Harbours act, 1947

• Enactment Date: 10 December 1947
• Act Number: 34

Number 34 of 1947.
HARBOURS ACT, 1947.
ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS
Section 1. Interpretation. 2. Amendment of section 7 of the Principal Act. 3. Application of Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Acts, 1926 and 1940, in respect of harbour authorities specified in First Schedule. 4. Amendment of section 49 of the Principal Act. 5. Powers of harbour authorities in relation to goods left on quays after time for removal specified in bye-laws. 6. Amendment of Section 120 of the Principal Act. 7. Assistance to harbour authorities by local authorities. 8. Amendment of section 151 of the Principal Act. 9. Payment of travelling expenses and allowances to members of harbour authority. 10. Cesser of annual payment to the Cork Corporation under the Cork Harbour Act, 1820. 11. Repeals. 12. Short title and collective citation.
FIRST SCHEDULE.
SECOND SCHEDULE.
Acts Referred to Harbours Act, 1946 No. 9 of 1946 Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Act, 1926 No. 39 of 1926 Local Government Act, 1941 No. 23 of 1941 Local Government Act, 1946 No. 24 of 1946
Number 34 of 1947.
HARBOURS ACT, 1947.
AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE HARBOURS ACT, 1946 , AND TO TERMINATE AN ANNUAL PAYMENT OF £369 4s. 8d. PAYABLE UNDER THE CORK HARBOUR ACT, 1820, BY THE CORK HARBOUR COMMISSIONERS TO THE LORD MAYOR, ALDERMEN AND BURGESSES OF CORK. [10th December, 1947.]
BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—
	Interpretation.	1.—(1) In this Act, the expression “the Principal Act” means the Harbours Act, 1946 (No. 9 of 1946).
	(2) This Act shall be construed as one with the Principal Act.
	Amendment of section 7 of the Principal Act.	2.—In section 7 of the Principal Act the following subsection shall be substituted for subsection (5)—
	“(5) The following provisions shall, for the purposes of paragraph (f) of subsection (1) or paragraph (c) of subsection (2) (as may be appropriate) of this section, apply in relation to an election of elected members of a harbour authority to be held in a particular election year—
	(a) in this subsection—
	the expression ‘the qualifying year’ means the year immediately preceding the said election year;
	the expression ‘Irish body corporate’ means a body corporate incorporated in the State;
	the expression ‘resident’ means ordinarily resident in the State;
	the expression ‘qualified vessels’ means vessels in respect of which there was paid to that harbour authority, during the qualifying year, tonnage rates in the aggregate of an amount not less than the minimum sum;
	(b) where the owner, on the 31st day of December in the qualifying year, of one or more qualified vessels, was—
	(i) a person resident during the qualifying year, or
	(ii) an Irish body corporate, or
	(iii) a group which includes either—
	(I) a person resident during the qualifying year, or
	(II) an Irish body corporate,
	then, the said owner shall be a qualified elector at such election;
	(c) where the owner, on the 31st day of December in the qualifying year, of one or more qualified vessels is not, by virtue of paragraph (b) of this subsection, a qualified elector at such election, and the representative manager of the said owner was resident during the qualifying year, then, the said representative manager shall be a qualified elector at such election.”
	Application of Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Acts, 1926 and 1940, in respect of harbour authorities specified in First Schedule.	3.—(1) In this section—
	the expression “the Act of 1926” means the Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Act, 1926 (No. 39 of 1926);
	the expression “the Acts of 1926 and 1940” means the Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Acts, 1926 and 1940, except subsections (1) and (2) of section 7 and section 11 of the Act of 1926;
	the expression “scheduled harbour authority” means any harbour authority, being—
	(a) a harbour authority specified in the First Schedule to this Act, or
	(b) any body having control of a port or pier, in respect of which an order is made under paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of section 146 of the Principal Act and which is declared by the said order to be a scheduled harbour authority for the purposes of this section.
	(2) In the application (by virtue of subsection (4) of section 38 of the Principal Act) of the Acts of 1926 and 1940, in relation to any scheduled harbour authority or to any new authority which is created in pursuance of subsection (2) of section 6 of the Principal Act and which is the successor to a scheduled harbour authority, subsection (1) of section 2 of the Act of 1926 shall be construed as if paragraphs (a) and (b) and the word “other” in paragraph (c) were deleted.
	Amendment of section 49 of the Principal Act.	4.—Section 49 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the addition of the following subsection:—
	“(5) A harbour authority may, with the consent of the Minister and subject to such conditions (if any) as he may think fit to impose, employ any vessels, provided by them under this section, for the carriage of passengers for reward.”
	Powers of harbour authorities in relation to goods left on quays after time for removal specified in bye-laws.	5.—(1) Where bye-laws made by a harbour authority specify the time during which goods may remain upon any quays or other places within the harbour of that harbour authority, the following provisions shall apply in relation to any goods (other than goods forfeitable under the Customs Acts) remaining upon such quays or other places after the expiration of the time so specified—
	(a) the harbour authority may, with the consent of the collector or other proper officer of customs and excise in the case of goods which have not been entered and cleared by the customs, at any time after such expiration remove the goods to another place or store, subject in case the owner of the goods is known to the harbour authority, to their giving to such owner seven days previous notice of their intention to so remove the goods, and the cost of removal and subsequent storage shall be recoverable by the harbour authority from the owner of the goods,
	(b) the harbour authority may hold the goods until all rates, rents and other charges due in respect of the goods and the cost of removal and storage (if any) are paid to the harbour authority,
	(c) the harbour authority may sell the goods, subject, in case the owner of the goods is known to the harbour authority, to their giving to such owner fourteen days previous notice of their intention to sell the goods.
	(2) A harbour authority shall not, under subsection (1) of this section, sell for home use any article if any prohibition or restriction on importation applies in respect thereof or if the price which would be obtained is less than the amount of any duties of customs or excise payable in respect thereof.
	(3) The following provisions shall apply in relation to goods sold by a harbour authority under subsection (1) of this section—
	(a) the proceeds of such sale shall be applied in paying the following charges in the following order:—
	(i) any customs or excise duties due in respect of the goods,
	(ii) all rates, rents and other charges due on the goods to the harbour authority,
	(iii) the cost of removal and storage (if any) of the goods and the expenses of and incidental to the sale,
	(b) where the proceeds of any such sale have been so applied—
	(i) if any surplus remains, it shall be paid on demand to the persons appearing to the harbour authority to have been the owner of the goods before such sale,
	(ii) if the rates, rents and other charges due on the goods, the cost of removal and storage of the goods and the expenses of and incidental to the sale remain unpaid in part, the balance thereof may be recovered by the harbour authority from the person who was the owner of the goods before such sale as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.
	(4) Nothing contained in the foregoing subsections of this section shall affect the powers of the Revenue Commissioners under section 73 of the Customs Consolidation Act, 1876.
	Amendment of Section 120 of the Principal Act.	6.—There shall be inserted in section 120 of the Principal Act the following subsection:—
	“(8) Where a harbour authority is authorised by the Minister, under subsection (1) of this section, to borrow money by the issue of stock for the repayment of any debt incurred by them under statutory authority, they may, with the consent of the holder of any security issued by them in respect of such debt, issue stock in substitution for such security on terms agreed by the holder and approved by the Minister.”
	Assistance to harbour authorities by local authorities.	7.—(1) A local authority may resolve to assist a harbour authority in any one or more of the following ways:—
	(a) by making a free grant to the harbour authority,
	(b) by making a loan to the harbour authority and by providing the sum necessary for this purpose by borrowing or otherwise,
	(c) by guaranteeing the repayment of any loan raised by the harbour authority and the payment of interest thereon,
	(d) by contributing the whole or any part of the interest on any loan raised by the harbour authority, whether the repayment of the loan is or is not guaranteed or to be guaranteed by the local authority,
	(e) by the repayment of the whole or any part of a loan raised by the harbour authority, whether the repayment thereof is or is not guaranteed or to be guaranteed by the local authority,
	(f) by remitting in whole or in part any debt (whether incurred before or after the passing of this Act) due to them by the...