7 Selective financial assistance for industry in assisted areas.U.K.
(1)For the purposes set out in the following provisions of this section the Secretary of State may, with the consent of the Treasury, provide financial assistance where, in his opinion—
(a)the financial assistance is likely to provide, maintain or safeguard employment in any part of the assisted areas; and
(b)the undertakings for which the assistance is provided are or will be wholly or mainly in the assisted areas.
(2)The purposes mentioned in subsection (1) above are—
(a)to promote the development or modernisation of an industry;
(b)to promote the efficiency of an industry;
(c)to create, expand or sustain productive capacity in an industry, or in undertakings in an industry;
(d)to promote the reconstruction, reorganisation or conversion of an industry or of undertakings in an industry;
(e)to encourage the growth of, or the proper distribution of undertakings in, an industry;
(f)to encourage arrangements for ensuring that any contraction of an industry proceeds in an orderly way.
(3)Subject to the following provisions of this section, financial assistance under this section may be given on any terms or conditions, and by any description of investment or lending or guarantee, or by making grants, and may, in particular, be—
(a)investment by acquisition of loan or share capital in any company, including an acquisition effected by the Secretary of State through another company, being a company formed for the purpose of giving financial assistance under this Part of this Act or Part II of the M1Industry Act 1972,
(b)investment by the acquisition of any undertaking or of any assets,
(c)a loan, whether secured or unsecured, and whether or not carrying interest, or interest at a commercial rate,
(d)any form of insurance or guarantee to meet any contingency, and in particular to meet default on payment of a loan, or of interest on a loan, or non-fulfilment of a contract.
(4)Financial assistance shall not be given under this section in the way described in subsection (3)(a) above unless the Secretary of State is satisfied that it cannot, or cannot appropriately, be so given in any other way; and the Secretary of State, in giving financial assistance in the way so described, shall not acquire any shares or stock in a company without the consent of that company.
[F1(4A)The Scottish Ministers may, to such extent and subject to such conditions as they think appropriate, delegate their function under subsection (1) to such persons as they may determine.
(4B)Where the Scottish Ministers make a delegation under subsection (4A) to a person, they may also delegate to that person their function of being satisfied as mentioned in subsection (4).
(4C)Where the Scottish Ministers make a delegation under subsection (4A), the reference in subsection (3)(a) to a company formed for the purpose of giving financial assistance is to be construed as a reference to a company formed by the person to whom the function is delegated under subsection (4A).
(4D)A delegation under subsection (4A) or (4B) does not affect the ability of the Scottish Ministers to carry out the function delegated.
(4E)A delegation under subsection (4A) or (4B) may be varied or revoked at any time.]
(5)In this section “industry”, unless the context otherwise requires, includes any description of commercial activity, and references to an industry include references to any section of an industry.
(6)In this section “the assisted areas” means the development areas, the intermediate areas and Northern Ireland.
Textual Amendments
F1S. 7(4A)-(4E) inserted (S.) (1.8.2010) by Public Services Reform (Scotland) Act 2010 (asp 8), ss. 9, 134(7); S.S.I. 2010/221, art. 3(2), Sch.
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C1S. 7: functions transferred (1.7.1999) by 1998 c. 46, ss. 53, 56(1)(h) (with ss. 54, 126(3)-(11), Sch. 4 Pt. III paras. 12-14); S.I. 1998/3178, art. 3.
S. 7: functions modified (1.7.1999) by S.I. 1999/672, art. 2, Sch. 1
C2S. 7: certain functions made exercisable concurrently by the Scottish Ministers and a Minister of the Crown (27.6.2002) by The Scotland Act 1998 (Transfer of Functions to the Scottish Ministers etc.) Order 2002 (S.I. 2002/1630), art. 2, Sch.
Marginal Citations