PART VI.

Facilities for Development of Privately Owned Minerals and Grant of Restrictions on Working Minerals Required for the Support of Land or Buildings.

38. —(1) Any person who desires to obtain under this Act a licence (in this Act referred to as an unworked minerals licence) to work any particular minerals may apply in writing to the Minister for the grant to him of an unworked minerals licence in respect of the said minerals.

(2) Every application under this section for an unworked minerals licence shall be made in the prescribed form and manner and shall be verified in the prescribed manner and shall contain the particulars required by the said prescribed form, including a statement of the facts relied on by the applicant in support of his application.

(3) Within the prescribed time after making an application under this section, the applicant shall serve in the prescribed manner a copy of the said application on every of the prescribed persons.

(4) Any person on whom a copy of an application under this section is served in pursuance of the next preceding sub-section of this section may, if he so thinks fit, make to the Minister at any time within such period, not being less than three weeks after the service of such copy on him, as may be prescribed, representations in respect of the said application.

39. —(1) An unworked minerals licence shall not be granted unless all the following conditions (in this Act referred to as statutory conditions) are fulfilled, that is to say:—

(a) the minerals in respect of which such licence is applied for are not being worked or are not being worked efficiently, and

(b) the applicant for such licence desires to work the said minerals and possesses the technical and financial resources necessary for the proper and efficient working of the said minerals, and

(c) it is not reasonably practicable for the said applicant to obtain by private arrangement a right to work the said minerals.

(2) An unworked minerals licence shall not be granted in respect of State minerals unless they are comprised in a State mining lease, and, where such licence is granted in respect of State minerals so comprised, the duration of such licence shall not exceed the unexpired residue of the term granted by such lease.

40. —(1) Any person who desires to obtain under this Act a licence (in this Act referred to as an ancillary rights licence) to exercise an ancillary right in relation to the working of minerals which he is entitled (otherwise than under a State mining lease or a State acquired minerals licence) to work may apply in writing to the Minister for the grant to him of an ancillary rights licence in respect of the working of the said minerals.

(2) Every application under this section for an ancillary rights licence shall be made in the prescribed form and manner and shall be verified in the prescribed manner and shall contain the particulars required by the said prescribed form, including a statement of the facts relied on by the applicant in support of his application.

(3) Within the prescribed time after making an application under this section, the applicant shall serve in the prescribed manner a copy of the said application on every of the prescribed persons.

(4) Any person on whom a copy of an application under this section is served in pursuance of the next preceding sub-section of this section may, if he so thinks fit, make to the Minister at any time within such period, not being less than three weeks after the service of such copy on him, as may be prescribed, representations in respect of the said application.

41. —(1) An ancillary rights licence shall not be granted unless all the following conditions (in this Act referred to as statutory conditions) are fulfilled, that is to say:—

(a) the applicant for such licence is entitled to work the minerals in relation to the working of which such licence is applied for, and

(b) the ancillary right in respect of which such licence is applied for is necessary for the proper and efficient working of the said minerals by the said applicant, and

(c) it is not reasonably practicable for the said applicant to obtain by private arrangement the said ancillary right.

(2) An ancillary rights licence shall not be granted in relation to the-working of State minerals unless they are comprised in a State mining lease, and, where such licence is granted in relation to the working of State minerals so comprised, the duration of such licence shall not exceed the unexpired residue of the term granted by such lease.

42. —(1) Any person having an interest in land who, for the purpose of securing sufficient support for a building erected or intended to be erected on such land, desires to obtain under this Act an order (in this Act referred to as a preservation of support order) imposing restrictions on mining under such land or land adjacent thereto may apply in writing to the Minister for a preservation of support order in relation to such land and land adjacent thereto.

(2) Every application under this section for a preservation of support order shall be made in the prescribed form and manner and shall be verified in the prescribed manner and shall contain the particulars required by the said prescribed form, including a statement of the facts relied on by the applicant in support of his application.

(3) Within the prescribed time after making an application under this section, the applicant shall serve a copy of the said application on every of the prescribed persons.

(4) Any person on whom a copy of an application under this section is served in pursuance of the next preceding sub-section of this section may, if he so thinks fit, make to the Minister at any time within such period not being less than three weeks after the service of such copy on him, as may be prescribed, representations in respect of the said application.

(5) In this Part of this Act the word “building” includes every kind of artificial erection, construction, or work on land whether wholly above the surface or partly above and partly below the surface or wholly below the surface and also includes any natural object which is a national monument within the meaning of the National Monuments Act, 1930 (No. 2 of 1930).

(6) In the case of a building which is a national monument within the meaning of the National Monuments Act, 1930 , and is, by virtue of that Act, under the guardianship of the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland or of a local authority within the meaning aforesaid, the said Commissioners or such local authority, as the case may be, shall for the purposes of this section be deemed to be a person having an interest in the land on or in which such building is.

43. —(1) A preservation of support order shall not be made unless all the following conditions (in this Act referred to as statutory conditions) are fulfilled, that is to say:—

(a) mining operations which will prejudice the stability of the building in relation to which the order is applied for are in progress or are reasonably apprehended under the land on or in which such building is situate or under land adjacent to that land, and

(b) the applicant for such order satisfies the Attorney-General that he is not entitled in law to such right of support in respect of such building as would enable him to obtain in a court of law relief in respect of the said mining operations, and

(c) it is not reasonably practicable for the said applicant to obtain by private arrangement a right to such support as would effectually preserve the stability of such building.

(2) A preservation of support order may in a proper case be made in respect of the working of State minerals.

44. —Whenever the Minister has received an application for an an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence, or a preservation of support order, the Minister shall at the expiration of the prescribed time for the making of representations by persons on whom a copy of such applications has been served in pursuance of this Part of this Act, do the following things or such of them as shall be applicable, that is to say:—

(a) he shall consider such application;

(b) he shall also consider all (if any) such representations as aforesaid as have been made within the said prescribed time;

(c) if the Minister is not satisfied that a prima facie case has been made for the grant of the licence or order applied for, he shall refuse the application;

(d) if the Minister does not refuse the application in pursuance of the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section, he shall refer the application to the Board.

45. —Every applicant for an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence, or a preservation of support order shall pay to the Minister such fee as shall be prescribed by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, and the payment of such fee shall be a condition precedent to the consideration of such application.

46. —(1) Whenever an application for an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence, or a preservation of support order is referred to the Board by the Minister, the Board shall consider such application and shall for that purpose hold an inquiry at which the following persons shall be entitled to beheard, either in person or by solicitor or counsel, and to adduce evidence, that is to say:—

(a) the applicant;

(b) the Minister;

(c) any person claiming to have an estate or interest in any minerals which are the subject of such application;

(d) any other person in respect of whom it appears to the Board that he would be substantially affected by the grant of the application.

(2) When the Board has considered in accordance with the foregoing sub-section of this section any such application as is mentioned in that sub-section, the Board shall report thereon to the Minister and shall in such report deal with all relevant aspects of the matter and in particular whether the relevant statutory conditions have or have not been fulfilled and, unless the Board reports against the granting of the application, the person or persons to whom compensation should be paid by the applicant, and the conditions which should be specified in the licence or order.

(3) Where two or more separate applications by different persons for unworked minerals licences in respect of the same minerals are referred to the Board, the Board may, if they so think proper, consider all such applications together and hold a single inquiry and make a single report in respect of all such applications and may also, if they so think proper, report in favour of the issue of unworked mineral licences to different such applicants in respect of different parts of such minerals.

47. —(1) When the Minister has received the report of the Board on an application for an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence or a preservation of support order he shall, as he shall think proper having regard to such report and all the circumstances of the case and all (if any) matters to which he is required by this Act to have regard, either refuse such application or grant such application and issue the licence or make the order which is the subject of such application.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing sub-section of this section, the Minister shall not grant any such application as is mentioned in that sub-section unless he is satisfied that the relevant statutory conditions have been fulfilled.

(3) In the case of an application for an ancillary rights licence, where the right to which the application relates is a right to let down the surface of any land and the superincumbent or adjacent strata up to such surface, and also in the case of any application for a preservation of support order, the Minister when determining whether such application should or should not be granted,—

(a) if there are buildings on or under the land to which such application relates or if buildings are bona fide intended to be erected on such land, shall have regard to the relative values of such buildings and of the minerals which would be required to be retained under such land to support such buildings and to the relative importance in the public interest of the preservation of support for such buildings and the working of such minerals, or

(b) if there are no buildings on or in such land or bona fide intended to be erected thereon or therein, shall have regard to the extent to which the actual or intended use of the surface of such land will be prejudiced by the subsidence of that surface and to the relative importance in the public interest of the continuance of such use and of the working of such minerals.

48. —(1) An unworked minerals licence shall be expressed and shall operate to confer on the licensee the right to work the minerals specified in such licence during the period and subject to the conditions similarly specified and subject to the payment to such person as shall be specified in such licence of such compensation as shall be fixed in accordance with this Act.

(2) It shall be lawful for the Minister to attach to an unworked minerals licence all such (if any) conditions as he shall think proper and shall specify in such licence.

49. —(1) An ancillary rights licence shall be expressed and shall operate to confer on the licensee the ancillary right specified in such licence during the period, for the purpose, and subject to the conditions specified in such licence and subject to the payment to such person as shall be specified in such licence of such compensation as shall be fixed in accordance with this Act.

(2) It shall be lawful for the Minister to attach to an ancillary rights licence all such (if any) conditions as he shall think proper and shall specify in such licence.

50. —(1) A preservation of support order shall be expressed and shall operate to impose such restrictions as shall be specified in such order on the working of such minerals under such land as shall be similarly specified and to confer on such persons as shall be similarly specified a legal right, enforceable in any court of competent jurisdiction, to enforce the restrictions so imposed.

(2) It shall be lawful for the Minister to attach to a preservation of support order all such (if any) conditions as he shall think proper and shall specify in such order.

51. —(1) Neither an unworked minerals licence nor an ancillary rights licence shall operate—

(a) to confer on the licensee thereunder any greater or other power than would have been conferred on him by such licence if it had been granted by a person legally entitled (otherwise than under this Act) to grant the same, or

(b) to relieve such licensee of any obligation or liability to which he would have been subject if such licence had been granted by any such person as aforesaid.

(2) A preservation of support order shall not operate—

(a) to confer on the person (in this sub-section referred to as the grantee) to whom is granted the legal right to enforce the restrictions thereby imposed any greater or other power than he would have been entitled to exercise if the right to enforce such restrictions had been conferred on him by a person legally entitled (otherwise than under this Act) to grant the same, or

(b) to relieve the grantee of any obligation or liability to which he would have been subject if the right to enforce such restrictions had been conferred on him by such person so legally entitled as aforesaid.

52. —(1) An unworked minerals licence or an ancillary rights licence may be expressed to be issued to the licensee thereunder as tenant for life or person having, the powers of a tenant for life under a settlement or as personal representative of a deceased person or as trustee or other person in a fiduciary capacity, and where any such licence is so expressed the benefit of such licence shall be deemed to be held by the licensee thereunder in such fiduciary capacity and as part of the property vested in him in that capacity.

(2) A preservation of support order may provide that the rights thereby conferred on any particular person are conferred on him as tenant for life or person having the powers of a tenant for life under a settlement or as personal representative of a deceased person or as trustee or other person in a fiduciary capacity and, where any such order so provides, the rights thereby conferred on such person shall be deemed to be vested in him in such fiduciary capacity as part of the property vested in him in that capacity.

53. —(1) Every licensee under an unworked minerals licence or an ancillary rights licence shall pay compensation to such person or persons as shall be specified in such licence.

(2) Whenever a preservation of support order is made by the Minister, the person on whose application such order is made shall pay compensation to such person or persons as shall be specified in such order.

(3) Compensation payable under this section (in this Act referred to as compensation under Part VI) shall, in default of agreement between the parties concerned, be fixed in accordance with the provisions of Part VII of this Act.

(4) The Minister may attach to an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence, or a preservation of support order a condition that such licence or order shall not come into operation until the compensation payable in respect thereof under this section has been fixed and, if or in so far as such compensation consists of a lump sum, has been paid or security to the satisfaction of the Minister has been given for the payment thereof.

54. —(1) Where the Minister refers to the Board an application for an unworked minerals licence, an ancillary rights licence, or a preservation of support order, the Minister, if he so thinks proper, may and if the Minister for Finance so directs, shall, by order made at the time of such reference or at any time thereafter, require the applicant to pay to the Minister the expenses incurred or to be incurred by the Board in or about the consideration of such application.

(2) Where the Minister makes or has made an order under the foregoing sub-section of this section, he shall, after consultation with the Minister for Finance, by the same or a subsequent order certify the amount of the expenses payable under the said order made under the foregoing sub-section, and, where the Minister so certifies the amount of such expenses, such certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the amount of such expenses.

(3) All expenses payable by any person under an order made by the Minister under this section shall be recoverable by the Minister from such person as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction and when paid to or recovered by the Minister shall be paid into or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer by the Minister in such manner as the Minister for Finance shall direct.

55. —(1) The costs of an inquiry held by the Board under this Part of this Act incurred by any party appearing at such inquiry shall be borne by that party, unless the Board consider that justice requires that those costs or any part thereof should be paid by some other party appearing at such inquiry, in which event they may include a recommendation to that effect in their report to the Minister.

(2) Every recommendation made by the Board under this section shall specify the amount (in this section referred to as the specified amount) of costs which they consider should be paid, and the party whom they consider entitled to such costs and the party whom they consider liable to pay the same.

(3) Whenever the Board make a recommendation under this section, the Minister shall consider such recommendation, and may, if he so thinks fit, by order direct that such sum of costs (not exceeding the specified amount), as he thinks proper shall be paid to the party whom the Board consider entitled to such costs by the party whom they consider liable to pay the same.

(4) A sum directed to be paid by order of the Minister under the next preceding sub-section of this section shall, in default of payment, be recoverable as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.

(5) For the purposes of this section, the costs of an inquiry include the fees, charges and expenses of and incidental to such inquiry.

56. —(1) The Minister may, whenever he so thinks proper, require in writing any licensee under an unworked minerals licence to furnish to him such information in respect of the minerals to which such licence relates or in respect of the working of such minerals as the Minister shall require and shall specify in such requisition.

(2) Every person who is required by the Minister under the foregoing sub-section of this section to furnish to the Minister any information shall so furnish such information in the prescribed form and manner not later than twenty-eight days after the receipt by him of such requisition, and if any such person fails or refuses so to furnish such information or furnishes any such information which is to his knowledge false or misleading in a material respect, he shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding ten pounds together with, in the case of a continuing offence, a further fine not exceeding one pound for every day on which the offence is continued.