(1)The Welsh Ministers may by regulations make provision under which any two or more local authorities may—
(a)appoint a joint committee (a “joint overview and scrutiny committee”), and
(b)arrange for the committee to exercise any functions of making reports or recommendations about any matter which is not an excluded matter to—
(i)any of the local authorities appointing the committee, and
(ii)in the case of a local authority operating executive arrangements under Part 2 of the Local Government Act 2000, the local authority’s executive.
(2)In subsection (1)(b) “excluded matter” means any matter with respect to which a crime and disorder committee could make a report or recommendations—
(a)by virtue of subsection (1)(b) of section 19 of the Police and Justice Act 2006 (local authority scrutiny of crime and disorder matters), or
(b)by virtue of subsection (3)(a) of that section.
(3)The provision that may be made in regulations under this section includes (but is not limited to)—
(a)provision for arrangements to be made only in prescribed circumstances, or subject to prescribed conditions or limitations;
(b)provision for the appointment of sub-committees of joint overview and scrutiny committees;
(c)in relation to joint overview and scrutiny committees (or sub-committees of such committees), provision applying, or corresponding to, any provision of—
(i)subsections (4) to (15A) and (18) of section 21 of the Local Government Act 2000,
(ii)sections 21A, 21B, 21D, 21F and 21G of that Act,
(iii)section 186 of, and Schedule 11 to, the National Health Service (Wales) Act 2006.
(4)A local authority and a joint overview and scrutiny committee must, in exercising or deciding whether to exercise any function conferred on it by or under this section, have regard to guidance given by the Welsh Ministers.
(5)In section 21 of the Local Government Act 2000 (overview and scrutiny committees), in subsection (2A)(e)—
(a)after “committee” insert “—
(i)”;
(b)after “concerned” insert “, or
(ii)a joint overview and scrutiny committee within the meaning of section 58 of the Local Government (Wales) Measure 2011 appointed by two or more local authorities, one of which is the authority concerned”.