Domestic Abuse Act 2021

Duties of public authorities in relation to Commissioner

15 Duty to co-operate with Commissioner

(1) The Commissioner may request a specified public authority to co-operate with the Commissioner in any way that the Commissioner considers necessary for the purposes of the Commissioner’s functions.

(2) A specified public authority must, so far as reasonably practicable, comply with a request made to it under this section.

(3) In this section “specified public authority” means any of the following—

(a) a chief officer of police of a police force maintained for a police area in England and Wales;

(b) a local policing body;

(c) the Chief Constable of the British Transport Police Force;

(d) the British Transport Police Authority;

(e) the Ministry of Defence Police;

(f) an immigration officer or other official of the Secretary of State exercising functions in relation to immigration or asylum;

(g) the Crown Prosecution Service;

(h) the Parole Board;

(i) the Criminal Cases Review Commission;

(j) an English local authority;

(k) an NHS body in England;

(l) Her Majesty’s Inspectors of Constabulary;

(m) Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of the Crown Prosecution Service;

(n) Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills;

(o) a body approved as an independent inspectorate under section 106 of the Education and Skills Act 2008 (inspection of registered independent educational institutions);

(p) the Care Quality Commission;

(q) Monitor.

(4) The Secretary of State may by regulations amend this section so as to—

(a) add a public authority as a specified public authority for the purposes of this section;

(b) remove a public authority added by virtue of paragraph (a);

(c) vary any description of a public authority.

(5) Before making regulations under subsection (4) the Secretary of State must consult the Commissioner.

(6) Regulations under subsection (4) may not contain provision adding a devolved Welsh authority as a specified public authority for the purposes of this section.

(7) In this section—

• “devolved Welsh authority” has the meaning given by section 157A of the Government of Wales Act 2006;

• “English local authority” means—

  (a)

  a county council or district council in England,

  (b)

  a London borough council,

  (c)

  the Greater London Authority,

  (d)

  the Common Council of the City of London in its capacity as a local authority, or

  (e)

  the Council of the Isles of Scilly;

• “immigration officer” means a person appointed as an immigration officer under paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the Immigration Act 1971;

• “NHS body in England” means—

  (a)

  a National Health Service trust in England established under section 25 of the National Health Service Act 2006,

  (b)

  an NHS foundation trust within the meaning given by section 30 of that Act,

  (c)

  the National Health Service Commissioning Board,

  (d)

  a clinical commissioning group established under section 14D of that Act, or

  (e)

  the National Health Service Trust Development Authority;

• “public authority” means any public authority within the meaning of section 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998, other than a court or tribunal.

16 Duty to respond to Commissioner’s recommendations

(1) This section applies where the Commissioner publishes a report under section 8 containing recommendations in relation to—

(a) any public authority that is a specified public authority for the purposes of section 15;

(b) any government department in the charge of a Minister.

(2) The relevant person must prepare comments on the report.

(3) In this section “the relevant person” means—

(a) the public authority, or

(b) the Minister in charge of the government department,

as the case may be.

(4) The comments must include, in respect of each recommendation made in the report, an explanation of—

(a) the action which the relevant person has taken, or proposes to take, in response to the recommendation, or

(b) why the relevant person has not taken, or does not propose to take, any action in response.

(5) The relevant person must arrange for the comments to be published in such manner as the person considers appropriate.

(6) The comments must be published before the end of the period of 56 days beginning with the day on which the report is published.

(7) The relevant person must send a copy of anything published under subsection (5) to—

(a) the Commissioner, and

(b) where the relevant person is a specified public authority for the purposes of section 15, the Secretary of State.

17 Duty to send conclusions of domestic homicide review to Commissioner

(1) Section 9 of the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act 2004 (establishment and conduct of domestic homicide reviews) is amended as follows.

(2) After subsection (3A) insert—

“(3B) A person or body within subsection (4)(a) that establishes a domestic homicide review (whether or not held pursuant to a direction under subsection (2)) must send a copy of any report setting out the conclusions of the review to the Domestic Abuse Commissioner.

(3C) The copy must be sent as soon as reasonably practicable after the report is completed.”