Local Government and Planning (Scotland) Act 1982

MiscellaneousS

49 Power of local authority to make an advance for the acquisition of land or erection of buildings. S

In section 7 of the M1Local Government (Development and Finance) (Scotland) Act 1964 (which empowers a local authority to make an advance for the erection of a building on land sold, feued or let by them)—

(a)for subsection (1) there shall be substituted the following subsection—

“(1)Where a local authority are satisfied that it would be for the benefit or improvement of their area, they may, subject to the provisions of this section, advance money to any person for the purpose of enabling him either—

(a)to acquire land ; or

(b)to erect any building or carry out any work on land.”; and

(b)for subsection (3) there shall be substituted the following subsection—

“(3)The amount of the principal of an advance shall not exceed nine-tenths of—

(a)where the advance is made under subsection (1)(a) above, the value of the land ; or

(b)where the advance is made under subsection (1)(b) above, the value which it is estimated will be the value of the land on the completion of the building, or as the case may be works,

in respect of which the advance is made.”.

50 Power of local authority incur expenditure for certain purposes not otherwise authorised.S

In section 83 of the 1973 Act (which gives local authorities power to incur expenditure for certain purposes not otherwise authorised, but limits the expenditure which it authorises)—

(a)the following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (2)—

“(2A)Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1) above, the power of a local authority to incur expenditure under that subsection includes power to incur expenditure in giving financial assistance to persons carrying on commercial or industrial undertakings.

(2B)Financial assistance under subsection (2A) above may be given by lending or guarantee, or by making grants.” ;

(b)the following subsections shall be inserted after subsection (4)—

“(4A)For the purpose of determining whether a local authority have exceeded the limit set out in subsection (4) above, their expenditure in any financial year under this section shall be taken to be the difference between their gross expenditure under this section for that year and the aggregate of the amounts specified in subsection (4B) below.

(4B)The amounts mentioned in subsection (4A) above are—

(a)any grant paid to the local authority for that year under the Local Government Grants (Social Need) Act 1969, in so far as the grant is in respect of an activity in relation to which the authority have incurred expenditure in that year under this section ;

(b)the amount of any repayment in that year of the principal of a loan for the purpose of financing expenditure under this section in any year ;

(c)so much of any amount raised by public subscription as is spent in that year for a purpose for which the authority are authorised by this section to incur expenditure ;

(d)any grant received by the authority for that year out of the European Regional Development Fund or the Social Fund of the European Economic Community, in so far as the grant is in respect of an activity in relation to which the authority incurred expenditure in that year under this section ;

(e)the amount of any repayment in that year of a loan under this section made by the authority in any year ; and

(f)the amount of any expenditure—

(i)which is incurred by the authority in that year in circumstances specified in an order made by the Secretary of State ; or

(ii)which is incurred by the authority in that year and is of a description so specified ; or

(iii)which is defrayed by any grant or other payment to the authority which is made in or in respect of that year and is of a description so specified.” ; and

F1(c). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

51—55.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2S

F356. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .S

57 Liability of water authorities etc. for damage caused by escapes of water onto agricultural or forestry land. S

In section 10 of the Water (Scotland) Act 1980 (which among other things provides that compensation is to be made by a water authority to a person sustaining damage by reason of their exercise of certain statutory powers)—

(a)after subsection (1) there shall be inserted the following subsection—

“(1A)The escape of water, however caused, onto agricultural land or forestry land from one of a water authority’s or as the case may be water development board’s communication pipes or mains shall for the purposes of subsection (1) above be taken to have been brought about by the exercise by them of powers under this Act.” ; and

(b)after subsection (4) there shall be inserted the following subsections—

“(5)Without prejudice to any right to compensation other than under subsection (1) above, in that subsection “person” does not, as regards compensation payable under that subsection by virtue of subsection (1A) above, include—

(a)statutory undertakers as defined in section 275(1) of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1972 ;

(b)highway authorities as defined in section 50(1) of the Roads (Scotland) Act 1970 ;

(c)bridge authorities or managers as defined in section 39(1) of the Public Utilities Street Works Act 1950 ;

(d)street authorities or managers as defined in the said section 39(1) ; or

(e)persons on whom a right to compensation under section 26 of the said Act of 1950 is conferred.

(6)In subsection (1A) above, the expressions “agricultural land” and “forestry land” mean land (but not any building) used, respectively, for agriculture or for forestry which is so used for the purposes of a trade or business and in the foregoing provisions of this subsection “agriculture” has the meaning assigned to it by section 86(3) of the Agriculture (Scotland) Act 1948 and “forestry” means the growing of woods and forests for the production of timber and other forest products and the growing of trees for planting in such woods and forests.”.

58 Power of water authority to require seperate service pipes in cases of interference with water supply. S

In paragraph 7(5) of Schedule 3 to the M2Water (Scotland) Act 1980 (the which Schedule makes provision among other things as regards the laying of communication and supply pipes)—

(a)the word “either” shall cease to have effect ; and

(b)at the end there shall be added the words— “; or

(c)the owner or occupier of any of the houses has interfered with, or allowed another person to interfere with, the existing service pipe or the stopcock fixed to that pipe and has thereby caused the supply of water to any of the houses to be interfered with ; or

(d)the authority have reasonable grounds to believe that such interference as is mentioned in (c) above is likely to take place.”.

59 Exemption from charges for water for fire fighting. S

After section 9 of the Water (Scotland) Act 1980 there shall be added the following section—

Without prejudice to any provision relating to domestic water rate but notwithstanding anything in section 9 or 49 of this Act, no charge may be made by a water authority in respect of—

(a)water taken for the purposes of extinguishing fires or of testing apparatus installed, or equipment used, for extinguishing fires ; or

(b)the availability of water for the said purposes:

Provided that nothing in this section shall prevent the making of charges in respect of work carried out at the request of or for the benefit of any person receiving a supply of water for the said purposes.”.

60 Approved duties of councillors and allowances in respect thereof.S

(1)Under the M31973 Act, members of local authorities who are councillors shall, in respect of the performance of approved duties, have the right to decide whether to receive attendance allowance or financial loss allowance; and accordingly—

(a)in subsection (1) of section 45 of that Act (the which subsection relates to entitlement to attendance allowance) after the word “shall” there shall be inserted the words “, (unless a notice under section 45A of this Act is effective in relation to him), ”; and

(b)after the said section 45 there shall be inserted the following section—

“45A Right of councillor to opt for financial loss allowance.

If a councillor gives notice in writing to the local authority of which he is to receive financial loss allowance, he shall be entitled, subject to and in accordance with the provisions of any payment by way of attendance allowance to which he would otherwise be entitle.”

(2)In subsection (2) of section 49 of the 1973 Act (the which subsection relates to the interpretation of the expression “approved duty”)—

(a)after the words “45,” there shall be inserted the words “45A, ” ;

(b)in paragraph (a), the words “, or of any of its committees or sub-committees” shall cease to have effect ; and

(c)after paragraph (a) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—

“(aa)attendance at a meeting of a committee, or sub-committee, of the body if such attendance is—

(i)as a member of ;

(ii)at the invitation of ; or

(iii)expressly authorised by,

the committee or, as the case may be, sub-committee or is at the invitation of, or expressly authorised by, the body ;”.

61 Abolition of Amenity Committee.S

The Amenity Committee appointed under subsection (2) of section 9 of the M4Hydro-Electric Development (Scotland) Act 1943 (a subsection which among other things provided that the Secretary of State was to appoint such a committee for the purpose of giving advice and assistance to him and to the Scottish Electricity Boards and which is re-enacted as subsection (2) of section 5 of the M5Electricity (Scotland) Act 1979) is hereby abolished.

62 Abolition of Staff Commission for Scotland.S

The Staff Commission for Scotland is hereby abolished; and accordingly, in the 1973 Act, section 218 (which relates to the establishment, functions, procedure and expenses of that Commission) shall cease to have effect.

63 Abolition of Property Commission for Scotland.S

The Property Commission for Scotland is hereby abolished; and accordingly, in the 1973 Act, in section 224 (which relates among other things to the establishment and functions of that Commission) subsections (1) to (4), and in subsection (6) the words “this section and in”, shall cease to have effect.