confer on the organisation the legal capacities of a body corporate;
Explanatory notes to the Bill, prepared by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, have been ordered to be published as HL Bill 3—EN.
Lord Collins of Highbury has made the following statement under section 19(1)(a) of the Human Rights Act 1998:
In my view the provisions of the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and International Committee of the Red Cross (Status) Bill [HL] are compatible with the Convention rights.
A
bill
to
Make provision about the status of, and privileges and immunities in connection with, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the International Committee of the Red Cross; and for connected purposes.
B e it enacted by the King’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
His Majesty may by Order in Council specify an organisation named the
Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (whether established before or
after this Act is passed) and do one or more of the following—
confer on the organisation the legal capacities of a body corporate;
provide that the organisation has the privileges and immunities set
out in
Part 1
of
the Schedule
, to such extent as may be specified in
the Order;
confer the privileges and immunities set out in
Part 2
of
the Schedule
, to such extent as may be specified in the Order, on—
the Secretary-General of the organisation, or
if there is no office of Secretary-General of the organisation,
the holder of the office in the organisation that most nearly
corresponds to that of Secretary-General;
provide for any statutory provision specified in the Order that applies
in relation to an international organisation (however defined or
described) to apply in relation to the organisation with such
modifications (if any) as may be so specified.
An Order in Council under this section may provide for the Order, or any
provision of it, not to apply in relation to branches or other subordinate bodies
of the organisation.
His Majesty may by Order in Council do one or more of the following—
confer on the International Committee of the Red Cross (“the ICRC”)
the legal capacities of a body corporate;
provide that the ICRC has the privileges and immunities set out in
Part 1
of
the Schedule
, to such extent as may be specified in the Order;
confer the privileges and immunities set out in
Part 2
of
the Schedule
, to such extent as may be specified in the Order, on—
such number of officers of the ICRC as may be so specified,
being the holders (whether permanent, temporary or acting)
of such high offices in the ICRC as may be so specified, and
such other classes of officers and servants of the ICRC as may
be so specified;
provide for any statutory provision specified in the Order that applies
in relation to an international organisation (however defined or
described) to apply in relation to the ICRC with such modifications
(if any) as may be so specified;
provide for protected ICRC information to be exempt from any
disclosure requirement imposed by—
an order of a court or tribunal in proceedings other than
criminal proceedings, or
a statutory provision or rule of law.
In subsection (1) (e) , “protected ICRC information” means information—
that is held by the government of the United Kingdom,
that was obtained by the government from the ICRC, and
that is confidential.
For the purposes of
subsection (2)
(c)
, information is “confidential” while the
terms on which it was obtained require it to be held in confidence or while
the circumstances in which it was obtained make it reasonable for the ICRC
to expect that it will be so held.
An exemption conferred by virtue of subsection (1)
(e)
does not apply to
information if the ICRC—
has published it, or
has agreed to its disclosure for the purpose of the disclosure
requirement in question.
Nothing in this section or in an Order in Council made under it affects the
common law rules about the withholding of information on the grounds of
public interest immunity.
If in any proceedings a question arises whether a person is or is not entitled
to any privilege or immunity by virtue of an Order in Council made under
section 1
or
2
, a certificate issued by or under the authority of the Secretary
of State stating any fact relating to that question is conclusive evidence of
that fact.
may allow for the waiver of immunities and privileges;
may provide for exceptions to an immunity, privilege or exemption
in cases specified in the Order;
may provide for an exemption or relief from a tax or duty to be subject
to arrangements or conditions—
specified in the Order, or
to be made or imposed by the Secretary of State or the
Commissioners for His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;
may make different provision for different cases and for different
persons;
may contain consequential, supplementary, incidental, transitional or
saving provision.
In this Act—
“
statutory provision” means provision made by or under any of the
following, whenever passed or made—
an Act;
an Act or Measure of Senedd Cymru;
an Act of the Scottish Parliament;
Northern Ireland legislation;
assimilated direct legislation.
This Act extends to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
This Act comes into force on the day on which it is passed.
This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and
International Committee of the Red Cross (Status) Act 2024.
Immunity from suit and legal process.
Such inviolability of official archives and premises of the qualifying
organisation as in accordance with the 1961 Convention Articles is accorded
in respect of the official archives and premises of a diplomatic mission.
Exemption or relief (by way of refund or otherwise) from any tax or duty.
Such relief from rates as in accordance with Article 23 of the 1961
Convention Articles is accorded in respect of the premises of a diplomatic
mission.
Exemption from prohibitions and restrictions on importation or
exportation—
in the case of goods imported or exported by the qualifying
organisation for its official use, and
in the case of any publications of the qualifying organisation
imported or exported by it.
Immunity from suit and legal process in respect of things done or omitted
to be done in the course of the performance of official duties.
Exemption from income tax in respect of emoluments received as the
qualifying person.
Such exemption from duties (whether of customs or excise) and taxes on
the importation of personal articles, and such privilege as to the importation
of personal articles, as in accordance with paragraph 1 of Article 36 of the
1961 Convention Articles is accorded to a diplomatic agent.
In this paragraph “personal articles” means articles which—
at or about the time when the qualifying person first enters the
United Kingdom as such a person are imported for the person’s
personal use or that of members of the person’s family forming part
of the person’s household, including articles intended for the
person’s establishment, and
are articles which were in the person’s ownership or possession or
that of such a member of the person’s family, or which the person
or such a member of the person’s family was under contract to
purchase, immediately before the person so entered the United
Kingdom.
Such exemption and privileges in respect of the personal baggage of the
qualifying person as in accordance with paragraph 2 of Article 36 of the
1961 Convention Articles are accorded to a diplomatic agent, as if in that
paragraph the reference to
paragraph 1
of that Article were a reference to
paragraph 8
of
this Schedule
.
Exemptions whereby, for the purposes of the statutory provisions relating
to social security—
services rendered for the qualifying organisation by the qualifying
person are to be treated as excepted from any class of employment
in respect of which contributions or premiums under those
provisions are payable, but
no person is liable to pay any contribution or premium which the
person would not be required to pay if those services were not
treated as so excepted.
In this Schedule —
“
qualifying organisation” means—
the ICRC;
“
the 1961 Convention Articles” means the Articles (being certain
Articles of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations signed
in 1961) which are set out in Schedule 1 to the Diplomatic Privileges
Act 1964.
Expressions used in
this Schedule
to which a meaning is assigned by Article
1 of the 1961 Convention Articles, and other expressions which are used
both in
this Schedule
and in those Articles, are, except in so far as the
context otherwise requires, to be construed as having the same meanings
in
this Schedule
as in those Articles.
A
bill
to
Make provision about the status of, and privileges and immunities in connection with, the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association and the International Committee of the Red Cross; and for connected purposes.
Ordered to be Printed, .
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