National Service Act 1941
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
National Service Act, 1941
(4 & 5 Geo. 6.) CHAPTER 15.
An Act to make provision for calling up men for civil defence and to amend the National Service (Armed Forces) Act, 1939.
[10th April 1941]
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:—
Calling up for civil defence.
1 Liability to be called up for civil defence.
(1) Every person who for the time being—
(a ) is liable under the National Service (Armed Forces) Act, 1939 (hereinafter referred to as ‘the principal Act’) to be called up for service in the armed forces of the Crown; or
(b ) is not so liable by reason only that he is a conditionally registered conscientious objector;
shall be liable to be called up for civil defence in the manner and on the terms provided by this Act.
(2) If any person liable to be called up for civil defence notifies the Minister in the manner prescribed under subsection (6) of section two of the principal Act that he has a preference for service with the civil defence forces or any particular civil defence force, that fact shall be recorded—
(a ) in the military service register; or
(b ) if he is a registered conscientious objector, in the register of conscientious objectors; or
(c ) if he is a person of a class exempted from registration by regulations made under the said section two, in such other manner as the Minister thinks fit.
(3) References in section three of the principal Act (which relates to medical examination) and in section six of that Act (which relates to postponement of liability to serve) to persons for the time being liable under that Act to be called up for service, and to liability to be so called up, shall include references to persons for the time being liable to be called up for civil defence and to liability to be so called up.
2 Enrolment notices.
(1) The Minister may cause to be served on any person for the time being liable to be called up for civil defence, who has been medically examined under the principal Act, a notice (in this Act referred to as ‘an enrolment notice’) stating that he is so called up.
(2) Every such notice shall require the person on whom it is served to present himself in accordance with the terms of the notice at such place and time (not earlier than the third day after the date of the service of the notice), and to such authority, and for service with such civil defence force, as may be specified in the notice.
(3) References to an enlistment notice in section six of the principal Act (which relates to postponement of liability to serve) and in section seven of that Act (which relates to suspension of enlistment notices pending appeals) shall be construed as including references to an enrolment notice.
(4) Subject to the provisions of this Act and of section seven of the principal Act, the person upon whom an enrolment notice is served shall be deemed as from the day specified in the notice to have been taken into the service of the Crown on the terms set out in the next following section.
(5) Where an enrolment notice has been duly served on any person, the Minister may, at any time while that person remains liable to be called up for civil defence, cancel the notice, or cause to be served on him a further enrolment notice varying the original notice.
(6) An enrolment notice served on any person shall cease to have effect if, before the date on which he is thereby required to present himself, he ceases to be liable to be called up for civil defence.
(7) The Minister may pay to persons required to present themselves in accordance with enrolment notices served upon them such travelling and other allowances as he may, with the approval of the Treasury, determine.
(8) If any person on whom an enrolment notice is served fails to comply with the requirements of that notice, he shall be guilty of an offence under the principal Act and liable—
(a ) on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding twelve months, or to a fine not exceeding one hundred pounds, or to both such imprisonment and such fine; or
(b ) on summary conviction, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding six months, or to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds, or to both such imprisonment and such fine.
3 Terms of service.
(1) A person who is deemed by virtue of subsection (4) of the last foregoing section to have been taken into the service of the Crown shall be deemed to have been taken into such service on the following terms:—
(a ) he shall continue in the service of the Crown until the end of the present emergency, unless he is previously discharged from such service by the prescribed authority in the prescribed manner;
(b ) he shall serve with the civil defence force specified in the enrolment notice served upon him, or with such other civil defence force as may from time to time be notified to him by the prescribed authority in the prescribed manner;
(c ) he shall serve under the directions of the authority specified in the notice aforesaid, or such other authority as may from time to time be notified to him by the prescribed authority in the prescribed manner;
(d ) he shall not be required to serve outside the United Kingdom or the Isle of Man;
(e ) he shall, subject to the directions of the authority under whose directions he is for the time being required by the foregoing provisions to serve (hereafter referred to as ‘the controlling authority’), perform the duties of a member of the civil defence force with which he is serving for the time being, and may, subject to such directions as aforesaid, exercise by virtue of this Act the powers of a member of that force, or, if that force is the police war reserve, of a constable;
(f ) he shall perform such further duties as may (subject to the directions of the Minister) be required of him by the controlling authority, being duties of a member of any other civil defence force, and for that purpose may, subject to the directions of the controlling authority, exercise by virtue of this Act the powers of a member of that other force, or, if that other force is the police war reserve, of a constable;
(g ) he shall be subject to the provisions of any regulations or orders for the time being in force under the Emergency Powers (Defence) Acts, 1939 and 1940, which create offences by members of the civil defence force with which he is for the time being serving;
(h ) while serving with any civil defence force for which rules are for the time being in force by virtue of the said Acts as to the government and discipline of the force, he shall be subject to those rules, and, while not serving with such a force, he shall be subject to such provisions as to government and discipline as may be prescribed;
(i ) his conditions of service as regards pay, allowances, clothing, expenses and other matters shall be such as the Minister, with the approval of the Treasury, may determine;
(j ) he shall not be liable under the principal Act to be called up for service so long as he is in the service of the Crown by virtue of this section.
(2) A person shall not be incapable of being elected to, or of sitting or voting in, the Commons House of Parliament by reason only that, as being in the service of the Crown by virtue of this section, he holds any office or place of profit under the Crown.
(3) While any person is in the service of the Crown by virtue of this section—
(a ) he shall be exempt from serving on a jury;
(b ) he shall be treated for the purpose of section seven of the Societies (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1940 (which relates to the membership of friendly societies of persons serving in any of the naval, military or air forces of the Crown) as if he were serving in those forces; and
(c ) he shall be treated for the purposes of section three of the Courts (Emergency Powers) Amendment Act, 1940 (which provides for the relief of mortgagors serving in the armed forces of His Majesty) as if he were serving in those forces.
(4) Where a conditionally registered conscientious objector is called up for civil defence, the condition on which he was registered shall be suspended so long as he is in the service of the Crown by virtue of this section.
(5) The pay and allowances of a person in the service of the Crown by virtue of this section, and any expenses incurred in connection with his service, shall be defrayed as follows—
(a ) if and so long as the controlling authority is a local authority, they shall be defrayed in like manner as the pay and allowances, and expenses incurred in connection with the service, of such members of the civil defence force with which he is serving for the time being as are serving under the directions of that authority;
(b ) if and so long as the controlling authority is a chief officer of police, they shall be defrayed in like manner as the pay and allowances, and expenses incurred in connection with the service, of such members of the police war reserve as are serving under the directions of that chief officer;
(c ) if and so long as the controlling authority is not a local authority or a chief officer of police, they shall be defrayed by the Minister.
(6) In this section the following expressions have the meanings hereby respectively assigned to them—
‘chief officer of police’ has the same meaning as in the Police Pensions Act, 1921 ;
‘local authority’ means the common council of the City of London, the council of a metropolitan borough, the council of a county, county borough or county district, or any authority or person for the time being exercising any of the functions of any sch council;
‘the Minister’ means a...
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