Section 61: Commencement
215.Section 61 provides for commencement of the Act's provisions. Save for sections 1 and 49 and certain miscellaneous and supplementary provisions, the provisions of the Act will come into force on a day appointed by order of the Secretary of State. Sections 1 and 49 come into force two months after Royal Assent. Subsection (8) provides for sections 5, 8, 9 and 10 and Schedules 1, 2 and 3 to be brought into force in a particular order to give effect to the purpose of the Act. Sections 51, 58 and 60 will come into effect on Royal Assent.
216.Subsection (4) provides that section 2B of the RTA (the new offence of causing death by careless, or inconsiderate, driving) and section 3ZB of that Act (the new offence of causing death by driving: unlicensed, disqualified or uninsured drivers) will only apply to driving occurring after those sections are commenced.
217.The effect of subsection (5) is that where offences under sections 2B and 3ZB of the RTA are committed before the commencement of section 154(1) Criminal Justice Act 2003 the maximum custodial penalty on summary conviction, throughout Great Britain, will be 6 months. Once that provision does come into force, magistrates' courts in England and Wales will have the full benefit of their extended sentencing powers, such as the custody plus scheme.
