Mineral Development Act (Northern Ireland) 1969 (c. 35)

N.I. Vesting of mines and minerals in the Ministry of Commerce, with certain exceptions

1 Vesting of mines and minerals in the Ministry. N.I.

(1) Subject to subsection (3), the property in all minerals existing in natural condition in land in Northern Ireland, and in all mines for the working of such minerals, is hereby vested in the Ministry of Commerce (in this Act referred to as “the Ministry” ).

(2) Without prejudice to the succeeding provisions of this Act relating to the payment of compensation in respect of the mines and minerals vested in the Ministry by virtue of subsection (1), those mines and minerals shall so vest free from all claims or estates whatsoever and notwithstanding any transferred provision in any local or private Act.

(3) Subsection (1) shall have effect subject to the exceptions contained in sections 2 to 7.

2 Exception of scheduled substances and mines thereof. N.I.

Subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any substances such as are mentioned in Schedule 1 (in this Act referred to as “scheduled substances” ) or any mines for the working of such substances.

3 Exception of mines and minerals already vested in the Ministry. N.I.

Subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any mines and minerals which, immediately before the commencement of that section, were vested in the Ministry whether by virtue of section 6 of, and Schedule 1 to, the Minerals (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act (Northern Ireland) 1959 M1 (in this Act referred to as “the Act of 1959” ) or otherwise howsoever.

Marginal Citations

M1 1959 c. 17

4 Exception of certain other Crown mines and minerals. N.I.

Subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any mines and minerals vested in Her Majesty or in any department of the Government of the United Kingdom.

5 Exception of mines and minerals the property of religious denominations and educational institutions. N.I.

Subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any mines and minerals which are the property of any religious denomination or educational institution.

6 Exception of merged mines and minerals. N.I.

Subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any mines and minerals with respect to which a merging order has been made under section 8 of the Act of 1959 (power of Ministry by order to merge all rights to or in relation to mines or minerals in any land which are vested in the Ministry by virtue of section 6 of that Act in the fee simple in that land, where the minerals are of insignificant quantity or value).

7 Exception of minerals held in connection with mines in work or being developed, and of mines of such minerals. N.I.

(1) Subject to section 9(1), where at the commencement for section 1 a person is lawfully working or developing a mine of the working of minerals of any description or descriptions in any land, subsection (1) of section 1 shall not apply to any minerals of that description or those descriptions, or to any mines of such minerals,—

(a) in that land, or

(b) in reserve areas.

(2) In subsection (1) “reserve areas” in relation to minerals of any description or descriptions means any lands (whether or not contiguous to the land mentioned in that subsection or to each other) in which the person so mentioned is entitled to work minerals of that description or those descriptions.