosure of the information in that revised form is permitted by or under the Data Protection Act 1998, and is not otherwise prohibited, disclose it.

General exclusion from duty to disclose

12. Nothing in this Part shall require a partner or associated authority to provide information, or not to provide information, in respect of which provision may be made in exercise of the power conferred by—

(a) section 20(5)(c) or (d) of the Police and Justice Act 2006( 10 ) (guidance and regulations regarding crime and disorder matters), or

(b) section 244(2)(d) or (e) of the National Health Service Act 2006( 11 ) (functions of overview and scrutiny committees).

PART 4 PUBLICATION ETC OF DOCUMENTS BY THE EXECUTIVE: CONFIDENTIAL AND EXEMPT INFORMATION

Interpretation of Part 4

13. In this Part—

“confidential information” has the meaning given by section 100A(3) of the 1972 Act ( 12 )(admission to meetings of principal councils),

“exempt information” means information of any of the descriptions specified for the purposes of Part 5A of the 1972 Act (access to meetings and documents of certain authorities, committees and sub-committees)( 13 ) and, in relation to any response to a report or recommendations of an overview and scrutiny committee which has functions under section 21(2)(f) of the 2000 Act, includes information falling within any of the descriptions of information specified in Schedule 17 to the National Health Service Act 2006( 14 ), or in Schedule 11 to the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006( 15 ) (exempt information relating to health services), and

“relevant exempt information”, in relation to a response of the executive to a report or recommendations of an overview and scrutiny committee, means exempt information of a description specified in a resolution of the overview and scrutiny committee under section 100A(4) of the 1972 Act( 16 ) which applied to the proceedings, or part of the proceedings, at any meeting of the authority at which the report or response was, or recommendations were, considered.

Application of Part 4

14. This Part applies to—

(a) the publication under section 21B of the 2000 Act by the executive of a local authority of any document comprising a response to a report or recommendation of an overview and scrutiny committee,

(b) the provision under that section by such an executive of a copy of such a document, and

(c) the publication under Part 2 of these Regulations by such an executive of any document comprising a response to a report or recommendation of an overview and scrutiny committee.

Exemptions from publication requirements, etc

15. —(1) In publishing the document the executive—

(a) must exclude any confidential information, and

(b) may exclude any relevant exempt information.

(2) In providing a copy of the document to a member of the local authority the executive may exclude any confidential information or relevant exempt information.

(3) Where information is excluded under paragraph (1) or (2), the executive, in publishing, or providing a copy of, the document—

(a) may replace so much of the document as discloses the information with a summary which does not disclose that information, and

(b) must do so if, in consequence of excluding the information, the document published, or copy provided, would be misleading or not reasonably comprehensible.

(4) If by virtue of any of paragraphs (1) to (3) an executive, in publishing or providing a copy of the document—

(a) excludes information, or

(b) replaces part of the document with a summary,

it is nevertheless to be taken for the purposes of section 21B of the 2000 Act or, where the requirement to publish or provide a copy arises under Part 2 of these Regulations, that Part, to have published or provided a copy of the response.