This suite of four fairly technical regulations will transfer the parking and bus lane adjudicators into the Scottish tribunals structure that was created by the Tribunals (Scotland) Act 2014. For brevity, I will refer to the tribunal as the PBLA.
The first two instruments before the committee are the draft First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Transfer of Functions of Parking Adjudicators) Regulations 2020 and the draft First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Transfer of Functions of Bus Lane Adjudicators) Regulations 2020.
The regulations simply transfer the functions and members of the PBLA to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland. In addition, the regulations set out the transitional procedure for cases that are in progress on the date of transfer. The regulations also make consequential amendments to primary and secondary legislation resulting from the transfer of the PBLA into the Scottish tribunals.
As the parking adjudicators and bus lane adjudicators are listed separately in the 2014 act, each group needs to be dealt with in separate instruments.
The third set of regulations are the draft First-tier Tribunal for Scotland General Regulatory Chamber Parking and Bus Lane Cases and Upper Tribunal for Scotland (Composition) Regulations 2020, which specify the type of member who will hear parking and bus lane cases.
The provisions for the First-tier Tribunal mirror the existing composition of the PBLA. The instrument sets out the composition of the Upper Tribunal when hearing appeals from parking and bus lane cases that are heard in the First-tier Tribunal. The regulations also allow for a sheriff to hear an appeal in the Upper Tribunal. The president of tribunals will determine who hears those appeals.
The final set of regulations are the draft First-tier Tribunal for Scotland General Regulatory Chamber Parking and Bus Lane Appeals (Rules of Procedure) Regulations 2020. The 2014 act authorises rules to be made to regulate the practice and procedure of both the First-tier and Upper Tribunals. Paragraph 4(2) of schedule 9 to the 2014 act requires rules to be made by the Scottish ministers until such time as responsibility for rule making passes to the Scottish Civil Justice Council and the Court of Session.
The regulations establish rules of procedure for the First-tier Tribunal General Regulatory Chamber when it hears parking and bus lane cases. The rules of procedure have, in so far as possible, been drawn from the existing rules of procedure for appeals that are heard by parking and bus lane adjudicators.
There are a number of areas in which the new rules of procedure differ from the existing parking and bus lane adjudicator rules. The policy intent of that was to bring the various rules together into one document that would apply to both parking and bus lane cases, which is intended to aid consistency in the Scottish tribunals.
The main change from the existing rules lies in new draft rule 18, which makes provision for consideration of an application for permission to appeal to the Upper Tribunal. Under the current system, no onward right of appeal from the decisions of parking and bus lane adjudicators exists, but, on transfer, the provisions of the 2014 act will apply and the Upper Tribunal will be available to those who seek to appeal.
Other substantive changes from the existing rules involve incorporation, throughout the rules, of the use of the online case management system as a means of communication between the parties and the First-tier Tribunal. In addition, specific provision has been made for the signing of documents electronically.
Each of the four instruments plays a part in enabling the transfer of the PBLA to the new structure.
I understand that the Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee considered the regulations in February and had no points to raise.
10:15