Schedule 4: Other measures in response to coronavirus
UEFA European Championship
124.Paragraph 1 of schedule 4 modifies the UEFA European Championship (Scotland) Act 2020 (“the 2020 Act”).
125.Paragraph 1(2) modifies section 1 (meaning of key terms) of the 2020 Act. The definition of “Championship” is amended so that it may take place in a year other than 2020. The definition of “Championship period” is amended so as to be a period of not more than 42 days, ending not later than 31 December 2022, as specified by the Scottish Ministers in regulations. The trading and advertising offences created by the 2020 Act can only be committed during the Championship period.
126.Paragraph 1(3) amends section 3 of the 2020 Act, which contains an exception to the touting offence in section 2(1) of the 2020 Act. Section 3(2)(b)(i) of the 2020 Act is amended so that instead of being limited to England, Wales, Northern Ireland, or of a member State of the European Union, a charity based in any territory outwith Scotland may qualify for the exception, subject to meeting certain conditions.
127.Paragraph 1(3)(c) amends the conditions that a body established outwith Scotland must meet in order to qualify for the exception. It substitutes new subsections (3) and (4) for the existing subsection (3) of section 4 of the 2020 Act. New subsection (3) provides that a body qualifies for the exception if the body is registered in a register corresponding to the Scottish Charity Register. New subsection (4) provides that if there is no such register in the territory where the body is established then the body may qualify for the exception if its purposes consist only of one or more of the charitable purposes set out in section 7(2) of the Charities and Trustee Investments (Scotland) Act 2005 and the body provides public benefit within the meaning given by section 8 of that Act.
128.Paragraph 1(4) amends the repeal date of the 2020 Act so that it ceases to have effect on 31 December 2022 rather than on 31 December 2020.
Listed buildings and conservation areas: consents
129.The Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 (“the 1997 Act”) requires listed building consent for works to listed buildings and conservation area consent for the demolition of buildings within conservation areas.
130.Paragraph 2(2) and (3) amends section 16 of the 1997 Act to extend the duration of a listed building consent or a conservation area consent that would otherwise lapse during the emergency period because works authorised by the consent have not begun. The emergency period is the period beginning with the coming into force of these provisions and ending on 6 October 2020. The changes made to section 16 apply to conservation area consent by virtue of section 66(3) of the 1997 Act. Consents to which the provision applies will instead lapse at the end of an extended period (which ends on 6 April 2021) unless works have commenced before the end of the extended period.
131.Paragraph 2(3) enables the Scottish Ministers to make regulations to amend the definition of the emergency and extended periods.
Register of Inhibitions
132.Paragraph 3 relates to the Register of Inhibitions and makes provision for registration or recording in that register to proceed on the basis of electronic submission of documents and copies of documents to the Keeper of the Registers.
133.Paragraph 3(1) sets out that this provision applies to documents where electronic submission is not already permitted in terms of paragraph 1(4) of schedule 4 of the 2020 Act. Taken together, these provisions ensure that all documents capable of being registered in the register can be proceed on the basis of a document submitted to the Keeper by electronic means.
134.Paragraph 3(2) and (5) provides that documents may be signed by way of a basic electronic signature construed in accordance with section 7(2) of the Electronic Communications Act 2000 but also includes a version of an electronic signature which is reproduced on a paper document.
135.Sub-paragraph 3(4) sets out that these provisions apply when the means and form for electronic submission are specified as acceptable on the Keeper’s website.
Register of judgments
136.Paragraph 4 relates to the Register of judgments and modifies Chapter 62 of the Act of Sederunt (Rules of the Court of Session 1994) 1994 (S.I. 1994/1443) for the duration the Act is in effect, making provision for registration and the issuing of documents to proceed on the basis of electronic submission to and by the Keeper of the Registers of documents and copies of documents.
137.Paragraph 4(2) introduces a new rule 62.102 which sets out that this provision applies to documents where electronic submission is not already permitted in terms of paragraph 1(4) of schedule 4 of the 2020 Act. Taken together, these provisions ensure that all documents capable of being registered in the register can be proceed on the basis of a document submitted to the Keeper by electronic means.
138.Paragraphs (2) and (6) of the new rule provide that documents may be signed by way of a basic electronic signature construed in accordance with section 7(2) of the Electronic Communications Act 2000 but also includes a version of an electronic signature which is reproduced on a paper document.
139.Paragraphs (3)(a) and (4) of the new rule also set out that the provisions relating to electronic submission to the register apply when the means and form for electronic submission are specified as acceptable on the Keeper’s website.
140.Paragraphs (3)(b) and (5) of the new rule provide for Keeper to issue documents electronically in a manner agreed either expressly or inferred in relation to the recipient.
Care services: giving of notices by the Care Inspectorate
141.Section 101 of the Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”) sets out how Social Care and Social Work Improvement Scotland (otherwise known as the Care Inspectorate) is to give a notice to a person providing, or seeking to provide, a care service when required.
142.Paragraph 5 modifies section 101 of the 2010 Act during the emergency period (the period for which paragraph 5 is in force). It temporarily changes the law on giving notice by “personal service” in relation to corporate bodies, and on giving notice electronically. The law on giving notice by “personal service” in relation to individuals and firms, and on giving notice by post, remains the same.
143.Section 101(1)(a)(ii) and (2), as modified, enables the Care Inspectorate, when delivering a notice personally to a body corporate (for instance, following an on-site inspection), to serve it on a wider range of people, including a care home manager or a director, secretary or other similar officer of the body. Section 101(1)(c), as modified, also enables the Care Inspectorate to send formal notices to registered care service providers, and those seeking to provide a care service, by electronic means for the duration of the emergency period.
144.Section 101(3) and (4), as modified, sets out the practicalities of giving notice by post or electronic means to care service providers and those seeking to provide a care service, including when receipt of those notices is deemed to have taken place.
145.Section 101(4), as modified, provides further detail in relation to notices given by the Care Inspectorate by electronic means. Notices under this paragraph may be given when a person has indicated to the Care Inspectorate that it is willing to receive them in this way. An indication of a person’s willingness may be specific to the notice in question or more generally applicable to notices or other documents of that kind. Willingness may be communicated directly to the Care Inspectorate or expressed more generally on a website or by some other similar expression. Unless a person has indicated otherwise, willingness to receive a notice by electronic means may also be inferred from a person’s previous willingness to receive notices or documents in this way.
Land and buildings transaction tax: additional amount
146.Schedule 2A of the Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (Scotland) Act 2013 (“the 2013 Act”) makes provision in relation to the additional dwelling supplement (“ADS”) which is an additional amount paid as part of Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (“LBTT”) where certain criteria are met.
147.Paragraph 6(3) amends schedule 2A of the 2013 Act by extending the period within which a previous main residence can be sold and a repayment of the ADS claimed for certain transactions.
148.Paragraph 6(3)(a) inserts a new paragraph 8B into schedule 2A which provides that the transactions to which the extended period for disposal of a previous main residence applies to are those where the effective date of the transaction is between 24 September 2018 and 24 March 2020. For those transactions, the extended period for disposal of a previous main residence will be 36 months.
149.Paragraph 6(3)(b) inserts new sub-paragraphs (3A) to (3D) into paragraph 19 of schedule 2A. Sub-paragraph (3A) provides a power for Scottish Ministers to amend, by order, the period of 36 months. Sub-paragraph (3B) provides a power for the Scottish Ministers to amend, by order, the period of 24 September 2018 to 24 March 2020. Sub-paragraph (3C) provides that the powers may only be exercised where the Scottish Ministers are satisfied that it is appropriate to make the order for a reason related to coronavirus. Sub-paragraph (3D) provides that an order under sub-paragraph (3A) or (3B) may have retrospective effect.
Non-domestic rates relief
150.Paragraph 7 amends section 153 of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994. That section allows the Scottish Ministers, for any financial year, by regulations to prescribe rules to determine the amount payable as non-domestic rate in respect of any lands and heritages.
151.Paragraph 7 inserts a new subsection (4A) into section 153. New subsection (4A) allows the Scottish Ministers, during the financial year 2020-21, to make regulations prescribing rules that reduce or remit the amount payable as non-domestic rate. Those rules may reduce or remit the amount either for the whole of that year (including the period prior to the regulations being made), or for such period within that year as is specified in the regulations (including a period beginning prior to the regulations being made).
152.Paragraph 8 amends regulations made under section 153. It provides that no non-domestic rates are payable in respect of premises used wholly or mainly for production of newspapers and related news platforms. This relief applies on a daily basis, from the day after Royal Assent to the Act. The regulations that are amended provide for such relief to continue until and including 31 March 2021.
Execution of Documents, Etc.
153.Paragraph 9 of schedule 4 removes the requirement for the physical presence of certain parties in specific circumstances where an oath, affirmation or declaration is made, or where a document is executed.
154.Paragraph 9(1)(a) disapplies the requirement for a “relevant person”, as defined in sub-paragraph (2), to be in the physical presence of another person (for example a client) when that other person executes a document, takes an oath or makes an affirmation or declaration.
155.Paragraph 9(1)(b) disapplies the requirement for another person to be in the physical presence of a relevant person when that relevant person executes a document.
156.Paragraph 9(2) defines a relevant person and limits the circumstances where this Part applies to those where the requirement for physical presence referred to in paragraph 9(1) arises only by way of an enactment or the rule of law. Those circumstances can include
157.Paragraph 9(3)(a) confirms that this Part applies to the circumstances in paragraph 9(1) where the physical presence requirement is able to be fulfilled by both or either a relevant person or another type of professional, but paragraph 9(3)(b) restricts the suspension of the requirement only where a relevant person is involved. The effect of 9(3)(b) is to retain the physical presence requirement for all other circumstances where a another type of professional is involved.
Freedom of information
158.Paragraph 10 amends schedule 6, Part 2, paragraph 6(2) of the 2020 Act , which confers discretion on the Scottish Information Commissioner to take into account the impact of coronavirus on an authority when determining whether that authority has failed to comply with the timescales set out in sections 10 and 21 of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (“FOISA”) for complying with requests for information or requirements for review of responses to requests for information. The amendment introduces a further ground for the exercise of that discretion, allowing the Commissioner to consider the effect of the repeal of schedule 6, Part 2, paragraph 3 of the 2020 Act, which reset time periods for compliance with requests and reviews, when determining whether an authority has failed to comply with those relevant timescales The Commissioner must also consider whether failure to meet the timescale was reasonable in all the circumstances. Paragraph 10 also inserts new paragraph 6(2A) into Part 2 of schedule 6 of the 2020 Act to require that in considering whether a failure was reasonable in all the circumstances, the Commissioner must regard the public interest in FOISA being complied with promptly as the primary consideration.
159.Paragraph 11 repeals schedule 6, Part 2, paragraphs 3, 4 and 5 of the 2020 Act. Paragraph 3 amended sections 10 and 21 of FOISA, to extend the time for compliance with requests for information and for reviews from 20 days to 60 days (and, in the case of the Keeper of the Records of Scotland, from 30 days to 70 days where the information is transferred by another Scottish public authority). Paragraph 4 dis-applied the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (Time for Compliance) Regulations 2016, which make provision about the time limits in relation to grant-aided schools and special independent schools. Paragraph 5 allowed the Scottish Ministers, by direction, to specify circumstances in which a Scottish public authority (other than the Scottish Ministers) may extend, by a maximum of 40 working days, the time for compliance with a request for information.
160.Paragraph 12 requires the Scottish Ministers to lay reports before Parliament every two months on their responses to FOI requests during the period that Part 2 of Schedule 6 of the 2020 Act is in force. Paragraph 12(2) sets out the information to be included in each report.
Low emission zones
161.Paragraph 13 places a requirement on the Scottish Ministers to, by 4 December 2020, lay a report before the Scottish Parliament on progress towards establishing low emission zones under Part 2 of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019.
162.Paragraph 13(3)(a) and 13(3)(b) sets out the required content of the report, which should cover:
an assessment of how progress has been impeded by coronavirus, and
how account has been taken of the impact low emission zones would have on the public health response to coronavirus.
Council tax: exempt dwellings
163.Paragraph 14 modifies Schedule 1 of the Council Tax (Exempt Dwellings) (Scotland) Order 1997. It creates an exemption from paying council tax for those properties that were occupied by one of the groups of individuals listed at paragraphs 10 and 12 of the Order, and which are unoccupied on or after 17 March 2020 for a reason relating to coronavirus. This exemption applies until the property is occupied or the Act ceases to be in force.
Traffic Regulation
164.Paragraph 15 of Schedule 4 makes changes to the way that section 15 of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 (the 1984 Act) is to apply while the provisions of the Act are in force. Paragraph 15(1) has the effect of extending the maximum duration of temporary traffic regulation orders (TTROs) made under section 14 of the 1984 Act, which can restrict or prohibit the use of certain types of roads, from 6 months to 18 months. Those roads are existing footpath, bridleway, cycle track or byway open to all vehicles. The maximum duration of TTROs on all other roads is unchanged and remains 18 months (see section 15(1)(b) of the 1984 Act).
165.This does not alter the length of time that a temporary (“pop-up”) cycle track or pedestrian walkway may be place where it is created by reallocating existing vehicle carriageway to pedestrians and cyclists as that would already be subject to the 18 month maximum.
166.Paragraph 15(2) substitutes a reference to the six month time limit with a reference to 18 months in section 15(3) of the 1984 Act which deals with the power of the national authority (the Scottish Ministers) to direct that a TTRO may continue in force for a further period.
Restriction on giving grant to businesses connected to tax havens
167.Schedule 4, Part 12 introduces new conditions in relation to tax havens that must be met before the Scottish Ministers, or any public body administering grants on their behalf, may make a coronavirus-related grant to a company.
168.Paragraph 16(1) requires the Scottish ministers to take steps to satisfy themselves that the conditions are met.
169.Paragraph 16(2) further clarifies that a coronavirus-related grant may not be made if the conditions are not met.
170.Paragraph 16(3) provides that if, after a grant has been made, it is established that the conditions were not in fact met, the grant will be immediately repayable by the grantee.
171.Paragraph 16(4) sets out the conditions that must be met. Namely, that the grantee company must not be based in a tax haven, the subsidiary of a company based in a tax haven, the parent company of a subsidiary based in a tax haven nor party to an arrangement under which any of its profits are subject to the tax regime of a tax haven.
172.Paragraph 16(7) sets out the key definitions for this paragraph. It is specified that “tax havens” are as defined in the revised EU list of non-cooperative jurisdictions for tax purposes (2020/C 64/03).
