Prices and Incomes Act 1966
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1966 c. 33 |
| Year | 1966 |
Prices and Incomes Act 1966
1966 CHAPTER 33
An Act to establish a National Board for Prices and Incomes, and authorise the bringing into force of provisions requiring notice of price increases, pay increases and other matters, and for enforcing a temporary standstill in prices or charges or terms and conditions of employment; in connection with recommendations made by the said Board, to amend the Restrictive Trade Practices Act 1956; to provide, for a period lasting not more than twelve months, for restricting price increases and pay increases and for other matters connected with prices and incomes; and for connected purposes.
[12th August 1966]
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:—
Part I
The National Board for Prices and Incomes
1 Constitution and proceedings of the Board.
(1) There shall be established a body, to be called the National Board for Prices and Incomes (in this Act referred to as ‘the Board’).
(2) Subject to subsection (6) below, the Board shall consist of not less than nine and not more than fifteen members appointed by the Secretary of State.
(3) The Secretary of State may appoint persons to the Board either as full-time members or as part-time members.
(4) Of the full-time members, the Secretary of State shall appoint one to be chairman of the Board and one or more, as he thinks fit, to be deputy chairman or deputy chairmen.
(5) The Secretary of State shall, out of money provided by Parliament—
(a ) pay to the members of the Board such remuneration, and such travelling or other allowances, as he may with the approval of the Treasury determine, and
(b ) in the case of any member of the Board to whom he may, with the approval of the Treasury, determine that this paragraph applies, pay such pension, allowance or gratuity to or in respect of the member on his retirement or death, or make such payments towards the provision of such a pension, allowance or gratuity, as he may, with the like approval, determine;
and if a person ceases to be a member of the Board and it appears to the Secretary of State that there are special circumstances which make it right that that person should receive compensation, he may, with the approval of the Treasury, pay to that person out of money provided by Parliament a sum of such amount as he may with the approval of the Treasury determine.
(6) The Secretary of State may, by an order contained in a statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament—
(a ) direct that the minimum or maximum number of members of the Board shall be a number greater or less than that specified in subsection (2) above;
(b ) vary or revoke any previous order containing such a direction.
(7) The provisions of Schedule 1 to this Act shall have effect with respect to the Board, its members, officers and servants and proceedings.
2 References of questions to the Board.
(1) The Secretary of State, or the Secretary of State and any other Minister acting jointly, may refer to the Board any question relating to wages, salaries or other forms of incomes, or to prices, charges or other sums payable under transactions of any description relating to any form of property or rights or to services of any description or to returns on capital invested in any form of property, including company dividends; and without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing provisions of this subsection the Secretary of State, or the Secretary of State and any other Minister acting jointly, may refer to the Board any question—
(a ) relating to a proposal to increase any prices for the sale of goods or any charges for the performance of services, including charges for the application of any process to goods, or
(b ) relating to any pay claims or other claims relating to terms and conditions of employment, or any awards and settlements relating to terms and conditions of employment.
(2) A question referred to the Board under subsection (1) above may be framed in any way whatsoever, and in particular may be concerned with a specified region or locality or with named undertakings or persons.
(3) The Minister or Ministers referring any question to the Board under this section may at any time by a further reference to the Board vary or withdraw that question.
(4) The text of any reference under subsection (1) or subsection (3) above shall be published in the Gazette.
(5) The Board shall examine any question referred to them under this section and report to the Minister or Ministers who referred the question to the Board.
3 Instructions to Board to keep certain prices or incomes under continuous review.
(1) The Secretary of State may by order apply this section to any incomes or prices or charges or other matters which may be the subject of a reference under the last foregoing section.
(2) The Secretary of State, or the Secretary of State and any other Minister acting jointly, may instruct the Board to keep under continuous review any question concerning all or any of the incomes or prices or charges or other matters to which this section applies.
(3) The Board shall from time to time, as the Board thinks fit, report to the Minister or Ministers giving any instruction under this section on the matters to which the instruction relates; and the Secretary of State, or the Secretary of State and any other Minister acting jointly, may at any time require the Board to make to the Minister or Ministers imposing the requirement a report on those matters, or on any question relating to them.
(4) The Minister or Ministers giving an instruction to the Board under this section may at any time vary or withdraw it by a further instruction.
(5) The text of any instruction under subsection (2) or subsection (4) above shall be published in the Gazette.
(6) An order or instruction under this section may be framed in any way whatsoever, and in particular may be concerned with a specified region or locality or with named undertakings or persons.
(7) An order made under subsection (1) of this section—
(a ) may be varied or revoked by a subsequent order so made,
(b ) shall be made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament.
(8) The powers conferred by this section are in addition to, and not in derogation of, the powers conferred by the last foregoing section.
4 Principles to be applied by the Board.
(1) In examining any question referred to the Board under section 2 above, and in complying with any instruction or requirement under section 3 above, the Board shall, subject to the following provisions of this section, have regard to the considerations set out in Schedule 2 to this Act (which reproduces Part I of a memorandum presented to Parliament by the Secretary of State by Command of Her Majesty in April 1965).
(2) The Secretary of State may at any time by order set out considerations to which the Board are to have regard under this section whether in addition to, or by way of variation of or substitution for, the considerations set out in Schedule 2 to this Act.
(3) Before making an order under subsection (2) above the Secretary of State shall consult such organisations or bodies as he thinks fit, being organisations or bodies which appear to him to represent to any substantial extent the interests of those particularly concerned with the order, and any order so made—
(a ) may be varied or revoked by a subsequent order so made,
(b ) shall be made by statutory instrument subject to annulment in pursuance of a resolution of either House of Parliament:
Provided that in the period of six months beginning with the passing of this Act an order may be made under subsection (2) above without any prior consultation as required by the foregoing provisions of this subsection.
5 The Board's reports.
(1) The Minister or Ministers concerned shall lay any report made by the Board in pursuance of section 2 or section 3 above before each House of Parliament, shall publish it in such manner as appears to the Minister or Ministers to be appropriate, and shall record in the Gazette the date on which it is first so published; and that date shall be taken as the date of publication for the purposes of this Act.
(2) If it appears to the Minister or Ministers concerned that the publication of any matter in the report would be against the interests of national security, the Minister or Ministers shall exclude that matter from the copies of the report laid before Parliament and published under the foregoing subsection.
(3) Subject to subsection (4) below—
(a ) any report of the Board under section 2 above must be published under subsection (1) above within three months from the date on which the reference (meaning, if the original reference has been varied by a reference under section 2(3) above, the original reference) is published in the Gazette, and
(b ) any report of the Board in compliance with the requirement of a Minister or Ministers under section 3(3) of this Act must be published under subsection (1) above within three months from the date when the requirement was imposed,
and it shall be the duty of the Board to make their report so as to allow publication within the time limited by this subsection.
(4) The Minister or Ministers concerned may by a direction published in...
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