Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984



Public Health (Control ofDisease) Act 1984

1984 CHAPTER 22

An Act to consolidate certain enactments relating to the control of disease and to the establishment and functions of port health authorities, including enactments relating to burial and cremation and to the regulation of common lodging-houses and canal boats, with amendments to give effect to recommendations of the Law Commission.

[26th June 1984]

Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

I Administrative Provisions

Part I

Administrative Provisions

General administration

General administration

S-1 Authorities administering Act.

1 Authorities administering Act.

(1) Subject to subsection (4) below, it shall be the duty of each of the following authorities—

(a ) a district council,

(b ) a London borough council,

(c ) the Common Council of the City of London, and

(d ) the Sub-Treasurer of the Inner Temple and the Under Treasurer of the Middle Temple,

to carry this Act into execution in their district.

(2) In this Act, except where it is otherwise expressly provided, ‘local authority’ means an authority mentioned in subsection (1) above.

(3) A local authority having jurisdiction in any part of a port health district (including the London port health district) shall not discharge in relation to it any functions which are functions of the port health authority.

(4) Subsection (1) above shall have effect subject to the provisions of this Act with respect to—

(a ) port health authorities,

(b ) Regional, Area, District or special health authorities, and

(c ) county councils,

and shall not impose on any authority specified in that subsection a duty to discharge, in relation to a united district constituted under section 6 of the Public Health Act 1936 , any function which is a function of the joint board for that district.

Port health districts and authorities

Port health districts and authorities

S-2 Port health districts and authorities.

2 Port health districts and authorities.

(1) In this Act, ‘port’ means—

(a ) a port as appointed for the purposes of the enactments for the time being in force relating to customs or excise other than the Port of London, or

(b ) the Port of London.

(2) In this Act, subject to section 8(2) below, ‘riparian authority’, in relation to a port or part of a port, means—

(a ) any local authority whose district, or any part of whose district, forms part of, or abuts on, that port or part of a port, and

(b ) any conservators, commissioners or other persons having authority in, over or within that port or part of a port.

(3) Subject to the provisions of this section, the Secretary of State may by order made by statutory instrument constitute a port health district either—

(a ) consisting of any area, being a port or part of a port other than the Port of London, or of two or more such areas, or

(b ) consisting of such an area, or of two or more such areas, together with so much (being either the whole or any part or parts) of the district or districts of one or more riparian authorities as (not being comprised in that area or any of those areas, as the case may be) is specified in the order.

(4) An order under this section constituting a port health district may either—

(a ) constitute one riparian authority the port health authority for the district, or

(b ) constitute a joint board, consisting of representatives of two or more riparian authorities, to be the port health authority for the district.

(5) A joint board so constituted a port health authority shall be a body corporate by such name as may be determined by the order constituting the port health district.

(6) Where the Secretary of State proposes to make an order under this section, he shall give notice of the proposal to every riparian authority who will under the order be liable to contribute to the expenses of the port health authority.

(7) If, within 28 days after notice has been given to any such riparian authority under subsection (6) above, they give notice to the Secretary of State that they object to the proposal and the objection is not withdrawn, any order made by the Secretary of State which will impose any such liability on that authority shall be subject to special parliamentary procedure.

(8) All expenses of, and incidental to, the constitution of a port health district shall be payable by the port health authority.

(9) So far as those expenses are expenses incurred by the Secretary of State, their amount as certified by him shall be recoverable by him from the authority as a debt due to the Crown.

S-3 Jurisdiction and powers of port health authority.

3 Jurisdiction and powers of port health authority.

(1) An order under section 2 above constituting a port health district—

(a ) shall confer on the port health authority jurisdiction over all waters and land within the port health district, and

(b ) may assign to the port health authority any of the functions, rights and liabilities of a local authority under any enactment relating to public health, waste disposal or the control of pollution, whether passed before or after, and whether or not contained in, this Act.

(2) Any such order may also assign to the port health authority any of the functions, rights and liabilities—

(a ) of a local authority or food and drugs authority under the Food and Drugs Act 1955 ,

(b ) of a local authority under Part I of the Slaughterhouses Act 1974 , or

(c ) of a local authority under any of the following provisions of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1976

(i) section 16 (power of local authorities to obtain particulars of persons interested in land),

(ii) section 32 (power of local authorities to execute works outside their areas),

(iii) section 41 (evidence of resolutions and minutes of proceedings etc.).

(3) Section 241 of the Local Government Act 1972 (which enables any of the provisions of that Act to be applied to a joint board of which the constituent members are local authorities) shall apply in relation to a port health authority constituted under section 2 above, notwithstanding that it may consist of a single local authority or may be a joint board of which not all the constituent members are local authorities.

S-4 General provisions as to orders constituting port health districts and authorities.

4 General provisions as to orders constituting port health districts and authorities.

(1) An order under section 2 above may contain such incidental, consequential and supplementary provisions as appear to the Secretary of State to be necessary or proper for bringing it into operation and giving it full effect, and in particular, but without prejudice to the generality of this subsection,...

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