Duties of best value authorities
Section 137: Guidance about general best value duty
360.Section 137 extends the existing power of the Secretary of State and the Welsh Ministers to give guidance to best value authorities. At present, guidance can be given about the consultation of local people by best value authorities about how the authorities fulfil the general best value duty set out in section 3 of the Local Government Act 1999. The Act confers a more general power to issue statutory guidance to best value authorities about how to fulfil that duty.
Section 138: Involvement of local representatives
361.This section inserts a new section 3A in the Local Government Act 1999. Subsection (1) of this new section places a duty on best value authorities (apart from police authorities and Welsh best value authorities) to involve representatives of local persons in the exercise of their functions, where they consider that it is appropriate to do so. Subsection (1) provides for best value authorities to determine if and how representatives should be involved, having regard to any guidance issued by the Secretary of State (subsection (5)). It sets out that best value authorities will need to consider each of three ways of securing the involvement of representatives of local persons in the exercise of their functions, namely informing them, consulting them and involving them in other ways.
362.Subsection (2) establishes that the duty to involve local representatives does not grant best value authorities any additional powers. This subsection also clarifies that, where there is a conflict between this duty and another duty, the latter takes precedence.
363.Subsection (3) sets out those best value authorities who are not subject to the new duty. It also enables the Secretary of State to provide additional exemptions from the duty by secondary legislation subject to the negative resolution procedure.
364.Subsection (6) clarifies what is meant by certain terms, including “local person” and “representative”.
The term local person refers to any person likely to be affected by or interested in the exercise of the relevant function of a best value authority. This could include a group or organisation. Under new section 3A, a best value authority might decide to involve representatives of individual citizens, local residents or service users, community groups, voluntary sector organisations or businesses (amongst others) in the exercise of its functions.
The term representative refers to individuals or groups who appear to the best value authority to be typical of those likely to be affected by, or interested in, the exercise of the authority’s functions.
Section 139: Abolition of performance indicators etc except for Welsh authorities
365.Section 139 provides that sections 4 and 6 of the Local Government Act 1999 no longer apply to best value authorities in England (including police authorities) or to police authorities in Wales. In so doing, it removes (a) the power of the Secretary of State to specify performance indicators and standards for best value authorities; (b) the duty of such authorities under section 4(5) to meet applicable performance standards; (c) the duty of such authorities under section 6 to prepare and publish best value performance plans (“BVPPs”); and (d) the power of the Secretary of State to issue statutory guidance in respect of BVPPs.
366.Sections 4 and 6 will continue apply to Welsh best value authorities (ie. all best value authorities in Wales other than police authorities). The power in section 4(1) to specify performance indicators and standards, and the powers as regards BVPPs in section 6, will continue to be available to the Welsh Ministers as regards such authorities. The Assembly will be able to amend or replace these provisions, or to confer power on Welsh Ministers to do so, using the framework power conferred by Schedule 18 to the Act.
367.When this section is commenced, it is intended that provision will be made so that best value performance indicators can continue to be set in respect of police authorities, and so that police authorities will continue to be under an obligation to prepare BVPPs, for a limited period of time. It is intended that any indicators set, and BVPPs prepared, under such provision will relate purely to policing matters and will not have any impact on local authorities. It is expected that such provision will cease to have effect in 2009 or 2010. By that time, the Home Office expects to have in place such provision replicating the relevant provisions of Part 1 of the Local Government Act 1999 for police authorities as they consider necessary.
Section 140: Abolition of best value performance reviews
368.Section 140 removes the statutory requirement in section 5 of the Local Government Act 1999 for best value authorities to undertake best value performance reviews and the power of the Secretary of State and the Assembly to issue guidance on how best value authorities conduct such a review.
