Part of Fire and Rescue Services Bill – in a Public Bill Committee at 5:45 pm on 24 February 2004.
Philip Hammond
Shadow Minister (Communities and Local Government)
5:45,
24 February 2004
In tabling these amendments, we sought to address the Secretary of State's power to intervene where an authority is failing. Amendment No. 92 would remove from subsection (1) the reference to an authority that ''is likely to fail''. It is not unreasonable that the Intervention should take place after the offence has occurred, not when the Secretary of State thinks that it might occur.
Together, the amendments would remove references to acting
''in accordance with the Framework'',
and substitute them with references to authorities discharging their functions under clauses 6, 7, 8 and 9. If an authority was properly discharging its core functions, it would be wholly inappropriate for the Secretary of State to intervene because it was not complying with all the requirements of the framework in relation to human resource issues or employment practices. If we do not limit the Secretary of State's powers to intervene to cases in which there has been a clear failure to discharge statutory functions, the concept of local accountability and autonomy will have become meaningless.
Amendment No. 98 would amend Clause 23—again replacing the reference to compliance with clause 21 with a reference to the authority discharging its functions under clauses 6, 7, 8 and 9.
The amendments are necessary to preserve the autonomy of fire and rescue authorities, and to ensure that the draconian powers granted to the Secretary of State under the clause, which will be exercised under the best value audit system, will not be imposed on authorities merely for failing to comply with the national framework, but according to the much more important question of whether they are discharging their statutory functions in relation to fire, road traffic accidents, fire safety or any other duties that the Secretary of State might prescribe under clause 9. That should be the test of whether intervention is required.
Secretary of State was originally the title given to the two officials who conducted the Royal Correspondence under Elizabeth I. Now it is the title held by some of the more important Government Ministers, for example the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.
Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.
During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.
When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.
An intervention is when the MP making a speech is interrupted by another MP and asked to 'give way' to allow the other MP to intervene on the speech to ask a question or comment on what has just been said.
As a bill passes through Parliament, MPs and peers may suggest amendments - or changes - which they believe will improve the quality of the legislation.
Many hundreds of amendments are proposed by members to major bills as they pass through committee stage, report stage and third reading in both Houses of Parliament.
In the end only a handful of amendments will be incorporated into any bill.
The Speaker - or the chairman in the case of standing committees - has the power to select which amendments should be debated.
A parliamentary bill is divided into sections called clauses.
Printed in the margin next to each clause is a brief explanatory `side-note' giving details of what the effect of the clause will be.
During the committee stage of a bill, MPs examine these clauses in detail and may introduce new clauses of their own or table amendments to the existing clauses.
When a bill becomes an Act of Parliament, clauses become known as sections.
An intervention is when the MP making a speech is interrupted by another MP and asked to 'give way' to allow the other MP to intervene on the speech to ask a question or comment on what has just been said.
