Acquisition of Land (Authorisation Procedure) (Scotland) Act 1947

2 Temporary powers for speedy acquisition of land in urgent cases.

(1) Where during the period of five years beginning with the eighteenth day of April, nineteen hundred and forty-six, any authority (hereinafter referred to as a " confirming authority ") having power to authorise the compulsory purchase of land by a local authority for any purpose is satisfied—

(a) that it is expedient that the local authority (hereinafter referred to as the " acquiring authority") should purchase any land for the said purpose, and

(b) that it is urgently necessary in the public interest that the acquiring authority should be enabled to obtain possession of the land without delay,

then, if apart from this section the acquiring authority could be authorised by the confirming authority under any enactment to purchase the land compulsorily for the said purpose in accordance with the provisions of the foregoing section or of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act, 1945, the acquiring authority may, in lieu of being so authorised in accordance with the said provisions, be so authorised, subject to the provisions of the Third Schedule to this Act, by an authorisation in writing given by the confirming authority under this subsection.

(2) Where during the period aforesaid the Minister of Transport is satisfied that it is expedient that he should purchase any land under any enactment mentioned in paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of the foregoing section except section twenty-eight of the Civil Aviation Act, 1946, or the Board of Trade are satisfied that it is expedient that they should purchase any land under the [8 & 9 Geo. 6. c. 36.] Distribution of Industry Act, 1945, and the Minister or the Board are satisfied that it is urgently necessary in the public interest that the Minister or the Board should be enabled to obtain possession of the land without delay, the Minister or the Board may, in lieu of being authorised to purchase the land in accordance with the provisions of the foregoing section or of the Distribution of Industry Act, 1945, be so authorised, subject to the provisions of the Third Schedule to this Act, by an authorisation in writing given by the Minister or the Board under this subsection.

In the following provisions of this section and in the Third Schedule to this Act, the expressions " acquiring authority " and " confirming authority " include the Minister of Transport or the Board of Trade acting under this subsection.

(3) At any time not earlier than seven days nor later than three months after the giving of an authorisation under this section, the acquiring authority may enter on, and take possession of, the land to which the authorisation relates, notwithstanding that the purchase of the land has not been completed.

(4) Where the acquiring authority has taken possession of land pursuant to an authorisation under this section, the authority shall have power to purchase the land compulsorily as if authorised so to do under the enactment referred to in subsection (1) or (2) of this section and in accordance with the provisions of the foregoing section, the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act, 1945, or the Distribution of Industry Act, 1945, as the case may be, and the provisions of Part III of the Second Schedule to this Act ; and the authority shall as soon as may be after taking possession of the land, serve notice under section seventeen of the [8 & 9 Vict. c. 19.] Lands Clauses Consolidation (Scotland) Act, 1845, of its intention to take the land and shall in all respects be liable as if such notice had been given on the date of the authority's entering on the land, except that the power conferred by subsection (2) of section five of the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act, 1919, to withdraw such a notice shall not be exercisable.

(5) A power to enter on and take possession of land' conferred by an authorisation given under this section may, save as provided in the Third Schedule to this Act, be exercised without notice to, or the consent of, any person and without compliance with sections eighty-three to eighty-eight of the Lands Clauses Consolidation (Scotland) Act, 1845, but subject to payment of the like compensation, and interest on the compensation agreed or awarded, as the acquiring authority would have been required to pay if the provisions of those sections had been complied with.

(6) Notwithstanding anything in the two last foregoing subsections, where apart from this subsection the compensation for the compulsory purchase of land in respect of which an authorisation has been given under this section would be reduced by virtue of paragraph 8 of the Fifth Schedule to the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act, 1945 (which relates to purchases under that Act of houses unfit for human habitation) the reduction shall not be made unless an order under the said paragraph 8 has come into operation before the date on which the acquiring authority took possession of the land.

(7) While the acquiring authority is in possession of land pursuant to an authorisation given under this section, the authority shall be treated, as regards the use of the land and the rights of other persons affected by the use thereof, as if the authority had completed the purchase of the land; and in particular, any provision for the extinction of rights over the land on completion of the purchase thereof shall apply as if the authority had completed the purchase thereof at the time when possession was taken.

(8) In this section references to the use of land include references to the erection of buildings or structures on the land and the carrying out of work thereon.

(9) If at any time before the expiration of the period during which authorisations may be given under this section an address is presented to His Majesty by each House of Parliament praying that the said period shall be extended for a further year from the time at which it would otherwise expire, His Majesty may by Order in Council direct that the said period shall be so extended.

(10) This section shall not apply to any compulsory purchase of land under section eleven of the [9 & 10 Geo. 6. c. 71.] Police (Scotland) Act, 1946 or under section two of the [10 & 11 Geo. 6. c. 22.] Civic Restaurants Act, 1947, or under section fifty-seven of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act, 1947.