Mines and Quarries Act 1954

12Deputies

(1)Provision may be made by regulations—

(a)for imposing, in relation to a mine, such requirements with respect to the carrying out, by competent persons appointed for the purpose by the manager of the mine and having such qualifications (if any) as may be prescribed, of inspections of the mine as it may appear to the Minister requisite or expedient to impose for the purpose of securing the safety and health of the workmen employed thereat;

(b)for providing that, subject to any exceptions for which provision may be made by the regulations, the persons appointed to discharge at a mine the duties imposed by virtue of the foregoing paragraph shall have the immediate charge of the workmen employed at the mine and of the operations carried on by them thereat;

(c)for prescribing any duties to be discharged by the persons so appointed in addition to those imposed on them by virtue of the foregoing paragraphs or by or by virtue of any of the following provisions of this Act, and for requiring that, subject to any exceptions for which provision may be made by the regulations, those persons shall devote the whole of their time to the discharge of the duties prescribed by virtue of this paragraph or imposed as aforesaid; and

(d)for requiring or authorising the delimitation in a mine of districts for the purpose of the discharge by the persons so appointed of their duties, for requiring that where, in a mine, districts are delimited for that purpose no one of those persons shall have charge of more than one district and for relating to each district the duties of the person in charge of it;

and it shall be the duty of the manager of a mine in relation to which requirements are imposed by virtue of paragraph (a) of this subsection to secure that the number of persons appointed for the purpose of fulfilling those requirements is sufficient to secure the efficient discharge of the duties imposed on those persons.

(2)Regulations having effect by virtue of the foregoing subsection shall be so framed as, in the opinion of the Minister, to secure that, in the discharge, by persons appointed for the purpose of fulfilling, in relation to a mine, requirements imposed by virtue of paragraph (a) of that subsection, of duties prescribed by virtue of the other provisions of that subsection, those persons shall give preference to the securing of the safety and health of the workmen employed at the mine over the securing of any other matter.