26Interpretation, construction, short title and extent.
(1)In this Act, except where the context otherwise requires, the following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them respectively, that is to say—
" appropriate Minister, " in relation to any statutory undertakers, has the same meaning as in the Town and Country Planning Act, 1944;
" Consolidated Fund " means the Consolidated Fund of the United Kingdom and includes the growing produce thereof;
" development " includes re-development;
" development corporation " has the meaning assigned to it by section two of this Act ;
" enactment " includes a local Act and an order or byelaw made under any Act ;
" financial year " means-a year beginning on the first day of April ;
" local authority " means the council of a county, county borough, metropolitan borough, or county district, the Common Council of the City of London and any other authority being a local authority within the meaning of the [38 & 39 Vict. c. 83.] Local Loans Act, 1875, and includes a local highway authority, any drainage board and any joint board or joint committee if all the constituent authorities are such local authorities as aforesaid ;
" local highway authority " means a highway -authority other than the Minister of Transport, and includes the London County Council ;
" local planning authority " means a local authority for the purposes of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1932, or, in a case where, under any provision of that Act, the functions of a local authority are exercisable by a county council or by a joint committee, means that council or committee ;
" the Minister " means the Minister of Town and Country Planning ;
" National Trust " means the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty incorporated by the [7 Edw. 7. c. cxxxvi.] National Trust Act, 1907, and the reference to land held inalienably by the National Trust shall be construed as a reference to land which is inalienable under section twenty-one of the said Act or section eight of the [2 & 3 Geo. 6. c. lxxxvi.] National Trust Act, 1939 ;
" planning scheme " means a scheme under the Town and Country Planning Act, 1932, and includes a town planning scheme under the [15 & 16 Geo. 5. c. 16.] Town Planning Act, 1925, or any enactment repealed by that Act;
" statutory undertakers " means persons authorised by any enactment to construct, work or carry on any railway, light railway, tramway, road transport, water transport, canal, inland navigation, dock, harbour, pier or lighthouse undertaking, or any undertaking for the supply of electricity, gas, hydraulic power or water, and the expression " statutory undertaking " shall be construed accordingly.
(2)References in this Act to any other enactment shall Le construed as references to that enactment as amended by any subsequent enactment including, except where the context otherwise requires, this Act.
(3)Any reference in any enactment to any provision of the Town and Country Planning Act, 1944, which is applied by this Act, shall be construed as including a reference to that provision as so applied.
(4)This Act may be cited as the New Towns Act, 1946.
(5)This Act shall not extend to Northern Ireland.