Make sure that you have not missed a key development in your area of the law by reading our In brief review of the latest Practical Law Local Government email.
Adult social services:
- The Care and Support (Charging) (Wales) Regulations 2015 have been made and will come into force on 6 April 2016.
Children’s services:
- The either-way criminal offence under section 76 of the Serious Crime Act 2015 of controlling or coercive behaviour in an intimate or family relationship has come into force. The maximum sentence on indictment is five years’ imprisonment or a fine, or both.
Civil litigation:
- The High Court has considered a defendant’s application to exclude “corroborative” witness statements and hearsay evidence (Kimathi and others v Foreign and Commonwealth Office).
- The TCC has considered an application to set aside judgment in default of failure to file an acknowledgment of service (Tideland Ltd v Westminster City Council).
- The President of the Queen’s Bench Division has released the fourth edition of the Queen’s Bench Guide, which is effective from 1 January 2016.
Commercial:
- The High Court has considered an application for specific performance of contractual obligations to carry out building works before the date specified in the contract for the works to be completed (Airport Industrial GP Ltd and another v Heathrow Airport Ltd and another).
Education:
- The Deregulation Act 2015 (Commencement No 4) Order 2015 has been made, bringing into force a provision of the Deregulation Act 2015 aimed at reducing burdens on schools, on 1 January 2016.
Environment:
- The High Court has:
- held that a planning permission granted for development that was the subject of a subsequent positive screening direction from the Secretary of State was unlawful because the planning application was not accompanied by an environmental impact assessment (R (Roskilly) v Cornwall Council and others); and
- considered the scope of the concept of “environmental damage” under the Environmental Liability Directive 2004 and the Environmental Damage (Prevention and Remediation) (Wales) Regulations 2009 (R (Seiont, Gwyrfai and Llyfni Anglers’ Society) v Natural Resources Wales and others).
- Defra has published:
- amended Environmental Permitting guidance for waste incineration plants; and
- a consultation on the government’s impact assessment of its reforms, since May 2013, of environmental guidance and environmental information and data requests.
- The DCLG has published the government response to its consultation on further amendments to permitted development rights for petroleum exploration site investigation and monitoring.
Housing:
- The House of Commons Library has published a briefing paper on the progress of the Housing and Planning Bill 2015-16 in the Public Bill Committee.
Property and planning:
- The DCLG has published land value estimates for the purposes of policy appraisal, including agricultural land value estimates for England.
- The House of Commons Library has published a briefing paper on green belt land.
Public procurement:
- European Commission Implementing Regulation 2016/7 establishing the standard form for the European Single Procurement Document has been published in the Official Journal.
- The European Commission has announced that it has, in accordance with Article 59(2) of Directive 2014/24, adopted the new European Single Procurement Document.
Regulation and enforcement:
- The new Better Case Management System will be implemented in all Crown Courts from 5 January 2016.
Practical Law In brief