Atomic Energy Authority (Weapons Group) Act 1973
| Year | 1973 |
Atomic Energy Authority(Weapons Group) Act 1973
1973 CHAPTER 4
An Act to transfer to the Secretary of State the Weapons Group of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority, and for connected purposes; and to modify section 2 of the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 in respect of the Authority's power to do work on explosive nuclear devices.
[6th March 1973]
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:—
1 Transfer of Atomic Energy Authority Weapons Group to Secretary of State.
(1) On a day appointed by the Secretary of State by order made by statutory instrument the undertaking of the United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority (‘the Authority’) shall cease to comprise so much of it as is known as the Weapons Group; and it shall on and after that date, be for the Secretary of State (and not the Authority, except under contract to the Secretary of State, or by his direction or with his approval) to carry on any activities which before that day were activities of the Group and involved the doing of work on explosive nuclear devices.
(2) On the appointed day there shall be transferred to the Secretary of State for Defence by virtue of this Act and without further assurance—
(a ) all such lands and premises as immediately before the appointed day are the property of the Authority and were on 1st November 1972 the property of the Authority and recorded in the Authority's books as held by the Weapons Group;
(b ) without prejudice to the foregoing but subject to the following subsection, all such property, rights, liabilities and obligations as immediately before the appointed day belonged to or were incumbent upon the Authority and appertained to the Weapons Group.
(3) There are excepted from the transfer effected by subsection (2) above any rights, liabilities or obligations of the Authority under—
(a ) any contract of employment;
(b ) any agreement for the rendering by a person of services to the Authority in his capacity as a member of the Authority; or
(c ) any pension scheme or agreement relating to a pension scheme;
and there are also excepted from that transfer the interests, property, rights, liabilities and obligations specified in the Schedule to this Act (patents and other industrial property).
2 Weapons Group employees.
(1) Every person who, immediately before the appointed day, is an employee of the Authority engaged in the Weapons Group shall on that day cease to be employed by the Authority but may, in pursuance of arrangements made by the Secretary of State in connection with the transfer to him of the Weapons Group, be taken into employment in the civil service of the State; and notwithstanding anything in section 22 of the Redundancy Payments Act 1965 (implied or constructive termination of contract) the operation of this subsection in relation to any person shall not be treated for the purposes of that Act as a termination by the Authority of that person's contract of employment.
(2) Nothing in subsection (1) above affects the office of special constable held by any person who, immediately before the appointed day, is a special constable by virtue of section 3 of the Special Constables Act 1923 as applied by Schedule 3 to the Atomic Energy Authority Act 1954 of the said Act of 1923 (control of constables and power to suspend or terminate their appointments) shall, as from the appointed day, have effect as if any reference to the department on whose nomination he was appointed was a reference to the Secretary of State.
(3) A person who—
(a ) on or after the appointed day ceases to be employed by the Authority (whether under subsection (1) above or otherwise) and as from ceasing to be so employed becomes employed in the civil service of the State in pursuance of the arrangements referred to in subsection (1); and
(b ) was, immediately before ceasing to be so employed, included in a pension scheme maintained by the Authority or would (had he remained in that employment) have become eligible for inclusion in such a pension scheme on attaining an age or fulfilling a condition specified in the scheme,
may continue to be included in the scheme or, as the case may be, retain his eligibility to be included in it, until such time as he becomes subject to a scheme made by the Minister for the Civil Service under section 1 of the Superannuation Act 1972 ; and the Authority's pension scheme may continue to apply to any suck person notwithstanding that he is no longer an employee of the Authority.
3 Powers of Secretary of State in relation to transfer under s. 1.
(1) The Secretary of State may give such directions extending or restricting the operation of section 1 of this Act as he may consider expedient for the purpose of making minor adjustments of the property, rights, liabilities and obligations transferred by subsection (2) of that section, in order to facilitate the carrying on by him of activities which before the appointed day were activities of the Weapons Group, or to facilitate the carrying on by the Authority of any other activities; and any directions under this subsection may in particular provide for dividing and apportioning any property, rights, liabilities or obligations between the Secretary of State and the Authority, and for the variation or cancellation of any lease, licence or agreement for a lease to which he and they were parties immediately before the appointed day.
(2) The Secretary of State may give directions excepting from the operation of section 1 of this Act any books or other documents which in his opinion are not required for use in connection with the carrying on by him of activities which before the appointed day were activities of the Weapons Group, or extending the operation of that section to any books or other documents which in his opinion are required for such use.
(3) No directions shall be given under subsection (1) or (2) above after the end of the period of two years beginning with the appointed day.
(4) Subject to the next following subsection, a certificate issued by the Secretary of State to the effect that any property of the Authority was, or was not, transferred by virtue of section 1, or that any rights, liabilities or obligations of the Authority specified in the certificate were, or were not, so transferred shall be conclusive evidence of the matters stated in the certificate; but the issue of a certificate under this subsection shall not prevent a subsequent direction being given under subsection (1) or (2) above in relation...
To continue reading
Request your trial