2021 No. 356 (W. 107)
The Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 (Consequential Amendments and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2021
Made
Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(2)
The Welsh Ministers make the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred upon them by sections 50 and 173 of the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 20211 and sections 22(6), (7), (8), (9), (10), (11) and (12)2 and 105 of the Local Government Act 20003.
In accordance with section 174(4) and (5)(f) and (t) of the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021, a draft of these Regulations has been laid before and approved by a resolution of Senedd Cymru.
PART 1General
Title and commencement1
1
The title of these Regulations is the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 (Consequential Amendments and Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2021.
2
These Regulations come into force immediately after Schedule 4 to the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 comes fully into force4.
PART 2Amendments to primary legislation
Public Audit (Wales) Act 20042
1
The Public Audit (Wales) Act 20045 is amended as follows.
2
In section 246 (consideration of reports in public interest)—
a
in subsection (5)(b)—
ii
in sub-paragraph (i), for “open to inspection under section 100B1”9 substitute “published under section 100BA(1)”;
iii
in sub-paragraph (ii) for “section 100B(7)” substitute “section 100BA(9)”;
3
In section 2612 (publicity for meetings under section 25)—
a
in subsection (3)—
i
in paragraph (a) insert at the end “(but where the meeting is to be held by a body mentioned in subsection (3A) through remote means only, there is no need for the notice to state the place of the meeting)”;
ii
after paragraph (a) insert—
aa
in the case of a meeting held through remote means by a body mentioned in subsection (3A), also gives details of how to access the meeting;
b
after subsection (3) insert—
3A
The bodies referred to in subsection (3)(a) and (aa) are—
a
a local authority in Wales;
b
a committee of a local authority in Wales (including a joint committee of two or more local authorities in Wales);
c
a National Park authority for a National Park in Wales;
d
a fire and rescue authority in Wales constituted by a scheme under section 2 of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 (c. 21)13 or a scheme to which section 4 of that Act applies.
3B
In subsection (3)(a) and (aa) the references to a meeting of a body held through remote means are to a meeting held by means of equipment or other facility which enables persons who are not in the same place to speak to and be heard by each other (whether or not the equipment or facility enables those persons to see and be seen by each other).
c
in subsection (6)—
i
after “availability for inspection” insert “and publication”;
ii
after “are” insert “published electronically or”.
The Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 20093
In the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 200914, in section 49 (consideration of report by local authority)—
a
in subsection (8)(b)—
i
in the words before sub-paragraph (i) for “section 100B(2)” substitute “section 100BA(2)”;
ii
in sub-paragraph (i) for “open to inspection under section 100B(1)” substitute “published under section 100BA(1)”;
iii
in sub-paragraph (ii) for “section 100B(7)” substitute “section 100BA(9)”;
b
in subsection (9), for “section 100C(1)(d)” substitute “section 100C(1B)(d)”.
The Local Government (Democracy) (Wales) Act 20134
The Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 20215
1
Section 49 (notices etc. of local authority meetings) of the Local Government and Elections (Wales) Act 2021 is amended as follows.
2
The existing text becomes subsection (1).
3
After that subsection insert—
2
Any notice or other document relating to a local authority meeting which is required under any enactment to be published electronically is, for the purposes of paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Defamation Act 1996 (c. 31), to be treated as a document required by law to be open to public inspection.
3
In subsection (2) “local authority meeting” has the same meaning as in section 50(5).
PART 3Amendments to secondary legislation
The National Park Authorities (Wales) Order 19956
1
2
In sub-paragraph (2)(a)—
a
omit “of the time and place”;
b
for “at the principal offices of the Authority” substitute “electronically”;
c
for “be signed by” substitute “state the names of”.
3
In sub-paragraph (2)(b)19—
a
for “signed” substitute “authenticated”;
b
for “left at or sent by post to the usual place of residence of” substitute “sent electronically to”;
c
for “a copy” substitute “an electronic copy”20.
4
After sub-paragraph (2) insert—
2A
The notice of the meeting given under sub-paragraph (2)(a) must—
a
where the meeting or part of the meeting is open to the public and is held through remote means only, give details of the time of the meeting and how to access it;
b
where the meeting or part of the meeting is open to the public and is held partly through remote means or is not held through remote means, give details of the time and place of the meeting and how to access it;
c
where the meeting is not open to the public and is held partly through remote means or is not held through remote means, give details of the time and place of the meeting and the fact that it is not open to the public;
d
where the meeting is not open to the public and is held through remote means only, give details of the time of the meeting, and the fact that it is being held through remote means only and is not open to the public.
2B
In sub-paragraph (2)(b) “authenticated” means signed or otherwise authenticated in such manner as the proper officer of the Authority considers appropriate.
2C
Every member of the Authority must specify an electronic address for the purpose of receiving a summons referred to in sub-paragraph (2)(b).
2D
In this paragraph, references to a meeting of the Authority held through remote means are to a meeting held by means of any equipment or other facility which enables persons who are not in the same place to speak and be heard by each other (whether or not the equipment or facility enables those persons to see or be seen by each other).
5
In sub-paragraph (3)—
i
for “he” substitute “that member”;
ii
for “him” in each place it occurs, substitute “that member”;
iii
for “other than his usual place of residence” substitute “rather than electronically”;
iv
for “his” substitute “that member’s”.
The Standards Committees (Wales) Regulations 20017
1
The Standards Committees (Wales) Regulations 200121 are amended as follows.
2
In regulation 2622 (applicable provisions of Part 5A of the Local Government Act 1972)—
a
in paragraph (1)(b) for “section 100B” substitute “section 100BA”;
b
after paragraph (1) insert—
1A
The duty of a standards committee, by virtue of paragraph (1), to publish any document electronically is a duty to publish the document on the website of the relevant authority (if that authority has one).
c
in paragraph (2) for “subsection (1) of section 100B” substitute “subsection (1) of section 100BA”;
d
in paragraph (2A)23—
i
in sub-paragraph (a)—
aa
for “section 100B” substitute “section 100BA”;
bb
after “publish” insert “electronically”;
ii
in sub-paragraph (d), after “publish” insert “electronically”;
e
omit paragraph (3);
f
for paragraph (4) substitute—
4
In subsections (1)(c) and (2A)(b) of section 100D, for “offices of the council” substitute “offices of the relevant authority
g
in paragraph (6), for “subsection (3) of section 100H” substitute “subsections (3), (3A) and (6A) of section 100H”24;
h
in paragraph (7), in the text inserted by sub-paragraph (a), at the end insert “and see section 100J(3YA), (3ZA)(b) and (3ZAA) above”25.
3
In regulation 2726 (applicable provisions of Part 5A of the Local Government Act 1972)—
a
for paragraph (1) substitute—
1
Where—
a
a local authority is required by virtue of section 100A of the 1972 Act, as modified by regulation 26, to publish electronically a notice relating to a meeting of its standards committee, and
b
one or more of the community councils situated in the local authority’s area have a website,
the local authority may, if it thinks fit, provide for the notice to be published on one or more of those websites (as well as on its own website).
b
for paragraph (2) substitute—
2
Where—
a
a local authority is required by virtue of section 100BA of the 1972 Act, as modified by regulation 26, to publish electronically agendas and reports for meetings of its standards committee, and
b
one or more the community councils situated in the local authority’s area have a website,
the local authority may, if it thinks fit, provide for the agendas or reports to be published on one or more of those websites (as well as on its own website).
c
for paragraph (3) substitute—
3
Where—
a
a local authority is required by virtue of section 100C of the 1972 Act, as modified by regulation 26, to publish electronically minutes of meetings of its standards committee or other documents relating to meetings of its standards committee, and
b
one or more the community councils situated in the local authority’s area have a website,
the local authority may, if it thinks fit, provide for those minutes and documents to be published on one or more those websites (as well as on its own website).
The Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 20058
1
The Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 200527 are amended as follows.
2
In regulation 2 (interpretation), after paragraph (2) insert—
2A
In these Regulations, a reference to a hearing of an authority in Wales held through remote means is to a hearing held by means of any equipment or other facility which enables persons who are not in the same place to speak and be heard by each other (whether or not the equipment or facility enables those persons to see or be seen by each other).
3
In regulation 4 (period of time within which hearing to be held)—
a
the existing text becomes paragraph (1);
b
in that paragraph, at the beginning, for the “The authority” substitute “An authority in England”;
c
after that paragraph insert—
2
An authority in Wales must—
a
in the case of a hearing which is held through remote means only, arrange for the date and time at which the hearing is to be held in accordance with regulation 5;
b
in the case of a hearing which is held partly through remote means or not through remote means, arrange for the date on which and the place and time at which a hearing is to held in accordance with regulation 5;
2A
In either case mentioned in paragraph (2) an authority in Wales must give a notice of hearing in accordance with regulations 6(1A) and 7.
4
In regulation 6 (notice of hearing)—
a
in paragraph (1), for “the authority” substitute “an authority in England”;
b
after paragraph (1) insert—
1A
In the case of hearings under the provisions listed in column 1 of the table in Schedule 2, an authority in Wales must, in accordance with the following provisions of this regulation, give to the persons listed in column 2 of the table a notice which—
a
where the hearing is held through remote means only, gives details of the time of the hearing and how to access it, or
b
where the hearing is held partly through remote means or not through remote means, gives details of the time and place of the hearing and how to access it.
5
In regulation 12 (power to extend time etc.)—
a
in paragraph (2), after “an authority” insert “in England”;
b
after paragraph (2) insert—
2A
Where an authority in Wales has adjourned a hearing to a specified date, it must forthwith notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the date and time to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not through remote means, of the date, time and place to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it.
c
in paragraph (3), after “an authority” insert “in England”;
d
after paragraph (3) insert—
3A
Where an authority in Wales has arranged for a hearing to be held on a specified additional date, it must forthwith notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the additional date on which and time at which the hearing is to be held and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not through remote means, of the additional date on which and time and place at which the hearing is be held and how to access it.
6
In regulation 20 (failure of parties to attend the hearing)—
a
in paragraph (4) for “the authority” substitute “an authority in England”;
b
after paragraph (4) insert—
4A
Where an authority in Wales adjourns the hearing to a specified date it must forthwith notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the date and time to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not through remote means, of the date, time and place to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it.
Gambling Act 2005 (Proceedings of Licensing Committees and Sub-Committees) (Premises Licences and Provisional Statements) (England and Wales) Regulations 20079
1
The Gambling Act 2005 (Proceedings of Licensing Committees and Sub-Committees) (Premises Licences and Provisional Statements) (England and Wales) Regulations 200728 are amended as follows.
2
In regulation 2 (interpretation), after paragraph (1) insert—
1A
In these Regulations, a reference to a hearing of a relevant committee in Wales held through remote means is to a hearing held by means of any equipment or other facility which enables persons who are not in the same place to speak and be heard by each other (whether or not the equipment or facility enables those persons to see or be seen by each other).
3
In regulation 5 (notice of hearing)—
a
in paragraph (2), in the words before sub-paragraph (a), after “committee” insert “in England”;
b
after paragraph (2) insert—
3
A relevant committee in Wales must ensure that the notice referred to in paragraph (1)—
a
where the hearing is held through remote means only, gives details of the date and time of the hearing and how to access it;
b
where the hearing is held partly through remote means or is not held through remote means, gives details of the date, time and place of the hearing and how to access it;
c
states that the relevant committee will make available the documents listed in the relevant entry in column 3 of the table in the Schedule to the following persons if those persons request them—
i
any person who has made representations (unless the relevant committee considers that the representations are vexatious, frivolous or will certainly not influence the determination of the application), and
ii
in the case of an application under section 188 for the transfer of a premises licence, the licensee,
d
is sent so that, in the ordinary course of events, it is received no later than 10 working days before the first day on which the hearing is to be held (as specified in the notice).
4
In regulation 7 (power to postpone)—
a
in paragraph (3), after “a relevant committee” insert “in England”;
b
after paragraph (3) insert—
3A
Where a relevant committee in Wales has adjourned a hearing to a specified date, it must, as soon as reasonably practicable, notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the new date and time for the hearing and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not held through remote means, of the new date, time and place for the hearing and how to access it.
c
in paragraph (4) after “a relevant committee” insert “in England”;
d
after paragraph (4) insert—
4A
Where a relevant committee in Wales has arranged for the hearing to be held on a specified additional date it must, as soon as reasonably practicable, notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the additional date and time of the hearing and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not held through remote means, of the additional date, time and place of the hearing and how to access it.
5
In regulation 10 (failure of parties to attend the hearing)—
a
in paragraph (4) for the “the relevant committee” substitute “a relevant committee in England”;
b
after paragraph (4) insert—
4A
Where, under this regulation, a relevant committee in Wales adjourns the hearing to a specified date it must, as soon as reasonably practicable, notify the parties—
a
in the case of a hearing held through remote means only, of the date and time to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it; or
b
in the case of a hearing held partly through remote means or not held through remote means, of the date, time and place to which the hearing has been adjourned and how to access it.
PART 4Requirements under the Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 2020 for documents to remain accessible electronically and transitional provisions
The Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 202010
1
This regulation applies to documents relating to a meeting held, or an executive decision taken, on or after 22 April 2020 and before the end of 30 April 2021 which were required to remain accessible electronically by members of the public under—
a
section 100C of the Local Government Act 1972 as modified by regulation 21(4) of the Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 202029, or
2
Documents to which this regulation applies must remain accessible electronically by members of the public until the expiration of the period of six years beginning with the date of the meeting or of the executive decision.
Transitional provision11
1
Any notice or other document published or sent before 1 May 2021 in accordance with the provisions specified in paragraph (2) in relation to a meeting or hearing held on or after 1 May 2021, is to be treated as having been published or sent in accordance with those provisions as amended by these Regulations.
2
The provisions are—
a
sections 24(5) and 26(3) of the Public Audit (Wales) Act 2004 as modified by the Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 2020;
b
paragraph 6(2) and (3) of Schedule 3 to the National Park Authorities (Wales) Order 1995 as modified by the Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 2020;
c
regulations 26(1), (2A) and (4) and 27(1) to (3) of the Standards Committees (Wales) Regulations 2001 as modified by the Local Authorities (Coronavirus) (Meetings) (Wales) Regulations 2020;
d
regulations 4, 6, 12, and 20 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005;
e
regulations 5, 7, and 10 of the Gambling Act 2005 (Proceedings of Licensing Committees and Sub-Committees) (Premises Licenses and Provisional Statements) (England and Wales) Regulations 2007.
(This note is not part of the Regulations)