Police Reform and Social Responsibility Bill (HL Bill 77)

Vacancy or incapacity

63 40Appointment of acting commissioner

(1) The police and crime panel for a police area must appoint a person to act as

police and crime commissioner for that area (the “acting commissioner”) if—

(a) no person holds the office of police and crime commissioner for that

area,

(b) the police and crime commissioner for that area is incapacitated, or

(c) the police and crime commissioner for that area is suspended in

5accordance with section 31.

(2) The police and crime panel may appoint a person as acting commissioner only

if the person is a member of the police and crime commissioner’s staff at the

time of the appointment.

(3) In appointing a person as acting commissioner in a case where the police and

10crime commissioner is incapacitated, the police and crime panel must have

regard to any representations made by the commissioner in relation to the

appointment.

(4) All the functions of a police and crime commissioner are exercisable by an

acting commissioner, apart from issuing or varying a police and crime plan

15under section 6.

(5) Any property or rights vested in the police and crime commissioner may be

dealt with by the acting commissioner as if vested in the acting commissioner.

(6) The appointment of an acting commissioner ceases to have effect upon the

occurrence of the earliest of these events—

(a) 20the election of a person as police and crime commissioner;

(b) the termination by the police and crime panel, or by the acting

commissioner, of the appointment of the acting commissioner;

(c) in a case where the acting commissioner is appointed because the police

and crime commissioner is incapacitated, the commissioner ceasing to

25be incapacitated;

(d) in a case where the acting commissioner is appointed because the police

and crime commissioner is suspended, the commissioner ceasing to be

suspended.

(7) In a case where—

(a) 30the acting commissioner is appointed because the police and crime

commissioner is incapacitated or suspended, and

(b) a vacancy subsequently occurs in the office of police and crime

commissioner,

the occurrence of that vacancy does not affect the appointment of the acting

35commissioner (and accordingly subsection (6)(c) or (d) does not apply).

(8) For the purposes of this section—

(a) a police and crime commissioner is incapacitated if the commissioner is

unable to exercise the functions of commissioner, except where the

commissioner is unable to exercise those functions only because the

40commissioner has yet to give a declaration of office under section 72;

and

(b) it is for the police and crime panel for a police area to determine

whether or not the police and crime commissioner for that area is

incapacitated.

(9) 45Subject to subsection (4), a reference in any enactment to a police and crime

commissioner includes a reference to an acting commissioner.