Mines and Quarries Act 1954

51 Supply of materials for support

(1) Subject to any exceptions for which provision may be made by regulations, no materials shall be used for the support of the roof or sides of any place in a mine other than materials provided by the owner of the mine.

(2) No charge shall be levied by the owner of a mine upon any person employed thereat in respect of the provision by the owner of materials for support.

(3) It shall be the duty of the manager of every mine to secure that a sufficient supply of suitable materials for support is at all times readily available, for use at the place where he is actually working, to each workman who needs them, and—

(a) where a sufficient supply of such materials is not readily available, for use at the place where he is actually working, to a workman who needs them, he shall withdraw to a place of safety and forthwith report to an official of the mine that, by reason of the premises, he has done so ; and

(b) where it appears to the person for the time being in -charge of a part of a mine that such a supply is not available as aforesaid to a workman employed in that part of the mine, the said person shall cause the workman to withdraw as aforesaid ;

and where, on any occasion, a workman has, in pursuance of either of the foregoing paragraphs, withdrawn from the place where he was actually working, the person for the time being in charge of the part of the mine in which that place is situate shall not permit the workman to return to it thereafter until that person is satisfied that such a supply of materials as aforesaid will be readily available, for use at that place, to that workman when he needs them.