Part 5: Appointment and terms and conditions
Appointment and tenure
101.Under paragraphs 20 and 21, it is for the Scottish Ministers to appoint the adjudicator, but they must first secure the Scottish Parliament’s approval of their choice. Each person (including an individual who holds another office) may be appointed to the office on a maximum of three occasions, whether or not consecutive. An individual’s period of appointment is for a maximum of 4 years on the first occasion, and 3 years on later occasions, making an overall maximum of 10 years (whether consecutive or not) (see paragraphs 20(4) and 21(3)(b)).
102.Paragraph 20(2) requires Ministers to be confident that any person appointed as adjudicator will be impartial in balancing the interests of tied pub tenants and pub-owning businesses.
Defect in appointment
103.Paragraph 22(1) states that if there has been a defect in the appointment of the adjudicator, that does not invalidate anything they have done in their role. However, under sub-paragraph (2), once Ministers are aware of a defect in the appointment, they must remove the adjudicator from office as soon as possible. An individual removed in this way may be immediately reappointed, provided the Parliament agrees to that, and the reappointment is to be considered as a continuation of the original appointment (see sub-paragraphs (3) to (5)). This ensures that a defect in an individual’s appointment and its subsequent correction does not affect the number of times the individual may be appointed or the total duration the individual may serve.
Remuneration and other terms and conditions
104.Paragraph 23 provides for the adjudicator to be paid salary, allowances and pension payments, subject to such constraints as may be determined by the Scottish Ministers.
105.Paragraph 24 states that other terms and conditions of the adjudicator’s appointment, not covered by schedule 2, may be determined by the Scottish Ministers. For example, this could include issues relating to working location, patterns and hours (such as flexible and/or part time working arrangements).