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Annex A

1. Scottish Executive consultation policy

• Consultation is an essential and important aspect of Scottish Executive working methods and we aim to provide effective and early opportunities for all those who wish to express their opinions.
• This consultation, and all other Scottish Executive consultation exercises, can be viewed on Scottish Executive website. You can telephone free phone 0800 77 1234 to find out where your nearest public internet access point is.
• If you wish to enquire about versions of this consultation in other formats and languages please contact the address noted in Section 2 below.
• The Scottish Executive has an email alert system for consultations called SEconsult. This system allows you to register and to receive a weekly email containing details of all new consultations (including web links). SEconsult complements, but in no way replaces other Executive consultation activity. We encourage you to register with SEconsult as it will help ensure that you are alerted to consultation exercises at the earliest opportunity. Details available on the Scottish Executive website.

2. How to submit your views

• We welcome responses to the questions in this paper and any other comments you may wish to make. The closing date for comments is
  22 February 2007. Please send your response to:-
  elaine.mccall2@scotland.gsi.gov.uk
  or
  
  Scottish Executive
  Environmental Futures Division (strengthening enforcement of environmental law)
  Area 1H (Mail Point 8)
  Victoria Quay
  Edinburgh
  EH6 6QQ
  
  Tel 0131 244 1704

• When submitting your response please attach the respondent information form which is provided at the end of this Annex. You should also be aware that the Scottish Executive is subject to the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 and we would be required to consider any request made under the Act for information relating to consultation responses.

3. Further information

• If you have any queries about the consultation, or how to submit your views please contact the address noted below.

4. How to access comments received during this consultation

• Where respondents have given permission for their response to be made public (see the respondent information form in this Annex), they will be made available in the Scottish Executive Library by 30 March 2007 and, where applicable, on the Scottish Executive website by 6 April 2007. Before responses are lodged with either the library or website they will be checked for any potentially defamatory material.
• You can arrange to view responses by contacting the Scottish Executive library on 0131 244 4552. You may request copies to be sent, in which case a charge will be made.

A list of consultation questions is provided below.

Please send your response to:-

Elaine.mccall2@scotland.gsi.gov.uk

or

Remember to include the respondent information form with your response (see final section of this Annex)

Strengthening the enforcement of environmental law
Consultation questions from a Scottish Executive paper

Question 1 - compliance assistance - operator awareness

1.1 Do you think that there is a need to improve operator awareness of environmental law?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

1.2 If you said "YES" to question 1.1, - please give us your views on how improvements can be achieved.

1.3 If you said "NO" to question 1.1, please expand on your answer.

1.4 Do you think that there is a need to evaluate the provision of advice to operators in terms of its impact on compliance rates?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

1.5 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further views that you may have on operator awareness.

Question 2 - compliance assistance - management systems for improving compliance

2.1 Do you think that the promotion of formal compliance plans and systems, such as EMS, should be increased?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

2.2 If you said " YES" to question 2.1 - how should EMS be better promoted and by whom?

2.3 If you said "NO" to question 2.1 - please expand on your answer.

2.4 Do you think that, in collaboration with relevant enforcing authorities, the Scottish Executive should explore the possibility of an appropriate body/bodies assisting operators with a formal gap analysis as a first step towards a formal compliance system ( e.g. and environmental management system)?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

2.5 If assistance with gap analysis were to be provided, which body/bodies should assist and what kind of assistance should be provided?

2.6 Do you think that, in collaboration with appropriate enforcing authorities, the Scottish Executive should explore the possibility of an appropriate body/bodies providing operators with step by step guidance to EMS?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

2.7 If step by step EMS guidance were to be provided - who should provide it and what type guidance would be most helpful?

2.8 Do you think that there is a need to identify examples of good practice in the application of formal environmental management systems (such as EMS) in order to utilise them for illustrative and promotion purposes?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

2.9 If you said "YES" to question 2.8 how should good practice examples be identified/promoted and by whom?

2.10 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further views you may have on formal management systems for improving compliance.

Question 3 - Advice, guidance and training for Enforcing Authorities, the Police, Procurators Fiscal, Sheriffs and Judges

3.1 The Scottish Executive would welcome any comments you may have on this topic.

Question 4 - liaison and partnership working

4.1 The Scottish Executive would welcome your views on liaison and partnership working in the field of environmental and wildlife law/crime.

Question 5 - risk based inspection regimes

5.1 Do you think that there is a need to adjust inspection regimes so that they place greater emphasis on a more formal and analytical risk based approach?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment………………………….

5.2 If there was to be greater emphasis placed on more a more formal and analytical risk based approach ---

do you agree that, in communication with relevant enforcing authorities and operators, the Scottish Executive should conduct research into options for risk based inspection models to establish which may be of most use in environmental enforcement regimes in Scotland?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment………………………….

5.3 If there was to be greater emphasis placed on a more formal and analytical risk based approach ---

do you agree that there is a need for any risk based models applied by

enforcing authorities to be evaluated in terms of their impact on compliance?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment………………………….

Question 6 - financial administrative penalties (imposed by Regulators)

6.1 Do you think there is a case for exploring the potential of regulator/enforcing authority-imposed financial administrative penalties for environmental and wildlife offences?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

6.2 If regulator-imposed financial administrative penalties were introduced - do you think it would be best to:-

provide in law that specific offences can attract an administrative penalty

empower regulators to determine when a financial administrative penalty should apply in accordance with an agreed code or guidelines

a hybrid of both of these options

neither of these options

other (please specify)

6.3 If enforcing authorities and regulators were to have the facility to impose financial administrative penalties for environmental and wildlife offences - what form should they take:-

fixed

variable

mixture of fixed and variable depending on the offence

other (please specify)

6.4 If financial administrative penalties were to be variable, which of the following components should be factors in determining the level of the penalty (you may tick more than one box):-

6.5 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further views that you may have on financial administrative penalties.

Question 7 - new additional sanctions imposed by a court

7.1 Do you think that there is a need to explore the potential of alternative court-imposed sanctions for environmental and wildlife criminal offences?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment …………………………………………………………………...

Question 8 - environmental court

8.1 Do you agree that the case for an environmental court for Scotland is not made out?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment…………………………

Question 9 - environmental dispute resolution (appeal mechanisms)

9.1 Do you agree that there is a need for simplification and rationalisation of the environmental appeals systems in Scotland?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

9.2 If simplification/rationalisation was taken forward - do you agree that structural change is not the best way to achieve these aims and that, therefore, the case for a specialist environmental tribunal is not made out?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

9.3 If simplification/rationalisation were to be taken forward - do you agree that procedural and/or functional change is the best way to achieve these aims?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

9.4 If procedural/function changes were to be considered - what sort of changes would you favour?

9.5 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further view that you may have on the environmental appeals systems in Scotland.

Question 10 - environmental dispute resolution (alternative techniques)

10.1 As a general principle, do you think that mediation has a role to play in the settling of environmental disputes?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment …………………………

10.2 If mediation was to be made available - to which types of environmental dispute would it be suited?

10.3 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further views that you may have about alternative dispute resolution techniques in relation to environmental disputes.

Question 11 - public participation - recognition, reporting and remediation

11.1 Do you think that the level of public participation in the recognition and reporting of environmental and wildlife crime needs to be improved?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

11.2 If you said " YES", to question 11.1, please give any suggestions you may have for how improvements should be achieved.

11.3 Do you think that the level of public participation in decisions regarding the remediation of environmental damage needs to be improved?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

11.4 If you said " YES", to question 11.3 please give any suggestions you may have for how improvements should be achieved.

Question 1 2 - public participation - access to review

12.1 Do you think that the possibility of increasing the role of the Sheriff in reviewing certain decisions relating to environmental law should be explored further?

YES/ NO/ DON'T KNOW/ NO COMMENT

Further comment…………………………..

Question 1 3 - public participation - any other comments

13.1 The Scottish Executive would welcome any further views that you may have in relation to public participation and the strengthening of the enforcement of environmental law.

Question 14.1- any other issues or comments?

14.1 The Scottish Executive would welcome any other comments that you may have in relation to the enforcement of environmental law in Scotland.

5. Respondent information form

Please submit this form with your response because - it will help the Scottish Executive to handle your response appropriately.

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