http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/1995/25/section/38Environment Act 1995An Act to provide for the establishment of a body corporate to be known as the Environment Agency and a body corporate to be known as the Scottish Environment Protection Agency; to provide for the transfer of functions, property, rights and liabilities to those bodies and for the conferring of other functions on them; to make provision with respect to contaminated land and abandoned mines; to make further provision in relation to National Parks; to make further provision for the control of pollution, the conservation of natural resources and the conservation or enhancement of the environment; to make provision for imposing obligations on certain persons in respect of certain products or materials; to make provision in relation to fisheries; to make provision for certain enactments to bind the Crown; to make provision with respect to the application of certain enactments in relation to the Isles of Scilly; and for connected purposes.1995-07-19texttext/xmlenStatute Law Database2026-04-14Expert Participation2026-03-26 Environment Act 1995Sch. 7 para. 7(4A) (4B)Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007Sch. 14 para. 4(3)s. 245(5)Environment Act 1995s. 81B(3A)Environment (Principles, Governance and Biodiversity Targets) (Wales) Act 2026Deddf yr Amgylchedd (Egwyddorion, Llywodraethiant a Thargedau Bioamrywiaeth) (Cymru) 2026Sch. 4 para. 1(2)s. 46(2)(g) Part IChapter III381Agreements may be made between—aany Minister of the Crown, andba new Agency,authorising the new Agency (or any of its employees) to exercise on behalf of that Minister, with or without payment, any eligible function of his.2An agreement under subsection (1) above shall not authorise the new Agency (or any of its employees) to exercise on behalf of a Minister of the Crown any function which consists of a power to make regulations or other instruments of a legislative character or a power to fix fees or charges.3An agreement under this section may provide for any eligible function to which it relates to be exercisable by the new Agency in question (or any of its employees)—aeither wholly or to such extent as may be specified in the agreement;beither generally or in such cases or areas as may be so specified; orceither unconditionally or subject to the fulfilment of such conditions as may be so specified.4Subsection (5) below applies where, by virtue of an agreement under this section, a new Agency (or any of its employees) is authorised to exercise any function of a Minister of the Crown.5Subject to subsection (6) below, anything done or omitted to be done by the new Agency (or an employee of the new Agency) in, or in connection with, the exercise or purported exercise of the function shall be treated for all purposes as done or omitted to be done by that Minister in his capacity as such.6Subsection (5) above shall not apply—afor the purposes of so much of any agreement made between that Minister and the new Agency as relates to the exercise of the function; orbfor the purposes of any criminal proceedings brought in respect of anything done or omitted to be done as mentioned in that subsection.7An agreement under this section shall not prevent a Minister of the Crown exercising any function to which the agreement relates.8Where a Minister of the Crown has power to include, in any arrangements which he makes in relation to the performance by him of an eligible function, provision for the making of payments to him—aby other parties to the arrangements, orbby persons who use any facilities or services provided by him pursuant to the arrangements or in relation to whom the function is otherwise exercisable,he may include in any such arrangements provision for the making of such payments to him or a new Agency in cases where the new Agency (or any of its employees) acts on his behalf by virtue of an agreement under this section.9The power conferred on a Minister of the Crown by subsection (1) above is in addition to any other power by virtue of which functions of his may be exercised by other persons on his behalf.10In this section—“eligible function” means any function of a Minister of the Crown which the Secretary of State, having regard to the functions conferred or imposed upon the new Agency in question under or by virtue of this Act or any other enactment, considers can appropriately be exercised by that new Agency (or any of its employees) on behalf of that Minister; “enactment” includes an enactment comprised in, or in an instrument made under, an Act of the Scottish Parliament; “Minister of the Crown” has the same meaning as in the Ministers of the Crown Act 1975.S. 38 modified (30.6.1999) by S.I. 1999/1746, arts. 1(1), 5(1); S.I. 1998/3178, art. 31975 c. 26. Words in s. 38(10) inserted (S.) (30.6.2014) by Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (asp 3), s. 61(2), sch. 3 para. 43(5); S.S.I. 2014/160, art. 2(1)(2)Words in Pt. I Ch. III heading inserted (1.4.2013) by The Natural Resources Body for Wales (Functions) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/755), art. 1(2), Sch. 2 para. 370 (with Sch. 7)S. 38 functions cease to be exercisable (with effect in accordance with art. 1(3) of the amending S.I.) by The Natural Resources Body for Wales (Consequential Provision) Order 2013 (S.I. 2013/1821), arts. 1(2), 6 (with art. 24)