Section 22: Statement of general objectives and practices
79.This section requires the Agency to prepare and publish a statement of its general objectives and practices. The statement must be approved by the appropriate authorities. The statement will be formulated within the general framework of the Agency’s main objective, in section 1(2).
80.Subsection (2) specifies that, among any other general objectives it wishes to include in the statement, the Agency must address three in particular. These relate to
consulting with interested parties on the Agency’s activities,
facilitating proper consultation between the Agency and other Departments of Government, local authorities and other public authorities on matters of mutual interest, and
ensuring that the Agency’s activities and decisions are open and transparent to the public.
It also provides for the appropriate authorities acting jointly to ask for the inclusion of particular objectives in the Statement. Subsections (4), (5) and (6) require that the statement should be approved by the Secretary of State and the devolved authorities, acting jointly, and published. The Secretary of State and the other appropriate authorities may amend the draft proposed by the Agency, but must consult the Agency before doing so. The final version of the approved statement must be laid before Parliament, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly.
