Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994

1 (1) M1 The Employment Agencies Act 1973 shall be amended as follows. U.K.

F1 (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3) After section 3 there shall be inserted—

“ Prohibition orders U.K.

3A Power to make orders.

(1) On application by the Secretary of State, an [F2 employment tribunal] may by order prohibit a person from carrying on, or being concerned with the carrying on of—

(a) any employment agency or employment business; or

(b) any specified description of employment agency or employment business.

(2) An order under subsection (1) of this section (in this Act referred to as “a prohibition order”) may either prohibit a person from engaging in an activity altogether or prohibit him from doing so otherwise than in accordance with specified conditions.

(3) A prohibition order shall be made for a period beginning with the date of the order and ending—

(a) on a specified date, or

(b) on the happening of a specified event,

in either case, not more than ten years later.

(4) Subject to subsections (5) and (6) of this section, an [F2 employment tribunal] shall not make a prohibition order in relation to any person unless it is satisfied that he is, on account of his misconduct or for any other sufficient reason, unsuitable to do what the order prohibits.

(5) An [F2 employment tribunal] may make a prohibition order in relation to a body corporate if it is satisfied that—

(a) any director, secretary, manager or similar officer of the body corporate,

(b) any person who performs on behalf of the body corporate the functions of a director, secretary, manager or similar officer, or

(c) any person in accordance with whose directions or instructions the directors of the body corporate are accustomed to act,

is unsuitable, on account of his misconduct or for any other sufficient reason, to do what the order prohibits.

(6) An [F2 employment tribunal] may make a prohibition order in relation to a partnership if it is satisfied that any member of the partnership, or any manager employed by the partnership, is unsuitable, on account of his misconduct or for any other sufficient reason, to do what the order prohibits.

(7) For the purposes of subsection (4) of this section, where an employment agency or employment business has been improperly conducted, each person who was carrying on, or concerned with the carrying on of, the agency or business at the time, shall be deemed to have been responsible for what happened unless he can show that it happened without his connivance or consent and was not attributable to any neglect on his part.

(8) A person shall not be deemed to fall within subsection (5)(c) of this section by reason only that the directors act on advice given by him in a professional capacity.

(9) In this section—

• “director”, in relation to a body corporate whose affairs are controlled by its members, means a member of the body corporate; and

• “specified”, in relation to a prohibition order, means specified in the order.

3B Enforcement.

Any person who, without reasonable excuse, fails to comply with a prohibition order shall be guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale.

3C Variation and revocation of orders.

(1) On application by the person to whom a prohibition order applies, an [F2 employment tribunal] may vary or revoke the order if the tribunal is satisfied that there has been a material change of circumstances since the order was last considered.

(2) An [F2 employment tribunal] may not, on an application under this section, so vary a prohibition order as to make it more restrictive.

(3) The Secretary of State shall be a party to any proceedings before an [F2 employment tribunal] with respect to an application under this section, and be entitled to appear and be heard accordingly.

(4) When making a prohibition order or disposing of an application under this section, an [F2 employment tribunal] may, with a view to preventing the making of vexatious or frivolous applications, by order prohibit the making of an application, or further application, under this section in relation to the prohibition order before such date as the tribunal may specify in the order under this subsection.

3D Appeals.

(1) An appeal shall lie to the Employment Appeal Tribunal on a question of law arising from any decision of, or arising in proceedings before, an [F2 employment tribunal] under section 3A or 3C of this Act.

(2) No other appeal shall lie from a decision of an [F2 employment tribunal] under section 3A or 3C of this Act; and section 11 of the Tribunals and Inquiries M2 Act 1992 (appeals from certain tribunals to High Court or Court of Session) shall not apply to proceedings before an [F2 employment tribunal] under section 3A or 3C of this Act.”

(4) In section 9(4)(a)(iv) (circumstances in which information obtained in exercise of statutory powers may be disclosed) for “hearing under section 3(7) of this Act” there shall be substituted “ proceedings under section 3A, 3C or 3D of this Act ”.

(5) In section 13(1) (interpretation) after the definition of “prescribed” there shall be inserted—

““prohibition order” has the meaning given by section 3A(2) of this Act;”.

Textual Amendments

F1 Sch. 10 para. 1(2) repealed (22.7.2004) by Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2004 (c. 14), Sch. 1 Pt. 16 Group 2

F2 Words in Sch.10 para. 1(3) substituted (E.W.S.) (1.8.1998) by 1998 c. 8, s. 1(2)(a) (with s. 16(2)); S.I. 1998/1658, art. 2(1), Sch. 1

Marginal Citations

M1 1973 c35.

M2 1992 c. 53.