(1)Where a person who is promoting, or proposes to promote, a collection in any locality for a charitable purpose makes to the county inspectorF1 of police for the area comprising that locality an application in the prescribed manner specifying the purpose of the collection and the locality within which the collection is to be made, and furnishes such county inspectorF1 with the prescribed information, the county inspectorF1 shall, subject to the following provisions of this section, grant to him a licence authorising him to promote a collection within that locality for that purpose.
(2)A licence shall be granted for such period, not being longer than twelve months, as may be specified in the application, and shall, unless it is previously revoked, remain in force for the period so specified:
Provided that, if it appears to a county inspectorF1 of police to be expedient to provide for the simultaneous expiration of licences to be granted by him in respect of collections which in his opinion are likely to be proposed to be made annually or continuously over a long period, he may, on the grant of such a licence, grant it for a period shorter or longer than that specified in the application therefor, or for a period longer than twelve months (but not exceeding eighteen months), as may be requisite for that purpose.
(3)A county inspectorF1 of police may refuse to grant a licence, or, where a licence has been granted, may revoke it, if it appears to him that—
(a)the total amount likely to be applied for charitable purposes as the result of the collection (including any amount already so applied) is inadequate in proportion to the value of the proceeds likely to be received (including any proceeds already received);
(b)remuneration which is excessive in relation to the total amount aforesaid is likely to be, or has been, retained or received out of the proceeds of the collection by any person;
(c)the grant of a licence would be likely to facilitate the commission of an offence under paragraph ( f) of section four of the Vagrancy Act, 1824 [1824 c.83] , or that an offence under that section has been committed in connection with the collection;
(d)the applicant or the holder of the licence is not a fit and proper person to hold a licence by reason of the fact that he has been convicted in the United Kingdom or in the Republic of Ireland of any of the offences specified in the Schedule to this Act, or has been convicted in any part of Her Majesty's dominions of any offence conviction for which necessarily involved a finding that he acted fraudulently or dishonestly, or of an offence of a kind the commission of which would be likely to be facilitated by the grant of a licence;
(e)the applicant or the holder of the licence, in promoting a collection in respect of which a licence has been granted to him, has failed to exercise due diligence to secure that persons authorised by him to act as collectors for the purposes of the collection were fit and proper persons, to secure compliance on the part of persons so authorised with the provisions of regulations made under this Act, or to prevent prescribed badges or prescribed certificates of authority being obtained by persons other than persons so authorised; or
(f)the applicant or holder of the licence has refused or neglected to furnish to the county inspectorF1 of police such information as the inspector may have reasonably required for the purpose of informing himself as to any of the matters specified in the foregoing paragraphs.
(4)When a county inspectorF1 of police refuses to grant a licence or revokes a licence which has been granted, he shall forthwith give written notice to the applicant or holder of the licence stating upon which one or more of the grounds set out in sub-section (3) of this section the licence has been refused or revoked and informing the applicant or holder of the right of appeal given by this section, and the applicant or holder of the licence may thereupon appeal to the Minister of Home AffairsF2 (in this Act referred to as “the Minister” ) against the refusal or revocation of the licence as the case may be and the decision of the Minister shall be final.
(5)The time within which any such appeal may be brought shall be fourteen days from the date on which notice is given under sub-section (4) of this section.
(6)If the Minister decides that the appeal shall be allowed, the county inspectorF1 of police shall forthwith issue a licence or cancel the revocation as the case may be in accordance with the decision of the Minister.