Part 1: Emergency Services Collaboration Chapter 4: Inspection of fire and rescue services Schedule 3: Schedule to be inserted as Schedule A3 to the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004
Schedule 3 inserts new Schedule A3 into the 2004 Act, which makes further provision about the powers and duties of fire and rescue inspectors.
	Paragraph 2 of new Schedule A3 enables a fire and rescue inspector to delegate the inspection function to another public authority. This would, for example, enable the fire and rescue inspector to delegate the inspection of a joint function operated by the fire and rescue authority with the police, to be undertaken by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary, if that reduced duplication of effort and provided consistency.
	Paragraph 3 requires fire and rescue inspectors to co-operate with HMIC, while paragraph 4 enables fire and rescue inspectors and HMIC to carry out joint inspections.
	Paragraph 5 enables the chief fire and rescue inspector to assist other public authorities (subparagraph (1)) and to assist the inspection of best value authorities (subparagraph (2)). Subparagraph (1) enables the chief fire and rescue inspector to assist public bodies such as fire and rescue services elsewhere in the United Kingdom, or other public organisations which may have fire related concerns. Where a best value inspection is being carried out under the Local Government Act 1999, subparagraph (2) enables the chief fire and rescue inspector to do anything appropriate to facilitate it.
	Paragraph 6 provides fire and rescue inspectors with powers to obtain information, in line with the powers available to HMIC (as amended by section 36). It enables an inspector to serve a notice on a relevant person to require them to provide information, documents and evidence for the purposes of an inspection. Paragraph 6(2) provides that this applies to fire and rescue authorities, their staff and contractors. Paragraph 6(6) to 6(8) restricts the information that can be obtained under these provisions to exclude sensitive information, such as intelligence service information.
	Paragraph 7 enables inspectors to obtain access to premises occupied by a fire and rescue authority or a person providing services to a fire and rescue authority in England whether or not by virtue of any enactment, and to documents and other things on those premises, for the purposes of inspection, by serving a notice.
	Paragraph 8 enables the chief fire and rescue inspector for England to certify to the High Court that a person has failed to comply with a notice under paragraphs 6 or 7. It enables the High Court to inquire into the matter and, where appropriate, deal with the person as if they had committed a contempt of court. Under the Contempt of Court Act 1981 the maximum penalty for contempt is two years’ imprisonment.
	Paragraph 9 provides that, should an inspector receive sensitive information, they must not disclose the information or the fact that they have received it without the relevant authority’s consent.
	Paragraph 10 places a duty on the person providing information to make the inspector aware that the information is intelligence service information as defined in paragraph 9.