Harbours Act, 1996

FOURTH SCHEDULE

Provisions Relating to Compulsory Acquisition

Section 16 .

1. (1) Where a company (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as “the company”) proposes to acquire any land or any interest in or right over land under section 16 the company shall apply to the Minister for an order under paragraph 2 authorising the company to acquire the property compulsorily and the application shall be accompanied by such maps, plans and books of reference as are referred to in paragraph 5.

(2) The company shall publish a notice, in such form as the Minister approves, of the application in one or more newspapers circulating in the area of the property concerned and serve a copy of the notice on every person who appears to the company to have an estate or interest in the property, so far as it is reasonably practicable to ascertain such persons.

(3) The notice referred to in subparagraph (2) shall include a provision notifying persons having an estate or interest in the property concerned that they have a right to lodge with the Minister within 1 month of the making of the application by the company an objection to the making of an order under paragraph 2 in relation to the property and shall specify the times and places where the maps, plans and books of reference deposited in accordance with paragraph 5 may be inspected.

(4) The Minister shall consider and determine any objection to the application of the company lodged with him or her within the period referred to in subparagraph (3) and the Minister may, if he or she thinks fit, appoint an adviser to assist him or her in relation thereto.

2. The Minister shall, where no objection to the application of the company is lodged with him or her within the period referred to in paragraph 1 (3) or any such objection is rejected by him or her, make an order (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as an “acquisition order”) authorising the company to acquire the property concerned compulsorily in accordance with the terms of its application or subject to such modifications, if any, as he or she may determine and specifies in the acquisition order.

3. (1) At any time after the making of an acquisition order and before conveyance or ascertainment of price, the company may, subject to this paragraph, enter on and take possession of the land to be acquired or exercise the right to be acquired.

(2) The company shall not—

(a) enter on or take possession of any land under this paragraph without giving to the occupier of the land at least 1 month's previous notice in writing of its intention so to do,

(b) exercise any right under this paragraph without giving the occupier of the land in respect of which the right is to be exercised at least 1 month's previous notice in writing of its intention so to do.

4. (1) A notice under this Schedule may be served on any person by sending it by registered post in an envelope addressed to him or her at his or her usual or last known address.

(2) Where, for any reason, the envelope cannot be so addressed, it may be adressed to the person for whom it is intended in either of the following ways—

(a) by the description “the occupier” without stating his or her name,

(b) at the land to which the notice relates.

5. (1) The company shall cause maps, plans and books of reference to be deposited in accordance with this paragraph.

(2) The maps and plans shall be sufficient in quantity and character to show on adequate scales the land or right proposed to be acquired.

(3) The books of reference shall contain the names of the owners or reputed owners, lessees or reputed lessees, and occupiers of the land which is proposed to be acquired or in respect of which the right is proposed to be exercised.

(4) The maps, plans and books of reference shall be deposited at such place or places as the company, with the consent of the Minister, considers suitable and shall remain so deposited for at least 1 month and shall, while so deposited, be open to inspection by any person, free of charge, between the hours of ten o'clock in the morning and four o'clock in the afternoon on every day except Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays.

6. (1) The amount of the price to be paid by the company for any land acquired pursuant to an acquisition order to the several persons entitled thereto or having estates or interests therein or for any right acquired pursuant to an acquisition order to the several persons entitled to or having estates or interests in the land in respect of which the right is exercised, shall, in default of agreement, be fixed under and in accordance with the Acquisition of Land (Assessment of Compensation) Act, 1919 .

(2) Sections 69 to 83 of the Lands Clauses Consolidation Act, 1845 , shall apply to the said price and, subject to paragraphs 7 and 8, to the conveyance to the company of the land or right acquired, and for the purpose of the application of the said provisions the company shall be deemed to be the promoters of the undertaking.

7. (1) Where the company has entered on and taken possession of land in accordance with paragraph 3 and the Minister is satisfied that—

(a) the several interests in the land have not been conveyed or transferred to the company,

(b) it is urgently necessary, in connection with the purposes for which the company has been authorised to acquire the land compulsorily, that the acquisition of the land should be completed, and

(c) the company has made a proper offer in writing to each person having an interest in the land who has furnished sufficient particulars of his or her interest to enable the company to make a proper offer for such interest,

then the Minister may make an order (hereafter in this Schedule referred to as a “vesting order”) vesting the land in the company.

(2) Where the Minister or the company, before the making of the vesting order, becomes aware that the land to be acquired by the order is subject (whether alone or in conjunction with other land) to any annuity or other payment to the Irish Land Commission or to the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, or to any charge for estate duty, succession duty or inheritance tax payable to the Revenue Commissioners on the death of any person, the Minister or the company, as the case may be, shall forthwith inform the Irish Land Commission, the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland or the Revenue Commissioners, as the case may be, of the intention to make the order.

(3) When a vesting order has been made, the company shall within 7 days after having received notification by the Minister of the making of the order—

(a) publish in one or more newspapers circulating in the area of the land to which the order relates a notice stating that the order has been made, describing the said land and naming a place where a copy of the order may be seen at all reasonable times, and

(b) serve on every person appearing to it to have an interest in the land to which the order relates a notice stating the fact of such an order having been made and the effect of the order.

8. (1) A vesting order shall be in the prescribed form and shall have attached thereto a map of the land to which it relates and it shall be expressed and shall operate to vest the said land in the company in fee simple free from encumbrances and all estates, rights, titles and interests of whatsoever kind (other than any public right of way) on a specified date not earlier than 21 days after the making of the vesting order.

(2) Notwithstanding anything in subparagraph (1), where the company has acquired by a vesting order land which is subject, either alone or in conjunction with other land, to a purchase annuity, payment in lieu of rent, or other annual sum (not being merely a rent under a contract of tenancy) payable to the Irish Land Commission or the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, the company shall become and be liable, as from the date on which the land is vested in it by the vesting order, for the payment to the Irish Land Commission or the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, as the case may be, of the annual sum or such portion thereof as may be apportioned by the Irish Land Commission or by the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland, as the case may be, on the land as if the land had been transferred to the company by the owner thereof on that date.

(3) When the Minister makes a vesting order in relation to any land, he or she shall cause the order to be sent to the registering authority under the Registration of Title Act, 1964 , and thereupon the registering authority shall cause the company to be registered as owner of the land in accordance with the order.