Enterprise Act 2002

268 Disqualification from office: general U.K.

(1) The Secretary of State may make an order under this section in relation to a disqualification provision.

(2) A “disqualification provision” is a provision which disqualifies (whether permanently or temporarily and whether absolutely or conditionally) a bankrupt or a class of bankrupts from—

(a) being elected or appointed to an office or position,

(b) holding an office or position, or

(c) becoming or remaining a member of a body or group.

(3) In subsection (2) the reference to a provision which disqualifies a person conditionally includes a reference to a provision which enables him to be dismissed.

(4) An order under subsection (1) may repeal or revoke the disqualification provision.

(5) An order under subsection (1) may amend, or modify the effect of, the disqualification provision—

(a) so as to reduce the class of bankrupts to whom the disqualification provision applies;

(b) so as to extend the disqualification provision to some or all individuals who are subject to a bankruptcy restrictions regime;

(c) so that the disqualification provision applies only to some or all individuals who are subject to a bankruptcy restrictions regime;

(d) so as to make the application of the disqualification provision wholly or partly subject to the discretion of a specified person, body or group.

(6) An order by virtue of subsection (5)(d) may provide for a discretion to be subject to—

(a) the approval of a specified person or body;

(b) appeal to a specified person or body.

(7) An order by virtue of subsection (5)(d)F1 . . . may provide for a discretion to be subject to appeal to a specified court or tribunal [F2 ; but any such order must—

(a) if it relates to England and Wales, be made with the concurrence of the Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales;

(b) if it relates to Northern Ireland, be made with the concurrence of the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland]

.

(8) The Secretary of State may specify himself for the purposes of subsection (5)(d) or (6)(a) or (b).

(9) In this section “bankrupt” means an individual—

[F3 (a) who has been made bankrupt (under Part 9 of the Insolvency Act 1986),

(aa) who has been adjudged bankrupt by a court in Northern Ireland,]

(b) whose estate has been sequestrated by a court in Scotland, or

(c) who has made an agreement with creditors of his for a composition of debts, for a scheme of arrangement of affairs, for the grant of a trust deed or for some other kind of settlement or arrangement.

(10) In this section “bankruptcy restrictions regime” means an order or undertaking—

(a) under Schedule 4A to the Insolvency Act 1986 (c. 45) (bankruptcy restrictions orders), or

(b) under any system operating in Scotland or Northern Ireland which appears to the Secretary of State to be equivalent to the system operating under that Schedule.

(11) In this section—

• “body” includes Parliament and any other legislative body, and

• “provision” means—

  (a)

  a provision made by an Act of Parliament passed before or in the same Session as this Act, and

  (b)

  a provision made, before or in the same Session as this Act, under an Act of Parliament.

(12) An order under this section—

(a) may make provision generally or for a specified purpose only,

(b) may make different provision for different purposes, and

(c) may make transitional, consequential or incidental provision.

(13) An order under this section—

(a) must be made by statutory instrument, and

(b) may not be made unless a draft has been laid before and approved by resolution of each House of Parliament.

(14) A reference in this section to the Secretary of State shall be treated as a reference to the National Assembly for Wales in so far as it relates to a disqualification provision which—

(a) is made by the National Assembly for Wales, or

(b) relates to a function of the National Assembly.

(15) Provision made by virtue of subsection (7) is subject to any order of the Lord Chancellor under section 56(1) of the Access to Justice Act 1999 (c. 22) (appeals: jurisdiction).

[F4 (16) The Lord Chief Justice may nominate a judicial office holder (as defined in section 109(4) of the Constitutional Reform Act 2005) to exercise his functions under subsection (7).

(17) The Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland may nominate any of the following to exercise his functions under subsection (7)—

(a) the holder of one of the offices listed in Schedule 1 to the Justice (Northern Ireland) Act 2002;

(b) a Lord Justice of Appeal (as defined in section 88 of that Act).]

Textual Amendments

F1 Words in s. 268(7) repealed (3.4.2006) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 15, 146, 148, Sch. 4 para. 305(2)(a), Sch. 18 Pt. 2; S.I. 2006/1014, art. 2(a), Sch. 1 paras. 11(x), 30(b)

F2 Words in s. 268(7) inserted (3.4.2006) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 15, 148, Sch. 4 para. 305(2)(b); S.I. 2006/1014, art. 2(a), Sch. 1 para. 11(x)

F3 S. 268(9)(a)(aa) substituted for s. 268(9)(a) (6.4.2016) by The Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013 (Consequential Amendments) (Bankruptcy) and the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 (Consequential Amendments) Regulations 2016 (S.I. 2016/481), reg. 1, Sch. 1 para. 16

F4 S. 268(16)(17) inserted (3.4.2006) by Constitutional Reform Act 2005 (c. 4), ss. 15, 148, Sch. 4 para. 305(3); S.I. 2006/1014, art. 2(a), Sch. 1 para. 11(x)

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 268 applied (with modifications) (1.4.2004) by Local Government Act 2003 (c. 26), ss. 109(5), 129, Sch. 4 para. 25; S.I. 2003/2938, art. 6(a) (subject to transitional provisions and savings in art. 8, Sch.)

C2 S. 268 extended (with modifications) (1.4.2005) by Human Tissue Act 2004 (c. 30), ss. 56, 60, Sch. 6 para. 6; S.I. 2005/919, art. 3, Sch. (with transitional provisions in art. 2)