The Local Commissioner in Wales (Standards Investigations) Order 2001

Explanatory Note

(This note is not part of the Order)

The National Assembly for Wales may, under section 70 of the Local Government Act 2000 (the 2000 Act), make provision with respect to standards investigations under section 69 of that Act by a Local Commissioner in Wales. These investigations concern the conduct of members or co-opted members of a relevant authority in Wales where an allegation has been made or there may be a case of a failure to deal with an authority’s code of conduct.

This Order makes provision for the application of sections 60 (Conduct of investigations), 61 (Procedure in respect of investigations), 62 (Investigations: further provisions) and 63 (Restrictions on disclosure of information) to standards investigations. It applies those sections (in some instances with modifications) to the work of a Local Commissioner in Wales.

Article 2 (by reference to Schedule 1 of the Order) applies sections 60(1), (4) and (5), 61, 62(1), (2), (3), (5), (6), (8), (9), (10) and (11) and 63(3) of the 2000 Act to a Commissioner’s investigations under section 69.

Article 3, (by reference to Schedule 2 to the Order) applies sections 60(6), 62(4) and 63(2) to a Commissioner’s investigations under section 69 in the modified form listed in Schedule 2. The modifications address the application of the provisions to Wales.

Article 4, by modification of the provisions in section 32(2) of the Local Government Act 1974, related to disclosure by a Local Commissioner, disapplies that section in respect of standards investigations under section 69 of the 2000 Act.

By virtue of Article 5 absolute privilege, for the purposes of the law of defamation, is extended to the statements of persons designated by a Local Commissioner in relation to functions under Part III of the 2000 Act.