Local Employment Act 1972

Development areas and intermediate areas

1 Designation of development areas and intermediate areas

(1) For the purposes of this Act the Secretary of State may by order specify any area of Great Britain as—

(a) a development area ; or

(b) an intermediate area.

(2) The areas to be specified under this section as development areas shall be areas where, in the opinion of the Secretary of State, special measures are necessary for the purpose of encouraging the growth and proper distribution of industry; and, in exercising his power to specify areas as aforesaid, the Secretary of State shall have regard to all the circumstances actual and expected, including the state of employment and unemployment, population changes, migration and the objectives of regional policies.

(3) The areas to be specified under this section as intermediate areas shall be areas where, in the opinion of the Secretary of State—

(a) special measures are necessary for the purpose of encouraging the growth and proper distribution of industry; but

(b) the economic problems are not so acute that the powers conferred by this Act in relation to development areas only (in addition to those conferred in relation to both development areas and intermediate areas) need to be available for that purpose to be achieved.

(4) An order under this section may describe a development area or intermediate area by reference to employment exchange areas, that is to say, areas for which an employment exchange has been established for the purposes of the [1948 c. 46.] Employment and Training Act 1948; and any reference in such an order to a named employment exchange area shall be construed as a reference to that area as it exists on the date on which the order comes into force.

(5) In this Act any reference to a development area shall have effect as if there were included in the development area any relevant locality outside that area as respects which the Secretary of State and the Treasury are satisfied that it ought to be treated as if it were so included by reason of the fact that—

(a) its population will be, or is being, increased by migration from one or more specific places in the development area; and

(b) the increase will be substantial in relation to the original population of the locality;

and the Secretary of State shall give notice in such manner as appears to him appropriate of the localities as respects which he and the Treasury are for the time being satisfied as aforesaid.

(6) The localities relevant for the purposes of subsection (5) of this section are—

(a) any area which has been designated under the [1965 c. 59.] New Towns Act 1965 or the [1968 c. 16.] New Towns (Scotland) Act 1968, or any enactment repealed by either of those Acts, as the site of a new town;

(b) any locality which, in relation to the development area or to that area and any other place, is a receiving district within the meaning of the [1952 c. 54.] Town Development Act 1952 or falls to be treated as such a receiving district by virtue of an order under section 34 of the [1961 c. 65.] Housing Act 1961;

(c) any burgh or county the council of which are, in relation to the development area or to that area and any other place, a receiving authority within the meaning of Part II of the [1957 c. 38.] Housing and Town Development (Scotland) Act 1957.

(7) Where, by an order under this section, the Secretary of State specifies as an intermediate area an area which, immediately before the order was made, was a development area in which any locality fell to be included by virtue of subsection (5) of this section, that locality shall be treated for the purposes of this Act as included in the specified area.