Water Act 1981

2 Exemption from charges for water for fire fighting.

(1) Notwithstanding anything in section 30 or in any charges scheme made under section 31 of the [1973 c. 37.] Water Act 1973 or in any agreement made under section 27 of the [1945 c. 42.] Water Act 1945, but subject to the provisions of any order made under subsection (2) below, no charge may be made by statutory water undertakers in respect of—

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

(b) the availability of water for those purposes.

(2) The Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument make provision as to the method by which and the criteria by reference to which statutory water undertakers shall calculate the charges payable to them for water supplied where the supply of water provided for the purposes mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) above is by means of a service pipe which also supplies water for other purposes; and such order may make provision for arbitration.

(3) This section shall not 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 purposes mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) above.

(4) This section shall not prevent the making of charges in respect of a supply of water for domestic purposes where any of the water is used for any of the purposes mentioned in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) above.

(5) This section shall come into force on such day as the Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument appoint; and different days may be so appointed for different provisions of this section, or for different purposes of the same provision and in particular, different days may be so appointed for the coming into force of the same provision in different water authority areas or for different parts of the same area.

(6) An order under subsection (5) above may make such transitional, incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as the Secretary of State may consider necessary or expedient in connection with the provisions of this section which are thereby brought into force.

(7) A statutory instrument containing an order under subsection (2) above shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

(8) In this section—

(a) " service pipe " and " a supply of water for domestic purposes " have the meanings assigned to them by section 1(1) of Schedule 3 to the [1945 c. 42.] Water Act 1945;

(b) " statutory water undertakers " has the meaning assigned to it by section 11(6) of the [1973 c. 37.] Water Act 1973.