Part 6 – General provisions
Section 17 – Ancillary provision
96.Section 17 provides a power for the Scottish Ministers to make, by regulations, incidental, supplementary, consequential, transitional, transitory or saving provision for the purposes of, in connection with or for giving full effect to the Act.
Section 18 and schedule 2 – Modifications of enactments
97.Section 18 introduces schedule 2, which contains modifications of certain enactments.
98.Paragraphs 1 to 5 of schedule 2 provides for a number of repeals and amendments consequential upon the new provision being made in the Act.
99.Paragraph 1 repeals and amends certain provisions of the Public Order Act 1986. Paragraph 2 provides that the offence of racially-aggravated harassment provided for in the Criminal Law (Consolidation) (Scotland) Act 1995 is repealed. Paragraph 3 provides that the statutory aggravation in respect of race provided for in section 96 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 is repealed. Paragraph 4 provides that the statutory aggravation in respect of religion provided for in section 74 of the Criminal Justice (Scotland) Act 2003 is repealed. Paragraph 5 provides that the statutory aggravations in relation to disability, sexual orientation and transgender identity provided for in the Offences (Aggravation by Prejudice) (Scotland) Act 2009 are repealed.
Section 19 – Crown application: criminal offences
100.By virtue of section 20 of the Interpretation and Legislative Reform (Scotland) Act 2010, the Act applies to the Crown in Scotland. However, section 19(1) absolves the Crown of any criminal liability, should it be in contravention of any provision of the Act. Instead, section 19(2) provides power for the Court of Session to declare such an act to be unlawful.
Section 20 – Crown application: powers of entry
101.Section 20 provides that the exercise of a power of entry authorised by warrant under section 5 of the Act onto Crown land requires the consent of the “appropriate authority”.
102.Subsection (1) introduces a table that defines different types of land which constitute “Crown land” and the corresponding person from whom consent must be obtained, referred to as “the appropriate authority.” This includes land belonging to Her Majesty the Queen both in right of the Crown and in right of her private estates (such as the Balmoral estate), and land belonging to an office-holder in the Scottish Administration or department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Who constitutes the “appropriate authority” from whom consent is required depends on the ownership or management of the land, as set out in the table. For example, in the case of land belonging to Her Majesty in right of the Crown which is managed by an office-holder in the Scottish Administration, then the appropriate authority is the office-holder in the Scottish Administration.
103.Subsection (2) provides further interpretative provision.
104.Subsection (3) makes clear that it is for the Scottish Ministers to determine any question that arises as to who, in accordance with subsection (1), is the appropriate authority in relation to any land, and their decision is final.
Section 21 – Commencement
105.Section 21 provides that section 21 as well as sections 17 and 22 come into force on the day after Royal Assent. All other provisions are to come into force on a day appointed by regulations made by the Scottish Ministers, and those regulations may make transitional, transitory or saving provision related to commencement. Those regulations may make different provisions for different purposes.
Section 22 – Short title
106.Section 22 provides that the short title of the Act is the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.
