Ministry of Supply Act 1939

JurisdictionUK Non-devolved
Citation1939 c. 38


Ministry of Supply Act, 1939

(2 & 3 Geo. 6.) CHAPTER 38.

An Act to establish a Ministry of Supply and for purposes connected therewith.

[13th July 1939]

Be it enacted by the King'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 Establishment and Functions of Ministry.

Part I.

Establishment and Functions of Ministry.

S-1 Establishment of Ministry of Supply.

1 Establishment of Ministry of Supply.

(1) It shall be lawful for His Majesty to appoint a Minister of Supply (hereafter in this Act referred to as ‘the Minister’) who shall hold office during His Majesty's pleasure and shall have such functions as are or may be conferred on him by or under this Act.

(2) The Minister may appoint a Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Supply.

(3) The Ministers of the Crown Act, 1937 , shall have effect subject to the following amendments—

(a ) at the end of Part I of the First Schedule (which specifies the Ministers of the Crown to whom an annual salary of five thousand pounds is payable) there shall be inserted the words ‘Minister of Supply’;

(b ) at the end of the Second Schedule (which specifies the Departments of State to the Parliamentary Under-Secretaries of which an annual salary of fifteen hundred pounds is payable) there shall be inserted the words ‘Ministry of Supply’;

(c ) in proviso (a ) to subsection (1) of section nine (which provides that the number of persons entitled to sit and vote in the House of Commons while they are Ministers named in the said Part I shall not exceed fifteen) the word ‘sixteen’ shall be substituted for the word ‘fifteen’;

(d ) in proviso (c ) to the said subsection (which provides that the number of persons entitled to sit and vote in the House of Commons while they are Parliamentary Under-Secretaries shall not exceed twenty) the word ‘twenty-one’ shall be substituted for the word ‘twenty’.

(4) The Minister shall take the oath of allegiance and official oath, and the Promissory Oaths Act, 1868 , shall have effect as if the Minister were included in the First Part of the Schedule thereto.

(5) The Minister may appoint such other secretaries and such officers and servants, and there shall be paid to them such salaries and allowances, as the Minister may, with the sanction of the Treasury, determine.

S-2 General powers of Minister.

2 General powers of Minister.

(1) Subject to the provisions of this subsection, the Minister shall have power—

(a ) to buy or otherwise acquire, manufacture or otherwise produce, store and transport any articles required for the public service, and to exchange, sell or otherwise dispose of any articles bought or otherwise acquired or manufactured or otherwise produced by him;

(b ) to buy or otherwise acquire any articles for the purpose of exchanging them for articles required for the public service;

(c ) to do all such things (including the erection of buildings and the execution of works) as appear to the Minister necessary or expedient for the exercise of the foregoing powers:

Provided that—

(i) the powers of the Minister under this subsection shall not be exercised in relation to the supply to any other Government Department of any articles required by that Department for the purpose of the discharge of its functions, unless the powers of that Department in relation to the supply of those articles are for the time being transferred to or made exercisable by the Minister under the next following section of this Act, and

(ii) without prejudice to any powers transferred or made exercisable as aforesaid, the powers of the Minister under this subsection of manufacturing or otherwise producing articles shall not be exercised after the expiration of a period of three years beginning with the date of the passing of this Act, except in respect of such classes of articles as His Majesty may specify by Order in Council made not earlier than the commencement of the last six months of that period.

(2) His Majesty may by Order in Council apply in relation to the Minister, with any necessary modifications or adaptations, any of the provisions of the enactments set out in Part I of the Schedule to this Act, so as to confer on the Minister any powers, rights and privileges in relation to the acquisition and holding of land for the purpose of discharging any of his functions, and in relation to the management, use and disposal in any manner of land acquired for that purpose, which under the said enactments are vested in the Secretary of State for War for any purpose.

(3) His Majesty may by Order in Council apply in relation to the Minister or property for the time being vested in or under the control of the Minister, with any necessary modifications or adaptations, any of the provisions of the enactments set out in Part II of the Schedule to this Act.

S-3 Transfer of functions of other Government Departments.

3 Transfer of functions of other Government Departments.

(1) His Majesty may by Order in Council provide that the powers and duties of any Government Department specified in the Order, whether conferred or imposed by statute or otherwise, in relation to the supply of articles required by that Department for the purpose of the discharge of its functions, or such classes of those articles as may be so specified, or as may be agreed between the Department and the Minister, shall be transferred to, or exercised and performed concurrently by, the Minister.

(2) Any Order made under the last foregoing subsection may contain such incidental, consequential and supplemental provisions as may be necessary or expedient for the purpose of giving full effect to the Order, including provisions—

(a ) for the transfer of any property, rights and liabilities held, enjoyed or incurred by any Government Department in connection with any powers or duties transferred;

(b ) for the carrying on and completion by or under the authority of the Minister of anything commenced by or under the authority of any Government Department before the date when the Order takes effect;

(c ) for such adaptations of the enactments relating to any powers or duties transferred, or to be exercised or performed concurrently, as may be necessary to enable them to be exercised or performed by the Minister and his officers;

(d ) for the substitution of the Minister for any other Government Department in any instrument, contract, or legal proceedings made or commenced before the date when the Order takes effect.

(3) If an Order is made under this section transferring to the Minister the powers and duties of the Board of Trade under the Essential Commodities Reserves Act, 1938 , in relation to any commodity, stocks of that commodity transferred to the Minister shall be written off from the assets of the Essential Commodities Reserves Fund, and the expenses of the Minister incurred in the exercise of the powers or performance of the duties transferred to him shall, notwithstanding anything in the said Act, not be defrayed out of that Fund.

(4) A certificate issued by the Minister that any property has been transferred to him by virtue of an Order made under this section shall be conclusive evidence of that fact.

S-4 Payments by Minister for creation of reserves.

4 Payments by Minister for creation of reserves.

(1) The Minister may, in accordance with arrangements approved by the Treasury, make payments by way of grant or loan—

(a ) to any person producing, dealing in or having control of any article required for the public service, for the purpose of inducing the augmentation of stocks of that article or of any other article which can conveniently be used for or in connection with the production of that article, or the improvement of the facilities available for the storage of any stocks of that article or any such other article which may from time to time be held by him; or

(b ) to any person carrying on the business of storing goods, for the purpose of inducing the improvement of the facilities available for the storage of any articles required for the public service.

(2) If any person, for the purpose of obtaining a payment under this section, either for himself or for any other person, knowingly or recklessly makes any untrue statement or untrue representation, he shall be guilty of an offence under this Act.

S-5 Power to require returns of stocks, &c.

5 Power to require returns of stocks, &c.

(1) The Minister may by notice in writing require any person producing, dealing in, or having control of any article required for the public service, to make periodical and other returns, at such times and containing such particulars as may be specified in the notice, as respects—

(a ) the stocks of that article for the time being held by him and the quantities of any such article which by virtue of any contract are to be delivered by or to him and the date of delivery thereof; and

(b ) the facilities available for producing that article or storing stocks thereof.

(2) The Minister may by notice in writing require any person carrying out works required for the public service, or carrying on a business which in the opinion of the Minister is suitable for or can be adapted to carrying out works so required, to make periodical and other returns, at such times and containing such particulars as may be specified in the notice, as to the facilities available for carrying out such works.

(3) The Minister may by notice in writing require any person who has under his control accommodation suitable for the storage of any articles required for the public service to make periodical and other returns, at such times and containing such particulars as may be specified in the notice, as respects—

(a ) the...

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