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“by-election” means any election held in accordance with the provisions | |
of section 18; and | |
“ordinary election” means any election for the office of Community | |
Prosecution Lawyer other than a by-election. | |
15 Returning officers | 5 |
A returning officer for a parliamentary election determined in accordance with | |
the provisions of section 24 of the Representation of the People Act 1983 (c. 2) | |
(returning officers: England and Wales) shall also be a returning officer for an | |
election for the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer. | |
16 Day of initial elections of Community Prosecution Lawyers | 10 |
(1) The initial elections for the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer shall be | |
held on the first Thursday of a month other than August. | |
(2) The Lord Chancellor may make an order prescribing the month of initial | |
elections for the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer. | |
(3) An order under this section may prescribe different months in respect of | 15 |
different parliamentary constituencies. | |
(4) No order under this section may prescribe a month the first day of which falls | |
less than ninety days after the day on which the order is made. | |
(5) An order under subsection (2) may not be made unless a draft has been laid | |
before and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament. | 20 |
(6) No draft may be laid before Parliament under subsection (4) until the Lord | |
Chancellor has consulted— | |
(a) the Attorney General, and | |
(b) the Electoral Commission. | |
(7) At the same time as any draft order is laid before Parliament under subsection | 25 |
(5), the Lord Chancellor shall also lay before Parliament a report of the outcome | |
of his consultations in accordance with subsection (6). | |
(8) In this section, “initial elections” means the first election to be held in | |
accordance with the provisions of this Act in each parliamentary constituency. | |
17 Day of subsequent elections of Community Prosecution Lawyers | 30 |
Each subsequent ordinary election for the office of Community Prosecution | |
Lawyer shall be held on the first Thursday of the month in which the preceding | |
such election was held in that parliamentary constituency in the fourth year | |
after the preceding ordinary election. | |
18 By-elections | 35 |
(1) In any case where a declaration of vacancy has been published in accordance | |
with the provisions of section 26 (other than a case where subsection (2) | |
applies) a by-election shall be held for the office of Community Prosecution | |
Lawyer. | |
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(2) This subsection applies in any case where the date on which the vacancy began | |
is less than three months before the next campaign day for an ordinary election | |
in the constituency. | |
(3) The Lord Chancellor may make an order prescribing— | |
(a) the date of a by-election, or | 5 |
(b) arrangements for determining the date of a by-election. | |
Disqualification for office, etc. | |
19 Declaration of acceptance of office | |
(1) A person elected to the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer shall, within | |
a period of one month from the day of the election, make a declaration of | 10 |
acceptance of office. | |
(2) A declaration of acceptance of office and a record of acceptance of office shall | |
be in a form prescribed by the Attorney General by order. | |
(3) The declaration shall be made before— | |
(a) a Chief Crown Prosecutor, | 15 |
(b) two Crown Prosecutors, | |
(c) a justice of the peace or magistrate in England and Wales, or | |
(d) a commissioner appointed to administer oaths in the Supreme Court. | |
(4) As soon as practicable after a declaration has been made, and in any case | |
within a week, the person or one of the persons before whom the declaration | 20 |
was made shall deliver the record of acceptance of office to the Director. | |
(5) In any case where a record of acceptance of office has not been delivered to the | |
Director within a period of one month from the day of the election, the office | |
of Community Prosecution Lawyer shall be vacated. | |
20 Resignation from office | 25 |
(1) A Community Prosecution Lawyer may at any time resign his office by | |
notifying the Director of a decision to do so in accordance with the provisions | |
of this section. | |
(2) A notification of resignation from office under this section shall be made in | |
writing and shall specify the date from which the resignation is effective. | 30 |
(3) The date specified in a notification under subsection (2) shall not be a date— | |
(a) prior to that on which the notification is made, | |
(b) more than three months after that on which the notification is made, or | |
(c) after the next campaign day. | |
(4) As soon as practicable after the Director receives a notification of resignation in | 35 |
accordance with the provisions of this section, he shall publish a notice of the | |
resignation, specifying the parliamentary constituency and the date from | |
which the resignation is effective. | |
(5) Where a notice has been published under subsection (4) relating to the | |
resignation of a Community Prosecution Lawyer, his office shall be vacated | 40 |
with effect from the date specified in that notice. | |
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21 Disqualification by permanent infirmity | |
(1) Where the Attorney General is satisfied by means of a medical certificate that | |
a Lawyer is disabled by permanent infirmity from the performance of the | |
functions of his office, but is for the time being incapacitated from resigning it, | |
the Attorney General may, subject to the provisions of subsection (2), notify the | 5 |
Director of the Community Prosecution Lawyer’s disqualification by | |
permanent infirmity. | |
(2) A notification under this section shall be of no effect unless it is made with the | |
concurrence of the Director. | |
(3) A notification of disqualification under this section shall be made in writing. | 10 |
(4) As soon as practicable after the Director receives a notification of | |
disqualification in accordance with the provisions of this section, he shall | |
publish a notice of the disqualification, specifying the parliamentary | |
constituency. | |
(5) Where a notice has been published under subsection (4) relating to a | 15 |
Community Prosecution Lawyer, his office shall be vacated. | |
22 Legal disqualification for office | |
(1) Where the name of a person who holds the office of Community Prosecution | |
Lawyer is removed from the Register of persons legally qualified to hold the | |
office of Community Prosecution Lawyer in accordance with the provisions of | 20 |
section 10, that person shall be disqualified. | |
(2) If a Community Prosecution Lawyer becomes disqualified under the | |
provisions of this section, his office shall be vacated. | |
(3) If a person who is disqualified under this section is returned as a Community | |
Prosecution Lawyer, his return shall be void. | 25 |
23 Residency disqualification for office | |
(1) A Community Prosecution Lawyer shall be required for the effective period to | |
have his main residence in the parliamentary constituency in respect of which | |
he holds his office. | |
(2) A decision on whether or not a person meets the requirement specified in | 30 |
subsection (1) shall be made in the first instance by the Director. | |
(3) In any case where, under subsection (2), the Director decides that a person does | |
not meet the requirement specified in subsection (1), the Director shall inform | |
the person concerned in writing as soon as practicable, giving reasons for his | |
decision. | 35 |
(4) The Community Prosecution Lawyer concerned may appeal against a decision | |
under subsection (3) to the Attorney General. | |
(5) The decision of the Attorney General on whether or not a person meets the | |
condition specified in subsection (1) shall be final. | |
(6) If a Community Prosecution Lawyer becomes disqualified under this section, | 40 |
his office shall be vacated. | |
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(7) In this section “the effective period” means the period beginning with the day | |
of election and ending with the next campaign day. | |
24 Disqualification for office: bankruptcy restrictions order | |
(1) The following shall be inserted after section 426C of the Insolvency Act 1986 | |
(c. 45)— | 5 |
“426D Disqualification for office as a Community Prosecution Lawyer | |
(1) A person in respect of whom a bankruptcy restrictions order has effect | |
shall be disqualified— | |
(a) for holding the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer, and | |
(b) for seeking election to the office of Community Prosecution | 10 |
Lawyer. | |
(2) If a Community Prosecution Lawyer becomes disqualified under this | |
section, his office shall be vacated. | |
(3) If a person who is disqualified under this section is returned as a | |
Community Prosecution Lawyer, his return shall be void. | 15 |
(4) If a court makes a bankruptcy restrictions order or interim order in | |
respect of a Community Prosecution Lawyer, the court shall notify the | |
Director of Public Prosecutions. | |
(5) If the Secretary of State accepts a bankruptcy restrictions undertaking | |
made by a Community Prosecution Lawyer, the Secretary of State shall | 20 |
notify the Director of Public Prosecutions.” | |
(2) The Secretary of State may by order— | |
(a) make consequential amendment of section 426D of that Act (as inserted | |
by subsection (1) above); | |
(b) make other consequential amendment of an enactment. | 25 |
(3) An order under this section may make transitional, consequential or incidental | |
provision. | |
(4) An order under this section may not be made unless a draft has been laid | |
before and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament. | |
25 Other disqualifications for office | 30 |
(1) A person disqualified for election under section 12 shall also be disqualified for | |
holding the office of Community Prosecution Lawyer. | |
(2) If a Community Prosecution Lawyer becomes disqualified under this section, | |
his office shall be vacated. | |
26 Declaration of vacancy | 35 |
(1) Where an office of Community Prosecution Lawyer has been vacated in | |
accordance with— | |
(a) any of the provisions of sections 19 to 23 or section 25 of this Act, or | |
(b) section 426D of the Insolvency Act 1986, | |
the Director shall, as soon as practicable thereafter, publish a declaration of | 40 |
vacancy. | |
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(2) A declaration of vacancy shall specify— | |
(a) the parliamentary constituency concerned, and | |
(b) the date on which the vacancy began. | |
(3) A declaration of vacancy shall be published in such manner as the Director | |
thinks fit to enable the declaration to be readily available to members of the | 5 |
public. | |
27 Offence of falsely acting as Community Prosecution Lawyer | |
(1) It shall be an offence for a person to act or claim to be entitled to act as a | |
Community Prosecution Lawyer outside the period specified in accordance | |
with the provisions of paragraph 5 of Schedule 1. | 10 |
(2) A person guilty of an offence under subsection (1) shall be liable on summary | |
conviction to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale. | |
Part 3 | |
General | |
28 Expenses | 15 |
There shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament— | |
(a) any expenditure incurred by— | |
(i) a Minister of the Crown, or | |
(ii) the Electoral Commission | |
under this Act; and | 20 |
(b) any increase attributable to this Act in the sums payable out of money so | |
provided under any other Act. | |
29 Interpretation | |
In this Act— | |
“anti-social behaviour offence” means an offence designated in | 25 |
accordance with the provisions of Schedule 2 to this Act; | |
“area” means an area of England and Wales designated for the purposes | |
of section 1(4) of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (c. 23) (Crown | |
Prosecution Service areas); | |
“Assistant Community Prosecution Lawyer” means a person so | 30 |
designated in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3(2) of | |
Schedule 1 to this Act; | |
“by-election” has the meaning given in section 14; | |
“campaign day” means the day prescribed in accordance with regulations | |
under section 14; | 35 |
“a Chief Crown Prosecutor” means a person so designated under section | |
1(4) of the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (Crown Prosecution | |
Service areas); | |
“chief officer of police” has the same meaning as in section 101 of the | |
Police Act 1996 (c. 16) (interpretation); | 40 |
“conduct of proceedings” and cognate expressions shall be construed in | |
accordance with the provisions of section 15(3) of the Prosecution of | |
Offences Act 1985 (references to the conduct of proceedings); | |
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“a Crown Prosecutor” means a person so designated under section 1(3) of | |
the Prosecution of Offences Act 1985 (c. 23) (designation of Crown | |
Prosecutors); | |
“Deputy Community Prosecution Lawyer” means a person so designated | |
in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3(3) of Schedule 1 to | 5 |
this Act; | |
“the Director” means the Director of Public Prosecutions; | |
“institution of proceedings” and cognate expressions shall be construed in | |
accordance with the provisions of section 15(2) of the Prosecution of | |
Offences Act 1985 (institution of proceedings); | 10 |
“members of the legal staff of a Community Prosecution Lawyer” has the | |
meaning given in paragraph 3(6) of Schedule 1 to this Act; | |
“ordinary election” has the meaning given in section 14; | |
“parliamentary constituency” has meaning given in section 1 of the | |
Parliamentary Constituencies Act 1986 (c. 56) (parliamentary | 15 |
constituencies); | |
“police area” has the meaning given in section 1 of the Police Act 1996 | |
(c. 16) (police areas); | |
“the Register” means the Register maintained in accordance with the | |
provisions of section 9 of this Act; | 20 |
“relevant police force” means a police force maintained by a police | |
authority under the Police Act 1996 for which the police area includes | |
the whole or part of the parliamentary constituency in respect of which | |
the Community Prosecution Lawyer is elected; | |
“responsibility for proceedings” has the meaning given in section 7 of this | 25 |
Act; | |
“staff of a Community Prosecution Lawyer” has the meaning given in | |
paragraph 3(6) of Schedule 1. | |
30 Orders and regulations | |
(1) Every power conferred by this Act on a Minister of the Crown to make orders | 30 |
or regulations is a power exercisable by statutory instrument. | |
(2) A statutory instrument containing an order or regulations made in exercise of | |
any such power, other than— | |
(a) an order under section 32(1), or | |
(b) any order that is required, by any provision of this Act, to be laid before | 35 |
Parliament and approved in draft | |
shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of | |
Parliament. | |
31 Minor and consequential amendments and repeal | |
(1) Schedule 3 (which makes minor and consequential amendments to other Acts) | 40 |
shall have effect. | |
(2) The provision specified in Schedule 4 is hereby repealed to the extent specified | |
in the second column of that Schedule. | |
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