Water Act 1989

137 Establishment of regional flood defence committees

(1) There shall, in accordance with the following provisions of this section and section 138 below, be committees, to be known as regional flood defence committees, for the purpose of carrying out the functions which fall to be carried out by such committees by virtue of this Chapter (being functions corresponding to those which immediately before the transfer date were functions of regional land drainage committees).

(2) Subject to Schedule 16 to this Act (which makes provision for the alteration of the boundaries of and the amalgamation of the areas of regional flood defence committees), there shall be a regional flood defence committee for each of the areas for which there was a regional land drainage committee immediately before the transfer date (being the areas which immediately before that date were the areas of water authorities for land drainage purposes).

(3) Subject to subsection (4) below, a regional flood defence committee shall consist of the following, none of whom shall be a member of the Authority, that is to say—

(a) a chairman and a number of other members appointed by the appropriate Minister;

(b) two members appointed by the Authority;

(c) a number of members appointed by or on behalf of the constituent councils.

(4) Subject to subsection (5) and section 138(1)(a) below, in the period beginning with the transfer date and ending with such day as the appropriate Minister may by order made by statutory instrument appoint for the purposes of this subsection, the regional flood defence committee for any area shall consist of—

(a) a chairman, being the person who, by reason of his appointment by the Secretary of State or the Minister, is the chairman of the regional land drainage committee for that area immediately before that date;

(b) every other person who, by reason of his appointment by the Secretary of State or the Minister, is a member of that regional land drainage committee immediately before that date;

(c) every person who, by reason of his appointment by or on behalf of any of the constituent councils of that regional land drainage committee, is a member of that committee immediately before that date; and

(d) two members appointed by the Authority;

and different days may be appointed for the purposes of this subsection in relation to different regional flood defence committees.

(5) A person who is the chairman or a member of a regional flood defence committee by virtue of paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (4) above shall hold and, subject to subsection (6) below, vacate office on the terms of the appointment mentioned in that paragraph; and where at any time in the period mentioned in subsection (4) above there is a vacancy in the chairmanship or membership of a regional flood defence committee, a person may be appointed to fill the vacancy—

(a) where the vacancy is in respect of a member appointed by the Authority, by the Authority;

(b) where the vacancy is in respect of a person who held or would have held office in respect of his appointment by or on behalf of any of the constituent councils of a regional land drainage committee (being either an appointment to that committee or an appointment by virtue of this subsection to the regional flood defence committee), by the council or councils which made that appointment; and

(c) in any other case, by the appropriate Minister.

(6) A person who is the chairman or a member of a regional flood defence committee by virtue of paragraph (a), (b) or (c) of subsection (4) above shall not cease to be the chairman or a member of that committee by reason only of the expiration before the end of the period mentioned in that subsection of his term of office under the appointment mentioned in that paragraph; but, without prejudice to his eligibility for re-appointment, every person who on the day with which that period ends is the chairman or a member of a regional flood defence committee by virtue of that subsection or subsection (5) above shall cease to be the chairman or, as the case may be, such a member of that committee at the end of that period.

(7) In appointing a person to be the chairman or a member of a regional flood defence committee under subsection (3)(a) or (c) or (5)(b) or (c) above, the appropriate Minister or, as the case may be, a constituent council shall have regard to the desirability of appointing a person who has experience of, and has shown capacity in, some matter relevant to the functions of the committee.

(8) Subject to the preceding provisions of this section, Schedule 1 to the 1976 Act (members and proceedings of regional land drainage committees) shall have effect in relation to regional flood defence committees as it had effect immediately before the transfer date in relation to regional land drainage committees.

(9) In the [1975 c. 24.] House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975, in Part III of Schedule 1 (other disqualifying offices), there shall be inserted (at the appropriate place) the following entry—

“Chairman of a regional flood defence committee for any area of England and Wales.”

(10) For the purposes of this Chapter and the 1976 Act the councils of every county, metropolitan district or London borough any part of which is in the area of a regional flood defence committee shall be the constituent councils for the regional flood defence committee for that area, and the Common Council of the City of London shall be a constituent council for the regional flood defence committee for any area which comprises any part of the City.

(11) In this section and section 138 below “the appropriate Minister”—

(a) in relation to the regional flood defence committee for an area the whole or the greater part of which is in Wales, means the Secretary of State; and

(b) in relation to any other regional flood defence committee, means the Minister.