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Amendments proposed to the Care Standards Bill [Lords] - continued	House of Commons

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As Amendments to Mr David Hanson's proposed New Schedule (NS1) (The Children's Commissioner for Wales):

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(a)

Line 1, leave out 'COMMISSIONER FOR WALES' and insert 'COMMISSIONERS'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(l)

Line 32, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(m)

Line 45, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(n)

Line 54, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(o)

Line 57, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(d)

Line 61, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(e)

Line 63, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(p)

Line 67, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(f)

Line 70, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(g)

Line 104, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(h)

Line 108, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(i)

Line 110, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(j)

Line 112, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(k)

Line 114, after 'Wales', insert 'or the Comptroller and Auditor General'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(b)

Line 129, at end insert 'Children's Commissioner for England'

'Member of the Staff of the Children's Commissioner for England'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(c)

Line 134, leave out 'office of' and insert 'offices of Children's Commissioner for England, and'.

Mr Paul Burstow
Dr Peter Brand

(q)

Line 136, after 'Assembly', insert 'or Secretary of State'.

Mr Philip Hammond
Mrs Caroline Spelman

NS2

To move the following Schedule:—

'THE CHILDREN'S COMMISSIONER FOR ENGLAND

Status

1.—(1) The Commissioner is to be a corporation sole.

(2) The Commissioner is not to be regarded as the servant or agent or the Crown or as enjoying any status, immunity or privilege of the Crown; and the Commissioner's property is not to be regarded as property of, or property held on behalf of, the Crown.

Appointment and tenure of office

2. Regulations may make provision—

(a) as to the appointment of the Commissioner (including any conditions to be fulfilled for appointment);

(b) as to the filling of vacancies in the office of Commissioner;

(c) as to the tenure of office of the Commissioner (including the circumstances in which he ceases to hold office or may be removed or suspended from office).

Remuneration

3. The Secretary of State shall—

(a) pay the Commissioner such remuneration and allowances; and

(b) pay, or make provision for the payment of, such pension or gratuities to or in respect of him,

as may be provided for under the terms of his appointment.

Staff

4.—(1) The Commissioner may appoint any staff he considers necessary for assisting him in the exercise of his functions, one of whom shall be appointed as deputy Commissioner.

(2) During any vacancy in the office of Commissioner or at any time when the Commissioner is for any reason unable to act, the deputy Commissioner shall exercise his functions (and any property or rights vested in the Commissioner may accordingly be dealt with by the deputy as if vested in him).

(3) Without prejudice to sub-paragraph (2), any member of the Commissioner's staff may, so far as authorised by him, exercise any of his functions.

General powers

5.—(1) Subject to any directions given by the Secretary of State, the Commissioner may do anything which appears to him to be necessary or expedient for the purpose of, or in connection with, the exercise of his functions.

(2) That includes, in particular—

(a) co-operating with other public authorities in the United Kingdom;

(b) acquiring and disposing of land and other property; and

Accounts

6.—(1) The Commissioner shall keep proper accounting records.

(2) The Commissioner shall prepare accounts for each financial year in such form as the Secretary of State may with the consent of the Treasury determine.

Reports

7. Regulations may provide for the Commissioner to make periodic or other reports to the Secretary of State relating to the exercise of his functions and may require the reports to be published in the manner required by the regulations.

Accounting officer

8.—(1) The accounting officer for the Commissioner's Office shall be the Commissioner.

(2) But where—

(a) the Commissioner is incapable of discharging his responsibilities as accounting officer; or

(b) the office of Commissioner is vacant (and there is no acting Commissioner),

the Treasury may designate a member of the Commissioner's staff to be the accounting officer for so long as paragraph (a) or (b) applies.

(3) The accounting officer for the Commissioner shall have, in relation to the accounts of the Commissioner and the finances of the Commissioner's Office, the responsibilities which are from time to time specified by the Treasury.

(4) In this paragraph references to responsibilities include in particular—

(a) responsibilities in relation to the signing of accounts;

(b) responsibilities for the propriety and regularity of the finances of the Commissioner's Office; and

(c) responsibilities for the economy, efficiency and effectiveness with which the resources of the Commissioner's Office are used.

(5) The responsibilities which may be specified under this paragraph include responsibilities owed to the House of Commons or its Committee of Public Accounts.

(6) In this paragraph and paragraph 9 "the Commissioner's Office" means the Commissioner and the members of his staff.

Examinations by the Comptroller and Auditor General

9.—(1) For the purpose of enabling him to carry out examinations into, and report to Parliament on, the finances of the Commissioner's Office, the Comptroller and Auditor General—

(a) shall have a right of access at all reasonable times to all such documents in the custody or under the control of the Commissioner, as he may reasonably require for that purpose; and

(b) shall be entitled to require from any person holding or accountable for any of those documents any assistance, information or explanation which he reasonably thinks necessary for that purpose.

Payments

10. The Secretary of State may make payments to the Commissioner of such amounts, at such times and on such conditions (if any) as it considers appropriate.

General

11. In the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975, in Part III of Schedule 1 (certain disqualifying offices), the following entries are inserted at the appropriate places—

"Member of the staff of the Children's Commissioner for England."

12. In the Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975, the same entries as are set out in paragraph 14 are inserted at the appropriate places in Part III of Schedule 1.

13. Regulations may provide that the office of Children's Commissioner for England shall be added to the list of "Offices" in Schedule 1 to the Superannuation Act 1972 (offices etc. to which section 1 of that Act applies).

Mr Philip Hammond
Mrs Caroline Spelman

Title, line 3, leave out first 'independent'.

Mr John Hutton

477

Title, line 5, after 'fostering agencies', insert 'nurses agencies'.

Mr David Amess
Mr Julian Brazier

205

Title, line 7, after 'services;', insert 'to make provision for appeals from local authorities;'.

Mr John Hutton

478

Title, line 15, after '1957', insert 'to amend Schedule 1 to the Local Authority Social Services Act 1970'.