Digest

Parliamentary Digest

BILLS

Child Contact Centres (Accreditation) Bill
HL second reading, 3 February

Housing Standards (Preparation and Storage of Food by Tenants in Receipt of Universal Credit or Housing Benefit) Bill
HC second reading, 3 February

Child Poverty in the UK (Target for Reduction) Bill
HC second reading, 3 February

Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence Bill
HC committee stage, 1 February

Abortion (Disability Equality) Bill
HL committee stage, 30 January

Pension Schemes Bill
HC second reading, 30 January

Arbitration and Mediation Services (Equality) Bill
HL second reading, 27 January

Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015 (Amendment) Bill
HC second reading, 27 January

Divorce (Financial Provision) Bill
HL second reading, 27 January

Rehabilitation of Offenders (Amendment) Bill
HL second reading, 27 January

Use of Property (Protection) Bill
HC second reading, 27 January

European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill
HC first reading, 26 January

National Citizen Service Bill
HC committee stage, 24 January

Intellectual Property (Unjustified Threats) Bill
HC committee stage, 24 January

Wales Bill
HC ping pong, 24 January

Local Government Finance Bill
HC second reading, 23 January

Burial Rights Reform Bill
HC first reading, 17 January

Guardianship (Missing Persons) Bill
HC first reading, 11 January 20

LEGISLATION

Small Charitable Donations and Childcare Payments Act 2017
Royal assent, 16 January

European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill

A bill to confer power on the Prime Minister to notify, under article 50(2) of the Treaty on European Union, the UK’s intention to withdraw from the EU.

At time of going to press, the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill had completed its passage through the House of Commons. The bill will go to the House of Lords for its first reading, which is likely to be after the February recess (from 10 to 17 February).

White paper on Brexit plan

In January 2017, the Prime Minister set out the 12 principles ‘which will guide the government in fulfilling the democratic will of the people of the UK’. In The United Kingdom’s exit from and new partnership with the European Union, the government sets out the basis for these priorities and the ‘approach to forging a new strategic partnership between the United Kingdom and the EU’. Available at: http://tinyurl.com/j2tfbgr

EDUCATION

Education and Adoption Act 2016 (Commencement No 3) Regulations 2017 SI No 6

Appoint 11 January 2017 as the day for the coming into force of Education and Adoption Act (EAA) 2016 EAA s1 for all remaining purposes. This date is also the coming-into-force date of EAA s16(a) and (b), which provides for the repeal of Apprenticeship, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 Sch 13 paras 6(2) and (3), and 11 and Education Act 2011 ss44(3) and 56 as a consequence of amendments made by the EAA. 

School Information (England) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 SI No 37

Amend the School Information England Regulations (‘ the 2008 Regs’) 2008 SI No 3093.

Regulation 4 amends 2008 Regs reg 2 to include new definitions, including a definition of a school with an ‘atypical age of admission’. This means a school whose first year of admission is the beginning of the fourth key stage or the year before that, but does not include the type of school that pupils progress to from middle schools, commonly known as a 'high school'.

Regulation 5(a) amends 2008 Regs reg 5(1) to require a local authority to include in its composite prospectus information about schools with an atypical age of admission which are outside, but within a reasonable travelling distance of, the local authority area.

Regulation 5(b) inserts a new reg 5(2A) into the 2008 Regs to provide that a local authority must include in its composite prospectus a prominent statement about schools in its area (or within reasonable travelling distance of its area) which have an atypical age of admission. It must give information about the age range of the schools and where to find information about them in the composite prospectus.

Regulation 6 inserts a new reg 9A into the 2008 Regs. Regulation 9A places a requirement on local authorities to send information to parents about schools with an atypical age of admission that are in, or within reasonable travelling distance of, the local authority area. Local authorities are required by reg 9A(3) to send the information to parents of children registered at schools in their area who are eligible to apply to those schools. The information informs parents that their child may apply to a school with an atypical age of admission, giving the name of the school or schools and the information specified in Sch 2 Part 2.

Regulation 6 also inserts a new reg 9B into the 2008 Regs. Regulation 9B is a transitional provision concerning admission to a school with an atypical age of admission in the academic year 2017–18. Local authorities must send information to parents of eligible pupils within four weeks of 14 February 2017 (the date that these regulations come into force) notifying them that their children may apply to be admitted to such schools in the academic year 2017–18 and providing the information required by reg 9A. In force 14 February 2017.

IMMIGRATION

Immigration (European Economic Area) (Amendment) Regulations 2017 SI No 1

Amend the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations (the I(EEA) Regs) 2016 SI 1052.

Paragraph 1 of the Schedule amends reg 18(7)(a) so that a residence card must be called ‘Residence card of a family member of a Union citizen’ instead of ‘Residence card of a family member of an EEA national’.

Paragraph 2 of the Schedule corrects an incorrect cross-reference in reg 21(2)(a).

Paragraph 3 of the Schedule amends reg 24(6) to ensure that immigration officers can revoke EEA family permits. This reflects the wording contained in the corresponding provision of the Immigration (European Economic Area) Regulations (I(EEA) Regs) 2006 SI No 1003, which will be revoked by the principal regulations on 1 February 2017.

Paragraph 4 of the Schedule inserts a new savings provision in para 3 into Sch 4 to make it clear that the principal regulations do not affect an appeal against, or a person’s right to appeal against, an EEA decision made under the I(EEA) Regs 2006.

Paragraph 5 of the Schedule inserts a new transitional provision in para 9 into Sch 6. This largely reflects transitional provision made by para 2 of Sch 3 to the Immigration (European Economic Area) (Amendment) Regulations (I(EEA) (Amendment) Regs) 2012 SI No 1547, which addressed the position of persons who acted in reliance on the definition of an ‘EEA national’ in the I(EEA) Regs 2006 before the amendment of that definition by the I(EEA) (Amendment) Regs.

However, there is a variation to take account of the fact that: