HL Deb 31 July 1961 vol 234 cc39-45

[The references are to Bill [60] as first printed for the House of Commons]

Clause 1, page 1, line 19, leave out ("so relating which is passed or") and insert ("made under an enactment, whenever passed or made, and so relating or in any other instrument so relating which is")

Clause 2, page 2, Clause 2, page 2, line 9, leave out ("section") and insert ("Act")

Clause 2, page 2, line 16, at end insert ("at the same time")

Clause 2, page 2, line 29, leave out from ("accrues") to ("of") in line 30 and insert ("to the trustee as owner or former owner")

Clause 2, page 2, line 37, at end insert—

("Where a trustee acquires property in consideration of a money payment the acquisition of the property shall be treated for the purposes of this section as investment and not as the accrual of property to the trust fund, notwithstanding that the amount of the consideration is less than the value of the property acquired; and paragraph (a) of this subsection shall not include the case of a dividend or interest becoming part of a trust fund.")

Clause 2, page 2, line 38, leave out subsection

(4) and insert— ("(4) Where in the exercise of any power or duty of a trustee property falls to be taken out of the trust fund, nothing in this section shall restrict his discretion as to the choice of property to be taken out.")

Clause 3, page 3, line 30, leave out subsection (2).

Clause 3, page 3, line 42, at end insert—

("(3) In relation to property, including wider-range but not including narrower-range investments—

  1. (a) which a trustee is authorised to hold apart from—
    1. (i) the provisions of section one of this Act or any of the provisions of Part I of the Trustee Act, 1925, or any of the provisions of the Trusts (Scotland) Act, 1921, or
    2. (ii) any such power to invest in authorised investments as is mentioned in the foregoing subsection, or
  2. (b) which became part of a trust fund in consequence of the exercise by the trustee, as owner of property falling within this subsection, of any power conferred by subsection (3) or (4) of section ten of the Trustee Act, 1925, or paragraph (o) or (p) of subsection (1) of section four of the Trusts (Scotland) Act, 1921,
the foregoing section shall have effect subject to the modifications set out in the Schedule (Modification of s. 2 in relation to property falling within s. 3 (3)) to this Act.

(4) The foregoing subsection shall not apply where the powers of the trustee to invest or postpone conversion have been conferred or varied—

  1. (a) by an order of any court made within the period of ten years ending with the passing of this Act, or
  2. (b) by any enactment passed, or instrument having effect under an enactment made, within that period, being an enactment or instrument relating specifically to the trusts in question; or
  3. (c) by an enactment contained in a local Act of the present Session;
but the provisions of the Schedule (Provisions supplementary to s. 3 (4)) to this Act shall have effect in a case falling within this subsection.")

Clause 3, page 3, line 43, leave out subsections (4) to (6).

Clause 4, page 4, line 44, leave out from beginning to ("so")

Clause 4, page 4, line 5, at end insert—

("(3) Where property is taken out of a trust fund by way of appropriation so as to form a separate fund, and at the time of the appropriation the trust fund had (as to the whole or a part thereof) been divided in pursuance of subsection (1) of section two of this Act, or that subsection as modified by the Schedule (Modification of s. 2 in relation to property falling within s. 3 (3)) to this Act, then if the separate fund is so divided the narrow-range and wider-range parts of the separate fund may be constituted so as either to be equal, or to bear to each other the same proportion as the two corresponding parts of the fund out of which it was so appropriated (the values of those parts of those funds being ascertained as at the time of appropriation), or some intermediate proportion.")

Clause 4, page 5, line 6, leave out subsections (3) to (6).

Clause 4, page 5, line 35, leave out subsection (7) and insert—

("(7) In the application of this section to Scotland the following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (1) thereof:—

'(1) In this Act "property" includes property of any description (whether heritable or moveable, corporeal or incorporeal) which is presently enjoyable, but does not include a future interest, whether vested or contingent'".)

After Clause 4, insert the following new clause:

Certain valuations to he conclusive for purposes of division of trust fund

("(1) If for the purposes of section two or four of this Act or Schedule (Modification of s. 2 in relation to property falling within s. 3 (3)) thereto a trustee obtains, from a person reasonably believed by the trustee to be qualified to make it, a valuation in writing of any property, the valuation shall be conclusive in determining whether the division of the trust fund in pursuance of subsection (1) of the said section two, or any transfer or apportionment of property under that section or the said Schedule, has been duly made.

(2) The foregoing subsection applies to any such valuation notwithstanding that it is made by a person in the course of his employment as an officer or servant.")

Clause 5, page 6, line 3, leave out from ("for") to the end of line 7 and insert ("diversification of investments of the trust, in so far as is appropriate to the circumstances of the trust")

Clause 5, page 6, line 13, after ("Act") insert ("or before investing in any such manner in the exercise of a power falling within subsection (2) of section three of this Act")

Clause 5, page 6, line 18, after ("power") insert ("and in such a manner")

Clause 6, page 7, line 16, at end insert—

("(2) Where, in the exercise of powers conferred by any enactment, an authority to which paragraph 9 of Part II of the First Schedule to this Act applies uses money belonging to any fund for a purpose for which the authority has power to borrow, the foregoing provisions of this Act, as applied by the foregoing subsection, shall apply as if there were comprised in the fund (in addition to the actual content thereof) property, being narrower-range investments, having a value equal to so much of the said money as for the time being has not been repaid to the fund, and accordingly any repayment of such money to the fund shall not be treated for the said purposes as the accrual of property to the fund:

Provided that nothing in this subsection shall be taken to require compliance with any of the provisions of section five of this Act in relation to the exercise of such powers as aforesaid.")

Clause 7, page 7, line 25, leave out paragraph (a) and insert— ("(a) notwithstanding anything in subsection (3) of section one of this Act, no provision of any enactment passed, or instrument having effect under an enactment and made, before the passing of this Act shall limit the powers conferred by the said section one.")

Clause 7, page 7, line 41, leave out from ("enactment") to end of line 42 and insert ("contained in a local or private Act.")

After Clause 7, insert the following new clause:

Supplementary provisions as to investments

(".—(1) In subsection (3) of section ten of the Trustee Act, 1925, before paragraph (c) (which enables trustees to concur in any scheme or arrangement for the amalgamation of a company in which they hold securities with another company, with power to accept securities in the second company) there shall be inserted the following paragraph:— (bb) for the acquisition of the securities of the company, or of control thereof, by another company'.

(2) It is hereby declared that the power to subscribe for securities conferred by subsection (4) of the said section ten includes power to retain them for any period for which the trustee has power to retain the holding in respect of which the right to subscribe for the securities was offered, but subject to any conditions subject to which the trustee has that power.")

After Clause 7, insert the following new clause:

Powers of Scottish trustees supplementary to powers of investment

(".—. Section four of the Trusts (Scotland) Act, 1921 (which empowers trustees in trusts the execution of which is governed by the law in force in Scotland to do certain acts, where such acts are not at variance with the terms or purposes of the trusts) shall have effect as if. in subsection (1) thereof, after paragraph (n) there were added the following paragraphs:—

'(o) to concur, in respect of any securities of a company (being securities comprised in the trust estate), in any scheme or arrangement—

  1. (i) for the reconstruction of the company,
  2. (ii) for the sale of all or any part of the property and undertaking of the company to another company,
  3. (iii) for the acquisition of the securities of the company, or of control thereof, by another company,
  4. (iv) for the amalgamation of the company with another company, or
  5. (v) for the release, modification, or variation of any rights, privileges or liabilities attached to the securities or any of them,
in like manner as if the trustees were entitled to such securities beneficially; to accept any securities of any denomination or description of the reconstructed or purchasing or new company in lieu of, or in exchange for, all or any of the first mentioned securities; and to retain any securities so accepted as aforesaid for any period fur which the trustees could have properly retained the original securities.

(p) to exercise, to such extent as the trustees think fit, any conditional or preferential right to subscribe for any securities in a company (being a right offered to them in respect of any holding in the company), to apply capital money of the trust estate in payment of the consideration, and to retain any such securities for which they have subscribed for any period far which they have power to retain the holding in respect of which the right to subscribe for the securities was offered (but subject to any conditions subject to which they have that power); to renounce, to such extent as they think fit, any such right; or to assign, to such extent as they think fit and for the best consideration that can reasonably be obtained, the benefit of such right OT the title thereto to any person, including any beneficiary under the trust '.")

Clause 8, page 8, line 17, at end insert:

("(3) In approving a scheme under this section, the Treasury may direct that the Prevention of Fraud (Investments) Act, 1958, or the Prevention of Fraud (Investments) Act (Northern Ireland), 1940, shall not apply to dealings undertaken or documents issued for the purposes of the scheme, or to such dealings or documents of such descriptions as may be specified in the direction.")

Clause 8, page 8, line 33, at end insert:

("(d) in Northern Ireland, the council of a county, a county or other borough, or an urban or rural district, and the Northern Ireland Local Government Officers' Superannuation Committee established under the Local Government (Superannuation) Act (Northern Ireland), 1950.")

After Clause 9, insert the following new clause:

Power to modify provisions as to division of trust fund

(".—(1) The Treasury may by order made by statutory instrument direct that, subject to subsection (3) of section four of this Act, any division of a trust fund made in pursuance of subsection (1) of section two of this Act during the continuance in force of the order shall be made so that the value of the wider-range part at the time of the division bears to the then value of the narrower-range part such proportion, greater than one but not greater than three to one, as may be prescribed by the order; and in this Act 'the prescribed proportion' means the proportion for the time being prescribed under his subsection.

(2) A fund which has been divided in pursuance of subsection (1) of section two of this Act before the coming into operation of an order under the foregoing subsection may notwithstanding anything in that subsection be again divided (once only) in pursuance of the said subsection (1) during the continuance in force of the order.

(3) If an order is made under subsection (1) of this section, then as from the coming into operation of the order—

  1. (a) paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of section two of this Act and sub-paragraph (b) of paragraph 3 of the Second Schedule thereto shall have effect with the substitution, for the words from 'each' to the end, of the words 'the wider-range part of the fund is increased by an amount which bears the prescribed proportion to the amount by which the value of the narrower-range part of the fund is increased';
  2. (b) subsection (3) of section four of this Act shall have effect as if for the words ' so as either 'to' each other 'there were substituted the words `so as to bear to each other either the prescribed proportion or ".

(4) An order under this section may be revoked by a subsequent order thereunder prescribing a great proportion.

(5) An order under this section shall not have effect unless approved by a resolution of each House of Parliament.")

After Clause 10, insert the following new clause:

Saving for powers of court

(" The enlargement of the investment powers of trustees by this Act shall not lessen any power of a court to confer wider powers of investment on trustees, or affect the extent to which any such power is to be exercised.")

Clause 12, page 9, line 10, leave out ("section") and insert ("sections eight and")

Clause 12, page 9, line 20, at beginning ("Except where the context otherwise requires")

Clause 12, page 9, line 23, at beginning insert ("Except where the context otherwise requires")

First Schedule, page 11, line 2, leave out from ("and") to end of line 3 and insert ("on the giving of an undertaking by the authority that, if requested to charge the loan as aforesaid, it will either comply with the request or repay the loan")

Clause 12, page 9, line 16, at end insert—

("(d) the Receiver for the Metropolitan Police District or a combined police authority (within the meaning of the Police Act, 1946)")

Clause 12, page 9, line 26, at end insert ("or in a department (not being a department certified under subsection (3) of section nine of the Finance Act. 1956) of a bank any other department of which is so certified")

Clause 12, page 9, page 12, line 8, after ("Certificates") insert ("securities issued before the passing of this Act by the Government of the Isle of Man, securities falling within paragraph 4 of the said Part II issued before the passing of this Act ")

Clause 12, page 9, line 27, leave out ("ordinary")

Clause 12, page 9, line 29, at end insert ("and any shares which by their terms of issue did not rank for the dividend for that year.")

Clause 12, page 9, line 31, after ("formed") insert ("(i)")

Clause 12, page 9, line 32, after ("companies") insert ("or

(ii) to acquire the securities of, or control of, another company or other companies, or for either of those purposes and for other purposes")

Clause 12, page 9, line 40, at end insert ("and loan stock or notes")

After the First Schedule, insert the following new Schedule—