Ministry of Transport Act 1919

21 Rates advisory committee

(1) For the purpose of giving advice and assistance to the Minister with respect to and for safeguarding any interests affected by any directions as to rates, fares, tolls, dues, and other charges or special services, a committee shall be appointed consisting of five persons, one being a person of experience in the law (who shall be chairman) nominated by the Lord Chancellor, two being representatives of the trading and agricultural interests nominated by the Board of Trade, after consultation with the Associated Chambers of Commerce, the Central Chamber of Agriculture, and other interests concerned, one being a representative of transportation interests nominated by the Minister, one being a representative of labour interests nominated by the Minister of Labour, after consultation with the Parliamentary Committee of the Trades Union Congress and other interests concerned, together with, if deemed advisable, one additional member who may at the discretion of the Minister be nominated from time to time by him.

(2) Before directing any revision of any rates, fares, tolls, dues, or other charges, or of any special services, the Minister shall refer the matter to the committee for their advice, and they shall report thereon to him, and, where such revision is for the purpose of an increase in the net revenue of any undertakings which the Minister determines to be necessary, the committee shall also advise as to the best methods of obtaining such increase from the different classes of traffic, having due regard to existing contracts and the fairness and adequacy of the methods proposed to be adopted. Before prescribing the limits of rates, tolls, or charges in connexion with a new transport service established under section nine of this Act, the Minister shall refer the matter to the Committee for their advice.

(3) The committee, before reporting or advising on any matters referred to them under this section, shall, unless in their discretion they consider it unnecessary or undesirable to do so, give such public notice as they think best adapted for informing persons affected of the date when and the place where they will inquire into the matter, and any persons affected may make representations to the committee, and, unless in their discretion the committee consider it unnecessary, shall be heard at such inquiry, and, if the committee in their discretion think fit, the whole or any part of the proceedings at such inquiry may be open to the public :

Provided that, for the purpose of this provision, the council of any city, borough, burgh, county, or district shall be deemed to be persons affected in any case where such council or any persons represented by them may be affected by any such proposed revision as aforesaid.

(4) The committee shall hear such witnesses and call for such documents and accounts as they think fit, and shall have power to take evidence on oath, and for that purpose any member of the committee may administer oaths.

(5) There shall be paid out of moneys provided by Parliament to all or any of the members of the .committee such salaries or other remuneration as the Minister, with the consent of the Treasury, may determine.

(6) For the purposes of this section, " special services " means the services mentioned in section five of the schedule to the orders relating to railway rates and charges, and in the corresponding sections of the schedules to the orders relating to canal tolls, rates and charges, confirmed by various Acts passed in the years eighteen hundred and ninety-one to eighteen hundred and ninety-four.