Tramways and Public Companies (Ireland) Act, 1883

PART II.[1]

Emigration and Purchase of Lands by Public Companies.

[S. 12 rep. 54 & 55 Vict. c. 48. s. 35 (4).]

Advances by Land Commission.

44 & 45 Vict. c. 49.

13. (1.) The Treasury may authorise the Irish Land Commission to advance from time to time to any public company with whose constitution the Land Commission are satisfied, hereinafter referred to as a public company, out of moneys to be provided by Parliament, if the Land Commission approve of the security and the expediency of the purchase, such sums as the Treasury think fit for aiding such company to purchase estates for the purpose of reselling to the tenants of the lands comprised in such estates their respective holdings, or for the purpose of assisting in the removal thereto of persons and families, as provided by the preceding section of this Act.

Such advances, where the estate or estates are purchased solely for the purpose of re-sale to the tenants, shall only be made when the Land Commission are satisfied that a competent number of the tenants on the estates proposed to be purchased are able and willing to purchase their holdings from the company.

(2.) When a company to whom an advance has been made under this section has purchased an estate, they shall, so far as concerns the re-sale of their holdings to the tenants thereon, deal with it in the same manner in which it is provided in Part V. of the Land Law (Ireland) Act, 1881, that the Land Commission shall deal with estates purchased by them for the purpose of reselling to the tenants of the lands comprised in such estates their respective holdings.

(3.) The sale by the company of a holding to the tenant thereof may be made either in consideration of a principal sum being paid as the whole price or in consideration of a fine and of a fee farm rent, with this qualification, that the amount of the fee farm rent shall not exceed seventy-five per cent, of the rent which in the opinion of the Land Commission would be a fair rent for the holding.

(4.) For the purposes of this section a competent number of tenants means a body of tenants who are not less in number than three fourths of the whole number of tenants on the estate, and who pay in rent not less than two thirds of the whole rent of the estate, and of whom a number, comprising not less than one half of the whole number of tenants on the estate, are able and willing to pay the whole price of their holdings, either immediately or by means of such advances as in this part of this Act mentioned.

The [2] condition as to three fourths of the number of tenants may be relaxed on special grounds with the consent of the Treasury, and on the recommendation of the Lord Lieutenant.

(5.) The Land Commission may advance to a tenant proposing to pay the whole price of his holding any sum not exceeding seventy-five per cent, of the said price, and to a tenant purchasing subject to a fee farm rent a sum not exceeding one half of the amount of the fine payable by the tenant.

(6.) In sales by a company to tenants in pursuance of this section, a separate charge shall not be made for any expenses relating to the purchase, sale, or conveyance of the property, but such expenses shall be included in the price or fine payable by the purchaser.

[1 As to advances to tenants under this part of the Act, see 48 & 49 Vict. c. 73. s. 4.]

[1 Any of the conditions defined in this sub-section may be relaxed, 48 & 49 Vict. c. 5. s. 1.]