Coal Industry Act 1975

1 Grants to National Coal [F1Corporation] to meet expenditure under pneumoconiosis compensation scheme.E+W+S

(1)The Secretary of State may make, in accordance with this section, grants out of money provided by Parliament towards expenditure incurred, whether before or after the commencement of this Act, by the [F2British Coal [F1Corporation] (in this Act referred to as “the [F1Corporation]”)] under or for the purposes of the industry’s pneumoconiosis compensation scheme.

(2)The total of grants under this section shall not exceed [F3£107 million].

(3)No grant shall be made under this section towards any expenditure incurred by the [F1Corporation] in paying benefits under the industry’s pneumoconiosis compensation scheme to or in respect of any person unless it appears to the Secretary of State—

(a)that that person became entitled before 1st October 1974, in respect of pneumoconiosis contracted by him, to such other description of benefit as, in accordance with the scheme, qualifies him, or any other person in respect of him, to benefit under the scheme; or

(b)that, in a case where paragraph (a) above does not apply, pneumoconiosis contracted by that person would be treated, for the purposes of a claim to any such other description of benefit as is referred to in that paragraph, as having developed on a date before 1st October 1974.

(4)In this section “the industry’s pneumoconiosis compensation scheme” means—

(a)the scheme set out in the Schedule to an agreement dated 13th September 1974 and made between the Board and the National Union of Mineworkers, the National Association of Colliery Overmen Deputies and Shotfirers and the British Association of Colliery Management; and

(b)any variation of that scheme (whether operating by way of amendment or replacement of that scheme or otherwise) which is for the time being approved by the Secretary of State, with the consent of the Treasury.

2 New right of [F4Corporation] to withdraw support to enable coal to be worked.E+W+S

(1)Subject to the provisions of this section and of Schedule 1 to this Act, so far as may be reasonably requisite for the working of any coal, the [F4Corporation] shall be entitled, after the expiry of the period of three months beginning on the relevant date of publication of a notice under this section, to withdraw support from any land to which the notice relates (whether the coal concerned lies under that land or under land adjacent to that land); and on and after the commencement of this Act the right conferred on the [F4Corporation] by this section shall have effect in substitution for any right to withdraw support vested in or conferred on the [F4Corporation] before that commencement under or by virtue of any other enactment.

(2)A notice under this section—

(a)shall indicate the land to which it relates, either by reference to a map or in such other manner as appears to the [F4Corporation] to be appropriate in the circumstances of the case, and

(b)shall state the [F4Corporation’s]intention to exercise in relation to that land the right conferred on the [F4Corporation] by this section, and

(c)shall be published—

(i)in the London Gazette or, if the land to which the notice relates is situated in Scotland, in the Edinburgh Gazette; and

(ii)on two successive weeks in such newspapers circulating in the locality concerned as appear to the [F4Corporation] to be desirable for giving adequate publicity to the notice;

and any reference in this section to the relevant date of publication of a notice is a reference to the date on which the notice is published in accordance with sub-paragraph (i) or, if it is later, is first published in accordance with sub-paragraph (ii) of paragraph (c) above.

(3)Not later than the relevant date of publication of a notice under this section, the [F4Corporation] shall—

(a)serve a copy of the notice on every local planning authority in whose area or, in Scotland, on every planning authority in whose district lies any part of the land to which the notice relates, and

(b)post a copy or copies of the notice in some conspicuous place or places on the land to which the notice relates,

and the reference in this subsection to a local planning authority shall be construed, in relation to England and Wales, as if this subsection were included in [F5the Town and Country Planning Act 1990].

(4)Subject to the provisions of Schedule 1 to this Act, where damage to any land arises from the exercise of the right to withdraw support conferred on the [F4Corporation] by this section, the [F4Corporation] shall either—

(a)pay proper compensation for the damage, or

(b)with the consent (which shall not be unreasonably withheld) of the person who would otherwise be entitled to the payment of compensation for the damage, make good the damage to the reasonable satisfaction of that person and without expense to him;

and the obligation imposed on the [F4Corporation] by this subsection shall extend to damage to buildings and works on that land, whenever constructed.

(5)In any case where, immediately before the commencement of this Act, the Board or a licensee of the Board had a right to withdraw support from any land—

(a)by virtue of paragraph 5 of Schedule 2 to the M1Coal Act 1938 (cases where rights to withdraw support were annexed to coal or a mine of coal before the valuation date), or

(b)by virtue of paragraph 1 of Schedule 2 to the M2Coal Act 1943 (rights to withdraw support from protected and other land originally comprised in a coal-mining lease),

the Board shall be deemed to have published, on the date on which this Act comes into operation, a notice under this section relating to that land and, in relation to the withdrawal of support from that land, subsection (1) above shall have effect with the substitution for the words “the expiry of the period of three months beginning on the relevant date of publication of” of the word “publishing” and, accordingly, subsections (2)(c) and (3) above shall not apply.

(6)In any case where, before the commencement of this Act, the Board or the Coal Commission have given public notice under paragraph 6(2) of Schedule 2 to the M3Coal Act 1938 (notice of first exercising a right to withdraw support or of granting the benefit of such a right to another person) relating to any land under which there subsists at the commencement of this Act any coal or a mine of coal, the Board shall be deemed to have published, on the date on which this Act comes into operation, a notice under this section relating to that land and, in relation to the withdrawal of support from that land, subsection (1) above shall have effect with the substitution for the words “the expiry of the period of three months beginning on the relevant date of publication of” of the word “publishing” and, accordingly, subsections (2)(c) and (3) above shall not apply.

(7)In any case where, by virtue of a licence granted by or otherwise binding on the [F4Corporation], any person other than the [F4Corporation]exercises the right to withdraw support conferred on the [F4Corporation] by this section, the existence of the licence shall not affect any liability of the [F4Corporation] in respect of damage caused in the exercise of that right (but without prejudice to any right of the [F4Corporation] to recover any expenditure from the licensee).

(8)Nothing in this section shall affect—

(a)any agreement binding on the Board immediately before the commencement of this Act, being an agreement made between the Board, the Coal Commission or a coal owner and a person interested in any land whereby the Board, the Coal Commission or the coal owner agreed not to work any coal or (as the case may be) any minerals or not to withdraw support from any land, or

(b)any provision contained in a coal-mining lease which is binding on the Board immediately before the commencement of this Act and which prohibits the withdrawal of support from any land specified in the lease, or

(c)any restrictions, terms or conditions applicable to the working of any coal—

(i)by virtue of an agreement binding on the Board and entered into after 1st July 1942 and before the commencement of this Act, or

(ii)by virtue of an order made, whether before or after the commencement of this Act under section 1 or section 7 of the M4Mines (Working Facilities and Support) Act 1966, or

(iii)by virtue of, or of any consent in relation to a restriction imposed by, section 33 of the M5Coal Act 1938,

(d)any such right as is referred to in section 34(1) of the Coal Act 1938 (statutory rights of the Crown, local authorities, statutory undertakers, and other persons to restrict the withdrawal of support etc.),

and in paragraph (a) above “coal owner” means the person in whom the fee simple in the coal in question was for the time being vested.

(9)Nothing in this section shall confer on the [F4Corporation] any right to withdraw support in connection with the working of coal or mines of coal comprised in the land specified in section 43(1) of the Coal Act 1938 (land in the Forest of Dean, etc. in which the privileges of free miners are exercisable).

(10)The following provisions of the M6Coal Act 1938 shall have effect as if the preceding provisions of this section and Schedule 1 to this Act were included in Part I of that Act, namely,—

(a)section 42 (application of Part I to Crown and Duchy land);

(b)section 44 (interpretation of Part I);

(c)section 45 (application of Part I to Scotland); and

(d)section 55 (service of notices etc.).

3 Right of [F6Corporation] to work coal in former copyhold land.E+W

(1)Notwithstanding anything in section 5(6) of the M7Coal Act 1938 (interests of former copyholders which were preserved after enfranchisement to be retained interests) where any coal or a mine of coal vested in the [F6Corporation] is comprised in or lies under land—

(a)which was formerly copyhold, and

(b)which is comprised in an area specified in a notice under this section,

the [F6Corporation] shall have the like right to work that coal or, for any coal-mining purpose, to use that mine as if they had acquired all retained interests subsisting in that coal or mine immediately before the commencement of this Act.

(2)Before exercising their rights under subsection (1) above with respect to land in any area the [F6Corporation] shall publish notice of their intention to do so—

(a)in the London Gazette, and

(b)on two successive weeks in such newspapers circulating in the area concerned as appear to the [F6Corporation] to be desirable for giving adequate publicity to their intention.

(3)Every notice under subsection (2) above—

(a)shall indicate the area of land to which it relates either by reference to a map or in such other manner as appears to the [F6Corporation] to be appropriate in the circumstances of the case;

(b)shall invite the owners of retained interests in coal or any mine of coal comprised in or lying under land in that area to give notice of their interests to the [F6Corporation] within the period of twelve years beginning with the date on which the notice under subsection (2) above is first published; and

(c)shall contain such other particulars as may be prescribed.

(4)Where the [F6Corporation]—

(a)have published a notice under subsection (2) above, and

(b)have been given notice of a retained interest as mentioned in subsection (3)(b) above, and

(c)have begun to exercise the right conferred on them by subsection (1) above in relation to any coal or a mine of coal comprised in or lying under any land in which the retained interest subsists,

then, in respect of that interest, the [F6Corporation] shall pay compensation calculated by reference to the consideration which, on the date on which they began to exercise the right referred to in paragraph (c) above, would have been appropriate, as between a willing grantor and a willing grantee, on a conveyance of that interest to the [F6Corporation]; and any dispute as to the amount of compensation payable by the [F6Corporation] by virtue of this subsection shall be determined by the Lands Tribunal.

(5)Schedule 2 to this Act shall have effect for supplementing the provisions of this section.

(6)Where compensation is payable to any person under subsection (4) above there shall be paid to him, in addition to the compensation, any reasonable valuation expenses incurred by him for the purpose of ascertaining the value, at the date referred to in subsection (4) above, of the retained interest to which the compensation relates, but this subsection is without prejudice to the powers of the Lands Tribunal in respect of the costs of proceedings before the Tribunal by virtue of subsection (4) above.

(7)Subject to paragraph 9 of Schedule 2 to this Act, the service of a notice under subsection (2) above shall not prevent the [F6Corporation] from acquiring by agreement any retained interest in coal or a mine of coal comprised in or lying under land in the area to which the notice relates.

(8)If, by virtue of an order under section 1 of the M8Mines (Working Facilities and Support) Act 1966 or of any agreement, the Board are entitled immediately before the commencement of this Act to work any coal or to use any mine of coal in which a retained interest subsists at that time, then, if and so long as the [F6Corporation] continue on and after the commencement of this Act to be so entitled, nothing in the preceding provisions of this section shall apply with respect to that coal or mine of coal or to any retained interest therein; and accordingly—

(a)in so far as any notice which is published under subsection (2) above at a time when the [F6Corporation] are so entitled specifies an area which includes the land in or under which that coal or mine of coal is comprised or lies, so much of that land as consists of that coal or mine of coal shall be deemed to be excluded from that area; and

(b)in so far as notice of a retained interest which is given as mentioned in subsection (3)(b) above at a time when the [F6Corporation] are so entitled relates to a retained interest in any land in or under which that coal or mine of coal is comprised or lies, for the purposes of determining the amount of any compensation payable under subsection (4) above, that interest shall be treated as not subsisting in that coal or mine of coal.

(9)In this section and Schedule 2 to this Act “prescribed” means prescribed by the Secretary of State by regulations made by statutory instrument; and a statutory instrument containing any such regulations shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(10)Section 42 of the M9Coal Act 1938 (application of Part I to Crown and Duchy Land) and, except in so far as it defines “prescribed”, section 44 of that Act (interpretation of Part I) shall have effect as if the preceding provisions of this section and Schedule 2 to this Act were included in Part I of that Act.

4 Compulsory acquisition of rights over land for opencast operations.E+W+S

(1)For subsections (1) to (4) of section 4 of the M10Opencast Coal Act 1958 (which provided for the making, within the period of ten years beginning with the commencement of that Act, of compulsory rights orders known as “opencast site orders” and “storage site orders”) there shall be substituted the following subsections:—

“(1)For the purpose of facilitating the working of coal by opencast operations, the [F7Corporation] may, by means of an order (in this Act referred to as a “compulsory rights order”) made by the [F7Corporation] and confirmed by the Secretary of State, compulsorily acquire, in accordance with the following provisions of this Act, temporary rights of occupation and use of the whole or part of the land comprised in an authorisation under section 1 of this Act.

(2)Subject to the provisions of Part III of this Act as to the variation of orders, the period for which a compulsory rights order has effect shall be a period—

(a)beginning with the date on which the order becomes operative (in this Act referred to as “the operative date”), and

(b)of such duration, not exceeding twenty years, as may be specified in the order.”

(2)In consequence of the provisions of subsection (1) above, the M11Opencast Coal Act 1958 shall have effect subject to the amendments in Schedule 3 to this Act.

5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F8E+W+S

6 Additional compensation on re-occupation after opencast working.E+W+S

(1)After section 23 of the Opencast Coal Act 1958 there shall be inserted the following section:—

“23A Additional compensation on re-occupation.

(1)Subject to the following provisions of this section, with a view to furthering the resumption of agriculture on land formerly comprised in a compulsory rights order, a person shall be entitled to compensation by virtue of this section in respect of a holding to which section 21 of this Act applies if he is in occupation of the holding at the end of the period of occupation or if he enters into occupation of the holding at or after the end of that period, provided that he is occupying the holding or (as the case may be) he enters into occupation of the holding wholly or mainly for the purposes of agriculture carried on by way of a trade or business.

(2)No compensation shall be payable to a person by virtue of this section unless he is either the person who, immediately before the operative date of the compulsory rights order, was entitled to occupy the holding (in this subsection referred to as “the original occupier”) or a person who, before the end of the period of occupation, became entitled to the relevant interest in the holding in accordance with the disposition of, the original occupier’s estate effected by his will, or the law relating to intestacy, or the combination of his will and that law.

(3)In subsection (2) above—

“the relevant interest”, in relation to any person, means the interest by virtue of which he became entitled to occupy the holding (or would have become so entitled if the compulsory rights order had not been made); and

“will” includes a codicil.

(4)The compensation payable in respect of a holding by virtue of this section shall be payable by the [F9Corporation] and, subject to the following provisions of this section, shall be an amount equal to the compensation payable in respect of that holding under sections 18 and 19 of this Act for the last twelve months of the period of occupation.

(5)Subject to the following provisions of this section, in any case where the compensation last payable in respect of a holding under sections 18 and 19 was in fact payable by reference to a period of less than twelve months, the compensation payable in respect of that holding by virtue of this section shall be an amount equal to the compensation which was so payable under sections 18 and 19, multiplied by the fraction of which the numerator is 365 and the denominator is the number of days in the period by reference to which the compensation was so payable under those sections.

(6)Where the person entitled, immediately after the end of the period of occupation, to occupy the holding concerned ceases, before he enters into occupation, to be entitled to occupy some part of it then, subject to subsection (7) below,—

(a)his entry into occupation of the part which he remains entitled to occupy shall be treated for the purposes of subsection (1) above as entry into occupation of the holding ; but

(b)the compensation payable to him by virtue of this section shall be such proportion of the compensation which would have been so payable had he remained entitled to enter into occupation of the whole of the holding as is properly attributable to the part of the holding which he remains entitled to occupy.

(7)If, immediately before the end of the period of occupation, only part of the holding concerned (in this subsection referred to as “the compensatable portion”) was comprised in the compulsory rights order and (after the end of the period of occupation) subsection (6) above applies, then—

(a)if the part of the holding which the person concerned ceased to be entitled to occupy comprises the whole of the compensatable portion, no compensation shall be payable to him by virtue of this section ;

(b)if the person concerned remains entitled to occupy the whole of the compensatable portion, the compensation so payable to him shall not be reduced under paragraph (b) of subsection (6) above ; and

(c)in any other case, for the purpose of determining the proportion of the compensation properly attributable to any part of the holding under paragraph (b) of subsection (6) above, the holding shall be treated as consisting of the compensatable portion only.”

(2)In section 35 of the M12Opencast Coal Act 1958 (time when compensation accrues due) after subsection (4) there shall be inserted the following subsection:—

“(4A)Any compensation payable under section 23A of this Act shall accrue due on the date when the person entitled to compensation enters into occupation, if after the end of the period of occupation, and at the end of the period of occupation in any other case.”

(3)In Schedule 6 to that Act (application of compensation provisions to special cases), after paragraph 4 there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“4AWhere a compulsory rights order comprises the whole or part of a holding to which section 21 of this Act applies, and at the end of the period of occupation one person is entitled to occupy part of that holding and another person is entitled to occupy another part of that holding, each of those parts of the holding shall be treated for the purposes of section 23A of this Act as if it were a separate holding, and were a holding to which section 21 of this Act applied.”

7 Savings, transitional provisions and repeals.E+W+S

(1)Without prejudice to the operation of [F10sections 16(1) and 17(2)(a) of the M13Interpretation Act 1978] (effect of repeals) nothing in this Act shall affect the continued operation of any enactment repealed by this Act in relation to a case where, after the commencement of this Act, damage is caused to land by the working of coal, within the meaning of the M14Coal Act 1938 before that commencement in exercise of a right to withdraw support then in existence.

(2)If, in a case where subsection (6) of section 2 of this Act applies,—

(a)notification of a proposal to construct any buildings or works has been given under paragraph 6(3)(a) of Schedule 2 to the M15Coal Act 1938 and

(b)the construction of those buildings or works has not been completed (whether or not it has been begun) before the commencement of this Act, and

(c)paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to this Act does not apply,

paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to this Act shall apply in relation to those buildings or works (whether or not their construction is begun before the commencement of this Act), as if this Act had come into operation immediately before the giving of the notification and, accordingly, as if the notification given and any request made or other thing done in relation to those buildings or works under paragraph 6(3) of Schedule 2 to the M16Coal Act 1938 had been given, made or done under the corresponding provision of paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to this Act.

(3)Nothing in this Act shall affect the operation of section 3 of—

(a)the M17Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) Act 1946, or

(b)the M18Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) (Scotland) Act 1947,

in any case where an order under that section was made, or notice of such an order was published, before the commencement of this Act.

(4)The enactments specified in Schedule 5 to this Act are hereby repealed to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.

8 Short title, commencement and extent.E+W+S

(1)This Act may be cited as the Coal Industry Act 1975.

(2)This Act shall come into operation at the expiry of the period of one month beginning with the day on which it is passed.

(3)Section 3 of this Act does not extend to Scotland.

(4)This Act does not extend to Northern Ireland.