HC Deb 07 July 1947 vol 439 cc1994-5
The Lord Advocate

I beg to move, in page 128, line 47, after "under," to insert: "paragraph (b) of Subsection (2) of."

This is a drafting Amendment.

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. Westwood

I beg to move, in page 129, line 24, after "shall," to insert: on a claim made to the Commission in that behalf within the time and in the manner prescribed by regulations made by the Treasury under this Act. As it stands, the Schedule provides for payment being paid by the War Damage Commission to the Minister or the authority compulsorily acquiring certain war damaged property. The object of the Amendment I am now moving is to make payment on a claim being made to the Commission within the time and in a manner prescribed by regulations made by the Treasury.

Amendment agreed to.

The Lord Advocate

I beg to move, in page 130, line 24, to leave out from "construed," to the end of line 26, and to insert: as a reference to the date of the completion of the acquisition or, if interest on the compensation, or on the purchase price, as the case may be, becomes payable before that date (whether by virtue of entry on the land or otherwise), as a reference to the date from which the interest becomes payable.

This is a drafting Amendment.

Amendment agreed to.

The Lord Advocate

I beg to move, in page 131, line 19, at the end, to insert:

"Extension of Owner-occupier Supplement to Certain Subsidiary Companies.

4.—(1) Where an interest in land the value of which falls to be ascertained in accordance with the provisions of Part II of the Act of 1945 for the purposes of the compensation payable on a compulsory acquisition thereof is an interest held by a company having among its objects the holding of land, and being related (as hereinafter defined) to another company which carries on business on land so held, then, without prejudice to the provisions of paragraph (a) of Subsection (6) of Section fifty-four of the said Act, or of any regulation made thereunder. Subsection (5) of that Section shall have effect in relation to that interest as if references in paragraphs (a) to (d) of that Subsection to the person entitled to compensation for the purchase of that interest included references to the last mentioned company.

(2) For the purposes of this paragraph a company shall be deemed to be related to another company if either of those companies is a subsidiary of the other (as defined by any Act of the present Session to amend the law relating to companies) or if both of them are subsidiaries (as so defined) of a third company."

This is rather a complicated Amendment to effect the payments necessary to meet the case, for example, of a company carrying on business as a multiple stores and which does not directly own the premises where, it carries on the business but does so indirectly through a subsidiary company, the particular company occupying the premises held by the subsidiary under lease or licence. Accordingly, if any of the land is held by the subsidiary no owner-occupier company under Section 54 of the 1945 Act is liable. We do not think it would be fair and this Amendment puts the position right.

Amendment agreed to.