Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972

61 Purposes for which money may be borrowed. N.I.

(1) Without prejudice to subsections (2) and (4) and section 68(1), where the Ministry is satisfied that, by reason of the nature of the expenditure incurred or to be incurred by a council in the excercise of any of its functions, the expenditure should be met by borrowing and repayment spread over a term of years, then the council may borrow on such terms and conditions (including conditions as to time and manner of repayment) as the Ministry approves.

(2) A council may borrow without the approval of the Ministry, by way of temporary loan or overdraft from a bank or otherwise, any sum which the council temporarily requires—

(a) for the purpose of defraying expenses (including the payment of sums due by the council to meet the expenses of other bodies) pending the receipt of revenues receivable by the council in respect of the financial year in which those expenses are chargeable;

(b) for the purpose of defraying, pending the raising of a loan which the council has been authorised under subsection (1) to raise, expenses intended to be defrayed by means of the loan.

(3) Where money is borrowed in pursuance of paragraph ( b) of subsection (2) and subsequently a loan such as is mentioned in that paragraph is raised, then for the purposes of any approval regulating the period of the repayment of that loan, the loan shall, to the extent of the sum borrowed under that paragraph, be deemed to have been raised at the time when the borrowing under that paragraph took place.

(4) A council may also borrow without the approval of the Ministry such sums as are necessary in order to provide working capital or to meet any other expenditure (not being expenditure of a capital nature) required for the purposes of any public utility undertaking carried on by the council; but—

(a) the total sums borrowed under this subsection and for the time being outstanding shall not, except with the approval of the Ministry, exceed an amount representing one-half of the gross revenue of the undertaking for the immediately preceding financial year;

(b) any sum borrowed under this subsection to defray expenditure shall be repaid as soon as reasonably practicable and in any event not later than the expiration of two years from the date of borrowing, unless the approval of the Ministry is obtained to the repayment being spread over a longer period.

Para.(5) rep. by 1991 NI 6