(1)On the appointed day, there shall vest by virtue of this section in the Post Office—
(a)all property which, immediately before that day, is vested in the Postmaster General and held in trust for Her Majesty;
(b)all works and apparatus belonging to the Postmaster General to which the enactments relating to telegraphs apply;
(c)the portions of the tube laid by the Pneumatic Despatch Company, Limited, that are vested in the Postmaster General under the [1922 c. 43.] Post Office (Pneumatic Tubes Acquisition) Act 1922;
(d)all estates and interests in land in the Channel Islands which, immediately before that day, are vested in Her Majesty, being estates and interests in land then occupied or used, in whole or in part, by the Postmaster General or (for, or in connection with, the exercise and performance of any of the Postmaster General's functions) by an officer or servant of the Crown;
(e)all property which, immediately before that day, is vested in the Crown and used, or appropriated for use, for, or in connection with, the exercise and performance of any of the Postmaster General's functions (being neither land nor property falling within paragraph (b) or (c) above);
(f)all interests of the Minister of Public Building and Works in the land delineated (and coloured blue) on the plans deposited in connection with the Bill for this Act with that Minister and authenticated by the signature of the Postmaster General (being land in the City of Edinburgh which, though held by that Minister, is occupied by the Postmaster General);
(g)all rights and liabilities enjoyed by, or incumbent on, the Crown immediately before that day with reference to the functions of the Postmaster General (including, in particular, but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing words, all rights so enjoyed, and liabilities so incumbent, that subsist by virtue of a contract entered into by the Minister of Public Building and Works on behalf of the Crown for the erection or execution of buildings or works on land in whose case an estate or interest therein vests in the Post Office by virtue of paragraph (a) above, not being land which, immediately before that day, is the subject of an agreement to which the parties are the Postmaster General, the Minister of Public Building and Works and the Post Office for the conveyance, assignment or transfer by the Post Office to that Minister of the estate or interest that so vests).
(2)The following shall be excepted from the operation of the foregoing subsection, namely.—
(a)chattels or corporeal moveables used, or appropriated for use, exclusively for, or in connection with, the exercise and performance by the Postmaster General of his functions under the [1929 c. 29.] Government Annuities Act 1929, the Post Office Savings Bank Acts 1954 and 1966, the [1958 c. 6 (7 & 8 Eliz. 2).] National Debt Act 1958 or the [1968 c. 13.] National Loans Act 1968, not being telegraphic apparatus;
(b)records within the meaning of the [1958 c. 51.] Public Records Act 1958;
(c)copyright (other than copyright in registered designs);
(d)property for whose vesting in the Post Office or the Minister of Public Building and Works provision is made by the following provisions of this Act;
(e)rights and liabilities for whose vesting in the Post Office provision is so made ;
(f)rights and liabilities enjoyed by, or incumbent on, the Crown referable solely to the exercise and performance by the Postmaster General of his functions under the Wireless Telegraphy Acts 1949 to 1967 (other than rights and liabilities that subsist by virtue of a contract for the supply of chattels or corporeal moveables or by virtue of such a contract to which the Minister of Public Building and Works is a party as falls within subsection (1)(g) above);
(g)rights and liabilities enjoyed by, or incumbent on, the Crown referable solely to the exercise and performance by the Postmaster General of his functions under the Government Annuities Act 1929, the Post Office Savings Bank Acts 1954 and 1966, the National Debt Act 1958 or the National Loans Act 1968 (other than rights and liabilities that subsist by virtue of such a contract to which the Minister of Public Building and Works is a party as falls within subsection (1)(g) above);
(h)rights and liabilities that subsist by virtue of section 46 of the [1949 c. 87.] Patents Act 1949 or paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the [1949 c. 88.] Registered Designs Act 1949 (Crown use of patented inventions and registered designs);
(i)rights and liabilities that subsist by virtue of a contract entered into by the Controller of Her Majesty's Stationery Office on behalf of the Crown; and
(j)rights and liabilities that subsist under such a contract entered into on behalf of the Crown as falls within subsection (1) of section 18 of this Act (it being assumed that subsection (2) thereof had been omitted).
(1)If it appears to the Minister expedient so to do for the purpose of removing any difficulties or uncertainties arising out of the operation of the last foregoing section, he may by order—
(a)direct that such property (other than land), rights or liabilities as may be specified in the order (being property, rights or liabilities which, apart from the order, would vest in -the Post Office by virtue of that section or which have so vested) shall, notwithstanding that section, not so vest or, as the case may be, be deemed not to have so vested ; or
(b)direct that such property (other than land), rights or liabilities as may be so specified (being property, rights or liabilities which, apart from the order, would not so vest or which have not so vested) shall, notwithstanding that section, so vest on the appointed day or, as the case may be, on such day as may be so specified.
(2)No order shall be made under this section by the Minister with respect to chattels or corporeal moveables after the expiration of the period of twelve months beginning with the appointed day.
(3)Where an order under this section operates to the advantage of the Post Office, the Minister may, with the consent of the Treasury, direct that the debt that will fall, or has fallen, by virtue of the following provisions of this Part of this Act, to be assumed by the Post Office to him shall be increased by a sum specified in the direction (being a sum appearing to him to represent the value of the advantage); and where an order under this section operates to the disadvantage of the Post Office, the Minister may, with the like consent, direct that that debt shall be reduced by a sum specified in the direction (being a sum sufficient, in his opinion, to compensate the Post Office for the disadvantage).
(1)Where a contract entered into on behalf of the Crown by the Postmaster General contains provision conferring on the Crown (otherwise than by reference to the office of master of the Post Office and incidentally only to other matters with which the contract is principally concerned) rights in respect of a patent, invention or registered design, the rights of the Crown subsisting by virtue of the contract (other than such as subsist by virtue of that provision) and the liabilities of the Crown so subsisting (other than such, if any, as relate to payment in respect of an exercise of rights that so subsist) shall, on the appointed day, vest in the Post Office by virtue of this section but the Post Office shall—
(a)enjoy, concurrently with the Crown and subject to the like liability (if any) as is incumbent on the Crown to make payment in respect of an exercise thereof, the Crown's rights under the contract that so subsist and
(b)be liable to satisfy any unsatisfied liability of the Crown to make payment in respect of an exercise by the Postmaster General, on behalf of the Crown, of those rights.
(2)In so far as a contract provides for the terms upon which use of an invention may be made by virtue of section 46 of the [1949 c. 87.] Patents Act 1949 for the manufacture of articles by the department of the Postmaster General or the manufacture and supply to that department of articles by a person authorised by it or provides for the terms upon which use of a registered design may be made by virtue of paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to the [1949 c. 88.] Registered Designs Act 1949 for either of these purposes, it shall be excepted from the operation of the foregoing subsection.
(1)On the appointed day, the assets of the Post Office Fund and of the general reserve maintained by the Postmaster General in pursuance of section 7 of the [1961 c. 15.] Post Office Act 1961 shall, by virtue of this section, vest in the Post Office, and that fund and that reserve shall cease to exist.
(2)On the appointed day, there shall vest in the Post Office, by virtue of this section.—
(a)all moneys in the hands of the Postmaster General which, though not forming part of the assets of the Post Office Fund, would, if this Act had not passed, have fallen to be paid by him into that fund ;
(b)any right of the Postmaster General to repayment of Ways and Means advances made by him under section 11 (investment powers) of the Post Office Act 1961;
(c)any bills or securities vested in him in consequence of an exercise of the power of investment conferred on him by that section ; and
(d)any shares acquired by him under Part VII of this Act.