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Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954

Status:

This is the original version (as it was originally enacted).

SCHEDULES

Section 1.

FIRST SCHEDULEProvisions as to the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority

1The Authority shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal and power to hold land without licence in mortmain.

2The Authority may act notwithstanding a vacancy among their members.

3The quorum of the Authority shall be three or such number, not being less than three, as the Authority may from time to time determine.

4It shall be within the capacity of the Authority as a statutory corporation to do such things and enter into such transactions as are incidental or conducive to the exercise and performance of their functions under this Act.

5(1)A member of the Authority who is in any way directly or indirectly interested in a contract made or proposed to be made by the Authority shall, as soon as possible after the relevant circumstances have come to his knowledge, disclose the nature of his interest at a meeting of the Authority.

(2)Any disclosure made under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph shall be recorded in the minutes of the Authority and the member—

(a)shall not take part after the disclosure in any deliberation or decision of the Authority with respect to that contract; and

(b)shall be disregarded for the purpose of constituting a quorum of the Authority for any such deliberation or decision.

6Subject to the preceding provisions of this Schedule the Authority may regulate their own procedure.

7(1)The Authority shall appoint a secretary and may appoint such other officers and take into their employment such other persons as they may determine.

(2)The Authority shall—

(a)pay to their officers and other persons employed by them such remuneration as the Authority may determine; and

(b)as regards any officers or persons employed in whose case it may be determined by the Authority with the approval of the Lord President of the Council so to do, pay to or in respect of them such pensions, or provide and maintain for them such pension schemes (whether contributory or not), as may be so determined.

(3)Where any officer of or person employed by the Authority, being a participant in any pension scheme applicable to his office or employment, becomes a member of the Authority, he may be treated for the purposes of the pension scheme as if his service as a member of the Authority were service as an officer of or person employed by the Authority, and his rights under the scheme shall not be affected by any provision of this Act which requires that the pensions or payments towards the provision of pensions to be paid or made in the case of members of the Authority shall be determined by the Lord President of the Council with the approval of the Treasury.

(4)Except with the consent of the Lord President of the Council, the Authority shall not terminate on security grounds the employment of any officer of, or person employed by, the Authority.

In this sub-paragraph the expression " security grounds " means grounds which are grounds for dismissal from the civil service of Her Majesty, in accordance with any arrangements for the time being in force relating to dismissals from that service for reasons of national security.

8The application of the seal of the Authority shall be authenticated by the signatures of the chairman or some other member of the Authority authorised by the Authority to authenticate the application of the seal thereof, and of the secretary of the Authority or some person authorised by the Authority to act in his stead in that behalf.

9Every document purporting to be an instrument issued by the Authority and to be sealed as aforesaid or to be signed on behalf of the Authority shall be received in evidence and shall be deemed to be such an instrument without further proof unless the contrary is shown.

Section 2.

SECOND SCHEDULETransfer of property rights and liabilities from the Lord President of the Council to the Authority

1The property held immediately before the appointed day by the Lord President of the Council for the purposes of his activities under subsection (1) of section two of the Atomic Energy Act, 1946, and subsection (1) of section one of the Radioactive Substances Act, 1948, and the rights and liabilities enjoyed by him or incumbent on him immediately before the appointed day in connection with those activities are hereby transferred as from the appointed day to the Authority:

Provided that this paragraph shall not apply to any property, rights or liabilities acquired or incurred under any pension scheme.

2Any instrument shall, so far as may be necessary for or in consequence of the transfer effected by paragraph 1 of this Schedule, have effect as if references to, or which are to be construed as references to, the Lord President of the Council or any department or organisation maintained by him for the purposes of his functions under the Atomic Energy Act, 1946, and the Radioactive Substances Act, 1948, were or, as the case may require, included references to the Authority and their organisation.

3Anything in process of being done by or in relation to the Lord President of the Council immediately before the appointed day (and, in particular, legal proceedings then pending to which he is a party) may, if it relates wholly or partly to any property, rights or liabilities transferred by paragraph 1 of this Schedule, be continued by or in relation to the Authority or by or in relation to the Authority and the Lord President of the Council, as the case may be.

4A certificate issued by the Lord President of the Council that any property vested in the Lord President of the Council immediately before the appointed day was or was not transferred to the Authority by paragraph 1 of this Schedule shall be conclusive evidence that that property was or was not so transferred.

Sections 6, 9.

THIRD SCHEDULEAdaptations and Modifications of Enactments

The Atomic Energy Act, 1946

In subsection (1) of section seven after the words " vesting in him " there shall be inserted—

(a)in the first place where those words occur, the words "or in the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority";

(b)in the second place where those words occur, the words " or the said Authority ".

Sections ten and eleven shall not apply to anything done by or to the Authority.

In section twelve, in subsection (2), after the word "inspect " there shall be inserted the words " or authorise the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority to inspect ", and in subsection (7), after the words " the Minister " there shall be inserted the words " or the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority ".

In section thirteen, after the words " the Minister " there shall be inserted the words " or the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority ".

At the end of section sixteen there shall be added the following proviso—

Provided that any compensation required to be paid by an order made under section seven of this Act vesting any right in the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority shall be paid by that Authority.

In paragraph (c) of section nineteen after the words " vesting in the Minister " there shall be inserted the words " or in the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority ".

Enactments relating to Official Secrets and Protection of Property

For the purposes of section two of the Official Secrets Act, 1911, membership of or any office or employment under the Authority shall be deemed to be an office under Her Majesty and any contract with the Authority shall be deemed to be a contract with Her

Section three of the Special Constables Act, 1923, as extended by paragraph 1 of the Second Schedule to the Emergency Laws (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1947, shall apply as if any premises in the possession or under the control Of the Authority were premises in the possession or under the control of the Minister of Supply, so however that, in relation to those premises, the powers of nomination conferred by those provisions shall be exercisable also by the Authority.

For the purposes of section two of the Metropolitan Police Act, 1860, any property of the Authority shall be deemed to be property of the Crown.

For the purposes of section six of the Public Stores Act, 1875, any person appointed under the Special Constables Act, 1923, as extended as aforesaid, to be a special constable within any premises which are in the possession or under the control of the Authority shall be deemed to be a constable deputed by a public department and any goods and chattels belonging to or in the possession of the Authority shall be deemed to be Her Majesty's stores.

Other Enactments

In section ninety-seven of the Explosives Act, 1875, references to a department of the Government, except the second such reference in paragraph (5) of that section, shall be construed as including references to the Authority.

For the purposes of Part II of the Military Lands Act, 1892 (as applied by the Ministry of Supply (Transfer of Powers) (No. 1) Order, 1939, subsection (2) of section two of the Atomic Energy Act, 1946, and Article 3 of the Transfer of Functions (Atomic Energy and Radioactive Substances) Order, 1953)—

(a)any land vested in or under the management of the Authority shall be deemed to be land vested in or under the management of the Lord President of the Council;

(b)any right of the Authority to use land vested in another person shall be deemed to be a right of the Lord President of the Council; and

(c)the purposes of the Authority shall be deemed to be purposes of a department or organisation maintained by the Lord President of the Council for the purposes of the functions transferred to him under the Transfer of Functions (Atomic Energy and Radioactive Substances) Order, 1953.

For the purposes of the Factories Acts, 1937 and 1948, any premises belonging to or in the occupation of the Authority and any building operations or works of engineering construction undertaken by or on behalf of the Authority shall be deemed to be premises belonging to or in the occupation of the Crown or, as the case may be, to be operations or works undertaken by or on behalf of the Crown.

Section nineteen of the Ministry of Supply-Act, 1939, shall have effect as if the Authority were a Government Department.

In Subsection (2) of section forty-six of the Patents Act, 1949, after the words "Government department" there shall be inserted the words " or the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority ".

Table of Statutes referred to in this Act

Short TitleSession and Chapter
Metropolitan Police Act, 186023 & 24 Vict. c. 135.
Explosives Act, 187538 & 39 Vict. c. 17.
Public Stores Act, 187538 & 39 Vict. c. 25.
Sea Fisheries Regulation Act, 188851 & 52 Vict. c. 54.
Military Lands Act, 189255 & 56 Vict. c. 43.
Burgh Police (Scotland) Act, 189255 & 56 Vict. c. 55.
Public Authorities Protection Act, 189356 & 57 Vict. c. 61.
Public Health (Ireland) Act, 189659 & 60 Vict. c. 54.
Public Health (Scotland) Act, 189760 & 61 Vict. c. 38.
Burgh Police (Scotland) Act, 19033 Edw. 7. c. 33.
Official Secrets Act, 19111 & 2 Geo. 5. c. 28.
Special Constables Act, 192313 & 14 Geo. 5. c. 11.
Salmon and Fresh Water Fisheries Act, 192313 & 14 Geo. 5. c. 16.
Public Health Act, 193626 Geo. 5. & 1 Edw. 8. c. 49.
Limitation Act, 19392 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 21.
Ministry of Supply Act, 19392 & 3 Geo. 6. c. 38.
Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) Act, 19469 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 49.
Atomic Energy Act, 19469 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 80.
Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) (Scotland) Act, 194710 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 42.
Emergency Laws (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 194711 & 12 Geo. 6. c. 10.
Radioactive Substances Act, 194811 & 12 Geo. 6. c. 37.
Patents Act, 194912, 13 & 14 Geo. 6. c. 87.
Rivers (Prevention of Pollution) Act, 195114 & 15 Geo. 6. c. 64.
Income Tax Act, 195215 & 16 Geo. 6. & 1 Eliz. 2. c. 10.

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