The object of the Bill is to confer on certain local authorities, namely county borough councils, county councils and urban district councils powers to carry out works affording relief or protection from flooding, landslide, subsidence or other similar occurrences.
These powers are conferred on them by Section 2 of the Bill — the other sections are either ancillary or consequential. The powers which are conferred can be divided into two classes. The first power is one enabling local authorities to execute such works as they consider reasonable for the protection or relief from flooding, landslide or subsidence of land owned by them, or any permanent construction which they are required by law to maintain, that is any road, bridge, house, building, wall or embankment. In short, it gives them the power to protect what might be loosely described as their own property.
At first sight it may seem unnecessary to confer such powers on local authorities. Unfortunately, they cannot do these works as the law stands at present. In many counties the periodic flooding of roads is the cause of serious inconvenience. Rivers or streams which run alongside or under roads get swollen when there is a heavy or continuous rainfall. The floods in some cases remain for a considerable time. The remedy for this flooding is often very simple, consisting, perhaps, in the removal of obstruction such as tree trunks, silt or rocks, to the flow of the water, the widening or deepening of the bed of the stream for some distance on either side of a bridge, or the building of a retaining wall or embankment.
Sometimes bridges are endangered by an accumulation of silt under the eyes of the bridge. Notwithstanding the damage that may be caused to roads or bridges, local authorities have been advised by their own legal advisers that they cannot carry out these works. They cannot carry out works outside the structure of the road itself. They can spend public money on the fabric of the bridge, but they cannot clean the bed of the river flowing under the arches. They are compelled to look on helplessly while roads and bridges built at great expense to the ratepayers are damaged and traffic on roads held up — all because of legal difficulties.
Local authorities can, under powers conferred on them in 1851, force landowners to open drains from the road into their lands but in many cases this is not sufficient. The land immediately surrounding the road might be higher than the level of the road, or the stream or drain in which the water flows in the surrounding land might be choked or blocked. The local authority cannot enter the lands bordering a road to clear a stream which causes flooding on the road and, in most cases, on the land through which it flows. In so far, therefore, as roads and other local authority property are concerned, it will be conceded that the powers conferred by this Bill are long overdue.
The second power which is given to local authorities in the Bill is that which enables them to execute works for the protection or relief from flooding, landslide, subsidence or other similar occurrence of lands not owned by them or a permanent construction which they are not required by law to maintain if they consider that it is in the public interest to do so. Permanent construction is defined in Section I as including roads, bridges, houses, buildings, walls or embankments. The word "road" is also defined as meaning any road, whether public or private.
This will give power to local authorities to relieve flooding of houses and lands in urban and rural areas. Very often one sees groups of houses or a large expanse of land subjected to periodic flooding. There is no need for me to elaborate on the hardships which such periodic flooding causes. It is heart-breaking to see people having to evacuate their houses year after year because of flooding. When they do get back to their houses they have to try to dry them out and replace or repair their belongings. The remedy for this type of flooding is, perhaps, beyond the resources of the persons concerned, but under the powers conferred by the Bill a local authority may undertake works for the alleviation of such flooding if they decide that it is in the public interest that they should do so. Local authorities will have the advice of their engineers as to whether or not the flooding can be remedied.
The works which a local authority may do under the powers conferred on them are described in sub-section (4) of Section 2 as including such things as the making of drains, the removal of obstructions in watercourses, the widening or deepening of watercourses, and the diversion of water into watercourses.
Section 3 of the Bill gives power to one local authority to carry out works on behalf of another local authority in certain circumstances. There are two parts to it. The first part deals with the case where a local authority is unable or unwilling to execute works which are essential for the efficiency of other works which another local authority are able and willing to execute.
In that case the Minister, after consultation with the local authority which is unable or unwilling to carry out the works, may by Order authorise the other local authority to carry out the works. The second part enables one local authority to enter into agreement with another local authority for the execution by that local authority of works under the Bill. This would cover the case of a county council carrying out works in an urban area, or a county council carrying out works on the borders of its own territory and going some distance into another county.
Powers of entry for the purposes of the works are conferred on local authorities by Section 4 of the Bill. Except in the case of urgent works a local authority must either obtain the consent of the occupier or give 14 days' notice of intention to enter. Where consent is not obtained and notice is given the occupier can if he still objects to entry go to the District Court within 14 days and apply for an order prohibiting the local authority from entering on his land. The district justice may decide either to prohibit wholly the entry of the local authority on the land concerned or specify conditions to be observed by the agent, officer or servant of the local authority making the entry.
I think it proper here to mention that this Bill is in no sense an arterial drainage Bill. The only effective arterial drainage scheme is one which treats the catchment area as a unit. This involves a thorough survey which takes time. The execution of arterial drainage involves the use of complicated and heavy machinery and the cost of the work is very expensive. Neither is this Bill a land reclamation Bill. Land which is relieved from flooding may require suitable treatment in order to bring it back into productivity. This is not the function of a local authority.
Notwithstanding the fact that this Bill is not an arterial drainage Bill, and that its main purpose is to relieve flooding of what I have called local authority property and minor flooding of other land, there may be cases where damage is inevitably caused to a landowner by works undertaken for the relief of flooding in some other area. It is not expected that any serious damage will be caused. Local authority engineers have for some considerable time been carrying out drainage maintenance works. They have also in many counties carried out minor drainage works as agents for the Office of Public Works under the minor employment schemes.
Section 5 of the Bill provides for compensation for persons who suffer damage by reason of any interference caused by the execution of works under the Bill to any land owned by them or any easements or rights belonging to them. The compensation can be settled by agreement. If agreement is not reached the person claiming compensation can, if his claim does not exceed £20, go to the district justice. If the claim is for more than £20 the compensation can be fixed by an arbitrator appointed under the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act, 1919. A claim for compensation must be made either within two years from the commencement of the work which caused the damage or one year after the completion of the works, whichever period is the later, Provision is made in sub-sections (5) and (6) of Section 5 for dealing with costs and expenses. Under sub-section (5) a district justice may award costs not exceeding three guineas together with such witnesses' expenses as he considers reasonable. Sub-section (6) deals with the case of a claimant who is made an offer by a local authority which he does not accept. If he takes the case to the district justice and the district justice awards less than the local authority were prepared to give him, the district justice may then order that such costs and witnesses' expenses as he considers reasonable shall be deducted from the compensation awarded by him. Similar clauses to this are contained in the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act, 1919.
As I mentioned when referring to Section 3 of the Bill, one local authority is empowered under certain circumstances to carry out works on behalf of another local authority. This raises the question as to which local authority is to pay compensation. There are three different cases: (1) a local authority executing works on its own behalf and without reference to any other local authority; (2) a local authority which has got from the Minister an Order authorising it to execute works on behalf of another local authority which is unable or unwilling to carry out the works, the execution of which is essential for the efficiency of other works which the executing local authority is able and willing to execute; (3) one local authority agreeing as a matter of convenience to carry out works on behalf of another local authority.
In the first two cases it is the local authority which actually carries out the works which will pay any compensation that may become payable. In the third case it is the local authority on whose behalf the works are executed that will pay the compensation. This is reasonable because if, say, a county council agrees to carry out works for an urban district council as a matter of convenience, then, surely, the urban district council should pay compensation for any damage that arises.
Local authorities executing works under the Bill are exempted from the provision of the Fisheries Acts, 1842-1944, but notwithstanding this exemption, they must take such precautions for the protection of fisheries as the Minister for Agriculture, either generally or in particular cases, may advise.
In anticipation of the passing of the Bill local authorities have been requested to prepare schedules of works to be carried out. In all counties preliminary schedules have been prepared and these schedules have, by direction of the Minister, been placed before the elected body so that a selection therefrom could be made and submitted to the Department.
I think what I have said gives a fair summary of the contents of this Bill. It is a Bill which I know will be welcomed, particularly by members of local authorities. It will enable them to carry out works which for many years past they have been clamouring to carry out. It will also enable them, when it is operated, to provide employment on useful and productive work in the rural areas.