General Synod (Remote Meetings) (Temporary Standing Orders) Measure 2020

2020 No. 3

A Measure passed by the General Synod of the Church of England to make provision enabling remote meetings of the General Synod.

[4th November 2020]

1 Power to make special standing orders for remote meetings of General Synod

(1) The officers of the General Synod acting jointly may make standing orders for persons to attend, speak at, vote in, or otherwise participate in meetings of the General Synod without all of the persons, or without any of the persons, being together in the same place.

(2) The officers of the General Synod are—

(a) the Archbishops of Canterbury and York,

(b) the Prolocutors of the Convocations of Canterbury and York, and

(c) the Chair and Vice-Chair of the House of Laity of the General Synod.

(3) The officers of the General Synod may exercise the power to make standing orders under this section only once; and they may not amend or revoke standing orders made under this section (but section 4 confers a power to amend or revoke on the General Synod itself).

(4) Standing orders under this section may disapply or modify provisions of the Standing Orders of the General Synod.

(5) Standing orders under this section may not include provision which would apply to business on—

(a) a Measure, Canon or other provision touching any of the matters referred to in Article 7(1) of the Constitution,

(b) a Measure or Canon to which Article 8 of the Constitution applies by virtue of paragraph (1) of that Article, or

(c) a scheme to which Article 8 of the Constitution applies by virtue of paragraph (1) or (1A) of that Article.

(6) If an office referred to in subsection (2) is vacant, the power under this section is exercisable by the holders of such of the offices as are filled acting jointly; and the duties imposed by section 2 are, accordingly, also to be carried out on that basis.

(7) In this Measure, “the Constitution” means the Constitution of the General Synod set out in Schedule 2 to the Synodical Government Measure 1969.

2 Consultation on and publication of special standing orders

(1) Before making standing orders under section 1, the officers of the General Synod acting jointly must consult—

(a) the Business Committee of the General Synod appointed in accordance with section 10 of the National Institutions Measure 1998, and

(b) the Standing Orders Committee of the General Synod appointed under the Standing Orders of the Synod.

(2) Consultation undertaken before the commencement of this Measure is as effective for the purposes of subsection (1) as consultation undertaken after that commencement.

(3) After making standing orders under section 1, the officers of the General Synod acting jointly must ensure that—

(a) the standing orders are published on the Church of England website at least 10 days before the first day of the first meeting of the General Synod due to be held (in whatever manner) after the standing orders come into operation under section 3(1), and

(b) a copy of the standing orders is sent to each member of the Synod.

(4) If standing orders proposed to be made under section 1 have been published before the commencement of this Measure, and standing orders in the form published are made after that commencement, the publication before that commencement—

(a) is to be treated as if it had been done in accordance with subsection (3)(a), and

(b) is, accordingly, as effective as a publication done after that commencement.

3 Operation of special standing orders

(1) Standing orders made under section 1 come into operation on the day after that on which they are published under section 2(3)(a) and continue in operation pending the decision by the General Synod on the question of whether to approve the standing orders.

(2) The question of whether to approve the standing orders is to be the first item of business at the first meeting of the General Synod held (in whatever manner) after the standing orders come into operation.

(3) The provisions of the Standing Orders of the General Synod relating to the consideration of an instrument made under a Measure or Canon apply to the standing orders as they apply to such an instrument; and for that purpose the requirement in section 2(3)(a) applies instead of the deadline for providing members of the Synod with a copy of the instrument concerned before it is due to be considered by Synod.

(4) If the standing orders are approved by the General Synod (with or without amendment), they continue in operation until the end of the period of 12 months beginning with the day on which they are so approved.

(5) But the General Synod may resolve that the standing orders—

(a) are not to cease to be in operation at the time when they would otherwise cease to be so under subsection (4) or under the most recent resolution made under this subsection or subsection (6), and

(b) are instead to continue in operation after that time for such period as the General Synod specifies in the resolution.

(6) If standing orders under section 1 have ceased to be in operation (whether under this section or section 4), the General Synod may resolve that they are to be revived (with or without amendment) and to be in operation for such period as the General Synod specifies in the resolution; and they are to be treated as being in operation so far as necessary for the purpose of enabling the Synod to consider whether to pass a resolution under this subsection.

(7) Standing orders under section 1 have effect in spite of any provision in the Constitution or in the Standing Orders of the General Synod with which they are inconsistent.

4 Amendment of special standing orders

(1) The General Synod may amend or revoke standing orders under section 1 which have been approved under section 3.

(2) For that purpose, the provisions of the Standing Orders of the General Synod relating to the amendment of those Standing Orders apply to standing orders under section 1 which have been approved under section 3 as they apply to those Standing Orders.

5 Short title and commencement

(1) This Measure may be cited as the General Synod (Remote Meetings) (Temporary Standing Orders) Measure 2020.

(2) This Measure comes into force on the day on which it is passed.