Commentary on Sections and Schedules Part 1: the Statistics Board Section 29 Directions
124.This section allows the Minister for the Cabinet Office to give the Board such directions as he considers appropriate in the event of a serious failure by the Board to perform any of its functions, or to comply with EU obligations. Given that the new Board will be established as a NMD, the power in subsection (1) is intended as a power of last resort. The Minister for the Cabinet Office will have no role in the day-to-day decision-making of the Board.
125.In a similar manner, subsections (2), (3) and (4) permit the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers or the Department for Finance and Personnel for Northern Ireland, with the consent of the Minister for the Cabinet Office, to give the Board such directions as they consider appropriate to remedy a serious failure by the Board to comply with its objective, or to perform any of its functions in relation to Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland respectively.
126.Subsection (8) provides that where the Minister for the Cabinet Office gives directions to the Statistics Board under this section, a copy of the directions must be laid before Parliament, and the Minister for the Cabinet Office must notify the Scottish Ministers, the Welsh Ministers and the Department for Finance and Personnel for Northern Ireland. A copy of the directions must also be laid before each of the devolved legislatures. Under subsections (9) to (11), where any of the Scottish Ministers, Welsh Ministers or the Department for Finance and Personnel for Northern Ireland gives directions to the Statistics Board under this section, a copy of those directions must be laid before the relevant devolved legislature and before Parliament.
127.Under subsection (12), if the Board fails to act on a direction, the authority that gave the direction may carry out that direction itself, and in so doing, may exercise the Board’s powers. Where the authority is not the Minister for the Cabinet Office, this power is exercised subject to the consent of the Minister for the Cabinet Office.