Landlord and Tenant Act 1954

69 Interpretation. E+W

(1) In this Act the following expressions have the meanings hereby assigned to them respectively, that is to say:—

• “agricultural holding” has the same meaning as in the [F1 Agricultural Holdings Act 1986];

• “development corporation” has the same meaning as in [F2 the M1 New Towns Act 1981];

• [F3 “farm business tenancy” has the same meaning as in the Agricultural Tenancies Act 1995;]

• “local authority” [F4 means any local authority within the meaning of the M2 Town and Country Planning Act 1990, any National Park authority, F5 ... the Broads Authority [F6 , the London Fire Commissioner] [F7 , a joint authority established by Part 4 of the Local Government Act 1985, an economic prosperity board established under section 88 of the Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 [F8 , a combined authority established under section 103 of that Act [F9 , a combined county authority established under section 9(1) of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023] or a fire and rescue authority created by an order under section 4A of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004];]]

• “mortgage” includes a charge or lien and “mortgagor” and “mortgagee” shall be construed accordingly;

• “notice to quit” means a notice to terminate a tenancy (whether a periodical tenancy or a tenancy for a term of years certain) given in accordance with the provisions (whether express or implied) of that tenancy;

• “repairs” includes any work of maintenance, decoration or restoration, and references to repairing, to keeping or yielding up in repair and to state of repair shall be construed accordingly;

• “statutory undertakers” has the same meaning as in [F10 the Town and Country Planning Act 1971], F11 ...

• “tenancy” means a tenancy created either immediately or derivatively out of the freehold, whether by a lease or underlease, by an agreement for a lease or underlease or by a tenancy agreement or in pursuance of any enactment (including this Act), but does not include a mortgage term or any interest arising in favour of a mortgagor by his attorning tenant to his mortgagee, and references to the granting of a tenancy and to demised property shall be construed accordingly;

• “terms”, in relation to a tenancy, includes conditions.

(2) References in this Act to an agreement between the landlord and the tenant (except in section seventeen and subsections (1) and (2) of section thirty-eight thereof) shall be construed as references to an agreement in writing between them.

(3) References in this Act to an action for any relief shall be construed as including references to a claim for that relief by way of counterclaim in any proceedings.

Textual Amendments

F1 Words substituted by Agricultural Holdings Act 1986 (c. 5, SIF 2:3), ss. 99, 100, Sch. 13 para. 3, Sch. 14 para. 22

F2 Words substituted by virtue of Interpretation Act 1978 (c. 30), s. 17(2)(a)

F3 Definition of "farm business tenancy" in s. 69(1) inserted (1.9.1995) by 1995 c. 8, ss. 40, 41(2), Sch. para. 12 (with s. 37)

F4 Words in s. 69(1) (definition of "local authority") substituted (23.11.1995) by 1995 c. 25, s. 78, Sch. 10 para. 3 (with ss. 76, 115, 117, Sch. 8 para. 7); S.I. 1995/2950, art. 2(1)

F5 Words in s. 69(1) omitted (26.5.2015) by virtue of Deregulation Act 2015 (c. 20), s. 115(7), Sch. 13 para. 6(2); S.I. 2015/994, art. 6(g)

F6 Words in s. 69(1) substituted (31.1.2017 for specified purposes, 1.4.2018 in so far as not already in force) by Policing and Crime Act 2017 (c. 3), s. 183(1)(5)(e), Sch. 2 para. 19; S.I. 2018/227, reg. 4(c)

F7 Words in s. 69(1) substituted (17.12.2009) by Local Democracy, Economic Development and Construction Act 2009 (c. 20), s. 148(6), Sch. 6 para. 1; S.I. 2009/3318, art. 2(c)

F8 Words in s. 69(1) substituted (31.1.2017 for specified purposes, 3.4.2017 in so far as not already in force) by Policing and Crime Act 2017 (c. 3), s. 183(1)(5)(e), Sch. 1 para. 15; S.I. 2017/399, reg. 2, Sch. para. 38

F9 Words in s. 69(1) inserted (26.12.2023) by Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 (c. 55), s. 255(2)(c), Sch. 4 para. 1 (with s. 247)

F10 Words substituted by virtue of Town and Country Planning Act 1971 (c. 78), Sch. 24 para. 2

F11 Words in s. 69(1) (definition of "statutory undertakers") repealed (31.10.1994) by 1994 c. 21, s. 67, Sch. 9 para. 5, Sch. 11 Pt. II (with ss. 40(7), 66); S.I. 1994/2553, art. 2

Modifications etc. (not altering text)

C1 S. 69(1) extended by S.I. 1985/1884, art. 10, Sch. 3 para. 4 (a)

C2 Reference in the definition of “local authority” to the Town and Country Planning Act 1947 to be construed (24.8.1990) as mentioned in Planning (Consequential Provisions) Act 1990 (c. 11, SIF 123:1, 2), s. 2(4)

Marginal Citations

M1 1981 c. 64.

M2 1990 c. 8.