Agriculture Act (Northern Ireland) 1949

22 Provisions in respect of conacre and agistment. N.I.

(1) Where under or by virtue of any provision contained in section nineteen of this Act the Ministry has given to an occupier of agricultural land a direction relating to any of the matters specified in paragraphs ( b), ( c) or ( d) of sub-section (4) of section nineteen of this Act and that occupier satisfies the Ministry that any other person had, before such direction was given, acquired by virtue of any conacre or agistment agreement any right to crop or till the land or to graze or pasture livestock thereon, the Ministry shall serve the like direction on that other person and it shall, notwithstanding anything in that conacre or agistment agreement, be the duty of that other person to comply with the direction so far as it relates to the land over which he has acquired such right and if he refuses or neglects to do so or acts in contravention of the direction he shall, in lieu of the occupier, be liable on summary conviction under sub-section (1) of section twenty of this Act to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 3 on the standard scale] and the occupier shall cease to be liable in respect of so much of the direction as relates to such last-mentioned land.

(2) Where under or by virtue of any provision contained in section twenty-one of this Act or in any order made under that section the Ministry has given to an occupier of agricultural land a direction relating to any of the matters specified in paragraphs ( b), ( c) or ( d) of sub-section (4) of section nineteen of this Act and that occupier satisfies the Ministry that any other person had, before such direction was given, acquired by virtue of any conacre or agistment agreement any right to crop or till the land or to graze or pasture livestock thereon, the Ministry shall serve the like direction on that other person and it shall, notwithstanding anything in that conacre or agistment agreement, be the duty of that other person to comply with the direction so far as it relates to the land over which he has acquired such right and if he refuses or neglects to do so or acts in contravention of the direction he shall, in lieu of the occupier, be liable on summary conviction under sub-section (3) of section twenty-one of this Act to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 3 on the standard scale] or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months or to both such fine and such imprisonment and the occupier shall cease to be liable in respect of so much of the direction as relates to such last-mentioned land.

(3) Save as provided by the last two preceding sub-sections an occupier of any agricultural land shall be treated as such for the purposes of this Part of this Act notwithstanding that any right to crop or till that land or to graze or pasture livestock thereon is exercisable by any other person under or by virtue of any conacre or agistment agreement.

(4) If the owner or occupier of any agricultural land enters into any conacre or agistment agreement authorising some other person to use that land for a purpose which is prohibited by or is inconsistent with any direction given under this Part of this Act prior to the making of that agreement, he shall, without prejudice to any civil liability in respect thereof, be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding[F1 level 3 on the standard scale].

F1 1984 NI 3