Explanatory Note
(This note is not part of the Order)
This Order brings into force provisions of the Railways Act 2005 (“the Act)”.
Provisions coming into force on 7th February 2006.
Article 2(1) of the Order brings paragraphs 1 and 12 of Schedule 3 to the Act into force on 7th February 2006. Paragraph 1 provides for the definition of “railway safety purposes” under the Act and gives the Secretary of State the power to amend that definition by regulations. Paragraph 12 amends section 43A of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 (c. 37) to give the Secretary of State power to make regulations enabling the Office of Rail Regulation (“the ORR”) to charge a levy for the purpose of meeting expenses incurred in carrying out railway safety functions and enforcement functions relating to railway safety.
Provisions coming into force on 1st April 2006.
Article 2(2) of the Order brings section 2 of the Act into force. This section introduces Schedule 3, which provides for the transfer of responsibilities regarding railway safety purposes to the Office of Rail Regulation from the Health and Safety Commission.
Article 2(2) commences several amendments to section 4 of the Railways Act 1993 (“the 1993 Act”). This excludes the exercise of safety functions from the provisions relating to the general duties of the ORR. This also removes the duty of the ORR, when exercising its general functions, to have regard to advice of the Health and Safety Executive (“HSE”) when taking into account the need to protect all persons from dangers arising from the operation of railways. The ORR is placed under a duty to have regard to guidance given by the Secretary of State when exercising railway safety functions other than enforcement functions, together with a power for the Secretary of State to revoke or vary such guidance, and a duty to publish any guidance.
Article 2(2) also commences various provisions contained in section 51 of the Act, which impose duties on the ORR to provide information, advice and assistance to the Secretary of State about a matter relevant to the railway safety purposes.
Amendments are commenced to section 18 of the Fire Precautions Act 1971 and section 78 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 to allow a fire and rescue authority to enter into arrangements with the ORR so that the ORR carries out the authority’s functions under the Fire Precautions Act in relation to work premises for which the ORR is the appropriate enforcement body. Section 1 of the Level Crossings Act 1983 is amended so that the ORR may give notice to an operator of a railway crossing which imposes a duty on the operator to request the Secretary of State to make an order for the protection of users of that crossing. Section 37 of the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994 is amended so that the Secretary of State must consult the ORR before revoking any provision of certain regulations relating to railway safety, and may require the ORR to conduct a consultation in relation to the proposed revocation.
Repeals of parts of sections 4, 8, 15B, 16(3) and Schedule 4A to the 1993 Act are commenced. These repeals remove respectively; the duty on the ORR to take into account advice given by HSE when considering the need to protect persons from dangers arising from the operation of railways, the duty on the Secretary of State and the ORR to send a copy of each licence to the HSE after it is granted, the duty on the Competition Commission to send to the HSE a copy or of any modifications made to a licence, the duty on the Office of Fair Trading, the Competition Commission and the Secretary of State to send HSE a copy of any modifications made to a licence that are consequential on the making of a relevant order, and the requirement for ORR to serve a review implementation notice on the HSE when conducting a review of access charges.
A repeal of part of section 62(1) of the Railways and Transport Safety Act 2003 removes the requirement for the British Transport Police Authority to obtain the opinion of the HSE and the Health and Safety Commission regarding policing of the railways.