Office of Public Sector Information
(1) There shall be established—
(a) a body, to be known as the East of Scotland Water Authority, which, as from 1st April 1996, shall be—
(i) the water authority for the eastern water area; and
(ii) the sewerage authority for the eastern sewerage area;
(b) a body, to be known as the West of Scotland Water Authority, which, as from that date, shall be—
(i) the water authority for the western water area; and
(ii) the sewerage authority for the western sewerage area; and
(c) a body, to be known as the North of Scotland Water Authority, which, as from that date, shall be—
(i) the water authority for the northern water area; and
(ii) the sewerage authority for the northern sewerage area;
but any reference in any enactment, including this Act, to water authorities generally, shall not be taken to include a reference to any of the above bodies as sewerage authority.
(2) Schedule 7 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the constitution and proceedings of, and other matters relating to, each of the bodies established by subsection (1) above (those bodies being, in this Act, collectively referred to as the “new water and sewerage authorities”).
(3) The water areas and sewerage areas mentioned in subsection (1) above and in column 1 of Schedule 8 to this Act comprise the areas for the time being respectively described in column 2 of that Schedule.
(1) Subject to subsection (4) below, the Secretary of State may from time to time by order amend column 2 of Schedule 8 to this Act so as to alter water areas or sewerage areas of the new water and sewerage authorities.
(2) A statutory instrument containing an order under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(3) An order under this section may include such incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as the Secretary of State may consider necessary or expedient for the purposes of the order.
(4) Before making an order under this section the Secretary of State shall prepare a draft of the order, shall consult with every new water and sewerage authority whose area would be altered by the order and with the Customers Council and shall publish in the Edinburgh Gazette, and in one or more local newspapers circulating in the geographical area affected by the order, a notice—
(a) stating the general effect of the order;
(b) specifying the places where copies of the draft order, and of any maps relating to it, may be inspected, free of charge and at all reasonable times, during a period of not less than twenty-eight days which begins with the date on which the notice is so published; and
(c) stating that any person affected by the order may within that period, by intimation in writing to the Secretary of State, object to the proposed making of the order.
(5) The Secretary of State shall serve a copy of a notice published under subsection (4) above on every body which he has, in accordance with that subsection, consulted.
(6) The Secretary of State shall have regard to any objection made by virtue of subsection (4)(c) above and timeously received; and he may then proceed to make the order, either in the form of the draft order or as amended by him.
(7) For the purposes of subsection (6) above, an objection is timeously received if received by the end of the specified period of not less than twenty-eight days which begins with the latest date on which is published an issue of the Edinburgh Gazette, or of a local newspaper, in which the notice mentioned in subsection (4) above appears by virtue of that subsection.
(1) The Secretary of State shall, as soon as is practicable after—
(a) the coming into force of section 62(3) of, and Schedule 8 to, this Act, send to each of the new water and sewerage authorities a map of their water area and of their sewerage area, both as described in column 2 of that Schedule;
(b) making an order under section 63 of this Act altering water areas or sewerage areas, send to each of the new water and sewerage authorities of the areas altered a map of their water area, or as the case may be their sewerage area, as so altered.
(2) Any map which is sent to an authority under subsection (1) above shall, until superseded by a map subsequently sent under that subsection, be kept at the principal office of the authority; and the authority shall provide reasonable facilities for inspection of the map by any person and shall permit a copy of it, or of an extract of it, to be taken by a person on his paying such reasonable amount as the authority may determine.
(1) For section 1 of the 1980 Act (which imposes on the Secretary of State certain duties as respects water conservation and supply) there shall be substituted—
It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State and of the water authorities when exercising their respective functions or powers under or by virtue of this Act—
(a) to promote the conservation and effective use of the water resources of, and the provision of adequate water supplies throughout, Scotland; and
(b) to secure the collection, preparation, publication and dissemination of information and statistics relating to such resources and supplies.”.
(2) It shall be the duty of the Secretary of State and of the new water and sewerage authorities when exercising their respective functions or powers under or by virtue of this Act, the 1968 Act or the 1980 Act—
(a) to have regard to the interests of every person who is a customer or potential customer of any such authority and especially of such of those persons as—
(i) are likely, by reason of some persistent medical condition or of family circumstances, to require to have a much greater supply of water, or to make much greater use of facilities for the disposal of sewage, than might ordinarily have been expected; or
(ii) are ordinarily resident in some rural part of Scotland;
(b) to further, so far as may be consistent with the purposes of any enactment relating to their respective functions (whether or not functions under or by virtue of this Act, the 1968 Act or the 1980 Act)—
(i) the conservation and enhancement of natural beauty and the conservation of flora and fauna; and
(ii) the conservation of geological or physiographical features of special interest;
(c) to have regard to the desirability of preserving for the public any freedom of access (including access for recreational purposes) to areas of forest, woodland, mountains, moor, bog, cliff, foreshore, loch or reservoir and to other places of natural beauty; and
(d) to have regard to the desirability of protecting and conserving—
(i) buildings;
(ii) sites; and
(iii) objects,
of archaeological, architectural or historic interest and of maintaining the availability to the public of any facility for visiting or inspecting any such building, site or object.
(1) A new water and sewerage authority shall draft a code of practice which shall make provision—
(a) as to their standards of performance in providing services to their customers;
(b) for procedures for dealing with complaints by their customers or their potential or former customers;
(c) as respects the circumstances in which they will pay compensation if or in so far as those standards are not attained; and
(d) as respects such matters as are incidental to the provision made under paragraphs (a) to (c) above;
and the code may include such supplemental provisions as appear to the authority to be appropriate.
(2) A code drafted by an authority under subsection (1) above shall be sent by them to the Customers Council no later than the date on which they first, under subsection (4)(a) of section 76 of this Act, send a draft charges scheme to the Council; and subsections (4) to (6) of the said section 76 shall apply as respects any such draft code of practice as they apply to any such draft charges scheme.
(3) The authority shall endeavour to comply with their code of practice as for the time being approved by virtue of this section; but contravention of that code shall not of itself give rise to any criminal or civil liability.
(4) Subject to subsection (1) above, the authority may from time to time—
(a) vary; or
(b) revoke and replace,
their code of practice as so approved; and the varied or new code shall be sent forthwith by them in draft to the Customers Council.
(5) Subsections (4) to (6) of section 76 of this Act shall apply as respects a draft sent under subsection (4) above as they apply, by virtue of subsection (2) above, to a draft sent under the said subsection (2).
(6) The authority shall take such steps as appear to them appropriate to inform customers and potential or former customers of the contents for the time being of their code approved by virtue of this section.
(1) There shall be established a body to be known as the Scottish Water and Sewerage Customers Council (in this Part of this Act referred to as “the Customers Council”) for the purpose of representing the interests of customers and potential or former customers of the new water and sewerage authorities.
(2) Schedule 9 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the constitution and proceedings of, and other matters relating to, the Customers Council.
(1) For the purpose mentioned in section 67(1) of this Act, the Customers Council shall—
(a) keep under review all matters appearing to it to affect the interests of customers or potential or former customers of the new water and sewerage authorities;
(b) consult each authority about such of those matters as appear to affect the interests of the customers or potential or former customers of that authority; and
(c) make such representations as it considers appropriate to those authorities, or as the case may be to that authority, about any such matter.
(2) The Customers Council shall investigate any complaint made to it by a customer or potential or former customer of a new water and sewerage authority, as respects a function of that authority (whether as water authority or as sewerage authority), unless it appears to the Council that the complaint is vexatious or frivolous.
(3) Without prejudice to subsection (1)(c) above, where the Customers Council considers it appropriate to do so in connection with a complaint investigated by it under subsection (2) above, it shall make representations on behalf of the complainer to the authority in question about any matter—
(a) to which the complaint relates; or
(b) which appears to the Council to be relevant to the subject matter of the complaint.
(4) The Customers Council shall advise the Secretary of State on any matter which appears to the Council, or to him, to relate to—
(a) the standard of service provided by a new water and sewerage authority to their customers; or
(b) the manner in which any such authority conduct their relations with their customers or potential or former customers.
(5) The Customers Council shall have power to do anything which is calculated to facilitate, or is incidental or conducive to, the performance of any of its functions under this Act; and without prejudice to that generality, or to section 70(2) of this Act, may make such arrangements as it thinks fit to inform customers and potential or former customers of the new water and sewerage authorities about matters affecting, or likely to affect, their interests.
A new water and sewerage authority shall, on being requested to do so by the Customers Council, supply the Council with such information held by them as it may reasonably seek in the exercise of its functions under this Act; but where the authority and the Council cannot agree as to whether the information is sought reasonably, either of them may refer the matter to the Secretary of State, whose determination in that regard shall be final.
(1) Without prejudice to subsection (3) below, the Customers Council shall, as soon as practicable after the end of each financial year, make to the Secretary of State a report on its activities during that financial year; but no such report shall be required in respect of any financial year ending before 31st March 1997.
(2) The Customers Council shall arrange for the report to be published in such manner as it considers appropriate.
(3) The Customers Council shall furnish the Secretary of State with such information regarding the exercise, or proposed exercise, of its functions under this Act as he may from time to time require.
(1) The Secretary of State may, to such extent as may be approved by the Treasury, defray or contribute towards the expenses of the Customers Council.
(2) Any sums required by the Secretary of State for the purposes of subsection (1) above shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.
(3) A new water and sewerage authority shall contribute towards the expenses of the Customers Council by making payments of such amounts, and at such times, to the Council as the Secretary of State may direct.
In section 11(3) of the [1980 c. 21.] Competition Act 1980 (entities as respects which references may be made to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission), after paragraph (c) there shall be inserted the following paragraph—
“(cc) the new water and sewerage authorities, within the meaning of the Local Government etc. (Scotland) Act 1994;”.
(1) Where an area of land (“the relevant land”)—
(a) has been designated under section 6(2) of the [1991 c. 28.] Natural Heritage (Scotland) Act 1991 (“the 1991 Act”) as a Natural Heritage Area; or
(b) is, in the opinion of Scottish Natural Heritage (“the environmental authority”), of special interest by reason of its flora, fauna or geological or physiographical features,
and the environmental authority consider that it may at any time be affected by schemes, works, operations or activities of a new water and sewerage authority (“the relevant authority”), the environmental authority shall by written notice advise the relevant authority that they so consider; but they shall forthwith notify the relevant authority of any cancellation or variation, under section 6(7) of the 1991 Act, of the designation or if they cease to be of the opinion mentioned in paragraph (b) above.
(2) Where the relevant authority intend to carry out any scheme, work, operation or activity which appears to them likely to, as the case may be—
(a) prejudice significantly the value of the relevant land, or any part of it, as a Natural Heritage Area (the designation mentioned in subsection (1)(a) above not having been cancelled or so varied as no longer to apply to the part in question); or
(b) destroy or damage any of the flora, fauna or features, by reference to which the environmental authority formulated their opinion under subsection (1)(b) above as respects the special interest of the relevant land (notification of their ceasing to be of that opinion not having been given),
the relevant authority shall consult with the environmental authority before commencing the scheme, work, operation or activity.
(3) Subsection (2) above shall not apply in relation to anything done by the relevant authority in an emergency if particulars of what is done and of the emergency are notified by them to the environmental authority as soon as is practicable after the thing is done.
(4) Any expression not defined in this Act but used both in this section and in the 1991 Act, shall be construed in accordance with that Act.
(1) Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act and of sections 9A and 47 of the 1980 Act (no charge for water in certain cases), the powers of a new water and sewerage authority shall include power—
(a) to fix charges for any services provided in the course of carrying out their functions; and
(b) to demand and recover charges fixed under this section from any person to whom they provide services.
(2) The powers conferred by subsection (1) above shall be exercisable—
(a) by or in accordance with a charges scheme under section 76 of this Act; or
(b) by or in accordance with an agreement with the person to be charged.
(3) Subject to the provisions of this Part of this Act, a new water and sewerage authority may fix charges under this section by reference to such matters, and may adopt such methods and principles for the calculation and imposition of the charges, as appear to them to be appropriate.
(4) Nothing in this Part of this Act shall entitle a new water and sewerage authority to fix, demand or recover a charge for—
(a) under subsection (2) of section 6 of the 1980 Act (duty to provide water supply), taking pipes; or
(b) under subsection (2)(a) of section 1 of the 1968 Act (duty to provide sewerage), taking public sewers,
to the point or points mentioned in the subsection in question.
(5) A new water and sewerage authority exercising their powers under subsection (1) above by entering into such agreements as are mentioned in subsection (2)(b) above shall endeavour to ensure that no undue preference is shown, and that there is no undue discrimination, in determining the conditions of those agreements.
(6) Nothing in subsections (1) to (3) above or in any charges scheme under section 76 of this Act shall affect any power of a new water and sewerage authority to fix charges under any power conferred otherwise than under or by virtue of this Part of this Act.
(1) The Secretary of State may from time to time by order fix maximum charges which a person who is not a new water and sewerage authority may recover from another such person in respect of the supply of water to, the provision of sewerage to, or the disposal of sewage for that other person with the help of services provided by any such authority.
(2) For the purposes of this section, water is supplied to, sewerage provided to, or sewage disposed of for a person with the help of services provided by an authority if—
(a) a facility for that person to have access to a supply of water provided by the authority, as water authority, in pipes, or to make use of sewerage which is, or facilities for the disposal of sewage which are, provided by the authority as sewerage authority, is made available to that person otherwise than by the authority;
(b) that person is provided with a supply of water in pipes by a person to whom the water is supplied, directly or indirectly, by the authority as water authority; or
(c) that person is provided with sewerage, or with facilities for the disposal of sewage, by a person who, for the purposes of providing the sewerage or facilities, makes use of sewerage or of such facilities provided, directly or indirectly, by the authority as sewerage authority.
(3) An order under this section may make different provision in relation to different persons, circumstances or localities and may fix a maximum charge either by specifying the maximum amount of the charge or by specifying a method of calculating that amount.
(4) Where a person pays a charge in respect of anything to which an order under this section relates and the amount paid exceeds the maximum charge fixed by the order, the amount of the excess shall be recoverable by that person from the person to whom he paid the charge.
(5) A statutory instrument containing an order under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(1) A new water and sewerage authority may, in accordance with this section, make a scheme (in this Part of this Act referred to as a “charges scheme”) which (either or both)—
(a) fixes the charges to be paid for any relevant services provided by them;
(b) makes provision with respect to the times and methods of payment of the charges fixed by the scheme.
(2) Services are relevant for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) above if they are provided by the authority in the course of carrying out their functions and are not services as respects which conditions as to payment may be imposed under section 29(3)(j) of the 1968 Act (conditions relating to the reception, treatment and disposal of trade effluent).
(3) A charges scheme may—
(a) make different provision for different cases, or classes of case, including different provision in relation to different circumstances or localities;
(b) contain supplemental, consequential and transitional provisions for the purposes of the scheme;
(c) revoke or amend a previous charges scheme.
(4) A charges scheme shall not come into force before—
(a) it has been sent in draft to, and approved by, the Customers Council, such approval being to the scheme having effect either—
(i) without modifications; or
(ii) with such modifications as, after consulting with and obtaining the agreement of the authority, the Council thinks fit to make; or
(b) where the Council is not prepared to give approval under paragraph (a) above, or cannot obtain the agreement of the authority to some or all of the modifications which it would make under sub-paragraph (ii) of that paragraph, the draft (with any modifications to it which may have been agreed between the Council and the authority) has been sent by the Council to, and approved by, the Secretary of State, such approval being to the scheme having effect either—
(i) without modifications (or further modifications); or
(ii) with such modifications as, after consulting with the Council and the authority, he thinks fit to make,
and the scheme shall have effect accordingly.
(5) Where three months have elapsed since the Customers Council has received a charges scheme in draft by virtue of paragraph (a) of subsection (4) above and the Council has neither given approval under that paragraph nor sent the draft to the Secretary of State under paragraph (b) of that subsection, the new water and sewerage authority which made the scheme may require the Council so to send it to him.
(6) Where, under—
(a) paragraph (a) of subsection (4) above, the Customers Council gives approval to a charges scheme it shall send a copy of the scheme as so approved to the Secretary of State;
(b) paragraph (b) of that subsection, the Secretary of State gives approval to such a scheme he shall send a copy of the scheme as so approved to the Council.
(7) A new water and sewerage authority in making a charges scheme, and the Customers Council and the Secretary of State in considering whether to give approval to such a scheme, shall endeavour to ensure that no undue preference is shown, and that there is no undue discrimination, in the fixing of charges.
(8) Nothing in any charges scheme shall affect any power of a new water and sewerage authority to enter into such an agreement with any person in any particular case as determines the charges to be made for the services provided to that person by them.
A new water and sewerage authority shall, on a charges scheme made by them being approved under section 76(4) of this Act—
(a) provide, at such offices of the authority, and at such other places, as the authority think fit, reasonable facilities—
(i) for inspection of the scheme by any person; and
(ii) for any person to take a copy of the scheme, or of an extract of it, on his paying such reasonable amount as the authority may determine; and
(b) advertise those facilities, and publish such summary of the scheme as appears to them to be appropriate, in at least one newspaper circulating in their water and sewerage areas.
(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section and except in so far as provision to the contrary is made by any agreement to which a new water and sewerage authority are a party—
(a) supplies of water provided by them shall be treated for the purposes of this Part of this Act as services provided to the occupier for the time being of any premises supplied; and
(b) the provision of sewerage, and the disposal of sewage, provided by them shall be treated for such purposes as provision to, or as disposal for, the occupier for the time being of any premises which—
(i) are drained by a sewer or drain connecting, either directly or through an intermediate sewer or drain, with such a public sewer of the authority as is provided for foul water or surface water or both; or
(ii) are premises the occupier of which has, in respect of the premises, the benefit of facilities which drain to a sewer or drain so connecting;
and such supply of water, provision of sewerage or disposal of sewage are referred to in subsection (2) below as “relevant services”.
(2) Subject to subsection (3) below, charges which, under the preceding provisions of this Part of this Act, are fixed in relation to any premises by reference to volume may be imposed so that a person remains liable, in relation to those premises, to pay charges for relevant services provided by a new water and sewerage authority after the person has ceased to be occupier of the premises.
(3) A person shall not be liable by virtue of subsection (2) above for any charges fixed in relation to any premises by a new water and sewerage authority except where—
(a) he fails to inform the authority of the ending of his occupation of the premises at least two working days before he ceases to occupy them; and
(b) the charges are in respect of a period ending no later than with the first relevant day.
(4) In paragraph (b) of subsection (3) above, “the first relevant day” means whichever of the following first occurs after the person ceases to occupy the premises—
(a) where the person informs the authority of the ending of his occupation (but not timeously), the twenty-eighth day after informing the authority;
(b) any day on which any meter would normally have been read in order for the amount of the charges to be determined;
(c) any day on which any other person informs the authority that he has become the new occupier of the premises.
(5) In subsection (3)(a) above, reference to two working days is to a period of forty-eight hours calculated after disregarding any time falling on—
(a) a Saturday or Sunday;
(b) Christmas Day or Good Friday; or
(c) a day which is a bank holiday in Scotland under the [1971 c. 80.] Banking and Financial Dealings Act 1971.
(6) In the application of this section to services which are the subject of a determination under section 79(1)(a) of this Act, references in subsection (1) above to the occupier of premises shall be construed as references to the person liable under or by virtue of sections 75 to 77 of the [1992 c. 14.] Local Government Finance Act 1992 to pay council tax in respect of the premises (“council tax” being construed in accordance with section 70(1) of that Act).
(1) The Secretary of State may by order determine—
(a) that as respects services provided, within a financial year specified in the order, by a new water and sewerage authority (in this section referred to as the “providing authority”) to dwellings within the area of a local authority (in this section and in Schedule 10 to this Act referred to as the “collecting authority”), or within such part of that area as may be so specified, the collecting authority and not the providing authority shall demand and recover charges (other than charges in respect of a supply of water taken by meter) payable for those services under a charges scheme ; and
(b) that the collecting authority shall, at such intervals as may be so specified, make such payments to the providing authority (to whom no other amount shall be payable under the charges scheme for the services provided) as may be so specified or as may be determined in accordance with the provisions of the order.
(2) A statutory instrument containing an order under subsection (1) above shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(3) An order under subsection (1) above may include provision as to—
(a) forms and procedures which the collecting authority shall adopt in demanding payment;
(b) circumstances in which a customer of the providing authority who is aggrieved by a decision or calculation of the collecting authority may appeal—
(i) except in a case specified by virtue of sub-paragraph (ii) below, to a valuation appeal committee (constituted under section 29 of this Act); or
(ii) in a case which the order may specify, to a body constituted under the order (or under a previous such order) to consider appeals as respects any such case;
(c) procedures to be followed in any appeal by virtue of paragraph (b) above;
(d) the provision, for the purposes of this section, of information by the providing authority to the collecting authority; or
(e) the keeping by the collecting authority of accounts and records as respects their functions by virtue of this section and the exhibition of, or of copies of, such accounts and records to the providing authority.
(4) Schedule 10 to this Act shall apply as respects the recovery by diligence of charges payable to a collecting authority by virtue of the foregoing provisions of this section.
(5) In subsection (1)(a) above, “dwelling” has the same meaning as in Part II of the [1992 c. 14.] Local Government Finance Act 1992.
Subsections (1)(b) of section 74 and (1), (3) and (4) of section 79 of this Act are without prejudice to the duties of a new water and sewerage authority under section 6 of the 1980 Act (which include the duty to maintain a supply of wholesome water provided to meet a requirement for domestic purposes) or to the entitlements of any person under section 12 or 13 of the 1968 Act (which include the entitlement of an occupier of premises to drain into public sewers to which the drains or private sewers of the owner of the premises are connected).
(1) The Secretary of State may make regulations as regards any case where—
(a) a person is, under a charges scheme, liable to pay an amount to a new water and sewerage authority or to a local authority; and
(b) conditions prescribed in the regulations are fulfilled.
(2) The regulations may provide that the amount the person is liable to pay shall be an amount which—
(a) is less than the amount it would be but for the regulations; and
(b) is determined in accordance with rules prescribed in the regulations.
(3) The conditions mentioned in subsection (1)(b) above, and the rules referred to in subsection (2)(b) above, may be prescribed by reference to such factors as the Secretary of State thinks fit.
(4) The power to make regulations under this section shall be exercisable by statutory instrument, which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
Local Government etc (Scotland) Act 1994