The Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2006

Citation, commencement and interpretation

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 (Consequential Provisions and Modifications) Order 2006.

(2) Subject to paragraph (3), this Order shall come into force on the day after the day on which it is made.

(3) Articles 4 and 5 and the Schedule shall come into force on 1st April 2006.

(4) In this Order, “the Act” means the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005(1).

Status of the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator

2.—(1) For the purposes of the Scotland Act 1998, the offices in the Scottish Administration which are not ministerial offices shall be deemed to include the office known as the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator.

(2) Notwithstanding section 51(2) of the Scotland Act 1998, service as the holder of the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator shall not be service in the Home Civil Service.

Information sharing

3.—(1) For the purpose of enabling or assisting OSCR to exercise its functions, the Commissioners may disclose to OSCR any information concerning a recognised body which they have acquired in the performance of their functions.

(2) A person who, without the agreement of the Commissioners, discloses to another person information which has been disclosed to OSCR under paragraph (1) shall be guilty of an offence.

(3) It is a defence for a person charged with an offence under paragraph (2) of disclosing information to prove that he reasonably believed–

(a) that the disclosure was lawful; or

(b) that the information had already and lawfully been made available to the public.

(4) Where OSCR is charged with an offence under paragraph (2), it is not a defence that the disclosure of information was one falling within section 25(1)(a) of the Act.

(5) A person guilty of an offence under paragraph (2) shall be liable–

(a) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years, to a fine or to both; or

(b) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding three months or to a fine not exceeding level 5 on the standard scale or to both.

(6) In this article–

(a) “the Commissioners” means the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;

(b) “OSCR” means the holder of the office known as the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator; and

(c) “recognised body” means a body–

(i) which meets the charity test in section 7(1) of the Act;

(ii) which is recognised by the Commissioners as qualifying for relief under section 505 of the Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988(2);

(iii) which has at any time applied, or been accepted as qualifying, for such relief and which is managed or controlled wholly or mainly in or from Scotland; or

(iv) such as is described in section 28(1)(b) of the Act.

Action by appropriate registrar

4.—(1) On receipt of documents sent by OSCR under section 58(1)(b) (conversion into a Scottish charitable incorporated organisation) of the Act, the appropriate registrar shall–

(a) register those documents; and

(b) cancel the registration of the company under the Companies Act 1985(3), or of the society under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965(4),

and shall notify OSCR that this has been done.

(2) In this article–

(a) “appropriate registrar” has the meaning assigned by section 58(7) of the Act; and

(b) “OSCR” has the meaning assigned by article 3(6)(b).

Modifications

5.  The modifications specified in Parts 1 and 2 of the Schedule shall have effect.

DAVID CAIRNS

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Scotland Office,

Department for Constitutional Affairs,

Dover House,

London

14th February 2006