1Pension schemes for employees of certain agricultural institutions and colleges.

(1)The Agricultural Research Council may with the approval of the Minister for Science make a scheme or schemes, and the Secretary of State and the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food may each make a scheme or schemes, providing for the payment by the authority who made the scheme, in such circumstances as may be specified by the scheme, of pensions, gratuities and other benefits to and in respect of persons, or any class or description of persons, employed—

(a)in the case of a scheme made by the Council, at an institution or department of an institution which has been established or developed by the Council or which, in the opinion of the Council, is wholly or mainly maintained by grants made by the Council;

(b)in the case of a scheme made by the Secretary of State, at an agricultural research institution or agricultural college in Scotland which, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, is wholly or mainly maintained by grants made by him;

(c)in the case of a scheme made by the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, at the National Institute of Agricultural Botany;

and a scheme shall provide for the payment of contributions to the said authority by persons so employed who participate in the scheme.

(2)Any sums paid by or to the Council in pursuance of a scheme under this section shall be paid out of or, as the case may be, into the Agricultural Research Fund, and there shall also be paid into the Fund such moneys as may be provided by Parliament for the purpose of defraying the whole or part of the payments made out of the Fund by virtue of this Act; and any sums paid by or to the Secretary of State or the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food in pursuance of a scheme under this section shall be defrayed out of moneys provided by Parliament or, as the case may be, shall be paid into the Exchequer.

(3)Nothing in this section shall prejudice any power conferred by the Council's charter as for the time being in force, or any pension scheme made under such a power.

2Citation and extent.

(1)This Act may be cited as the Agricultural Research etc. (Pensions) Act, 1961, and may be cited together with the [4 & 5 Eliz. 2. c. 28.] Agricultural Research Act, 1956, as the Agricultural Research Acts, 1956 and 1961.

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