The Corporate Joint Committees (General) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2022

Duties in relation to overview and scrutiny

Duty to co-operate on overview and scrutiny

8.—(1) This Regulation applies where—

(a) a relevant overview and scrutiny committee (“the committee”) makes a report or recommendations under section 21(2)(e) of the 2000 Act, and

(b) the report or recommendations relate to the exercise of a function of a corporate joint committee.

(2) The corporate joint committee must co-operate with the committee and give it such reasonable assistance as it requests in connection with the exercise of its functions.

(3) Assistance provided under paragraph (2) may include—

(a) arranging for a member of the corporate joint committee to attend and answer questions at a meeting of the committee;

(b) arranging for a member of the staff of the corporate joint committee to attend and answer questions at a meeting of the committee;

(c) providing information;

(d) providing copies of documents in the possession or under the control of the corporate joint committee.

(4) Where the committee requests that the corporate joint committee provides confidential or exempt information, or a copy of any document or part of a document that contains confidential or exempt information, paragraph (2) does not require the corporate joint committee to provide such information or document to the committee unless the information is relevant.

(5) For the purposes of paragraph (4) information is relevant if a proper officer of the corporate joint committee determines that the information—

(a) relates to an action or decision that is being reviewed or scrutinised by the committee, or

(b) is relevant to any review contained in any programme of work of the committee.

(6) Nothing in this regulation permits the disclosure of confidential or exempt information by an overview and scrutiny committee other than may be authorised by any other enactment.

(7) For the purposes of this regulation a “relevant overview and scrutiny committee”, in relation to a corporate joint committee is—

(a) an overview and scrutiny committee appointed by a constituent council under section 21(2) of the 2000 Act;

(b) a joint overview and scrutiny committee appointed under the Local Authorities (Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committees) (Wales) Regulations 2013(1) where the appointing authorities are constituent councils of the corporate joint committee;

(c) a sub-committee of a committee described in paragraph (a) or (b).

Duty to have regard

9.—(1) This regulation applies where—

(a) regulation 8 applies, and

(b) the committee publishes the report or recommendation under—

(i) section 21B(2) of the 2000 Act;

(ii) regulation 13(2) of the Local Authorities (Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committees) (Wales) Regulations 2013.

(2) The corporate joint committee must—

(a) consider the report or recommendation, and

(b) publish a statement setting out the steps it intends to take in light of the report or recommendation in exercising its functions.

(3) A statement under paragraph (2)(b) must be published before the end of the period of 2 months beginning with the day the report by the committee is published.

(4) Regulation 13 of the Corporate Joint Committees (General) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2021 (discharge of functions by other persons)(2) does not apply to the duty imposed by paragraph (2)(a).

Exempt Information

10.—(1) The descriptions of information which are, for the purposes of this Part, exempt information are those for the time being specified in Part 4 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 as modified in its application to this Part by paragraph (2) subject to any qualifications contained in Part 5 of that Schedule as so modified.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (1), Parts 4 to 6 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 apply as if, for paragraph 22(2) of that Schedule, there were substituted—

“(2) Any reference in Parts 4 and 5 and this Part of this Schedule to “the authority” is a reference to the corporate joint committee or, as the case may be, the sub-committee of the corporate joint committee in relation to whose proceedings or documents the question whether information is exempt or not falls to be determined and includes a reference—

(a) in the case of a corporate joint committee, to any sub-committee of the corporate joint committee, and

(b) in the case of a sub-committee, to the corporate joint committee of which it is a sub-committee.”

(1)

S.I. 2013/1050 (W. 112).

(2)

S.I. 2021/1349 (W. 348).