Moveable Transactions (Scotland) Bill: Financial Memorandum

Overview

About the Bill

“Moveable” property means property which can be physically moved (for example, cars, machinery and whisky barrels). It can, however, also mean intellectual property like patents and copyrights.

The Bill reforms two elements of the law on moveable property:

• the assignation of claims
• the law of pledges

“Assignation” of claims is the transfer of a claim from one person to another. A claim is most commonly the right to payment of a debt. For example, if someone has a right to be paid for goods or services, they can transfer that right to payment to another person.

A “pledge” is a type of security (usually for a loan) which is taken over moveable property. This works in a similar way to a mortgage on a house. In that case someone grants a loan but the lender has a security over the house in case the loan is not repaid. With a pledge, someone grants a loan and the lender has a security over a piece of moveable property in case the loan is not repaid.

The Bill changes current law by creating two new registers:

• the Register of Assignations
• the Register of Statutory Pledges

The Bill is based on a Scottish Law Commission (“SLC”) report and in particular a draft Bill prepared by the SLC.

Current status of the Bill 

This Bill was introduced in the Scottish Parliament by the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans on 25 May 2022.

Read and find out more about the Moveable Transactions (Scotland) Bill.

Stage 1

The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee has been designated as the lead Committee for the Bill. A separate call for views on the Bill’s policy provisions has been issued by the lead Committee and has been published on this consultation platform.

Financial Memorandum

As with all Bills, the Finance and Public Administration Committee invites written evidence on the estimated financial implications of the Bill as set out in its accompanying Financial Memorandum (FM).

Read the FM published alongside this Bill.

Questions

1. Did you take part in any consultation exercise preceding the Bill (including the consultations carried out by the SLC) and, if so, did you comment on the financial assumptions made? 
2. If applicable, do you believe your comments on the financial assumptions have been accurately reflected in the FM?
3. Did you have sufficient time to contribute to the consultation exercise?
4. If the Bill has any financial implications for you or your organisation, do you believe that they have been accurately reflected in the FM? If not, please provide details.
5. Do you consider that the estimated costs and savings set out in the FM are reasonable and accurate? 
6. If applicable, are you content that your organisation can meet any financial costs that it might incur as a result of the Bill? If not, how do you think these costs should be met? 
7. Does the FM accurately reflect the margins of uncertainty associated with the Bill’s estimated costs and with the timescales over which they would be expected to arise? 

How to submit your views

Please submit your views using the online submission form, linked to below.

We welcome written views in English, Gaelic, Scots or any other language. 

The call for views closes on Thursday 1 September 2022.