. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

Section 9(5) of the Act of 1963 (which relates to the determination of weighted population) shall be amended by substituting for the words “in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 2 to this Act” the words “in such manner as may be prescribed by a rate support grant order made under section 3 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1966”.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F2

References in this section to the time of valuation are references to the time by reference to which the valuation of lands and heritages would have fallen to be ascertained if this section had not been enacted.

This section does not apply to lands and heritages which are occupied by a public utility undertaking and of which the value falls to be ascertained by reference to the profits of the undertaking carried on therein.

For the purpose of calculating the payments which are, under the provisions of Part V of the M9Local Government Act 1948, to be made year by year by the South of Scotland Electricity Board and the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board respectively for the benefit of local authorities in Scotland for the year 1967-68 and subsequent years, the standard amount referred to in sections 96 to 98 of that Act (which relate to payments by the South of Scotland Board) and the standard amount referred to in section 99 of that Act (which relates to payments by the Hydro-Electric Board) shall be such sums as may be respectively prescribed by order made by the Secretary of State.

The power to make an order under the foregoing subsection shall be exercisable by statutory instrument and any statutory instrument containing such an order shall not have effect unless approved by a resolution of the Commons House of Parliament.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F13

As respects the year 1967–68 and subsequent years F14up to and including the year 1977–78, local water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such premises occupied by the South of Scotland Electricity Board or the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board as are described in section 17(2) of the M10Water (Scotland) Act 1949, and accordingly the said section 17(2) shall cease to apply to those premises.

As respects the year 1978–79 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such lands and heritages as are specified in paragraph 4 of Schedule 1 to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975.

As respects the year 1978–79 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such lands and heritages as are specified in paragraph 3 of Schedule 1 to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975.

As respects the year 1978–79 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of any such lands and heritages as are specified in paragraph 2 . . . F18of Schedule 1 to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975.

As respects the year 1978–79 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such lands and heritages as are specified in paragraph 5 of Schedule 1 to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 F20and to which an order made under section 6 of that Act applies.

As respects the year 1979–80 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such lands and heritages specified in paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 as have their rateable values determined under F22any order made under sections 6 and 35 of that Act.

As respects the year 1985–86 and subsequent years, water authorities shall have power to make charges by way of meter or otherwise in respect of water supplied to any such lands and heritages specified in paragraph 2A of Schedule 1 to the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 as have their rateable values prescribed by or determined under any order made under sections 6 and 35 of that Act.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F24

The assessor for the area in which office premises occupied by an authority to which this section applies are situated or the occupier of those premises may apply to the appropriate Minister for a determination of the question whether the premises are situated on operational land of the authority, and if the Minister determines that the premises are not so situated the occupier thereof shall be liable to be rated in respect of the premises from the date of that determination F25and section 9(1) of the M11Local Government (Scotland) Act 1975 (which provides for restricted rates to be payable pending determination of an appeal) shall apply to the payment of rates during the period where such an application is pending as if that application were an appeal under the Valuation Acts.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F24

For the year 1967-68 and subsequent years, an authority to which this section applies shall, notwithstanding anything in Part V of the M1Local Government Act 1948, section 24(2) of the M2Valuation and Rating (Scotland) Act 1956 . . . F5, be liable to be rated in respect of any shop, room or other place occupied and used by the authority wholly or mainly for the sale, display or demonstration of apparatus or accessories for use by consumers of gas or, as the case may be, electricity; and accordingly any such shop, room or other place shall be included in the valuation roll for the area in which it is situated.

In determining whether any such shop, room or other place is wholly or mainly occupied and used as aforesaid, use for the receipt of payments for gas or electricity consumed shall be disregarded.

This section applies to the following authorities, that is to say, F6the British Gas Corporation, the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board and the South of Scotland Electricity Board.

Any person interested may complain to the Valuation Appeal Committee for a valuation area (which terms in this section have the same meaning as in the M3Valuation and Rating (Scotland) Act 1956) to the effect F7(a) that particular lands and heritages are not included in the valuation roll for that area and that they ought to be so included F8or (b) that lands and heritages consisting of a pitch for a caravan have been treated as part of a single unit of lands and heritages by virtue of section 3(1) of the Rating (Caravan Sites) Act 1976 and ought to be separately entered in such valuation roll; and the procedure set out in Schedule 2 to the said Act of 1956 and in section 13 of the M4Lands Valuation (Scotland) Act 1854 shall be followed in relation to complaints under this section.

After hearing a complaint under this section the Valuation Appeal Committee may dismiss it or may direct that such entry be made in the Valuation roll as respects the lands and heritages concerned as may be specified in the direction.

A decision made under the last foregoing subsection shall be subject to appeal by way of stated case in the manner provided by section 7 of the M5Valuation of Lands (Scotland) Amendment Act 1879.

Any application for a stated case under section 7 of the M6Valuation of Lands (Scotland) Amendment Act 1879 may be made in writing within the prescribed period from the date of the decision of the Valuation Appeal Committee, or if the decision was made in the absence of any party intending to make such an application, within the prescribed period from the date of receipt by him of the notification of the decision, and accordingly in the said section 7 the words “and shall then declare himself dissatisfied with such determination” shall cease to have effect.

In this section “the prescribed period” means the period for the time being prescribed by virtue of section 6 of the M7Rating and Valuation (Scotland) Act 1952 within which grounds of appeal relating to a stated case under the said section 7 may be lodged.

Subject to the following provisions of this Part of this Act, and notwithstanding the provisions of section 243 of the M13Local Government (Scotland) Act 1947, where any relevant lands and heritages in the area of a rating authority are unoccupied for a continuous period exceeding F28six months, the person entitled to possession of the lands and heritages (hereafter in this Part of this Act referred to as the “owner”) may, if the rating authority think fit, be rated in respect of the lands and heritages for any relevant period of vacancy; and the enactments relating to rating shall apply with any necessary modifications as if the lands and heritages were occupied during that period by the owner.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F29

In this section—

• “relevant lands and heritages” means any lands and heritages consisting of, or of part of, . . . F30 shop, office, factory, mill or other building whatsoever, together with any garden, yard, court or other land ordinarily used or intended for use for the purposes of the building or part; and

• “relevant period of vacancy” means, in relation to any relevant lands and heritages, any period beginning with the day following the end of a period of F28six months during which the lands and heritages have been continuously unoccupied and ending with the day preceding that on which the lands and heritages become or next become occupied.

Where lands and heritages which are unoccupied become occupied on any day and become unoccupied again on the expiration of a period of less than three weeks beginning with that day, then, for the purpose of ascertaining any period of F28six months during which the lands and heritages have been continuously unoccupied and any relevant period of vacancy in respect of the lands and heritages, they shall be deemed to have remained unoccupied on that day and during that period.

If it appears to the rating authority that part of any lands and heritages included in the valuation roll is unoccupied but will remain so for a short time only, the authority may request the assessor to apportion the rateable value between the occupied and unoccupied parts and on being thus requested the assessor shall apportion the rateable value accordingly.

Notwithstanding paragraph (b) of subsection (3) above, if it appears to the rating authority that the part of the lands and heritages which was unoccupied at the date of an apportionment of the rateable value thereof under subsection (1) above has continued after the end of the financial year referred to in that paragraph to be unoccupied but will remain so for a short time only, the authority may direct that the apportionment shall continue to have effect for the next financial year; and subsections (2), (3)(a), (c) and (d) and (4) above shall have effect in relation to that year accordingly.

Any statutory instrument containing regulations made under this section shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

In this section “financial year” has the meaning assigned to it by section 96(5) of the M8Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.

Subsection (1) above applies to the unoccupied part of lands and heritages for the purposes of section 24A of this Act as it applies to unoccupied lands and heritages for the purposes of the said section 24.

The provisions of Schedule 3 to this Act shall have effect, for the purposes of section 24 of this Act, with respect to the determination of rateable values, the treatment of newly erected and altered buildings and the other matters there mentioned.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . F31

The Secretary of State may by regulations provide that rates shall not be payable under section 24 of this Act in respect of lands and heritages of such descriptions as may be prescribed by the regulations or in such circumstances as may be so prescribed; and the regulations may make different provision for lands and heritages of different descriptions and for different circumstances.

Any statutory instrument containing regulations made under this subsection shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.

Section 4 of the M16Local Government (Financial Provisions etc.) (Scotland) Act 1962 (reduction and remission of rates payable by charitable and other organisations) shall apply in relation to any relevant lands and heritages to which that section applied when they were last occupied as if they were used for the purpose for which they were then used.