C3C4C5C6Part III Conduct of local government members and employees

Annotations:
Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C6Chapter II Investigations etc: England

Investigations

I162C6 Investigations: further provisions.

C1C81

An ethical standards officer, or a person authorised by such an officer, has a right of access at all reasonable times to every document relating to a relevant authority which appears to him necessary for the purpose of conducting an investigation under section 59 in relation to a member or co-opted member (or former member or co-opted member) of the authority.

C1C82

An ethical standards officer, or a person authorised by such an officer, may—

a

make such inquiries of any person as he thinks necessary for the purpose of conducting such an investigation,

b

require any person to give him such information or explanation as he thinks necessary for the purpose of conducting such an investigation, and

c

if he thinks necessary, require any person to attend before him in person for the purpose of making inquiries of that person or requiring that person to give any information or explanation.

C1C83

Without prejudice to subsections (1) and (2), a relevant authority must provide an ethical standards officer, or a person authorised by such an officer, with every facility and all information which he may reasonably require for the purposes of conducting an investigation under section 59 in relation to a member or co-opted member (or former member or co-opted member) of the authority.

C2C74

An ethical standards officer, or a person authorised by such an officer, may under this section require any person—

a

to furnish information concerning communications between the authority concerned and any Government department, or

b

to produce any correspondence or other documents forming part of any such communications.

C1C85

No obligation to maintain secrecy or other restriction upon the disclosure of information obtained by or furnished to persons in Her Majesty’s service, whether imposed by any enactment or by any rule of law, is to apply to the disclosure of information in accordance with subsection (4).

C1C86

Where subsection (4) applies, the Crown is not to be entitled to any such privilege in respect of the production of documents or the giving of evidence as is allowed by law in legal proceedings.

7

Nothing in this section affects—

a

the restriction, imposed by section 11(2) of the M1Parliamentary Commissioner Act 1967, on the disclosure of information by the Parliamentary Commissioner or his officers,

b

the restriction, imposed by section 32(2) of the M2Local Government Act 1974, on the disclosure of information by any members or officers of the Commission for Local Administration in England F1..., or

c

the restriction, imposed by section 15 of the M3Health Service Commissioners Act 1993, on the disclosure of information by the Health Service Commissioner for England F2or by his officersF3, or

d

the restriction imposed by section 26 of the Public Services Ombudsman (Wales) Act 2005.

C1C88

To assist him in any investigation under section 59, an ethical standards officer may obtain advice from any person who in his opinion is qualified to give it and may pay to any such person such fees or allowances as he may determine with the approval of the Secretary of State.

C1C89

Subject to subsections (5) and (6), no person may be compelled for the purposes of an investigation under section 59 to give any evidence or produce any document which he could not be compelled to give or produce in civil proceedings before the High Court.

C1C810

A person who without reasonable excuse fails to comply with any requirement under subsection (2) or (4) is guilty of an offence and liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

C1C811

In this section any reference to documents includes a reference to information held by means of a computer or in any other electronic form.