Coast Protection Act 1949

20 Contributions towards expenses of coast protection

(1) Where the Minister undertakes to make, or makes, a grant under the next following section towards expenditure incurred under this Act by the council of a county district in England or Wales, the council of the county within which the county district is situated shall pay to the council of the county district a contribution towards that expenditure of such amount and payable at such time as may be agreed between the two councils, or as, in default of agreement, may be determined by the Minister subject to the following provisions of this section.

(2) The amount determined by the Minister under the last foregoing subsection of a contribution towards any expenditure shall not without the consent of the county council—

(a) exceed the amount of the grant which the Minister has made, or has undertaken to make, under the next following section towards that expenditure, or

(b) be such that the amount of the contribution, together with the amount of any other contributions which, by virtue of any agreement or determination made under the last foregoing subsection, the county council have paid or have become liable to pay (whether to the same county district council or to any other such council) in the same financial year, exceeds the product of a rate of one penny in the pound levied over the whole county:

Provided that in the case of a contribution determined by the Minister to be of a capital nature, paragraph (b) of this subsection shall apply as if the amount thereof were the amount so determined to be the annual amount which would have to be provided for the payment of principal and interest in respect of a loan made by the Public Works Loan Commissioners to the council and repayable by twenty equal annual instalments of principal and interest combined, being a loan of an amount equal to the actual amount of the contribution and where this proviso has effect, then for the purposes of the said paragraph (b) (but not for any other purpose) the council shall be deemed to have become liable as aforesaid to pay, in each of the next nineteen financial years, a contribution of the amount determined as aforesaid.

(3) So much of any contribution as is agreed between the county council and the county district council to be attributable to the protection of any highway for which the council was the highway authority when the relevant expenditure was incurred, or in default of such agreement so much thereof as is determined jointly by the Minister and the Minister of Transport to be so attributable, shall be disregarded for the purposes of the last foregoing subsection.

(4) The council of a county in England or Wales may pay such contributions as they, think fit towards any expenses incurred by any person other than the council of a county district within the county in respect of coast protection work carried out within the county or appearing to the council to be work for the protection of any land in the county.

(5) The council of a county borough in England or Wales or the council of a burgh in Scotland, not being a coast protection authority or a constituent authority of a coast protection board, may if they think fit defray, or contribute towards, the cost of carrying out any coast protection work which appears to the council to be necessary or expedient for the protection of any land in their area.

(6) A coast protection authority may defray, or contribute towards, the cost of carrying out any coast protection work, whether within or outside their area, which appears to the authority to be necessary or expedient for the protection of any land in their area.

(7) The council of a county in Scotland shall pay towards the expenses incurred under this Act by the council of a small burgh in the county in respect of coast protection work carried out, in whole or in part, for the protection of a road for the maintenance and management of which the council of the county are responsible such contributions as may be agreed between the two councils or as, in default of agreement, may be determined by the Minister.