States of Jersey
Law 1966
A LAW to codify, with sundry
amendments, the Law regarding the constitution, procedure and Committees of the
States of Jersey, to declare and define the powers, privileges and immunities
of the States, and to make provision in relation to certain ancillary matters
Commencement
[see endnotes]
PART I
CONSTITUTION OF THE STATES
1 Constitution of the States
(1) The States of Jersey
are constituted as follows –
the Bailiff, who is the President;
the Lieutenant-Governor;
12 Senators, elected in manner
provided by this Law;
the Connétables of the 12
Parishes of Jersey, who are members of the States by virtue of their office;
29 Deputies, elected in manner
provided by this Law;[1]
the Dean of Jersey, the Attorney
General and the Solicitor General.
(2) All
members of the States have the right to speak in the Assembly but, subject to Article 21(2),
only the Senators, Connétables and Deputies (in this Law referred to as the
“elected members of the States”) have the right to vote.
2 Officers of the States
The officers of the States are the
Greffier of the States who is the clerk of the States, the Deputy Greffier of
the States who is the clerk-assistant of the States, and the Viscount who is
the executive officer of the States.
3 Presidency in absence of Bailiff and Deputy Bailiff
If both the Bailiff and the Deputy
Bailiff are unable to preside at a meeting of the States, such elected member
or officer of the States as the Bailiff shall choose, shall preside at the
meeting and, subject to any standing orders, anything authorized or required to
be done by the Bailiff while presiding at a meeting of the States may or shall
be done by the person so chosen while presiding at the meeting in question.
4 Constituencies
(1) For
the purpose of the election of Senators, Jersey shall be a single constituency.
(2) For
the purpose of the election of Deputies, Jersey shall be divided into the
constituencies mentioned in the first column of the First Schedule and each
such constituency shall return the number of Deputies mentioned in relation
thereto in the second column of the First Schedule.
5 Term
of office
(1) Senators
shall be elected for a term of 6 years and, in every third year, 6 Senators
shall retire on their places being filled by an ordinary election.
(2) Deputies
shall be elected for a term of 3 years and shall retire on their places being
filled by an ordinary election.
6 Qualifications for office
A person shall, unless disqualified
by virtue of this Law or any other enactment, be qualified to be elected and to
be a Senator or a Deputy if he or she is of full age and a British subject
who –
(a) was
born in Jersey; or
(b) has,
during the 2 years preceding the day of election, been ordinarily resident in Jersey.
7 Oath of office
The oath of office of Senators and
Deputies shall be in the form set out in the Second Schedule.
8 Disqualification for office
(1) Subject
to the provisions of this paragraph, a person shall be disqualified for being
elected or for being a Senator or a Deputy if –
(a) he or she holds any paid office or other
place of profit under the Crown;
(b) he or she is a paid officer, other than an
industrial or manual worker in the full-time service of the States or any
administration of the States;
(c) he or she is a paid officer in the full-time
service of any parochial authority;
(d) he or she is under 21 years of age;
(e) he or she is a patient subject to an
application for admission under Part 2 of the Mental Health (Jersey ) Law 1969;[2]
(f) he or she has a curator of his or her person
or property;
(g) he or she has an attorney without whom he or
she may not act in matters real or personal;
(h) he or she has become bankrupt or made a
composition or arrangement with his or her creditors;
(j) he or she has been convicted of an
offence under Article 50;
(k) he or she has, within the 7 years
immediately preceding the date of his or her election, or since his or her
election, been convicted, whether in Jersey or elsewhere, of any offence
and ordered to be imprisoned for a period of not less than 3 months without the
option of a fine:
Provided that –
(i) the
disqualification attaching to a person by reason of his or her having become
bankrupt shall cease on the date of the conclusion of the proceedings or, if on
the conclusion of the proceedings he or she has not paid his or her debts in
full, on the expiration of 5 years from the date of the conclusion of the proceedings,
(ii) the
disqualification attaching to a person by reason of his or her having made a
composition or arrangement with his or her creditors shall cease, if he or she
pays his or her debts in full, on the date on which the payment is completed,
or, in any other case, on the expiration of 5 years from the date on which the
terms of the composition or arrangement are fulfilled.[3]
(2) A
person seeking election as a Senator or Deputy shall, at the time of his or her
nomination, be required to make a declaration, in writing –
(a) that he or she is qualified for being
elected by virtue of this Law or any other enactment;
(b) of his or her convictions, whether in Jersey
or elsewhere, which are not spent convictions;
(c) notwithstanding the Rehabilitation of Offenders (Jersey) Law 2001,[4] of his or her spent convictions, whether in Jersey or elsewhere,
for any of the following offences –
(i) treason,
(ii) murder,
(iii) manslaughter,
(iv) rape,
(v) incest,
(vi) sodomy,
(vii) any
offence against a person not of full age,
(viii) fraud,
(ix) obtaining
property by deception,
(x) theft,
(xi) perjury,
(xii) perverting
the course of justice,
(xiii) an
offence mentioned in the definition “drug trafficking offence” in Article 1(1)
of the Drug Trafficking Offences (Jersey)
Law 1988,[5]
(xiv) an
offence of attempt to commit any of the offences in clauses (i) to (xiii),
(xv) an
offence of conspiracy or incitement to commit any of the offences in clauses
(i) to (xiii),
(xvi) an
offence of aiding, abetting, counselling or procuring any of the offences in
clauses (i) to (xv). [6]
(3) A
person who knowingly makes a false declaration pursuant to paragraph (2)
shall be guilty of an offence and liable to a fine not exceeding level 4
on the standard scale.[7]
(4) The
States may by Regulations amend paragraph (2)(c) so as to vary, add or
omit any description of offence for which a spent conviction must be disclosed. [8]
(5) The
Privileges and Procedures Committee may by Order prescribe the form and content
of the declaration required by paragraph (2). [9]
(6) In
this Article, “spent conviction” has the same meaning as in the Rehabilitation of Offenders (Jersey) Law 2001. [10]
9 Disqualification on elected members for holding office in the
service of the states[11]
A paid officer in the part-time
service of the States, or an industrial or manual worker in the service of the
States or any administration of the States, who becomes an elected member of
the States shall cease to hold such office on taking oath of the office to
which he or she is elected, and an elected member of the States shall be
disqualified for appointment to any paid office in the service of the States or
any administration of the States.
10 Validity of acts done by unqualified persons
The acts and proceedings of any person
elected to the States and acting as a member of the States shall,
notwithstanding his or her disqualification or want of qualification, be as
valid and effectual as if he or she had been qualified.
11 Re-election
A person holding the office of
Senator or Deputy shall, unless he or she is not qualified or is disqualified,
be eligible for re-election.
12 Elections
An ordinary election for Senators
shall be held in the third week of the month of October in every third year and
an ordinary election for Deputies shall be held in the last week of the month
of November in every third year.[12]
13 Resignation
A Senator or a Deputy may at any
time resign his or her office by notice in writing signed by the Senator or a
Deputy and delivered to the Bailiff, who shall inform the States of such
resignation at the next sitting of the Assembly, whereupon the resignation
shall take effect.
14 Filling of casual vacancies
(1) On
a casual vacancy occurring in the office of Senator or Deputy, whether by
death, resignation or otherwise, information of the fact shall be given by the
Bailiff to the Attorney General, who shall forthwith bring the matter to the
notice of the Royal Court in order that the Court may declare the office to be
vacant.
(2) Where
the Royal Court has declared the office of Senator or Deputy to be vacant,
otherwise than by effluxion of time, an order shall be made in pursuance of the
Public Elections (Jersey) Law 2002[13] for an election to fill the vacancy to be held within 6 weeks from
the date of the declaration:
Provided that where the vacancy
occurs after the 31st March immediately preceding the ordinary day of
retirement from the office in which the vacancy occurs, an election shall not
be held to fill the vacancy, but the vacancy shall be filled at the next
ordinary election.[14]
(3) Where
more than one casual vacancy in the office of Senator is filled at the same
election, the person elected by the smallest number of votes shall be deemed
elected in place of the Senator who would regularly have first retired, and the
person elected by the next smallest number of votes shall be deemed elected in
place of the Senator who would regularly have next retired, and so with respect
to others; and if there has not been a contested election, or if any doubt
arises, the order of retirement shall be determined by lot.
(4) Where
an election to fill one or more casual vacancies in the office of Senator is
combined with an ordinary election of Senators, the following provisions shall
apply –
(a) where the election is contested –
(i) the
persons who are elected by the smallest number of votes shall be deemed elected
to fill the casual vacancies,
(ii) in
the case of an equality of votes between the persons who are elected by the
smallest number of votes, the persons who shall be deemed elected to fill the
casual vacancies shall be determined by lot,
(iii) if
the persons elected to fill the casual vacancies will hold office for different
periods, the person elected by the smallest number of votes, or, if the votes
are equal, such person as is determined by lot, shall be deemed elected to hold
office for the shorter period;
(b) where the election is not contested, the
persons who shall be deemed elected to fill the casual vacancies shall be
determined by lot.
(5) Where
under this Article any question is required to be determined by lot, the lots
shall be drawn at the sitting of the Royal Court convened for the taking of
oath of office by the persons elected in the election.[15]
15 Term of office of persons filling casual vacancies
A person elected to fill a casual
vacancy in the office of Senator or Deputy shall hold office until the date on
which the person in whose place he or she is elected would regularly have
retired, and he or she shall then retire.
PART II
PROCEDURE IN THE STATES
16 Meetings of the States
(1) Ordinary
sessions of the States shall be held during such periods of the year and on
such number of days in each period as the States shall by standing order
determine.
(2) Meetings
of the States in extraordinary session may be convened by the Bailiff whenever he
or she considers that the public business so requires and shall be convened by him
or her on the requisition of 7 or more elected members of the States.
(3) Meetings
of the States, either in ordinary session or extraordinary session, shall be
held on such days as the Bailiff may in his or her discretion determine, and
meetings of the States in extraordinary session may be held during periods of
the year allocated for the holding of ordinary sessions.
(4) Meetings
of the States shall be convened by the Bailiff in such manner as the States
shall by standing order determine.
17 repealed[16]
18 Quorum
The States shall be lawfully
constituted and may conduct any business which it is in their power to conduct
if there are not less than 24 elected members present.
19 Penalty for failure to attend meetings of the States
(1) Where,
by reason of an insufficiency in the number of elected members present at a
meeting of the States, the States are unable to conduct their business, the
elected members failing to attend the meeting shall each be liable to a fine of
£1, which shall be levied by the Viscount, unless at that meeting or the
meeting next following, an excuse for their failure to attend is offered to and
accepted by the States.
(2) Absence
from Jersey or illness shall be a sufficient excuse for failure to attend a
meeting of the States.
(3) Fines
levied under this Article shall be paid into the General Revenues of the
States.
20 Names of members present to be recorded
The names of members present at a
meeting of the States shall be recorded.
21 Decisions on questions
(1) Subject
to the provisions of any enactment (including this Law), whether passed before
or after the commencement of this Law, all Acts of the States, and all matters
coming or arising before the States, shall be done and decided by a majority of
the members present and voting thereon.
(2) The
Bailiff or Deputy Bailiff while presiding at a meeting of the States shall not
vote unless on any question the votes are equally divided, in which case he or
she shall have and shall exercise a casting vote.
(3) Notwithstanding
the provisions of Article 3, an elected member or officer of the States
appointed under that Article to preside at a meeting of the States shall have
neither an original nor a casting vote and if, on any matter before the States
when such person is presiding, the votes are equally divided, the question shall
be determined in the negative.
22 Bailiff’s power of dissent
The Bailiff has power to enter his
or her dissent to any resolution of the States susceptible of implementation if
he or she is of the opinion that the States are not competent to pass the resolution
and, where the Bailiff exercises this power, the resolution shall immediately
be transmitted to Her Majesty and, in the meantime and unless the consent of Her
Majesty is obtained thereto, the resolution shall be of no effect.
23 Lieutenant-Governor’s power of veto
(1) The
Lieutenant-Governor has a power of veto in any resolution of the States
susceptible of implementation but only in respect of such matters as may
concern the special interest of Her Majesty.
(2) Effect
shall not be given to any resolution of the States passed when the
Lieutenant-Governor is not present, unless application has first been made to him
or her to know whether he or she chooses to exercise the power of veto.
(3) In
this Article, references to resolutions of the States exclude references to
Acts requiring for their validity the sanction of Her Majesty in Council.
24 Provisions regarding the lodging of propositions au Greffe
(1) The
following propositions are required to be lodged au Greffe, namely –
(a) propositions for the passing of Acts which
require for their validity the sanction of Her Majesty in Council;
(b) propositions for the passing of Regulations
which, by virtue of an Order of Her Majesty in Council or of an Act sanctioned
by Her Majesty in Council, do not require for their validity the sanction of Her
Majesty in Council;
(c) propositions to which this Article is by any
enactment expressed to apply.
(2) A
proposition shall also be required to be lodged au Greffe on the request of a
member of the States made on the submission of the proposition to the States.
(3) No
proposition required under paragraph (1) to be lodged au Greffe shall be
debated before it is lodged:
Provided that this paragraph
shall not apply to any proposition to which, by virtue of any enactment,
immediate effect may be given.
(4) No
proposition which has been lodged au Greffe shall be debated or passed by the
States unless it has been so lodged for at least 14 days, except in the case of
an emergency in which the safety of Jersey may happen to be immediately
concerned.
(5) Where
any proposition required under paragraph (1) to be lodged au Greffe is
amended and the amendment has not been lodged for the time required by paragraph (4),
the provisions of paragraph (4) shall apply in relation to the proposition
as amended:
Provided that this paragraph
shall not apply where, in the opinion of the Bailiff, the amendment does not
involve any change in the substance of the proposition.
(6) Where
any Act is submitted for the sanction of Her Majesty in Council, the Greffier
of the States shall certify thereon that the proposition for the passing of the
Act has been lodged au Greffe for the time required by this Article or that,
for special reasons to be stated in the certificate, this Article has not been
or could not be complied with.
25 Minutes
Minutes of the proceedings of a
meeting of the States shall be drawn up and entered in a book kept for that
purpose by the Greffier of the States.
26 Vacancy etc. not to invalidate proceedings
The proceedings of the States shall
not be invalidated by any vacancy among their number or by any defect in the
election or qualification of any member.
27 Standing orders
(1) Subject
to the provisions of this Law, the States may make standing orders for any
purpose for which standing orders may be made under this Law and shall make
standing orders for the regulation of their proceedings and business.
(2) The
provisions of Article 3 of the Official
Publications (Jersey) Law 1960[17] in so far as they require the Greffier of the States to publish in
the Jersey Gazette a notice relating to the passing of enactments, shall not
apply to standing orders.
PART III
COMMITTEES OF THE STATES
28 Constitution of Committees
(1) Committees
shall be appointed by the States and shall each consist of a President and
other members of the States.
(2) The
term of office and number of members of a Committee shall be such as the States
may determine either –
(a) generally by standing order as respects Committees
mentioned in that order; or
(b) notwithstanding the provisions of any such order,
at the time of the appointment of the Committee or at any time thereafter.
(3) Notwithstanding
the provisions of paragraph (2) of this Article and of Article 35, in
the event of a vacancy in the office of President of a Committee, the Bailiff
shall give notice thereof to the States as soon as may be thereafter and the
vacancy shall be filled not later than the Meeting of the States next following
the giving of such notice.
29 Power to transfer functions etc.
(1) The
States may by Act provide for the transfer to any Committee of any functions
theretofore exercisable by another Committee or for the amalgamation of
Committees, and for determining the name by which any Committee shall be
described.
(2) An
Act of the States under this Article may contain such incidental, consequential
and supplemental provisions as may be necessary or expedient for the purpose of
giving full effect to the Act, including provisions –
(a) for the transfer of any rights and
liabilities enjoyed or incurred by any Committee in connection with any
functions transferred;
(b) for the carrying on and completion by or
under the authority of the Committee to which any functions are transferred of
anything commenced by or under the authority of a Committee before the date on
which the Act takes effect;
(c) for such adaptations as may be necessary,
for the purposes of the Act, of the enactments relating to any Committee which
is renamed or to any functions transferred, or of any instrument, contract or
legal proceedings made or commenced before the date on which the Act takes
effect.
(3) In
paragraph (2)(c) “enactments” includes enactments of the
United Kingdom as extended to Jersey.[18]
30 repealed[19]
31 Vice-President
(1) Each
Committee shall appoint one of its members to be Vice-President of the Committee.
(2) In
the event of the absence of the President of a Committee or in the event of a
vacancy in the office of President of a Committee, the functions of the
President shall be exercised by the Vice-President of the Committee during such
absence or until the vacancy is filled.
32 Power of Committees to appoint members to Sub-Committees
(1) Any
Committee may appoint as members of a Sub-Committee of the Committee any
persons, whether members of the States or not, and any person so appointed may
exercise all the powers of a member of the Sub-Committee other than a power
which involves the expenditure of public monies.
(2) The
term of office of persons appointed under this Article shall be such as the Committee
may determine and the Committee may revoke any such appointment at any time.
33 Names of members present to be recorded
The names of the members present at
a meeting of a Committee shall be recorded.
34 Minutes
(1) The
minutes of the proceedings of a meeting of a Committee shall be drawn up and
entered in a book kept for that purpose by the Greffier of the States, and
shall be signed at the same or an ensuing meeting of the Committee by the person
presiding at the meeting.
(2) Until
the contrary is proved, a meeting of a Committee in respect of the proceedings
of which a minute has been so made and signed shall be deemed to have been duly
convened and held, and the members present at the meeting shall be deemed to
have been duly qualified, and the Committee shall be deemed to have been duly
constituted and to have had power to deal with matters referred to in the
minutes.
35 Vacancy etc. not to invalidate proceedings
The proceedings of a Committee
shall not be invalidated by any vacancy among its number or by any defect in
the election or qualification of any member.
36 Procedure of Committees
(1) The
quorum of a Committee shall be one half of the total number of members of the Committee
as determined by the States, any resulting fraction of one being regarded as
one.
(2) In
the event of the absence of the President and the Vice-President from any
meeting of a Committee, the members present shall appoint one of their number
to preside at the meeting.
(3) On
any matter under consideration by a Committee, each member thereof, including
the person presiding, shall have one vote and where the votes are equally
divided the person presiding shall have a second or casting vote.
(4) Save
as provided by the foregoing provisions of this Article, the States may make
standing orders for the regulation of the procedure of Committees but subject
thereto a Committee may regulate its own procedure.
36A Power of Committee to delegate functions[20]
(1) Subject
to the provisions of this Article, where by or under any Law, or any enactment
of the United Kingdom as extended to Jersey, any functions are conferred upon
or vested in a Committee, it shall be lawful for the Committee to delegate such
functions, either wholly or partly, to –
(a) its
President;
(b) a
Sub-Committee of its members; or
(c) an
officer.[21]
(2) Any
such delegation shall be specified by Act of the Committee, may in like manner
be amended, varied or revoked and shall be subject to such conditions,
exceptions or qualifications as may in like manner be specified at any time.
(3) Nothing
in this Article shall authorize a Committee to delegate –
(a) any
power to pass an enactment;
(b) any
power to decide an appeal under an enactment;
(c) any
function the delegation of which is expressly prohibited by law.
(4) The
delegation of any functions by a Committee under this Article does not prevent
the exercise of those functions by the Committee itself.
(5) Where
any licence, permit or authorization is granted in purported exercise of
functions delegated by or under any Law, no criminal proceedings shall lie
against any person for any act done, or omitted to be done, in good faith and
in accordance with the terms of the licence, permit or authorization, by reason
that the functions had not been delegated, or that any requirement attached to
the delegation of the functions had not been complied with.
(6) In
this Article, “officer” means an employee of the States or of any
administration of the States whose duties are wholly or mainly administrative,
professional, technical or clerical and includes a member of the States of
Jersey Police Force, an immigration officer and an aliens officer.[22]
(7) The
States may, by Regulations, amend the definition of “officer” for
the purposes of this Article.
PART IIIA
COMMITTEES OF INQUIRY
36B Committee of Inquiry[23]
(1) Where
the States are of opinion that inquiry should be made into any definite matter
of public importance, they may appoint a Committee of Inquiry to inquire into
that matter in accordance with this Part and Articles 52 and 53 shall have
effect in relation to that Committee.
(2) A
Committee of Inquiry shall consist of not more than 5 persons, who may or may
not be members of the States, and the States may direct which of those persons,
if more than one, shall be the President, who shall preside in the absence of
the President and the number of persons who shall form a quorum thereof but
where a Committee of Inquiry consists of only one person that person shall be
the President and the quorum.
(3) A
person appointed to a Committee of Inquiry shall take an oath before the
Bailiff in the form contained in a standing order.
36C Power of Committee of Inquiry to order attendance of witnesses[24]
A Committee of Inquiry may, subject
to the provisions of Article 36H, order any person to attend before it and
to give evidence or to produce any paper, book, record or document in the
possession or under the control of such person.
36D Attendance to be notified by summons[25]
(1) Any
order to attend to give evidence or to produce documents before a Committee of
Inquiry shall be notified to the person required to attend or to produce the
documents by a summons under the hand of the Greffier of the States issued by
the direction of the President of the Committee.
(2) In
every summons under paragraph (1) there shall be stated the time and place
at which the person summoned is required to attend and the particular documents
which he or she is required to produce; and the summons shall be served by the
Viscount on the person mentioned therein either by delivering to him or her a
copy thereof or by leaving a copy thereof at his or her usual or last known
place of abode.
36E Power to issue warrant to compel attendance[26]
(1) If
a person to whom a summons under Article 36D is directed does not attend
before a Committee of Inquiry at the time and place mentioned therein, the
President of the Committee shall report the fact to the Bailiff who may, on
being satisfied that the summons was duly served or that the person to whom the
summons is directed wilfully avoids service, issue a warrant to apprehend him
or her and bring him or her before the Committee at a time and place to be stated
in the warrant.
(2) A
warrant issued under this Article shall be executed by the Viscount.
36F Witnesses
may be examined on oath[27]
A Committee of Inquiry may require
that any facts, matters and things relating to the subject of inquiry before it
be verified or otherwise ascertained by the oral examination of witnesses, and
may cause any such witnesses to be examined on oath, which the President of the
Committee is hereby authorized to administer.
36G Objection to answer question or to produce papers[28]
Subject to the provisions of Article 36F,
where any person ordered to attend to give evidence or to produce any paper,
book, record or document before a Committee of Inquiry refuses to answer any
question that may be put to him or her or to produce any such paper, book,
record or document on the ground that the same is of a private nature and does
not affect the subject of inquiry, the President of the Committee may report
such refusal to the Bailiff with the reasons therefor, and the Bailiff shall
thereupon either excuse the answering of such question or the production of
such paper, book, record or document, or order the answering or production thereof.
36H Privileges of witnesses[29]
(1) Every
person summoned to attend to give evidence or to produce any paper, book,
record or document before a Committee of Inquiry shall be entitled, in respect
of such evidence or the disclosure of any communication or the production of
any such paper, book, record or document, to the same right or privilege as
before a court of law.
(2) Except
with the consent of the Lieutenant-Governor, no person summoned as aforesaid shall
give evidence, or produce any paper, book, record or document relating to any
naval, military or air force matter.
(3) An
answer by a person to a question put to him or her, or an oral or written
statement made by him or her, in the course of a Committee of Inquiry shall
not, except in the case of a prosecution for perjury or an offence against Part
IV, be admissible in evidence against him or her in any civil or criminal
proceedings.
36I Conduct of proceedings[30]
(1) A
Committee of Inquiry may regulate its own procedure for the conduct and
management of the proceedings including, but not limited to, venue and
adjournments.
(2) Proceedings
before a Committee of Inquiry shall be held in public unless the Committee, in
the interests of justice or the public interest, decides that all or any part
of the proceedings shall be in private.
(3) Where
proceedings are held in private only persons who, in the opinion of the Committee
of Inquiry, are necessary to the conduct of those proceedings may remain.
(4) Where
proceedings are held in public the Committee of Inquiry may exclude any person
or class of persons from those proceedings if it is satisfied that it is
desirable to do so for the preservation of order, for the proper conduct of the
proceedings or for the protection of the person, property or reputation of any
witness in or any person referred to in the proceedings.
(5) The
Greffier of the States may appoint a secretary to the Committee of Inquiry to
perform such duties connected with the inquiry as the President of the Committee
may direct.
36J Legal representation[31]
(1) The
Greffier of the States may appoint a person, who may be an advocate or
solicitor, to assist the Committee of Inquiry.
(2) The
Attorney General or any person on the Attorney General’s behalf may at
any time appear before the Committee of Inquiry on any matter which, to the
Attorney General, appears to be relevant to the inquiry.
(3) The
Committee of Inquiry may, if it considers it desirable, give leave to any person
appearing before it to be represented by an advocate or solicitor.
36K Expenses[32]
The Finance and Economics Committee
may direct to what extent a person appointed to a Committee of Inquiry may be
remunerated and those expenses together with any others which the Finance and
Economics Committee may direct may be incurred by a Committee of Inquiry shall
be paid out of the general revenue of the States.
36L Immunity from legal proceedings[33]
No civil or criminal proceedings
may be instituted against any member of a Committee of Inquiry for any act done
or words spoken before or written in a report to or by a Committee of Inquiry
by that person.
PART IV
POWERS, PRIVILEGES,
IMMUNITIES AND OFFENCES
37 Immunity from legal proceedings
No civil or criminal proceedings
may be instituted against any member of the States for words spoken before, or
written in a report to, the States or a Committee, or by reason of any matter
or thing brought by him or her therein by petition, bill, proposition or
otherwise.
38 Entry to States
No stranger shall be entitled, as
of right, to enter or to remain within the precincts of the States.
39 Regulation of admission to States
(1) The
Bailiff may issue such orders as he or she may in his or her discretion deem
necessary for the regulation of the admittance of strangers to the precincts of
the States.
(2) Copies
of orders made under this Article shall be duly authenticated by the Greffier
of the States and exhibited in a conspicuous position in the precincts of the
States; and such copies when so authenticated, and exhibited, shall be deemed
to be sufficient notice to all persons affected thereby.
40 Power of Bailiff to order withdrawal from States
The Bailiff may at any time order
any stranger to withdraw from the precincts of the States.
41–46 repealed[34]
47 Evidence of proceedings in the States or any Committee not to be
given without leave
(1) Save
as provided in this Part of this Law, no member or officer of the States, and
no person employed to take minutes before the States or any Committee, shall
give evidence elsewhere, except before a Committee of Inquiry, in respect of
the contents of such minutes or of the contents of any document laid before the
States or such Committee, as the case may be, or in respect of any proceedings
or examination held before the States or such Committee, as the case may be,
without the prior consent of the States or the Committee concerned, as the case
may be.[35]
(2) The
consent of the States referred to in paragraph (1) may be given during
periods of the year when the States are not in session, by the Bailiff or, in
the absence or other incapacity of the Bailiff and the Deputy Bailiff, by the
Greffier of the States.
48 Offences relating to admittance to the States
Any person who being a
stranger –
(a) enters
or attempts to enter the precincts of the States in contravention of any order
of the Bailiff;
(b) fails
or refuses to withdraw from the precincts of the States when ordered to
withdraw therefrom by the Bailiff; or
(c) contravenes
any order made under this Part of this Law by the Bailiff regulating the
admittance of strangers to the precincts of the States or any rule made by the
Bailiff under standing orders,
shall be guilty of an offence and
shall be liable to a fine not exceeding level 2 on the standard scale or to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 months, or to both such fine and such
imprisonment.[36]
49 Other offences
Any person who –
(a) disobeys
any order made by a Committee of Inquiry for attendance or for production of
papers, books, records or documents, unless such attendance or production be
excused as hereinbefore provided;
(b) refuses
to be examined before, or to answer any lawful and relevant question put by, a Committee
of Inquiry unless such refusal be excused as hereinbefore provided;
(c) offers
to any member or officer of the States or a Committee of Inquiry any bribe,
fee, compensation, gift or reward in order to influence him or her in his or
her conduct as such member or officer, or for or in respect of the promotion of
or opposition to any petition, bill, proposition, matter or other thing
submitted to or intended to be submitted to the States, a Committee or a Committee
of Inquiry;
(d) assaults,
obstructs, molests or insults any member of the States or any member of a Committee
of Inquiry not being a member of the States coming to, being within, or going
from, the precincts of the States, or endeavours to compel any such member by
force or menace to declare himself or herself in favour of or against any
matter pending or expected to be brought before the States, any Committee or
any Committee of Inquiry;
(e) assaults,
interferes with, molests, resists or obstructs any officer or servant of the
States while in the execution of his or her duty or while proceeding to or from
the States;
(f) creates
or joins in any disturbance which interrupts or is likely to interrupt the
proceedings of the States, any Committee or any Committee of Inquiry while the
States, any Committee or any Committee of Inquiry are sitting;
(g) presents
to the States, a Committee or a Committee of Inquiry any false, untrue,
fabricated or falsified document with intent to deceive the States, a Committee
or a Committee of Inquiry; or
(h) publishes
any false or scandalous libel on the States, a Committee or a Committee of
Inquiry,
shall be guilty of an offence and
shall be liable to a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale or to
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 2 years or to both such fine and such
imprisonment.[37]
50 Acceptance of bribes by members of the States
Any member of the States or any
member of a Committee of Inquiry not being a member of the States who accepts
or agrees to accept or obtains or attempts to obtain for the member or for any
other person any bribe, fee, compensation, reward or benefit of any kind for
speaking, voting or acting as such member or for refraining from so speaking,
voting or acting or on account of his or her having so spoken, voted or acted
or having so refrained shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a
fine or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding 5 years, or to both such fine
and such imprisonment.[38]
51 Minutes of the States and Committees to be evidence
A copy of any minutes of the States
or a Committee signed by the Greffier of the States, shall be received in evidence
without further proof.
52 Penalty for printing false copy of enactments or other States’
documents
Any person who prints or causes to
be printed a copy of any enactment or other document as purporting to have been
printed by Order or under the authority of the States, and the same is not so
printed, or shall tender in evidence any such copy as purporting to be so
printed knowing that the same was not so printed, shall be guilty of an offence
and shall be liable to a fine or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 3 years,
or to both such fine and such imprisonment.[39]
53 Protection of persons responsible for publications authorized by the
States
Any person, being a defendant in
any civil or criminal proceedings instituted for or on account or in respect of
the publication by such person or by his or her servant, by Order or under the
authority of the States, of any enactment or other document, may, on giving to
the plaintiff or prosecutor, as the case may be, 24 hours written notice of his
or her intention, bring before the court in which such proceedings are being
taken a certificate under the hand of the Bailiff stating that the enactment or
document in respect whereof such proceedings have been instituted was published
by such person or by his or her servant by Order or under the authority of the
States, together with an affidavit verifying such certificate, and such court
shall thereupon immediately stay such civil or criminal proceedings, and the
same and every process issued therein shall be deemed to be finally determined.
54 Publication of proceedings without malice
In any civil proceedings instituted
for publishing any account or summary of or any extract from or abstract of any
document published by Order or under the authority of the States, or any proceedings
of the States, if the court is satisfied that such account, summary, extract or
abstract was published bona fide and without
malice, judgment shall be entered for the defendant.
55 Exercise of jurisdiction by courts
No person shall be subject to the
jurisdiction of any court in respect of the exercise of any power conferred on
or vested in him or her by or under this Part.
56 Powers of Viscount
The Viscount shall, for the
purposes of the enforcement of this Part of this Law and of the application of
the provisions of the criminal law, have all the powers and enjoy all the
privileges of a Centenier.
57 Authority for prosecutions
No prosecution for an offence under
this Part of this Law shall be instituted except by or with the consent of the
Attorney General.
PART V
GENERAL
58 Interpretation[40]
In this Law, unless the context
otherwise requires –
“Committee” means a committee of the States;
“Committee of Inquiry” means a committee
appointed under Article 36B, which committee shall not be a committee of
the States; [41]
“document” includes accounts, deeds,
writings and information recorded in any form and, in relation to information
recorded otherwise than in legible form, references to its provision or
production include references to providing or producing a copy of the
information in legible form;[42]
“elected members of the States” has the
meaning assigned thereto by Article 1(2);
“functions” includes powers and duties;
“precincts of the States” means the States’
Chamber and any rooms provided for the use or accommodation of members of the
States, and the galleries and places provided for the use or accommodation of
strangers, members of the public and representatives of the press, and
includes, while the States are meeting, those parts of the building giving
direct access to the States’ Chamber;
“standing order” means a standing order made
by the States under this Law;
“stranger” means any person other than the
Deputy Bailiff or member or officer of the States.
59 Saving of powers
Save as otherwise provided by this Law,
nothing in this Law shall prejudice or affect the prerogatives, rights and
privileges attaching to the office of Lieutenant-Governor, Bailiff, Deputy
Bailiff, Dean, Attorney General, Solicitor General and Rector of a parish in
existence immediately before the coming into force of this Law.
60 Citation
This Law may be cited as the States
of Jersey Law 1966.