Amendments Nos. 11 and 12 are related and may be discussed together. Is that agreed? Agreed.
SECTION 10.
I move amendment No. 11:
In page 7, subsection (1), lines 19 and 20, to delete "civil proceedings under this Act" and substitute "proceedings under section 3, 4 or 9".
These are largely technical amendments. The purpose of amendment No. 11 is to ensure that excluding order proceedings can be held at summary sittings of the District Court rather than being restricted to less frequent civil sittings. Delays in the operation of the legal process have been a major difficulty for local authorities in dealing effectively with anti-social behaviour in their estates. Restriction to civil sittings could contribute to this problem, especially in the event of adjournment of cases. Moreover, there could be a degree of emergency attached to excluding order cases, for example, where a tenant is threatened and it is imperative to have the most speedy possible access to the courts in such cases.
Amendment No. 12 involves a purely technical drafting change to achieve consistency with the format used elsewhere in the Bill. It is unnecessary to use the words "of this Act" because section 1(2) covers the point that sections referred to are sections of this Act unless otherwise stated.
Amendment agreed to.
Section 10, as amended, agreed to.