HL Deb 04 August 1896 vol 43 cc1420-1

(1.) In Section four of the Labourers (Ireland) Act, 1883, "seven days" shall he substituted for "fourteen days" wherever those words occur.

(2.) The notice of a subsequent meeting of a sanitary authority required by the said Section four shall not be necessary except in the case of a meeting at which a final resolution is to be passed.

(3.) A representation under Section five of the said Act of 1883, or any certificate of a sanitary officer relating to the same, may be amended at any time prior or subsequent to the making of an improvement scheme in pursuance thereof, and the power of amendment hereby given shall include power to permit any such representation to be signed at any stage of the proceedings thereon by any person duly qualified to sign the same, and such signing shall have the same effect as if the representation had been originally so signed; provided that no amendment other than the addition of a signature shall be made without the consent in writing in the case of a representation of the persons who originally signed the same, and in the case of a certificate of the sanitary officer, and any signature added shall be verified by a member or officer of the sanitary authority.

(4.) In section seven of the said Act of 1883 "two consecutive weeks" shall be substituted for "three consecutive weeks," and the notices to be served under the said section may be served at the same time as, or at any time after, the publication of the advertisement in that section mentioned.

(5.) Any notice under the said section seven may be served on the agent of the person required to be served in like manner as on such person, and need not be served personally; provided that, if the service is by post, the letter shall be registered.

(6.) Where the Local Government Board direct a local inquiry to be held under the said Section seven, the inspector of the Board appointed to hold the inquiry shall, not later than seven days before the day on which the inquiry will be held, forward by post in a registered letter addressed to the usual or last-known place of abode of every owner or reputed owner, lessee or reputed lessee, and occupier of the lands proposed to be taken compulsorily, a notice of the date on which the inquiry will be held.>

*THE EARL OF ARRAN moved, in Sub-section (5), after the words "may be served on" to insert the words "the owner and," in order to provide that any notice under Section 7 of the Act of 1883 may be served "on the owner and" agent of the person required to be served. The noble Lord said he proposed these words because the time for giving notice had been considerably shortened, and there might not be time for the agent or principal to consult each other in the time named—a fortnight instead of three weeks.

THE EARL OF RANFURLY

contended that the Amendment did not seem in any way necessary. The memorandum on Sub-section (5) showed that what the noble Lord required was provided for.

[The memorandum referred to by the noble Earl was as follows:— Section 7 of the Act of 1883 directs notice of land to be taken compulsorily to be served on the owner, etc., by delivery of the notice personally to him or to his agent, or by leaving the notice at his place of abode, or sending it by post to his place of abode. It has been held that the notice must be delivered to the agent personally, and cannot be served by leaving it at his place of abode or sending it to him by post. The sub-clause allows the notice to be served on the agent in the same manner as on the owner, save that if the service is by post it is to be by registered letter."]

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

LORD DE VESCI moved, in Subsection (6), after the word "occupier," to insert the words "or agent of the persons required to be served."

Amendment agreed to.

* THE EARL OF ARRAN

brought up the following new clause, which he moved to insert after Clause 4:—