Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009

20 Agreements with certain harbour authorities

(1) This section applies where a harbour authority which is a local authority is authorised under an agreement to perform a function.

(2) Subject to subsections (5) to (7), the function that the local authority is authorised to perform is to be treated as a function of the local authority for the purposes of—

(a) any power of a local authority to arrange for the discharge of the function jointly with another local authority (but only to the extent that each of the authorities is a harbour authority),

(b) any power of a local authority to arrange for the discharge of the function by any person mentioned in subsection (3), and

(c) any power of a person mentioned in subsection (3) to arrange for the discharge of a function by any other person mentioned there.

(3) The persons are any committee, sub-committee, member, officer or employee of the local authority.

(4) In subsection (3)—

(a) “committee” includes a joint committee of two or more local authorities which are harbour authorities and which include the local authority mentioned in subsection (1);

(b) “sub-committee” includes a sub-committee of any such joint committee;

(c) the reference to a member, officer or employee of the local authority includes a reference to a member, officer or employee of any local authority, or any of the local authorities, with which the local authority may have entered into arrangements for the joint discharge of functions which consist of or include functions which the local authority is authorised under an agreement to perform.

(5) If the local authority is operating executive arrangements, the function is to be treated as a function of the local authority for the purposes of section 13 of the Local Government Act 2000 (c. 22) (provision for determining which functions of the authority are to be the responsibility of the executive and which are not).

(6) If, in a case where the local authority is operating executive arrangements, the function is to any extent the responsibility of the executive of the local authority, then to that extent—

(a) subsection (2) does not apply, but

(b) the provisions mentioned in subsection (7) have effect.

(7) The provisions are—

(a) sections 14 to 16 of the Local Government Act 2000 (discharge of functions in the case of different types of executive arrangements);

(b) any regulations under section 17 or 18 of that Act (discharge of functions by executive of a type prescribed under section 11(5) of that Act, and discharge of functions by area committees);

(c) so far as relating to arrangements (including the appointment of joint committees) under section 101(5) of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) which involve another local authority which is a harbour authority, any regulations under section 20 of the Local Government Act 2000 (joint exercise of functions).

(8) “Executive arrangements” and “executive” have the same meaning as in Part 2 of the Local Government Act 2000.

(9) An agreement may provide that the provisions of subsection (2) or those mentioned in subsection (7) do not apply (or do not apply to a specified extent).