Draft Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2015
The Committee consisted of the following Members:
† Brown, Mr Russell (Dumfries and Galloway) (Lab)
† Cairns, Alun ( Lord Commissioner of Her Majesty’s Treasury )
† Donohoe, Mr Brian H. (Central Ayrshire) (Lab)
Doran, Mr Frank (Aberdeen North) (Lab)
† Hamilton, Mr David (Midlothian) (Lab)
† Hammond, Stephen (Wimbledon) (Con)
† Harris, Mr Tom (Glasgow South) (Lab)
† Heath, Mr David (Somerton and Frome) (LD)
† Hemming, John (Birmingham, Yardley) (LD)
Henderson, Gordon (Sittingbourne and Sheppey) (Con)
† McGuire, Dame Anne (Stirling) (Lab)
† McKechin, Ann (Glasgow North) (Lab)
† Mundell, David (Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland)
† Murray, Sheryll (South East Cornwall) (Con)
† Nuttall, Mr David (Bury North) (Con)
† Willetts, Mr David (Havant) (Con)
† Wishart, Pete (Perth and North Perthshire) (SNP)
Daniel Whitford, Committee Clerk
† attended the Committee
Eleventh Delegated Legislation Committee
Wednesday 4 March 2015
[Dr William McCrea in the Chair]
Draft Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2015
2.30 pm
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (David Mundell): I beg to move,
That the Committee has considered the draft Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2015.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr McCrea. The main purpose of the order is to give full effect to the Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, which I will refer to as the 2014 Act, and to make provision where the Scottish Parliament does not have the legislative competence to do so.
The order is made under section 104 of the Scotland Act 1998 and makes necessary or expedient legislative changes in consequence of the 2014 Act. It is fairly technical in nature. It maintains the status quo and ensures that courts in Scotland retain their specific powers in relation to devolved and reserved matters. To provide Members with some background, the 2014 Act implements the majority of the recommendations of the Scottish civil courts review 2009, which was an independent review chaired by Lord Gill. As members of the Committee may know, Lord Gill was, at the time of the review, the Lord Justice Clerk and is now the Lord President of the Court of Session.
In addition to the 2014 Act implementing aspects of that review, it makes some provisions relating to criminal matters. From 1 April 2015, the functions of the Scottish Tribunals Service will be transferred to the Scottish Court Service as a result of the provision in the 2014 Act. That Act will rename the Scottish Court Service as the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service. It is intended that that transfer will protect the independence of the administration of devolved tribunals by separating it from the Scottish Government. It will also create a joint independent administration for courts and tribunals, with one board chaired by the Lord President as head of the judiciary for courts and tribunals.
The pensions appeal tribunal for Scotland was established under the schedule to the Pensions Appeal Tribunals Act 1943. Although pensions are a reserved matter, PATS is currently administered by the Scottish Tribunals Service, since the non-statutory function of providing administrative support was executively devolved to Scottish Ministers by the Scotland Act 1998 (Transfer of Functions to the Scottish Ministers etc.) Order 1999. The order before us today transfers the administration of PATS from the Scottish Ministers to the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service.
Section 2 of the 2014 Act updates the existing powers to alter sheriffdoms and sheriff court districts in sections 2(1) and 3(2) of the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1971. The order consolidates and re-enacts the compensation
provisions in those sections, and permits the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service to pay compensation for loss of office, or loss or diminution of emoluments in consequence of an order made under section 2 of the 2014 Act.Currently, the Court of Session may make rules to regulate procedure and fees in the Court of Session and the sheriff court. It is important that the Court of Session still has this ability for reserved matters and those that are devolved. The principal powers under which the rules are made are contained within the Court of Session Act 1988 and the Sheriff Courts (Scotland) Act 1971. As powers that were conferred upon the Court by pre-devolution statutes, the rule-making powers cover both reserved and devolved matters. That means that the Court has been able to make special rules governing practice and procedure in relation to reserved areas of law such as immigration, financial services and terrorism.
The Court’s rule-making powers are to be contained in the 2014 Act, but that Act can only provide rule-making powers for matters that are devolved. The order provides that those powers may be used to make provision that relates to a reserved matter, or that modifies the law on reserved matters—for example, the provision modifying existing special rules relating to reserved matters. That preserves the pre-existing ability of the Court to regulate practice and procedure regardless of whether the subject matter of the proceedings in question is devolved or reserved.
The 2014 Act provides for the Lord President of the Court of Session to direct certain categories of sheriff court case as suitable to be dealt with by specialist judiciary, and for the Lord President or the sheriff principal of a sheriffdom to be able to designate particular members of the sheriff court judiciary as specialists in one or more areas. The order provides for those powers to be exercisable in relation to categories of case that relate to reserved matters.
Similarly, the 2014 Act inserts new sections into the Court of Session Act 1988 to include the application of a second appeals test applying to applications for review of decisions of the upper tribunal for Scotland. The order extends those provisions to apply to the UK upper tribunal.
The 2014 Act provides that civil proceedings that a sheriff has competence to deal with, and in which orders of value are sought of an aggregate value that does not exceed £100,000, may be brought only in the sheriff court. The order prevents the 2014 Act from applying to proceedings for winding up a company, with the consequence that such proceedings will remain competent in the Court of Session, regardless of any order for value sought.
Finally, the order makes consequential modifications to existing UK legislation. For example, the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975 and the Northern Ireland Assembly Disqualification Act 1975 are amended to reflect the abolition of the office of stipendiary magistrate and the introduction in the 2014 Act of the new judicial offices of summary sheriff and part-time summary sheriff.
A further example of the consequential modifications made by the order is that, as the 2014 Act has repealed several pieces of legislation so far as Scots law is concerned, this order replicates the repeals for the rest of the UK,
tidying up the UK statute book. A specific example is the repeal of the Judicial Offices (Salaries, etc.) Act 1952 by the 2014 Act. This order replicates that repeal for the rest of the UK.I consider the order to be a sensible use of the powers under the Scotland Act 1998 and I believe that it once again demonstrates the Government’s continued commitment to working with the Scottish Government to make the devolution settlement work. I commend the order to the Committee.
2.37 pm
Mr Russell Brown (Dumfries and Galloway) (Lab): It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Dr McCrea.
I should begin by declaring something of an interest, as my good lady wife is serving on jury duty in Dumfries sheriff court today. She managed to escape yesterday without conducting any business. I believe that she has been trapped today, but I am sure we will hear the long story in due course.
The explanatory note that came along with the order was very detailed and outlined much of what the Minister has gone through this afternoon. As he said, the purpose
of the order is to bring into full effect the Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014. There are a number of complexities, but as the Minister has gone through, he has explained them in detail. I suppose that the important thing when we are dealing with courts is whether the measure complies with the European convention on human rights. That is detailed within the explanatory note.I am not aware of anything in the order that I, or any of my colleagues, wish to raise this afternoon. All I can really say to the Minister is that the Opposition have nothing to raise. I will be as concise as that.
2.39 pm
David Mundell: I commend the hon. Gentleman for his brevity and commend the order to the Committee.