Section 3: Grant and supervision of exemptions from political restriction: Scotland and Wales ., Local Government and Housing Act 1989

It shall be the duty of the Scottish Ministers to appoint in relation to Scotland, and the duty of the Welsh Ministers to appoint in relation to Wales, a person—

to carry out the functions in relation to political restriction which are conferred by subsections (2) to (7) below; and

to give such general advice with respect to the determination of questions arising by virtue of section 2(3) above as that person considers appropriate after consulting such representatives of local government and such organisations appearing to him to represent employees in local government as he considers appropriate.

A person appointed under subsection (1) above—

shall consider any application for exemption from political restrictionwhich is made to him, in respect of any post under a local authority, by the holder for the time being of that post; and

may, on the application of any person or otherwise, give directions to a local authority requiring it to include a post in the list maintained by the authority under section 2(2) above.

An application shall not be made by virtue of subsection (2)(a) above in respect of a post under a local authority except where—

the authority have specified or are proposing to specify the post in the list maintained by the authority under subsection (2) of section 2 above; ...

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

...

If, on an application made by virtue of subsection (2)(a) above in respect of any post under a local authority, the person to whom the application is made is satisfied that the duties of the post do not fall within section 2(3)above, that person shall direct—

that, for so long as the direction has effect in accordance with its terms, the post is not to be regarded as a politically restricted post; and

that, accordingly, the post is not to be specified in the list maintained by that authority under section 2(2) above or, as the case may be, is to be removed from that list.

A person appointed under subsection (1) above shall not give a directionunder subsection (2)(b) above in respect of any post under a local authority except where he is satisfied that the post—

is a post the duties of which fall within section 2(3) above; and

is neither included in any list maintained by the authority in accordance with section 2(2) above, section 100G(2) of the Local Government Act 1972 , regulation 24(2) of the Corporate Joint Committees (General) (No. 2) (Wales) Regulations 2021 or section 50G(2) of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 nor of a description specified in any regulations under section 2(2) above.

It shall be the duty of a local authority—

to give a person appointed under subsection (1) above all such information as that person may reasonably require for the purpose of carrying out his functions under this section;

to comply with any direction under this section with respect to the list maintained by the authority; and

on being given a direction by virtue of subsection (2)(b) above, to notify the terms of the direction to the holder for the time being of the post to which the direction relates.

It shall be the duty of a person appointed under subsection (1) above, in carrying out his functions under this section, to give priority, according to the time available before the election, to any application made by virtue of subsection (2)(a) above by a person who certifies that it is made for the purpose of enabling him to be a candidate in a forthcoming election.

The Secretary of State may—

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

provide for the appointment of such numbers of staff to assist any person appointed under subsection (1), and to act on that person's behalf, as the Secretary of State may with the consent of the Treasury determine;

pay to or in respect of a person appointed under that subsection andmembers of such a person's staff such remuneration and such other sums by way of, or towards, the payment of pensions, allowances and gratuities as the Secretary of State may so determine; and

provide for a person appointed under that subsection and such a person's staff to hold office on such other terms as the Secretary of State may so determine.

In this section a reference to a local authority includes a reference to a corporate joint committee.

Section 3: Grant and supervision of exemptions from political restriction: Scotland and Wales .

Discussed in

About this text