Legislation – Victims and Prisoners Act 2024

“49ADuty to respond to Commissioner’s recommendations

(1)

This section applies where the Commissioner publishes a report under section 49(2)(b) or (4) containing recommendations to an authority within the Commissioner’s remit.

(2)

The relevant person must prepare comments on the report.

(3)

The relevant person is—

(a)

where the authority is a government department in the charge of a Minister of the Crown, the Minister, or

(b)

in any other case, the authority.

(4)

The comments must include, in respect of each recommendation made in the report, an explanation of—

(a)

the action which the relevant person has taken, or proposes to take, in response to the recommendation, or

(b)

why the relevant person has not taken, or does not propose to take, any action in response.

(5)

The relevant person must arrange for the comments to be published in such manner as the person considers appropriate.

(6)

The comments must be published before the end of the period of 56 days beginning with the day on which the report is published.

(7)

The relevant person must send a copy of anything published under subsection (6) to—

(a)

the Commissioner, and

(b)

(unless the authority is a government department in the charge of a Minister of the Crown) the Secretary of State.”

“51ADuty to co-operate with Commissioner

(1)

The Commissioner may request a relevant person to co-operate with the Commissioner in any way that the Commissioner considers necessary for the purposes of the Commissioner’s functions.

(2)

A relevant person must comply with a request made to the person under this section, so far as it is appropriate and reasonably practicable for the person to do so.

(3)

In this section “relevant person” means a person who is not an individual and is subject to the duty in section 5(1) of the Victims and Prisoners Act 2024 (duty to provide services in accordance with the code issued under section 2 of that Act).”