PLC Public Sector reports:
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Judicial review: the decision of the High Court in Shoesmith v Ofsted & Ors is a reminder to litigation lawyers that, although the usual starting point in costs awards in ordinary civil litigation is that the unsuccessful party pays the costs of the successful party, in judicial review (or public law) cases that approach may not necessarily apply if, in addition to the interests of the individual parties, there is a wider public interest in the public law principles which are raised.
Children’s services: lawyers advising children’s services departments should note that:
- The regulations requiring Children’s Trust Boards to prepare, consult on, publish and review a children and young people’s plan have been revoked. Therefore, Children’s Trust Boards will no longer be required to prepare such a plan. The government has also stated that it intends to remove the requirement on local authorities to set up a Children’s Trust Board altogether.
- New regulations will come into force on 1 October 2010 setting out the new registration requirements that will apply for all children’s social care settings.
LGPS: those advising current or past participants in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) should note the new regulations have been made that will introduce a wide variety of changes to the current benefit structure of the LGPS.
PFI/CRC: the new Environment Agency guidance on how the CRC Energy Efficiency Scheme (CRC) applies to private finance initiatives (PFIs) will be of interest to anyone advising on existing PFI projects or those currently in procurement. All public authorities should also be aware that the deadline for registration under the CRC is 30 September 2010, and that a failure to register could lead to significant fines.
FOIA: information lawyers will be interested to note:
- The decision in Todd v Information Commissioner, in which the First-tier Tribunal (Information Rights) made an order allowing a party appealing against a decision notice issued by the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) to publish on the internet the responses to a notice of appeal received from the ICO and the relevant public authority (in this case, the BBC).
- The decision notice issued by the ICO requiring the London Borough of Merton to published notes taken at a “Star Chamber” meeting held to identify where cuts in the Borough’s budget could be made. The ICO accepted that the notes fell within the exemption set out in section 36(2)(b)(ii) of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (disclosure would inhibit the free and frank exchange of views for the purposes of deliberation), but concluded that the public interest in disclosing the information outweighed that in maintaining the exemption.
Local Land Charges (Wales): property lawyers should note that rules came into force on 31 August 2010 abolishing the fee of £22 for a personal search of the register of local land charges in Wales. Corresponding rules are already in force in England.
Rights of way: local authority lawyers should note that regulations come into force on 1 October 2010 amending the Combined Orders Regulations 2008. The changes are being made to encourage local authorities to stop using separate modification orders and to use the more efficient combined orders (which effect both a change to the right of way and modify the definitive map and statement at the same time) whenever possible.
DROs: anyone involved in recouping overpaid benefits will be interested in the High Court decision in R (Payne & Cooper v Secretary of State for Work and Pensions), which is the first decision about the scope of the moratorium on creditor action that comes into effect when a debtor obtains a debt relief order (DRO).
Consultations: this week consultations were launched on:
- Equality Act 2010: revised disability guidance.
- The role of the public services ombudsmen.
- Revised protected species advice to local authorities.
PLC also launched its own consultation on a new unilateral undertaking made under section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.