Overview and Background Part 2 – Environment Compliance notices Section 32 - Restrictions on issuing a compliance notice
139.Section 32 provides that Environmental Standards Scotland may not issue a compliance notice in respect of certain failures to comply with environmental law. Firstly, it may not issue a notice in respect of a failure arising out of any decision taken by a public authority in the exercise of its regulatory functions in relation to a particular person or case. This restriction ensures that compliance notices are not used as a means to review individual regulatory decisions or as a substitute appeal process. Secondly, it may not issue a notice in respect of a failure arising out of particular conduct that has already been the subject of an improvement report. This would cover the instance where the failure had already been identified as a systemic issue, either across a range of public bodies, or structurally in the funding or guidance given to the body. Any compliance notice issued in breach of either of these restrictions will not have any effect.