Select committee: Constitution Committee
Conclusion 3
3rd Report - COVID-19 and the use and scrutiny of emergency powers
Published 10 Jun 2021
Paragraph 41
Constitution Committee Constitutional implications of COVID‑19 All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
If the Government had used the Civil Contingencies Act 2004 at the outset of the pandemic, even if only as a temporary measure while alternative primary legislation was passed, parliamentary oversight could have been improved. The 2004 Act shows that Parliament can have, and expects to have, a central role in legal changes during periods of national crisis.
From: Constitution Committee, 3rd Report - COVID-19 and the use and scrutiny of emergency powers, paragraph 41, 10 June 2021
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 16 September 2021 (deadline 10 August 2021).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The Government's response largely points to existing arrangements as adequate, while stating that a review of the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, due to conclude in March 2022, will cover all of the Act and that it will consider the evidence before recommending any changes.
- On sunset provisions, the Government says a sunset provision is "only one method" of time-limiting instruments, citing built-in review periods and other approaches, and that "a one-size-fits-all" sunset clause may not suit every case.
- On the urgent procedure under the 1984 Act, it states that Explanatory Memoranda "clearly" set out the rationale, and that the draft affirmative procedure is "unsuited" to such an emergency because it usually takes six to eight weeks.
- On the review of emergency powers, the Government says all provisions of the Civil Contingencies Act are within scope, that it "will then consider this evidence carefully", and that the final review is "due for publication in March 2022".
- On guidance, it says it "is for departments to make judgements about the right balance to strike between law and guidance in any particular case", and notes that withdrawn guidance remains accessible on GOV.UK.