In this Act, except in so far as the context otherwise requires—

• “the 1946 Act” means the M1Coal Industry Nationalisation Act 1946;

• “the 1975 Act” means the M2Coal Industry Act 1975;

• “the 1991 Act” means the M3Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991;

• “the Authority” means the Coal Authority;

• “business” includes any trade or profession;

• “coal” means bituminous coal, cannel coal and anthracite;

• “coal mine” includes—

  1. a

     any space excavated underground for the purposes of coal-mining operations and any shaft or adit made for those purposes,

  2. b

     any space occupied by unworked coal, and

  3. c

     a coal quarry and opencast workings of coal;

• “coal-mining operations” includes—

  1. a

     searching for coal and boring for it,

  2. b

     winning, working and getting it (whether underground or in the course of opencast operations),

  3. c

     bringing underground coal to the surface, treating coal and rendering it saleable,

  4. d

     treating coal in the strata for the purpose of winning any product of coal and winning, working or getting any product of coal resulting from such treatment, and

  5. e

     depositing spoil from any activities carried on in the course of any coal-mining operations and draining coal mines,

  and an operation carried on in relation to minerals other than coal is a coal-mining operation in so far as it is carried on in relation to those minerals as part of, or is ancillary to, operations carried on in relation to coal;

• “company” F1has the meaning given by section 1(1) of the Companies Act 2006;

• “contravention” includes a failure to comply, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;

• “the Corporation” means the British Coal Corporation or, in relation to times before the commencement of section 1 of the M4Coal Industry Act 1987, the National Coal Board;

• “debenture” includes debenture stock;

• “the dissolution date” means the date appointed under section 23 above for the dissolution of the Corporation;

• “financial year” means the twelve months ending with 31st March;

• “holder”, in relation to a licence under Part II of this Act, means the following person (whether or not the authorisation contained in the licence remains in force), that is to say—

  1. a

     in a case where there has been no such transfer in relation to that licence as is mentioned in section 27(5) above, the person to whom the licence was granted, and

  2. b

     in any other case, the person to whom the rights and obligations of the holder of that licence were last transferred;

• “interest”, in relation to land, includes estate;

• “liability”, in relation to the transfer of liabilities from one person to another or to the modification of any liability, does not include any criminal liability;

• “licensed operator” means any person who is for the time being either—

  1. a

     authorised by a licence under Part II of this Act to carry on coal-mining operations to which section 25 above applies, or

  2. b

     authorised by virtue of subsection (3) of that section to carry on any such operations;

• “modifications” includes additions, alterations and omissions, and cognate expressions shall be construed accordingly;

• “the restructuring date” means the date appointed as that date under section 7(1) above;

• “restructuring scheme” means a scheme under section 12 above;

• “securities”, in relation to a company, includes shares, debentures, bonds and other securities of the company, whether or not constituting a charge on the assets of the company;

• “shares” includes stock;

• “subordinate legislation” has the same meaning as in the M5Interpretation Act 1978;

• “subsidence damage” has the same meaning as in the 1991 Act;

• “subsidiary” and “wholly-owned subsidiary” have the meanings given by F2section 1159 of the Companies Act 2006;

• “successor company” means any company which, at a time when it is wholly owned by the Crown, becomes entitled or subject, in accordance with any restructuring scheme, to any property, rights or liabilities;

• “undertaking”, in relation to the Corporation, includes the undertakings of its wholly-owned subsidiaries.

References in this Act to the creation, in favour of any person, of an interest in property include references to the vesting in that person of a freehold or leasehold interest in property.