Local Employment Act 1972

13 Powers in relation to Secretary of State's land

(1) Where land acquired by the Secretary of State under this Act, or vested in him in consequence of Part I of the [1960 c. 18.] Local Employment Act 1960, is situated in a locality which is not a development area or intermediate area, the Secretary of State may exercise in relation to the land the following powers, that is to say—

(a) power to preserve and maintain the land and any buildings or works on it, and to erect buildings and carry out works on it;

(b) where there are buildings on the land, power to acquire by agreement other land contiguous or adjacent to it for the purpose of erecting thereon extensions to those buildings or of erecting thereon other buildings to be used with the first-mentioned buildings as part of a single undertaking;

(c) power to provide means of access, services and other facilities for meeting the requirements of undertakings carried on or to be carried on on the land (including requirements arising from the needs of persons employed or to be employed therein).

(2) The Secretary of State may modernise, adapt or reconstruct any buildings or other works on land acquired by him under this Act, or vested in him in consequence of Part I of the [1960 c. 18.] Local Employment Act 1960, and, where the execution of that work will interrupt the use of the buildings or works by any undertaking, acquire other land by agreement, and erect buildings and carry out works on that other land, or on land previously acquired by or vested in the Secretary of State as aforesaid, for the purpose of providing premises for the occupation of that undertaking or of otherwise meeting its requirements.

(3) The foregoing provisions of this section shall not apply to land acquired by the Secretary of State under section 8 of this Act so far as applicable to derelict land clearance areas, but where land so acquired is situated in a locality which is not a derelict land clearance area the Secretary of State shall have power, so long as he owns the land, to carry out thereon such work as appears to him expedient for the purpose of enabling so much of the land as appears to him to be derelict, neglected or unsightly to be brought into use or of improving its appearance, with a view to contributing to the development of industry in the locality in which it is situated.