The Cowes Harbour (Constitution) Revision Order 2001

Citation and commencement

1.—(1) This Order may be cited as the Cowes Harbour (Constitution) Revision Order 2001 and shall come into force on 18th June 2001.

(2) The Cowes Harbour Acts and Orders 1897 to 1989 and this Order may be cited together as the Cowes Harbour Acts and Orders 1897 to 2001.

Incorporation of section 60 of the Commissioners Clauses Act 1847

2.  Section 60 of the Commissioners Clauses Act 1847(1) shall be incorporated with this Order.

Interpretation

3.  In this Order—

“the Commissioners” means the Cowes Harbour Commissioners or, in respect of any period prior to the new constitution date, the Commissioners for the Harbour of Cowes;

“the new constitution date” means 1st July 2001.

Constitution of Commissioners

4.—(1) On and after the new constitution date, the Commissioners for the Harbour of Cowes shall be known as the Cowes Harbour Commissioners and shall, subject to article 7 below, consist of—

(a) nine persons appointed by the Commissioners; and

(b) the Chief Executive for the time being of the Commissioners.

(2) Each Commissioner appointed under paragraph (1)(a) above shall be a person who appears to the Commissioners to have special knowledge, experience or ability appropriate to the efficient, effective and economic discharge by the Commissioners of their functions including in particular (but without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing) special knowledge, experience or ability in one or more of the following matters—

(a) water related leisure activities;

(b) shipping or other forms of transport;

(c) financial management;

(d) the laws relating to England;

(e) safety or personnel management;

(f) commercial marketing or information technology;

(g) environmental matters affecting harbours; and

(h) any other skills and abilities considered from time to time by the Commissioners to be relevant to the discharge by them of their functions;

and the Commissioners shall secure, so far as reasonably practicable, that the Commissioners appointed by them will, between them, have special knowledge, experience and ability in a broad and complementary range of matters relevant to the efficient, effective and economic discharge by them of their functions.

(3) In making an appointment under paragraph (1) above or article 9 below, the Commissioners shall act in accordance with any guidance issued by the Secretary of State from time to time with respect to the exercise of such functions.

Appointment and terms of office of first Commissioners

5.—(1) The first appointments under article 4(1)(a) above shall be made on, or as soon as reasonably practicable after, 18th June 2001.

(2) The Commissioners shall appoint the person who is, at the date when they make the first appointments under paragraph (1) above, the chairman of the Commissioners to be one of the first of such appointed Commissioners and he shall hold office as a Commissioner from the new constitution date until 30th April 2004; and on and after the new constitution date shall be the chairman of the Commissioners.

(3) Of the remaining first such appointed Commissioners—

(a) three shall hold office from the new constitution date until 30th April 2002;

(b) three shall hold office from the new constitution date until 30th April 2003;

(c) two shall hold office from the new constitution date until 30th April 2004;

as the Commissioners shall specify when they make each of those appointments.

Terms of office of subsequent Commissioners

6.  A Commissioner appointed under article 4(1)(a) above (other than a Commissioner appointed under article 5 above) shall, unless appointed to fill a casual vacancy and subject to articles 8 and 10 of, and paragraph 10 of Schedule 2 to, this Order, hold office for a period of three years from 1st May next following his appointment.

Power to co-opt additional Commissioners

7.  The Commissioners referred to in article 4(1) above may at any time co-opt not more than two persons to serve as Commissioners for such period not exceeding twelve months as the co-opting Commissioners may specify at the time of co-option.

Declaration to be made by Commissioners

8.  No person shall act as a Commissioner until he has made the declaration set out in Schedule 1 to this Order (or a declaration to that effect); and a person shall cease to be a Commissioner if he fails to make that declaration within three months of the date of his appointment.

Casual vacancies

9.—(1) A casual vacancy arising in the office of a Commissioner appointed by the Commissioners shall, unless it is not reasonably practicable to do so, be filled by the appointment of a Commissioner by the Commissioners in accordance with article 4(2) and (3) above.

(2) A Commissioner appointed to fill a casual vacancy under this article shall, subject to articles 8 and 10 of, and paragraph 10 of Schedule 2 to, this Order, hold office during the remainder of the term for which the Commissioner whom he replaces was appointed.

Disqualification of Commissioners

10.  If the Commissioners are satisfied that a Commissioner—

(a) has without the permission of the Commissioners been absent from the meetings of the Commissioners—

(i) for a period during which three such meetings have been held; or

(ii) for a period of three consecutive months,

whichever of these periods is the longer; or

(b) has become bankrupt or made an arrangement with his creditors; or

(c) is incapacitated by physical or mental illness from discharging the functions of a Commissioner; or

(d) is otherwise unable, unwilling or unfit to discharge the functions of a Commissioner;

the Commissioners may declare his office as a Commissioner to be vacant and thereupon his office shall become vacant.

Indemnity insurance for Commissioners

11.  The Commissioners may enter into, and pay premiums for, a contract of insurance to indemnify the Commissioners jointly or severally against personal liability arising from any act or omission of the Commissioners or of any of them; not being an act or omission which the Commissioner or Commissioners in question knew to be a breach of his or their duty or, concerning which, he or they were reckless as to whether it was such a breach.

Incidental provisions relating to Commissioners

12.  On and after the new constitution date the provisions of Schedule 2 to this Order shall have effect with respect to the Commissioners.

Publication of Commissioners' annual statement of accounts

13.  As soon as reasonably practicable after their annual statement of accounts is prepared, the Commissioners shall—

(a) make available a copy of the statement for a period of three months at the offices of the Commissioners for inspection free of charge by members of the public and shall, subject to the payment of a reasonable charge, supply a copy of the statement to any person who requests to be supplied with a copy; and

(b) send a copy of the statement to the Isle of Wight Council.

Borrowing powers

14.—(1) Subject to paragraph (2) below, the Commissioners may from time to time borrow upon the security of their assets for the time being or of their revenues or both their assets and their revenues, by any methods they see fit—

(a) such sums of money as they think necessary not exceeding three million pounds (or that sum as adjusted in accordance with article 16 below); and

(b) with the consent of the Secretary of State, such further sums of money as they may require.

(2) In calculating the aggregate sums of money borrowed by the Commissioners under paragraph (1) above, there shall be excluded any sums borrowed for the purpose of repaying within twelve months of the date of borrowing any sum for the time being outstanding by way of principal on any amount previously borrowed.

(3) Moneys borrowed by the Commissioners under this article shall be applied only to purposes to which capital money is properly applicable.

(4) For the purposes of paragraph (3) above, but without prejudice to the generality of that paragraph, purposes to which capital money is properly applicable shall be deemed to include—

(a) the payment of any interest, falling due within five years immediately following the date of borrowing, on any sum of money borrowed by the Commissioners under this article; and

(b) the repayment, within twelve months from the date of borrowing, of any sum for the time being outstanding by way of principal on any amount previously borrowed.

Temporary borrowing powers

15.  The Commissioners may borrow temporarily, by way of overdraft or otherwise, such sums of money as the Commissioners may require but the total amount outstanding at any one time of money so borrowed shall not exceed six hundred thousand pounds (or that sum as adjusted in accordance with article 16 below).

RPI adjustment of borrowing limits

16.—(1) On each anniversary of the new constitution date the sums mentioned in articles 14(1)(a) and 15 above shall be adjusted in line with any movement (calculated to one decimal place) in RPI which occurred during the year ended on 31st December immediately preceding the anniversary in question.

(2) Any adjustment referred to in paragraph (1) above, shall be recorded in the next following annual statement of accounts prepared by the Commissioners.

(3) In paragraph (1) above, “RPI” means the general index of retail prices for all items published in the monthly publication of the Office for National Statistics known as “Monthly Digest of Statistics”, or any successor from time to time of that index.

Advisory bodies

17.—(1) The Commissioners shall establish one or more advisory body or bodies which the Commissioners shall consult on all matters substantially affecting the management, maintenance, improvement, conservation, protection or regulation of the harbour and its navigation.

(2) The Commissioners shall make arrangements for every such advisory body to meet not less than twice a year.

(3) The Commissioners shall take into consideration any matter, recommendation or representation which may from time to time be referred or made to them by such an advisory body whether or not that advisory body has been consulted by the Commissioners on the matter, recommendation or representation so referred or made.

(4) The advisory body or bodies established pursuant to this article shall consist of such number or numbers of persons appointed by the Commissioners as the Commissioners shall from time to time consider appropriate.

(5) Appointments to an advisory body established under this article shall be made by the Commissioners in accordance with a scheme prepared by them for that purpose and the scheme shall provide for the appointment of persons who, in the opinion of the Commissioners, are representative of persons having an interest in the functioning of the harbour.

(6) Any such advisory body may determine its own quorum and procedure and shall appoint a chairman.

(7) An individual member of any such advisory body may, on giving notice in writing to the chairman of that body, send a substitute to any meeting of the body.

(8) A member of such an advisory body shall hold office for the period of three years from the date of his appointment and at the end of that period shall be eligible for reappointment.

(9) A member of such an advisory body may resign his office at any time by notice in writing given to the chairman of the Commissioners.

(10) In this article, “the harbour” means the harbour of Cowes and Cowes Roads as defined in section 3, of the Cowes Harbour Order 1931(2).

Repeals and revocations

18.  On the new constitution date the enactments mentioned in the first and second columns of Schedule 3 to this Order (which include spent enactments) shall be repealed or revoked to the extent specified in the third column of that Schedule.

Signed by the authority of the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

Stephen Reeves

Head of Ports Division

Department for Transport, Local Government and the Regions

14th June 2001