Architects Act 1997 : amendment of June 2008 under the European Communities Act 1972
Encyclopedia
The Architects Act
was amended in 2008 by a statutory instrument
made by a minister of the United Kingdom government under the European Communities Act 1972
. This was the Architects (Recognition of European Qualifications etc and Saving and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2008, which came into force on 20 June 2008. An Explanatory Memorandum was issued with the Regulations and a fuller Explanatory Memorandum presented to Parliament.
The Architects Act 1997 had resulted from the policy of allowing certain restrictions to apply (for well over 60 years, in the United Kingdom) to the use of the simple word "architect
" in connection with a statutory Register of Architects
operated under Westminster primary legislation by which the executant body was renamed as the Architects Registration Board
from 1997 (previously the Architects' Registration Council of the United Kingdom
). The amendment (under the European Communities Act 1972
) has introduced pages of complicated text to a piece of legislation which was otherwise tolerably trim, neat and comprehensible in its consolidated form in the 1997 Act. But the amendment has been made pursuant to a European Directive made in 2005 and the treaty obligations binding upon the United Kingdom and other states of the European Union, and in that respect an amendment under the European Directive was inevitable.
has been assigned the function of the "competent authority
" which has to be designated by every European Union
state. It has been classed as a "non-departmental public body
" in the language being used by government departments. The majority of the Board is appointed by one such government department under the provisions of the Architects Act 1997.
on the other (for which see the article on the Warne Report
and the legislative changes concerning trade descriptions and consumer protection, introduced in May 2008, that are referred to in the article on Architects Registration in the United Kingdom
).
Architects Act 1997
The Architects Act 1997 is the consolidating Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom for the keeping and publishing of the statutory Register of Architects by the Architects Registration Board...
was amended in 2008 by a statutory instrument
Statutory Instrument
A Statutory Instrument is the principal form in which delegated or secondary legislation is made in Great Britain.Statutory Instruments are governed by the Statutory Instruments Act 1946. They replaced Statutory Rules and Orders, made under the Rules Publication Act 1893, in 1948.Most delegated...
made by a minister of the United Kingdom government under the European Communities Act 1972
European Communities Act 1972 (UK)
The European Communities Act 1972 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom providing for the incorporation of European Community law into the domestic law of the United Kingdom. It is not to be confused with the Irish law of the same name, Act No...
. This was the Architects (Recognition of European Qualifications etc and Saving and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2008, which came into force on 20 June 2008. An Explanatory Memorandum was issued with the Regulations and a fuller Explanatory Memorandum presented to Parliament.
The Architects Act 1997 had resulted from the policy of allowing certain restrictions to apply (for well over 60 years, in the United Kingdom) to the use of the simple word "architect
Architect
An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...
" in connection with a statutory Register of Architects
Register of Architects
From 1932 there has been a statutory Register of Architects under legislation of the United Kingdom Parliament originally enacted in 1931. The originating Act contained ancillary provisions for entering an architect’s name in the register and removing a name from it which later legislation has...
operated under Westminster primary legislation by which the executant body was renamed as the Architects Registration Board
Architects Registration Board
The Architects Registration Board is the statutory body for the registration of architects in the United Kingdom. It operates under the Architects Act 1997 as amended, a consolidating Act. It began under the Architects Act, 1931 which gave it the name the Architects' Registration Council of the...
from 1997 (previously the Architects' Registration Council of the United Kingdom
Architects' Registration Council of the United Kingdom
Under an Act passed by the UK Parliament in 1931, there was established an Architects' Registration Council of the United Kingdom , referred to in the Act as "the Council". The constitution of the Council was prescribed by the First Schedule to the Act. The Act made the Council a body corporate...
). The amendment (under the European Communities Act 1972
European Communities Act 1972 (UK)
The European Communities Act 1972 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom providing for the incorporation of European Community law into the domestic law of the United Kingdom. It is not to be confused with the Irish law of the same name, Act No...
) has introduced pages of complicated text to a piece of legislation which was otherwise tolerably trim, neat and comprehensible in its consolidated form in the 1997 Act. But the amendment has been made pursuant to a European Directive made in 2005 and the treaty obligations binding upon the United Kingdom and other states of the European Union, and in that respect an amendment under the European Directive was inevitable.
Non-departmental public body
The Architects Registration BoardArchitects Registration Board
The Architects Registration Board is the statutory body for the registration of architects in the United Kingdom. It operates under the Architects Act 1997 as amended, a consolidating Act. It began under the Architects Act, 1931 which gave it the name the Architects' Registration Council of the...
has been assigned the function of the "competent authority
Competent authority
A competent authority is any person or organization that has the legally delegated or invested authority, capacity, or power to perform a designated function....
" which has to be designated by every European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
state. It has been classed as a "non-departmental public body
Non-departmental public body
In the United Kingdom, a non-departmental public body —often referred to as a quango—is a classification applied by the Cabinet Office, Treasury, Scottish Government and Northern Ireland Executive to certain types of public bodies...
" in the language being used by government departments. The majority of the Board is appointed by one such government department under the provisions of the Architects Act 1997.
Impact
In connection with architects registration in the United Kingdom it is likely that as a result of the amendment of 2008 there will be a commensurate need to expand the human and other resources employed for giving effect to the additional activity prescribed for the Architects Registration Board to perform; and that the impact upon the annual fee which the Act enables the Board to demand is unlikely to be favourable to architects in the United Kingdom who, by application or retention, choose to become registrants on what, by the amendment, has become "Part 1" of the Register. The general effect on teaching and practice, or on the inter-disciplinary process in the service of the built environment, is uncertain. Independent observers may consider (as had the author of the Warne Report, concerning the reform of architects registration which preceded the amending legislation of 1996) that the public is best served by means of statutory regulations of universal application (such as Building Regulations) on the one hand and arrangements free from the taint of monopolyMonopoly
A monopoly exists when a specific person or enterprise is the only supplier of a particular commodity...
on the other (for which see the article on the Warne Report
Warne Report
The Warne Report was published by the United Kingdom Government in 1993. It was referred to in a government consultation paper on Reform of Architects Registration dated 19 July 1994...
and the legislative changes concerning trade descriptions and consumer protection, introduced in May 2008, that are referred to in the article on Architects Registration in the United Kingdom
Architects Registration in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, the Architects Act 1997 imposes restrictions on the use of the name, style or title "architect" in connection with a business or a professional practice, and for that purpose requires a statutory Register of Architects to be maintained...
).