Race Relations (Amendment) Act 2000

2 Specified authorities: general statutory duty. U.K.

(1) For section 71 of the 1976 Act (local authorities: general statutory duty) there is substituted—

“71 Specified authorities: general statutory duty.

(1) Every body or other person specified in Schedule 1A or of a description falling within that Schedule shall, in carrying out its functions, have due regard to the need—

(a) to eliminate unlawful racial discrimination; and

(b) to promote equality of opportunity and good relations between persons of different racial groups.

(2) The Secretary of State may by order impose, on such persons falling within Schedule 1A as he considers appropriate, such duties as he considers appropriate for the purpose of ensuring the better performance by those persons of their duties under subsection (1).

(3) An order under subsection (2)—

(a) may be made in relation to a particular person falling within Schedule 1A, any description of persons falling within that Schedule or every person falling within that Schedule;

(b) may make different provision for different purposes.

(4) Before making an order under subsection (2), the Secretary of State shall consult the Commission.

(5) The Secretary of State may by order amend Schedule 1A; but no such order may extend the application of this section unless the Secretary of State considers that the extension relates to a person who exercises functions of a public nature.

(6) An order under subsection (2) or (5) may contain such incidental, supplementary or consequential provision as the Secretary of State considers appropriate (including provision amending or repealing provision made by or under this Act or any other enactment).

(7) This section is subject to section 71A and 71B and is without prejudice to the obligation of any person to comply with any other provision of this Act.

71A General statutory duty: special cases.

(1) In relation to the carrying out of immigration and nationality functions (within the meaning of section 19D(1)), section 71(1)(b) has effect with the omission of the words “equality of opportunity and”.

(2) Where an entry in Schedule 1A is limited to a person in a particular capacity, section 71(1) does not apply to that person in any other capacity.

(3) Where an entry in Schedule 1A is limited to particular functions of a person, section 71(1) does not apply to that person in relation to any other functions.

71B General statutory duty: Scotland and Wales.

(1) For the purposes of the M1 Scotland Act 1998, subsections (2) to (4) of section 71 (and sections 71(6) and 74 so far as they apply to the power conferred by subsection (2) of section 71) shall be taken to be pre-commencement enactments within the meaning of that Act.

(2) Before making an order under section 71(2) in relation to functions exercisable in relation to Wales by a person who is not a Welsh public authority, the Secretary of State shall consult the National Assembly for Wales.

(3) The Secretary of State shall not make an order under section 71(2) in relation to functions of a Welsh public authority except with the consent of the National Assembly for Wales.

(4) In this section “Welsh public authority” means any person whose functions are exercisable only in relation to Wales and includes the National Assembly for Wales.

71C General statutory duty: codes of practice.

(1) The Commission may issue codes of practice containing such practical guidance as the Commission think fit in relation to the performance by persons of duties imposed on them by virtue of subsections (1) and (2) of section 71.

(2) When the Commission propose to issue a code of practice under this section, they—

(a) shall prepare and publish a draft of the code;

(b) shall consider any representations made to them about the draft; and

(c) may modify the draft accordingly.

(3) In the course of preparing any draft code of practice under this section the Commission shall consult such organisations or bodies as appear to the Commission to be appropriate having regard to the content of the draft code.

(4) If the Commission determine to proceed with a draft code of practice, they shall transmit the draft to the Secretary of State who shall consult the Scottish Ministers and the National Assembly for Wales.

(5) After consulting the Scottish Ministers and the National Assembly for Wales, the Secretary of State shall—

(a) if he approves of the draft code, lay it before both Houses of Parliament; and

(b) if he does not approve of it, publish details of his reasons for withholding approval.

(6) If, within the period of forty days beginning with the day on which a copy of a draft code of practice is laid before each House of Parliament, or, if such copies are laid on different days, with the later of the two days, either House so resolves, no further proceedings shall be taken on the draft code of practice, but without prejudice to the laying before Parliament of a new draft.

(7) In reckoning the period of forty days referred to in subsection (6), no account shall be taken of any period during which Parliament is dissolved or prorogued or during which both Houses are adjourned for more than four days.

(8) If no such resolution is passed as is referred to in subsection (6), the Commission shall issue the code in the form of the draft and the code shall come into effect on such day as the Secretary of State may, after consulting the Scottish Ministers and the National Assembly for Wales, by order appoint.

(9) Without prejudice to section 74(3), an order under subsection (8) may contain such transitional provisions or savings as appear to the Secretary of State to be necessary or expedient in connection with the code of practice thereby brought into operation.

(10) The Commission may revoke, or from time to time revise, the whole or any part of a code of practice issued under this section; and, where they revise the whole or any part of such a code, they shall issue the revised code, and subsections (2) to (9) shall apply (with appropriate modifications) to such a revised code as they apply to the first issue of a code.

(11) A failure on the part of any person to observe any provision of a code of practice shall not of itself render that person liable to any proceedings; but any code of practice issued under this section shall be admissible in evidence in any legal proceedings, and if any provision of such a code appears to the court or tribunal concerned to be relevant to any question arising in the proceedings it shall be taken into account in determining that question.

(12) Without prejudice to subsection (1), a code of practice issued under this section may include such practical guidance as the Commission think fit as to what steps it is reasonably practicable for persons to take for the purpose of preventing their staff from doing in the course of their duties acts made unlawful by this Act.

71D General statutory duty: compliance notices.

(1) If the Commission are satisfied that a person has failed to comply with, or is failing to comply with, any duty imposed by an order under section 71(2), the Commission may serve on that person a notice (“a compliance notice”).

(2) A compliance notice shall require the person concerned—

(a) to comply with the duty concerned; and

(b) to inform the Commission, within 28 days of the date on which the notice is served, of the steps that the person has taken, or is taking, to comply with the duty.

(3) A compliance notice may also require the person concerned to furnish the Commission with such other written information as may be reasonably required by the notice in order to verify that the duty has been complied with.

(4) The notice may specify—

(a) the time (no later than three months from the date on which the notice is served) at which any information is to be furnished to the Commission;

(b) the manner and form in which any such information is to be so furnished.

(5) A compliance notice shall not require a person to furnish information which the person could not be compelled to furnish in evidence in civil proceedings before the High Court or the Court of Session.

71E Enforcement of compliance notices.

(1) The Commission may apply to a designated county court or, in Scotland, a sheriff court for an order requiring a person falling within Schedule 1A to furnish any information required by a compliance notice if—

(a) the person fails to furnish the information to the Commission in accordance with the notice; or

(b) the Commission have reasonable cause to believe that the person does not intend to furnish the information.

(2) If the Commission consider that a person has not, within three months of the date on which a compliance notice was served on that person, complied with any requirement of the notice for that person to comply with a duty imposed by an order under section 71(2), the Commission may apply to a designated county court or, in Scotland, a sheriff court for an order requiring the person to comply with the requirement of the notice.

(3) If the court is satisfied that the application is well-founded, it may grant the order in the terms applied for or in more limited terms.

(4) The sanctions in section 71D and this section shall be the only sanctions for breach of any duty imposed by an order under section 71(2), but without prejudice to the enforcement under section 57 or otherwise of any other provision of this Act (where the breach is also a contravention of that provision).”

(2) Schedule 1 (which inserts Schedule 1A into the 1976 Act) is to have effect.

Marginal Citations

M1 1998 c. 46.