2006 No. 979 (W.102)

LOCAL GOVERNMENT, WALES

The Local Government (Best Value Authorities) (Power to Trade) (Wales) Order 2006

Made29 March 2006

Coming into force1 April 2006

The National Assembly for Wales, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by sections 95, 96 and 123 of the Local Government Act 20031, hereby makes the following Order:

Title, commencement and application1.

(1)

The title of this Order is the Local Government (Best Value Authorities) (Power to Trade) (Wales) Order 2006 and it comes into force on 1 April 2006.

(2)

This Order applies in relation to best value authorities in Wales2 which are—

(a)

county councils or county borough councils;

(b)

National Park authorities; and

(c)

fire and rescue authorities constituted by a scheme under section 2 of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 20043 or a scheme to which section 4 of that Act applies.

Power to trade in function-related activities2.

(1)

Subject to paragraphs (2) and (3), a best value authority is authorised to do for a commercial purpose anything which it is authorised to do for the purpose of carrying on any of its ordinary functions4.

(2)

Before exercising the power conferred by paragraph (1), the best value authority must—

(a)

prepare a business case in support of the proposed exercise of that power; and

(b)

approve that business case.

(3)

A best value authority must recover the costs of any accommodation, goods, services, staff or any other thing that it supplies to a company5 in pursuance of any agreement or arrangement to facilitate the exercise of the power conferred by paragraph (1).

(4)

In this article “business case” means a comprehensive statement as to—

(a)

the objectives of the business;

(b)

the investment and other resources required to achieve those objectives;

(c)

any risks the business might face and how significant these risks are; and

(d)

the expected financial results of the business, together with any other relevant outcomes that the business is expected to achieve.

Signed on behalf of the National Assembly for Wales under section 66(1) of the Government of Wales Act 19986

D. Elis-Thomas

The Presiding Officer of the National Assembly

29 March 2006

(This note is not part of the Order)

This Order applies to best value authorities in Wales which are county councils, county borough councils, National Park authorities and fire and rescue authorities.

Article 2 authorises a best value authority to which the Order applies to trade in any of its ordinary functions subject to conditions requiring the prior preparation and approval of a business case, and the recovery of any costs incurred by the authority in anything it supplies, including accommodation, goods, services or staff, to a company through which the trading power is exercised. Under section 95(4) of the Act, the power to trade must be exercised through a company.