Leasehold (Enlargement and Extension) Act (Northern Ireland) 1971

19 F1 Restrictions on right to extension of lease or to acquire fee simple. N.I.

(1) Where the estate in reversion in the land of the lessor under a lease to which this Act applies is an estate of freehold or is for a term of not less than fifteen years the lessor may, not later than twelve months after the date on which a notice is served under section 2, apply to the Lands Tribunal for an order that he may resume possession of the land on the expiry of the lease on any one or more of the following grounds—

(a) if the lessor's estate was purchased or created before 30th July 1967, that the land is reasonably required by him for the purpose of occupying the buildings thereon as his sole or principal residence or as the sole or principal residence of an adult member of the lessor's family or, where the lessor is a trustee, the land is so required in respect of a beneficiary under the trust or of an adult member of the family of such a beneficiary, and for the purposes of this paragraph references to the family of a person means—

(i) the spouse[F2 or civil partner] of that person;

(ii) a child,F3 . . . or stepchild (whether such child or stepchild be legitimate or not) of that person who has attained the age of eighteen years;

(iii) a son-in-law or daughter-in-law of that person;

(iv) a parent or parent-in-law of that person;

(b) that he bona fide proposes, or has agreed, to pull down and rebuild or to reconstruct the whole or a substantial portion of the buildings on the land comprised in the lease;

(c) that he requires vacant possession of such land for the purpose of carrying out a scheme of development of property which includes such land,

so, however, that an order shall not be made on the ground of paragraph ( a) if the Lands Tribunal is satisfied that having regard to all the circumstances of the case, including the question whether other accommodation is available for the lessor or the lessee, greater hardship would be caused by making the order than by refusing to make it.

(2) Where a notice of intention to acquire the fee simple in land is served under section 2 and the lessor of the land, or the owner of any estate in the land superior to that of the lessor, is a body to which this subsection applies, the body may apply to the Minister of DevelopmentF4 for a certificate that it is not in the public interest that the fee simple in the land be acquired, and, if the Minister so certifies and the body sends to the lessee a copy of that certificate within six weeks of the date of the service of the notice, the right of the lessee to acquire the fee simple in the land shall determine and be extinguished.

(3) Subsection (2) applies to—

(a) any local authorityF5 , that is to say the council of a county or of a county or other borough or of an urban or rural district;

(b) a new town Commission established under the New Towns Act (Northern Ireland) 1965 [1965 c.13] ;

F6 [(c) the Northern Ireland Housing Executive;]

(d) a body designated as such for the purposes of subsection (2) by the Ministry of DevelopmentF7 by order made subject to affirmative resolution.

(4) Where an order has been made under subsection (1) the right of the lessee of the land to obtain an extension of his lease or to acquire the fee simple in the land shall determine and be extinguished but the lessee shall be entitled to be paid compensation under section 20.

F1 functions transf. 1982 NI 6

F2 2004 c.33

F3 1987 NI 22

F4 SRO (NI) 1973/504; 1976 NI 6

F5 1972 c.9 (NI)

F6 1981 NI 3

F7 SRO (NI) 1973/504; 1976 NI 6