Superannuation Act 1972

15 Members of police forces, special constables and police cadets

(1) Section 1 of the [1948 c. 24.] Police Pensions Act 1948 (power to make regulations providing for police pensions) shall have effect subject to the following amendments:—

(a) in subsection (3), for the words " or terminated " there shall be substituted the words " terminated or forfeited " and at the end there shall be added the words " and may provide for a pension to be forfeited wholly or in part and for the forfeiture to be permanent or temporary ";

(b) in subsection (7), for the words from " and before " onwards there shall be substituted the words " which shall be subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament ".

(2) In section 4(1) of the said Act of 1948 (forfeiture of pensions) the words " granted under regulations made under this Act is granted, and every pension " shall be omitted.

(3) For section 5 of the said Act of 1948 (appeals) there shall be substituted the following section—

“5 Appeals.

(1) Subject to subsections (3) and (4) below, regulations made under section 1 of this Act shall make provision as to the court or other person by whom appeals are to be heard and determined in the case of any person who is aggrieved—

(a) by the refusal of the police authority to admit a claim to receive as of right a pension, or a larger pension than that granted, under regulations made under that section; or

(b) by the forfeiture of any pension granted to him thereunder.

(2) If any person is aggrieved by the forfeiture, under the provisions in that behalf contained in this Act, of any pension granted to him under any of the enactments specified in Part I of the First Schedule to this Act, he may appeal to the Crown Court and that court, after enquiring into the case, may make such order in the matter as appears to the court to be just.

(3) No provision made in the regulations by virtue of subsection (1) of this section shall confer a right of appeal against anything done by the police authority in the exercise of any power which is conferred on them by the regulations and is expressly declared by the regulations to he a power which they are to exercise in their discretion

(4) The regulations may provide, in relation to questions arising thereunder, for the reference of any such matter as is prescribed, either by the police authority, or by the court, to a medical practitioner, whose decision thereon shall, subject to such rights of appeal as may be provided by the regulations to such tribunal as may be constituted thereunder, be final on the matter so referred.

(5) In the application of this section to Scotland, for the reference in subsection (2) to the Crown Court there shall be substituted a reference to the sheriff having jurisdiction in the place where the person concerned last served as a member of a police force.”

(4) The provisions of sections 4(1) and (2) and 5(1) and (5) of the said Act of 1948 as in force immediately before the commencement of this Act shall, so far as they related to pensions granted under regulations made under section 1 of that Act, be deemed to have effect as if they were provisions of regulations so made and in force on that date, and may be revoked accordingly.

(5) Section 12 (except subsections (3) and (6)) of this Act shall apply in relation to—

(a) regulations under section 1 of the said Act of 1948;

(b) regulations relating to pensions under section 34 or 35 of the [1964 c. 28.] Police Act 1964 (special constables and police cadets);

(c) regulations under section 26(2)(k) of the [1967 c. 77.] Police (Scotland) Act 1967 (regulations with respect to the application to special constables of provisions relating to the pensions payable to or in respect of regular constables); or

(d) regulations relating to pensions under section 27 of the said Act of 1967 (police cadets),

as it applies in relation to regulations under section 7, 8(2), 9 or 10 of this Act.