The Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Access to Information) (England) Regulations 2000

PART I GENERAL

Citation, commencement and application

1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Local Authorities (Executive Arrangements) (Access to Information) (England) Regulations [2000] and shall come into force on 9th January 2001.

(2) These Regulations apply in relation to local authorities in England.

Interpretation

2.  In these Regulations—

“the 1972 Act” means the Local Government Act 1972(1);

“the 2000 Act” means the Local Government Act 2000;

“background papers”, in relation to a report or part of a report, means those documents other than published works, that—

(a)

relate to the subject matter of the report or, as the case may be the part of the report; and

(b)

in the opinion of the proper officer—

(i)

disclose any facts or matters on which the report or an important part of the report is based; and

(ii)

were relied on to a material extent in preparing the report;

“confidential information” means—

(a)

information provided to the local authority by a government department upon terms (however expressed) which forbid the disclosure of the information to the public; or

(b)

information the disclosure of which to the public is prohibited by or under any enactment or by the order of a court,

and in either case, a reference to the obligation of confidence is to be construed accordingly;

“copy”, in relation to any document, includes a copy made from a copy;

“decision maker” means the decision making body by which, or the individual by whom, an executive decision is made;

“decision making body”, in relation to an executive decision, means—

(a)

the executive of a local authority;

(b)

a committee of a local authority executive;

(c)

a joint committee, where all the members of the joint committee are members of a local authority executive; or

(d)

a sub-committee of a joint committee where all the members of the joint committee are members of a local authority executive,

which is authorised to discharge the function to which the executive decision relates in accordance with the Local Authorities (Arrangements for the Discharge of Functions) (England) Regulations 2000(2);

“document” means any report or background papers, other than that only in a draft form, taken into consideration in relation to an executive decision;

“executive decision” means a decision made or to be made, by a decision maker, in connection with the discharge of a function which is the responsibility of the executive of a local authority;

“exempt information” has the meaning given by section 100I of the 1972 Act(3) (exempt information and power to vary Schedule 12A);

“information” includes an expression of opinion, any recommendations and any decision made;

“joint committee” means a committee appointed under section 102(1) of the 1972 Act (appointment of committees) in accordance with regulations made under section 20 of the 2000 Act(4);

“key decision” has the meaning given in regulation 8;

“local authority” means a county council, a district council which or a London borough council which is operating executive arrangements;

“newspaper” includes—

(a)

a news agency which systematically carries on the business of selling and supplying reports or information to newspapers; and

(b)

any organisation which is systematically engaged in collecting news—

(i)

for sound or television broadcasts; or

(ii)

for inclusion in programmes to be included in any programme service within the meaning of the Broadcasting Act 1990 other than a sound or television broadcasting service within the meaning of Part III or Part I of that Act respectively(5);

“political adviser or assistant” means a person appointed pursuant to section 9 of the Local Government and Housing Act 1989(6) (assistants for political groups) or regulations made under paragraph 6 of Schedule 1 to the 2000 Act (mayor’s assistant);

“private meeting”, in relation to a local authority executive, means a meeting which is not a public meeting;

“proper officer”, has the same meaning as in section 270(3) of the 1972 Act (general provisions as to interpretation);

“public meeting”, in relation to a local authority executive, means—

(a)

a meeting which, in accordance with regulation 7, is required to be held in public; and

(b)

any other meeting of the local authority executive, or of a committee of that executive, where the executive or committee, as the case may be, determine that it shall be held in public;

“relevant local authority” means the local authority whose executive is responsible for the discharge of the function to which the executive decision relates;

“relevant overview and scrutiny committee” means an overview and scrutiny committee of the relevant local authority which has terms of reference including the power to review or scrutinise decisions made, or other actions taken, in connection with the discharge of the function to which the decision relates;

“report” in relation to an executive decision does not include a report in draft form;

“section 11(2) mayor”(7) means an elected mayor who is a member of a mayor and cabinet executive; and

“standards committee” means the standards committee of the local authority as established under section 53 of the 2000 Act (standards committees).

(1)

1972 c. 70.

(2)

The Local Government (Arrangements for the Discharge of Functions) (England) Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/2851).

(3)

Section 100I was inserted by the Local Government (Access to Information) Act 1985 (c. 43).

(4)

See regulation 11 of the Local Authorities (Arrangements for the Discharge of Functions) (England) Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/2851).

(5)

1990 c. 42. The definition of “programme service” is found in section 201. Subsequently (1) (bb) of that section was inserted by the Broadcasting Act 1996 (c. 55), schedule 10, Part I, paragraph 11. The definition of “sound broadcasting service” is to be found in section 126(1), amended by the Broadcasting Act 1996, schedule 10, Part 1 and paragraph 9. The definition of “television broadcasting service” is found in section 2(5), amended by the Broadcasting Act 1996, Schedule 10, Part I paragraph 1.

(6)

1989 c. 42.

(7)

See Section 11(2) of the Local Government Act 2000 (Local Authority Executives).