Local Authorities (Combined Purchasing) Act, 1939

Testing commodities supplied by official contractors.

15.—(1) The Minister may make arrangements whereby the quality or nature of any commodity supplied to a local authority by an official contractor may, on the application and at the cost of such local authority, be tested or ascertained by analysis or otherwise and for that purpose the Minister may by regulations made by order under this section do all or any of the following things, that is to say:—

(a) provide for the making of periodical or other tests of samples of commodities supplied to local authorities by official contractors;

(b) prescribe the persons by whom and the means by and manner in which such tests of samples of particular commodities are to be made;

(c) regulate the procedure generally in relation to such tests, including applications for any such test and the communication to persons concerned of the result of any such test;

(d) prescribe the certificate or other evidence to be given of the result of any such test, and the persons by whom such certificate or other evidence is to be given, and the persons to whom such certificate or other evidence is to be furnished;

(e) provide that any such certificate or other evidence as is mentioned in the next preceding paragraph of this sub-section given in respect of any test shall, as respects the samples which were the subject of such test, be conclusive evidence for all purposes of the result of such test.

(2) Whenever regulations made under this section provide that any particular certificate or other evidence shall be conclusive evidence for all purposes of the result of a test made under such regulations, such certificate or other evidence shall, as respects the samples which were the subject of such test, be accepted by all courts of justice as conclusive evidence of the result of such test and shall also be accepted by all courts of justice as evidence until the contrary is proved, that such test was carried out under and in accordance with such regulations.

(3) In this section the word “test” includes every method of testing, investigating, or ascertaining any matter or thing which is the subject of a test under regulations made under this section, and cognate words shall be construed accordingly.