Mines Act (Northern Ireland) 1969

158 General interpretation provisions. N.I.

(1) In this Act—

• Definition rep. by SR 1981/339

• [F1 “central rescue station” means a station providing facilities common to a number of mines for the conduct of fire-fighting and rescue operations;]

• “contravention” includes, in relation to—

  (a)

  a direction, prohibition, restriction or requirement given or imposed by a notice served under or by virtue of this Act by[F2 the Executive] or an inspector; or

  (b)

  a condition attached to an exemption, consent, approval or authority granted or given under or by virtue of this Act by[F2 the Executive] or by an inspector exercising any function conferred on him under section 120(3); [F3 or

  (c)

  a prohibition or requirement imposed by or under health and safety regulations which expressly apply to all mines, any class of mine or a particular mine;]

  a failure to comply with the direction, prohibition, restriction, requirement or condition, and the expression “contravene” shall be construed accordingly;

• [F2 “the Department” means the Department of Economic Development]

• “doctor” means a fully registered person within the meaning of[F4 section 55 of the Medical Act 1983];

• [F2 “the Executive” means the Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland]

• “gas” includes fume or vapour;

• “gravity operated rope haulage apparatus” means rope haulage apparatus worked solely by the action of gravity on a vehicle or vehicles attached to a rope forming part of the apparatus;

• “gravity operated winding apparatus” means winding apparatus worked solely by the action of gravity on a part of it in which a load is carried;

• [F3 “health and safety regulations” has the meaning assigned to it by Article 17(1) of the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 [1978 NI 9] ;]

• “inset” means, in relation to shaft or outlet of a mine, a heading, chamber or other space driven or excavated from the shaft or outlet, being a heading, chamber or space to which access can only be had from the shaft or outlet and not being a heading, chamber or space the sole or main purpose of the driving or excavation of which is the getting of minerals or products of minerals;

• [F1 “inspector” means an inspector appointed by[F2 the Executive] under Article 21 of the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978 for carrying into effect the provisions of the Act of 1969;]

• “legal proceedings” includes arbitration;

• “mechanically operated rope haulage apparatus” means rope haulage apparatus worked by a stationary engine;

• “mechanically operated winding apparatus” means winding apparatus worked by a stationary engine;

• “minerals” includes stone, slate, clay, gravel, sand and other natural deposits except peat;

• Definition rep. by SR 1999/150

• “notice” means a notice in writing;

• “parent” means a parent[F5 of a young person or any person who is not a parent of his but who has parental responsibility for him (within the meaning of the Children (Northern Ireland) Order 1995)], and includes, in relation to any young person, a person having direct benefit from his wages;

• “permitted lights” means, in relation to a mine or a part of a mine, locked safety-lamps and any other means of lighting the use of which below ground in mines generally, in mines of a class to which that mine belongs or in that mine is authorised by regulations[F6 or health and safety regulations];

• “prescribed” has the meaning assigned to it by section 120(5);

• “railway company” means any person working a railway that is used for the purposes of public traffic, whether passenger, goods or other traffic;

• “regulations”, “general regulations” and “special regulations” have, subject to subsection (5) of section 120 the meanings respectively assigned to them by that subsection;

• “road” does not include an unwalkable outlet;

• “rope” includes chain;

• “rope haulage apparatus” means apparatus for transporting loads in vehicles attached to ropes;

• “safety-lamp mine” means a mine in no part of which below ground is the use of lamps or lights other than permitted lights lawful;

• “safety-lamp part of a mine” means a part of a mine other than a safety-lamp mine, being a part below ground in which either the use of lamps or lights other than permitted lights is unlawful or safety-lamps are for the time being in use by way of temporary precaution;

• “sanitary conveniences” includes urinals, water-closets, earth-closets, ash-pits, privies and any similar convenience;

• “shaft” means a shaft the top of which is, or is intended to be, at the surface;

• “staple-pit” means a shaft connecting two or more levels of underground working and not connecting any such level directly to the surface, and includes a winze;

• “statutory responsibilities” means responsibilities under this Act, orders made thereunder and regulations;

• “support rules” has the meaning assigned to it by section 54(1);

• “transport rules” has the meaning assigned to it by section 37(1);

• “unwalkable outlet” means an outlet which, owing to the gradient thereof or of any part thereof (whether alone or in combination with other circumstances), persons cannot walk up with reasonable convenience;

• “winding apparatus” means, in relation to a mine shaft or staple-pit, apparatus for lowering and raising loads through the shaft or staple-pit;

• “woman” means a woman who has attained the age of eighteen years;

• “young person” means a person who is over compulsory school age but has not attained the age of eighteen years.

F7 (2) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(3) For the purposes of this Act—

[F8 (a) a mine shall be treated as being worked at any time when there are persons at work below ground or plant or equipment is in operation at the mine to maintain the safety of that mine or of any other mine or the operation of driving a shaft or outlet is being undertaken at the mine.]

F9 (b) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(4) References in this Act to the use of safety-lamps by way of temporary precaution shall, in relation to a mine, be construed as references to the occasional or intermittent use of locked safety-lamps by workmen employed below ground in the mine in a place in which the use of naked lights might be dangerous and, in relation to a part of a mine below ground, be construed as references to the occasional or intermittent use of locked safety-lamps by workmen employed in that part in such a place.

F1 SR 1980/333

F2 SR 1999/150

F3 SR 1980/333

F4 1983 c. 54

F5 1995 NI 2

F6 SR 1991/13

F7 S. 158(2) repealed (1.2.2017) by The Mines Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 (S.R. 2016/427), reg. 1(2), Sch. 3

F8 S. 158(3)(a) substituted (1.2.2017) by The Mines Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 (S.R. 2016/427), reg. 1(2), Sch. 5 para. 1(b)

F9 S. 158(3)(b) repealed (1.2.2017) by The Mines Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2016 (S.R. 2016/427), reg. 1(2), Sch. 3