Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966

1 The Commonwealth Secretariat, its privileges and immunities.

(1) The Commonwealth Secretariat shall have the legal capacity of a body corporate.

(2) The Commonwealth Secretariat shall have the privileges and immunities conferred by Part I of the Schedule to this Act, the officers and servants of the Secretariat and members of their families shall have the privileges and immunities conferred by Part II of that Schedule and the supplementary provisions in Part III of that Schedule shall have effect for the purposes of the said Parts I and II.

(3) Every written contract entered into by or on behalf of the Commonwealth Secretariat, if it does not contain an express provision for the reference of any dispute in connection with the contract to arbitration, shall be deemed to contain a provision that any such dispute shall at the request of either party to the contract be referred to arbitration and (except where the contract falls to be construed by reference to the law of Scotland) shall accordingly be treated as an arbitration agreement for the purposes of the [1950 c. 27.] Arbitration Act 1950 and the [1937 c. 8 (N.I.).] Arbitration Act (Northern Ireland) 1937.

(4) In the said excepted case the arbitration shall be that of a single arbiter appointed, in default of agreement between the parties, by the Sheriff of the Lothians and Peebles, and—

(a) the arbiter may, and if so directed by the Court of Session shall, state a case for the decision of that Court on any question of law arising in the arbitration, and the decision of that Court thereon shall be final unless that Court or the House of Lords gives leave to appeal to the House of Lords against the decision; and

(b) the award of the arbiter may be recorded in the Books of Council and Session for execution and shall, subject to the provisions of paragraph 1 of the Schedule to this Act, be enforceable accordingly.

(5) In this Act " the Commonwealth Secretariat" means the Commonwealth Secretariat established at the Commonwealth Prime Ministers' Meeting of June 1965.

2 Short title and commencement.

(1) This Act may be cited as the Commonwealth Secretariat Act 1966.

(2) This Act shall be deemed to have come into operation on 1st July 1965, but not so as to affect any cause of action arising, or liability to criminal proceedings incurred, before the passing of this Act.