PLC Public Sector reports:
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Blue Badges: Welsh local authorities should note that the Welsh Government has stated that new Blue Badges will now be free for Blue Badge holders. This follows on from an earlier consultation where the Welsh Government was consulting on whether to increase the prices of Blue Badges, it now hopes to raise the necessary revenue for the free Blue Badges by making efficiencies in relation to the advertising of road traffic orders.
Commercial: anyone involved in negotiating outsourcing agreements should note the decision in Astrazeneca Uk Ltd v IBM, which provides guidance on how courts will interpret exit management provisions in contracts.
Criminal proceedings: lawyers involved in committal proceedings for either-way offences should note that the government has announced that it intends to enact Schedule 3 to the Criminal Justice Act 2003 and abolish them by the end of 2012.
Employment: employment lawyers should note that the government has announced the proposed rates of statutory benefits, which will apply from early April 2012.
Freedom of Information Act (FOIA): information lawyers should note that the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has published a decision notice that provides guidance on the extent to which FOIA applies to information held by an Academy trust. The ICO stated that the presumption will be that information held by an Academy will be subject to FOIA and it will be for the Academy trust to show otherwise.
Local authority governance: local government lawyers should note that the government has published regulations that set out the process that must be followed when 5% of the electorate of a local authority area sign a petition requiring a referendum on the type of governance arrangements operated by the local authority.
Public procurement: public procurement lawyers will be interested in two General Court decisions, one finding for and one finding against European Dynamics:
- The European Commission had not been entitled to use experience as an award criteria in a procurement relating to the hosting, management, enhancement, promotion and maintenance of the Commission’s internet portal on eLearning.
- However, the Commission had not committed any errors in its conduct of a procurement relating to content interoperability technologies for a European eGovernment services.
Social services: lawyers within the social services sector should be aware of two High Court decisions this week:
- In R (RP) v London Borough of Brent, the court refused to quash a judicial review application challenging Brent council’s decision to close one of its residential units providing short-term respite care for disabled children earlier than it had previously decided.
- In R (Midlands Care Ltd) v Leicestershire County Council, the court quashed the council’s decision to freeze the fees it paid to care home owners, as the council had failed to take account of the actual cost of providing the care.
Anyone advising NHS bodies and local authorities in Wales should note that an Order has been made that will bring the Carers Strategies (Wales) Measure 2010 into force on 1 January 2012.
Workforce costs: anyone advising local authorities on ways they can reduce their workforce costs should note the guidance on doing so published by the Audit Commission and the Local Government Association.
Consultations: this week consultations have been published on: