Asked by: Lord Skelmersdale (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when they began to draft legislation to combine the activities of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman with those of the Local Government Ombudsman, whether this work is continuing, and when they expect to introduce such a bill into Parliament.
Answered by Baroness Mobarik
In December 2015 the Government confirmed its intention to bring forward draft legislation to create a Public Service Ombudsman, encompassing the existing jurisdictions of the Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman and the Local Government Ombudsman. The intention remains to publish a draft Bill in this parliamentary session.
Asked by: Lord Skelmersdale (Conservative - Excepted Hereditary)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask Her Majesty’s Government which are the oldest three Acts on the statute book; and what is the reason for their retention in each case.
Answered by Lord Wallace of Saltaire - Liberal Democrat Lords Spokesperson (Cabinet Office)
Legislation.gov.uk lists all of the known Acts of the United Kingdom Parliament and its predecessors.
The three oldest enactments are contained in the 1267 Statute of Marlborough which contains four chapters from that session. The age of an Act does not always indicate its utility; legislation is only repealed where a clear case has been made to do so. The Law Commissions regularly produce reports identifying obsolete and unnecessary legislation.
The Law Commission for England and Wales have recently published a consultation paper proposing the repeal of chapters 4 and 15 of the Statute of Marlborough. The consultation can be found at the following web address:
http://lawcommission.justice.gov.uk/consultations/general-slr-repeal-proposals.htm