The Act Part 1 – Water Industry Commissioner and Customer Panels Section 2 – Water Customer Consultation Panels
10.This section provides for the establishment of Water Customer Consultation Panels to replace the Water Industry Consultative Committees established by section 67A(2) of the 1994 Act. Those Committees will cease to exist by virtue of the repeal of section 67A of the 1994 Act by the Act.
11.Subsection (1) provides that the Scottish Ministers shall establish the Panels by an order, which must specify, or make provision for determining, the area of Scotland for which each Panel is responsible and the number of Panel members (subsection (2)).
12.The Panels are to represent the views and interests of the customers of Scottish Water (in respect of Scottish Water’s core functions) in the area for which the Panel is responsible and must publish reports on matters they consider relevant to the interests of those customers and make any recommendations they consider appropriate to the Commissioner about the promotion of the interests of those customers (subsections (3) and (4)). The Commissioner must have regard to any representations made by the Panels, and to their reports and recommendations, in exercising the Commissioner’s functions in relation to Scottish Water (subsection (5)).
13.Subsection (6) gives effect to Part 2 of schedule 1, which makes detailed provisions as to the membership of the Panels, remuneration of their members, provision of administrative support to them, and their proceedings.
14.An order under subsection (1) is to be made by statutory instrument and is subject to negative procedure in the Parliament (see section 68).