Commentary on Sections Disqualification from membership of the Service
312.A person will be disqualified from being appointed to the Service or from remaining a member of the Service if he is an employee of the Service or is married to one, he is subject to a Bankruptcy Restrictions Order in England or Wales, he is an undischarged bankrupt in Northern Ireland or Scotland or he has been convicted of an offence in the last five years and sentenced to imprisonment for three months or more. Bankruptcy restrictions orders will be made under Schedule 4A to the Insolvency Act 1986 (inserted by Schedule 20 to the Enterprise Act 2002). Under section 268 of the Enterprise Act 2002, the Secretary of State may by order amend pre-8th November 2002 legislation that imposes bankruptcy-related disqualifications. Orders under that section may remove disqualifications or extend them to, or replace them with disqualifications of, persons subject to bankruptcy restrictions orders, and may also provide for disqualifications to be applied at a specified person’s discretion. Although paragraph 2(1)(c) of Schedule 4 (disqualification of bankrupts in Northern Ireland or Scotland) will not be pre-8th November 2002 legislation, paragraph 25 of Schedule 4 provides for it to be treated as though it were such legislation for the purposes of section 268. So an order under that section will be able to modify paragraph 2(1)(c) should bankruptcy restrictions orders, or a similar regime, be introduced in Northern Ireland or Scotland. An order modifying the identified disqualifications in paragraph 2(1)(c) of Schedule 4 cannot make those disqualifications applicable at the discretion of a specified person and will be subject to the negative resolution procedure.
313.Appointments must not exceed three years but a member may be re-appointed. The member may resign at any time. The chairman or deputy chairman of the Service will cease to hold that office if he ceases to be a member of the Service. A member of the Service who falls foul of one of the prescribed disqualification events will automatically cease to be a member. A member of the Service who was appointed by the Secretary of State as one of the majority of members who was a president or chairman of a VT will cease to be member of the Service if he ceases to be a president or chairman of a VT. Furthermore, where a member fails to attend Service meetings without reasonable excuse over a continuous period of three months, his appointment will cease.
314.The Secretary of State may also terminate a member's appointment where he is unfit or unable to carry out his functions.
315.The Secretary of State will have the power to re-appoint a person a member of the Service, provided he did not cease to be a member because he was disqualified by reason of conflict of interest, or in connection with his bankruptcy, he was convicted of an offence and received a sentence of imprisonment of three months or more, or he was absent from meetings for the prescribed period.
316.The Secretary of State will determine how much remuneration members should receive from the Service. The Service has power, if so required by the Secretary of State, to pay pensions to members and former members, or to establish pension schemes for such people. The Service, if so required by the Secretary of State, will make compensation payments to a member leaving the Service.