Crime and Punishment (Scotland) Act 1997

Police funding and organisation

45 Police grant

(1) For section 32 of the [1967 c. 77.] Police (Scotland) Act 1967 there shall be substituted the following section—

“32 Police grant

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section, the Secretary of State shall for the financial year 1997-98 and for each subsequent financial year make grants out of money provided by Parliament for police purposes to police authorities and joint police boards.

(2) Where a grant is made under subsection (1) above to a joint police board, no grant under that subsection shall be payable to a constituent authority.

(3) For each financial year the Secretary of State shall with the approval of the Treasury by order determine—

(a) the aggregate amount of grants to be made under subsection (1) above; and

(b) the amount of the grant to be made to each police authority or joint police board,

and any determination under this subsection for any financial year may be varied or revoked by a subsequent such determination for that year.

(4) In making a determination under subsection (3)(b) above, the Secretary of State may exclude certain categories of expenditure for police purposes from a grant made under subsection (1) above.

(5) A grant made to a police authority or to a joint police board by virtue of an order made under subsection (3) above may be subject to such conditions and shall be paid at such times and in such manner as the Secretary of State may with the approval of the Treasury by order determine; and any such time may fall within or after the financial year concerned.

(6) The Secretary of State shall prepare a report stating the considerations which he took into account in making the determinations mentioned in subsection (3) above.

(7) The considerations which the Secretary of State takes into account in making a determination under subsection (3)(b) above may be different for different authorities or different joint police boards.

(8) A statutory instrument containing an order made under subsection (3) above shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(9) A copy of a report prepared under subsection (6) above shall be laid before each House of Parliament at the time at which the statutory instrument containing the order made under subsection (3) above to which it relates is so laid.

(10) Where in consequence of the variation or revocation of an order made under subsection (3) above the amount of a police authority’s or a joint police board’s grant is less than the amount already paid to it for the year concerned, a sum equal to the difference shall be paid by the authority or, as the case may be, board to the Secretary of State on such day as he may specify.

(11) In this section “financial year” has the meaning assigned to it by section 116 of the [1992 c. 14.] Local Government Finance Act 1992.”.

(2) A determination made under section 32(3) (police grant) of the [1967 c. 77.] Police (Scotland) Act 1967 (as inserted into that Act by subsection (1) above) for the financial year 1997-98 may, notwithstanding that this section comes into force after the beginning of that financial year, relate to the whole of that year; and the first such determination shall take effect in place of any determination made for that year under section 32(1) of that Act as it had effect prior to the coming into force of this section.

46 Common police services

(1) For section 36 of the Police (Scotland) Act 1967 there shall be substituted the following section—

“36 Common services

(1) The Secretary of State may—

(a) himself—

(i) provide and maintain facilities and services; or

(ii) establish and maintain institutions and organisations; or

(b) contribute, by way of financial assistance, grant or otherwise, to—

(i) the provision and maintenance of facilities and services; or

(ii) the establishment and maintenance of institutions and organisations,

by others,

where he considers that to do so is necessary or expedient for promoting the efficiency or effectiveness of the police.

(2) The Secretary of State may by regulations make provision for requiring all police forces in Scotland to use specified facilities or services, or facilities or services of a specified description (whether or not provided under subsection (1) above), if he considers that it would be in the interests of the efficiency or effectiveness of the police for them to do so.

(3) The Secretary of State may recover from police authorities and joint police boards the whole or any part of any expenditure which he incurs under subsection (1) above and, for that purpose, he may—

(a) fix charges to be paid to him in respect of the use by police forces of any facilities or services such as are mentioned in subsection (1) above; and

(b) determine amounts to be paid to him by police authorities and joint police boards, and he may determine different amounts in respect of different police authorities and joint police boards.

(4) Before exercising the powers conferred by any of subsections (1) to (3) above the Secretary of State shall consult the Joint Central Committee and such bodies or associations as appear to him to be representative of police authorities or of chief constables or superintendents.

(5) Any sum due by a police authority or joint police board to the Secretary of State under this section—

(a) may be deducted by him from the amount of police grant payable to that authority or board under section 32 of this Act; or

(b) failing such deduction, shall be defrayed in like manner as other expenses incurred for the purposes of this Act by that authority or board.”.

(2) In section 38(5) of that Act (central service on police duties), for the definition of “central service” there shall be substituted the following definition—

““central service” means temporary service under the Crown, with the consent of the appropriate authority, in connection with—

(a) facilities and services provided and maintained by the Secretary of State under section 36(1)(a)(i) of this Act;

(b) facilities and services provided by organisations or institutions established and maintained by the Secretary of State under section 36(1)(a)(ii) of this Act; and

(c) research or other services connected with the police provided by the Secretary of State,

and temporary service under section 34 of this Act.”.

(3) Section 36, and the definition of “central services” in section 38(5), of the [1967 c. 77.] Police (Scotland) Act 1967, as substituted respectively by subsections (1) and (2) above, shall come into force or, if this section comes into force after that date, be deemed to have come into force, on 1st April 1997.

(4) The first determination made by the Secretary of State under section 36(3) of that Act, as so substituted, for the recovery of any expenditure incurred by him under that section—

(a) may be applied by him in relation to any expenditure so incurred during the period beginning on 1st April 1997 and ending on the date on which the determination is made; and

(b) subject to subsection (5) below, shall take effect in place of any provision for such recovery made in an order under the said section 36 as it had effect prior to the coming into force of this section.

(5) Nothing in subsection (4) above shall entitle the Secretary of State to recover a higher proportion of his expenditure in relation to the period mentioned in that subsection than he would have been entitled to recover in relation to that period under any such order.