General Rate Act 1967

Ascertainment of average water supplies

7 (1) The yearly average supply of any or all undertakers in any period shall be ascertained for the purposes of this Schedule as follows.

(2) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph, it shall be taken to be the aggregate of the amounts certified under sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph by the undertakers or all the undertakers for the calendar years comprised in the period, divided by the number of those calendar years.

(3) Not later than six months after the end of any calendar year relevant to the ascertainment of yearly average supplies for the purposes of this Schedule, statutory water undertakers shall estimate and certify to the Commissioners, to the nearest hundred thousand gallons, the amount of water supplied by the undertakers in that calendar year, the amount so supplied in bulk, and the amount supplied in bulk during that year to the undertakers, and shall also certify whether the undertakers were supplying water during the whole of that year (disregarding any temporary suspension of supply).

(4) The duty to certify imposed on undertakers by this paragraph shall be enforceable by mandamus at the instance of the Commissioners.

(5) Where any undertakers supply non-potable water otherwise than in bulk, they shall, in certifying under sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph the amount of water supplied by them, show separately (to the nearest hundred thousand gallons) the amount of non-potable water supplied by them otherwise than in bulk, and the amount of water certified as supplied by them shall be treated as reduced by one-half of the said amount of non-potable water.

(6) If a certificate under sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph shows that all or any of the water supplied was supplied in bulk, or that the undertakers giving the certificate took a supply in bulk, or both, the amount certified as supplied shall be treated as reduced by one-half of the amount certified as supplied, or taken by way of supply, in bulk.

(7) If the undertakers, or any of the undertakers, have certified that they were not supplying water throughout the whole of any of the calendar years in the period, the aggregate of the amounts certified by them for all such years in the period shall be taken for the purposes of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph to be the aggregate of the amounts certified for the remaining such years, divided by the number of those years and multiplied by the number of calendar years in the whole period.

(8) For the purposes of this Schedule—

(a) any estimate of the amount of water supplied shall be made by reference to the amount put out by the undertakers (and not to the amount received by the persons to whom the water was supplied) ;

(b) subject to paragraph (c) of this sub-paragraph, references to the supply of water in bulk are references to a supply taken by any persons for augmenting or constituting the supply to be given by them ;

(c) water shall not be treated as supplied to any undertakers by a river authority by reason only that the undertakers abstract, or are authorised to abstract, water in pursuance of a licence under the [1963 c. 38.] Water Resources Act 1963 granted by the river authority.