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16 1952

HOUSING (AMENDMENT) ACT, 1952

PART IV.

Housing of the Working Classes.

Amendment of section 29 of Act of 1948.

28. —(1) Section 29 of the Act of 1948 is hereby amended by the substitution of the following for subsection (2):—

“(2) Regulations under this section shall provide that in the letting of houses regard shall be had to the character, industry, occupation, family circumstances and existing housing conditions of the applicants and subject thereto first preference in the letting of houses which are not reserved houses shall, wherever practicable, be given to persons displaced from reserved houses, and second preference shall, wherever practicable, be given to persons with families living—

(i) in overcrowded conditions where one or more than one member of the family is suffering from tuberculosis;

(ii) in one-roomed dwellings where one or more than one member of the family is suffering from tuberculosis or where one or more than one member of the family (exclusive of the parents) has attained the age of twelve years; or

(iii) in a dwelling which has been condemned as unfit for human habitation.

(3) The letting by a housing authority and the commissioners of a town under this section of houses to families living in overcrowded conditions shall be deemed, for the purposes of section 6 of the Act of 1932, to be operations of a local authority under the Housing of the Working Classes Acts.

(4) Conditions shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be overcrowded, at any time when the number of persons ordinarily sleeping in a house intended or used for occupation by the working classes, and the number of rooms in the house either—

(a) are such that any two of those persons, being persons twelve years old or more of opposite sexes and not being persons living together as husband and wife, must sleep in the same room; or

(b) are such that the free air space, in any room used as a sleeping apartment, for any person is less than four hundred cubic feet (the height of the room, if it exceeds eight feet, being taken to be eight feet, for the purpose of calculating free air space).”

(2) Section 29 of the Act of 1948 as amended by subsection (1) of this section shall not apply to houses provided by virtue of section 31 of this Act.

Acquisition of land.

29. —The powers of a housing authority and the commissioners of a town to acquire land for the purposes of Part III of the Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890 (as amended by subsequent enactments including this Act) shall be deemed to include, and always to have included, power to acquire land outside their functional area with the consent of the housing authority within whose area such land is situate, and section 7 of the Housing of the Working Classes (Ireland) Act, 1908, shall cease to have effect.

Construction of Housing of Working Classes Acts.

30. —The Housing of the Working Classes Acts shall be construed with such modifications as may be necessary to give effect to section 23 of the Act of 1950.

Amendment of Housing (Ireland) Act, 1919.

31. —(1) Subsection (2) of section 8 of the Housing (Ireland) Act, 1919, as amended, is hereby further amended by the addition of the following paragraphs:—

“(iv) the erection of houses and the lease or sale of same under the powers conferred by this Act to persons irrespective of whether they are or are not members of the working classes;

(v) the development of the land or part thereof for building purposes;

(vi) the lease or sale under the powers conferred by this Act of the land or part thereof to public utility societies and to persons irrespective of whether they are or are not members of the working classes, for the purpose and on the condition that such societies and persons shall erect and maintain thereon such number of houses as may be fixed by the authority and in accordance with plans approved by the authority.”

(2) Subsection (1) of section 11 of the Housing (Ireland) Act, 1919, as amended, is hereby further amended—

(I) by the addition to paragraph (a) of the following words: “and carry out such other works as may be necessary for or incidental to the development of the land for building purposes”;

(II) by the addition of the following paragraph:—

“(e) with the like consent, sell or lease the land or part thereof to any person for the purpose and on the condition that such person shall erect and maintain thereon such number of houses as may be fixed by the authority and in accordance with plans approved by the authority.”

(3) Any acquisition, sale or lease of land by a housing authority effected before the passing of this Act which would be valid if effected by virtue of section 8 or 11 of the Housing (Ireland) Act, 1919, as amended by this section shall be and be deemed always to have been validly effected under the Housing of the Working Classes Acts.

Continuance of determinations made under Emergency Powers (No. 277) Order, 1943.

32. —Where a determination has been made by a housing authority under Article 3 of the Emergency Powers (No. 277) Order, 1943 (S.R. & O., No. 184 of 1943), in relation to a dwelling-house, the following provisions shall have effect—

(a) notwithstanding the revocation of the said Order, any such determination shall continue in force until revoked by the housing authority;

(b) so long as such determination remains in force—

(i) the dwelling-house shall be deemed to have been acquired by the housing authority for the purposes of Part III of the Housing of the Working Classes Act, 1890, and

(ii) the requirements imposed on the housing authority by Part II of the Housing (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 1931 (No. 50 of 1931), in regard to securing the vacation and demolition of the dwelling-house shall be suspended;

(c) subparagraph (i) of paragraph (b) of this section shall not confer any power to sell the relevant dwelling-house.