Local Government Act, 1998

Amendment of Act of 1952 and Finance (No. 2) Act, 1992 .

8.—(1) In this section—

“appointed day” means the day appointed under subsection (9) with respect to the relevant licence;

“the substituted Part I” shall be construed in accordance with subsection (2).

(2) The Act of 1952 is hereby amended by the substitution of the Part set out in the Schedule to this Act for Part I of the Schedule to the Act of 1952, and the said Part, as so substituted, is referred to hereafter in this section as “the substituted Part I”.

(3) The said amendment shall have effect on and from the days mentioned specified in subsections (4) and (5) as respects the rates of duty and licences concerned.

(4) Subject to subsection (5), the rates of duty specified in the column of the substituted Part I headed with the letter “A” shall apply as respects licences taken out under section 1 of the Act of 1952 for periods beginning on or after the appointed day.

(5) The rates of duty specified in the column of the substituted Part I headed with the letter “B” shall apply as respects licences taken out under section 1 of the Act of 1952 for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999.

(6) Part II of the Schedule to the Act of 1952 is hereby amended—

(a) in paragraph 5(a)(i)—

(i) as respects licences taken out under section 1 of that Act for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£11” for “£10”,

(ii) as respects licences taken out under the said section 1 for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£12” for “£10”,

(b) in paragraph 5(a)(ii)—

(i) as respects licences taken out under section 1 of that Act for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£26” for “£25”,

(ii) as respects licences taken out under the said section 1 for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£27” for “£25”.

(7) Section 20 of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1992 , is hereby amended—

(a) in subsection (1), by the substitution of the following subparagraphs for subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (b) (inserted by the Local Government (Financial Provisions) Act, 1997 ):

“(ii) a vehicle referred to in section 143(1) of the Act of 1992, or

(iii) a vehicle that is being used in a public place solely for the purposes of—

(I) bringing it to the premises of an authorised tester for the purpose of the carrying out of a test in respect of it (in accordance with an appointment made with that tester for the carrying out of such a test at a particular time on a particular date),

(II) bringing it away from the premises of an authorised tester after the test referred to in clause (I) has been completed or, if circumstances preventing the carrying out or completion of that test arise, bringing it away from those premises on those circumstances arising,

(III) bringing it to a premises for the purpose of the carrying out by a person of repair work in respect of it (in accordance with an appointment made with that person for such work to be carried out at a particular time on a particular date): provided that an appointment has been made with an authorised tester for the carrying out of a test in respect of the vehicle subsequent to the said repair work being completed, or

(IV) bringing it away from the premises referred to in clause (III) after the repair work referred to in that clause has been completed or, if circumstances preventing the carrying out or completion of that work arise, bringing it away from those premises on those circumstances arising.”,

and

(b) by the insertion of the following subsections after subsection (1):

“(1A) In subsection (1)—

‘authorised tester’ means a person appointed, in accordance with the provisions of the relevant regulations concerned providing for such appointments to be made, to carry out the tests on vehicles that are required to be carried out by those regulations;

‘relevant regulations’ means regulations that are made by the Minister from time to time under any enactment and which require the carrying out of tests in respect of vehicles, and which are specified in those regulations to be relevant regulations for the purposes of subsection (1)(b)(iii);

‘test’ means a test that is required to be carried out in respect of the vehicle concerned by the relevant regulations.

(1B) In any proceedings for an offence concerning a vehicle referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) and the duty of excise imposed by the Act of 1952 referred to in that paragraph, it shall be presumed, until the contrary is proved, that the vehicle is not a vehicle falling within subparagraph (i), (ii) or (iii) of paragraph (b) of that subsection.”.

(8) Section 21 (3) of the Finance (No. 2) Act, 1992 , is hereby amended—

(a) in paragraph (a)(i)—

(i) as respects licences referred to in that paragraph taken out for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£26” for “£25”,

(ii) as respects such licences taken out for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£27” for “£25”,

(b) in paragraph (a)(ii)—

(i) as respects licences referred to in that paragraph taken out for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£155” for “£150”,

(ii) as respects such licences taken out for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£160” for “£150”,

(c) in paragraph (b)(i)—

(i) as respects licences referred to in that paragraph taken out for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£16” for “£15”,

(ii) as respects such licences taken out for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£17” for “£15”,

(d) in paragraph (b)(ii)—

(i) as respects licences referred to in that paragraph taken out for periods beginning on or after the appointed day, by the substitution of “£37” for “£35”,

(ii) as respects such licences taken out for periods beginning on or after the 1st day of January, 1999, by the substitution of “£39” for “£35”.

(9) The Minister shall by order appoint with respect to each of the following, namely—

(a) both the following licences, that is to say—

(i) a licence taken out under section 1 of the Act of 1952 in relation to a description of a vehicle referred to in a provision of the substituted Part I (other than paragraph 4(e)), and

(ii) a licence referred to in subsection (8),

and

(b) a licence taken out under section 1 of the Act of 1952 in relation to the description of a vehicle referred to in paragraph 4(e) of the substituted Part I,

a day in the financial year, 1998, to be a day appointed under this section and the day so appointed with respect to the kinds of licence referred to in paragraph (a) shall be different from the day so appointed with respect to the kind of licence referred to in paragraph (b).