Clause 41 - Regulations: further appeal
Railways and Transport Safety Bill
2:30 pm
Mrs Anne McIntosh (Vale of York, Conservative)
The Minister used a helpful example in his explanation of clause 40. For the purposes of clarification, can he confirm that clause 41 relates specifically to disciplinary procedures? He said that the Secretary of State is being given the power to
make regulations in relation to disciplinary procedure. That is not immediately clear from the Bill. The clause refers to regulations being able to
''confer jurisdiction on a court or tribunal.''
If jurisdiction is conferred on a court, that would presumably come under one legal basis—perhaps the Police Act 1996. However, if jurisdiction is conferred on a tribunal, I presume that it would be on a different legal basis. What legal basis would that be?
Which disciplinary tribunal would handle disciplinary action against a senior officer? Does the provision relate primarily or exclusively to disciplinary procedures? What legal basis would confer jurisdiction on a court or a tribunal, and what would be the implications of those two decisions? Presumably, if it were a serious disciplinary offence, the court could hand out a more severe penalty and possibly pass sentence. However, if the jurisdiction were conferred to a tribunal, would the penalty incurred be lower?