Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Bill

Insert the following new Clause—

“ACAS: prohibition on disclosure of information

In Part 6 of the Trade Union and Labour Relations (Consolidation) Act 1992 (ACAS etc), after section 251A insert—

“251B Prohibition on disclosure of information

(1) Information held by ACAS shall not be disclosed if the information—

(a) relates to a worker, an employer of a worker or a trade union (a “relevant person”), and

(b) is held by ACAS in connection with the provision of a service by ACAS or its officers.

This is subject to subsection (2).

(2) Subsection (1) does not prohibit the disclosure of information if—

(a) the disclosure is made for the purpose of enabling or assisting ACAS to carry out any of its functions under this Act,

(b) the disclosure is made for the purpose of enabling or assisting an officer of ACAS to carry out the functions of a conciliation officer under any enactment,

(c) the disclosure is made for the purpose of enabling or assisting—

(i) a person appointed by ACAS under section 210(2), or

(ii) an arbitrator or arbiter appointed by ACAS under any enactment,

to carry out functions specified in the appointment,

(d) the disclosure is made for the purposes of a criminal investigation or criminal proceedings (whether or not within the United Kingdom),

(e) the disclosure is made in order to comply with a court order,

(f) the disclosure is made in a manner that ensures that no relevant person to whom the information relates can be identified, or

(g) the disclosure is made with the consent of each relevant person to whom the information relates.

(3) Subsection (2) does not authorise the making of a disclosure which contravenes the Data Protection Act 1998.

(4) A person who discloses information in contravention of this section commits an offence and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

(5) Proceedings in England and Wales for an offence under this section may be instituted only with the consent of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

(6) For the purposes of this section information held by—

(a) a person appointed by ACAS under section 210(2) in connection with functions specified in the appointment, or

(b) an arbitrator or arbiter appointed by ACAS under any enactment in connection with functions specified in the appointment,

is information that is held by ACAS in connection with the provision of a service by ACAS.””

Page 7, leave out lines 35 to 38

Page 8, line 2, leave out “a specified number of appointed members” and insert “either two or four appointed members”

Page 8, leave out lines 4 to 6 and insert—

“(7) In proceedings heard by a judge and two or four appointed members, there shall be an equal number of—

(a) employer-representative members, and

(b) worker-representative members.”

Page 14, line 29, at end insert—

“( ) Section (ACAS: prohibition on disclosure of information) does not apply in relation to a disclosure, or a request for information, made before that section comes into force.”

Page 108, line 44, after “20” insert “(3)”

Page 109, line 17, after “Commission” insert “(excluding any period when he or she also holds office as a member of the CMA panel)”

Insert the following new Clause—

“Transitional provision: consultation

(1) This section applies in relation to a provision of this Act under or by virtue of which the CMA has a function of consulting another person in preparing rules, statements of policy, guidance or general advice or information.

(2) At any time before the provision comes into force, the Office of Fair Trading or the Competition Commission or both bodies acting jointly—

(a) may carry out any consultation that the CMA would have power to carry out after the provision comes into force, and

(b) for that purpose, may prepare drafts of any documents to which the consultation relates.

(3) At any time after the provision comes into force, the CMA may elect to treat any consultation carried out or other thing done under subsection (2) by the Office of Fair Trading or the Competition Commission (or by both bodies acting jointly) as carried out or done by the CMA.

(4) The Secretary of State may direct the Office of Fair Trading or the Competition Commission, or both of them acting jointly, to exercise a power conferred by subsection (2).”

Page 81, line 12, at end insert—

“( ) section (ACAS: prohibition on disclosure of information);”

Page 81, line 13, at end insert—

“( ) section (Transitional provision: consultation);”