DAIRY PRODUCE (PRICE STABILISATION) (AMENDMENT) ACT, 1941

AN ACT TO AMEND AND EXTEND THE DAIRY PRODUCE (PRICE STABILISATION) ACTS, 1935 AND 1938, AND TO PROVIDE FOR THE IMPOSITION OF LEVIES ON CERTAIN BUTTER. [3rd June, 1941.]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS AS FOLLOWS:—

1 The Principal Act.

1.—In this Act the expression “the Principal Act” means the Dairy Produce (Price Stabilisation) Act, 1935 (No. 21 of 1935).

2 Construction.

2.—This Act shall be read and construed as one with the Dairy Produce (Price Stabilisation) Acts, 1935 and 1938, and every word and expression to which a particular meaning or interpretation is given by the Principal Act shall, if occurring in this Act, have herein the meaning or interpretation given to it by the Principal Act.

3 Levies on certain creamery butter.

3.—(1) The Minister may, whenever and so often as he thinks fit, by order declare—

• (a) that a specified date (in this sub-section referred to as the appointed date) shall be the appointed date for the purposes of such order, and

• (b) that there shall be paid to the Minister by every registered proprietor of a creamery a levy, at the rate specified in such order, on all creamery butter (other than creamery butter manufactured in such creamery) held by or on behalf of such proprietor anywhere on the appointed date.

• (2) Every order made by the Minister under this section shall have the force of law.

• (3) Every levy under this section shall become due and payable on the seventh day after the date declared by the order imposing such levy to be the appointed date for the purposes of such order.

• (4) Sections 21 and 23 of the Principal Act shall apply in respect of any levy under this section with and subject to the following modifications, that is to say:—

• (a) references in the said sections to Part III of the Principal Act shall be construed as references to this section,

• (b) references to a levy month shall be construed as references to the date which is declared by the order imposing such levy to be the appointed date for the purposes of such order.

• (5) All moneys from time to time received by the Minister on foot of any levy under this section shall be paid into the dairy produce (price stabilisation) fund.

4 Levies on certain butter held in stock.

4.—(1) In this section and the next following section—

the expression “registered proprietor” means a person who is the registered proprietor of premises registered in either the register of butter factories kept in pursuance of the Dairy Produce Act, 1924 (No. 58 of 1924), or the register of non-manufacturing exporters kept in pursuance of that Act;

the expression “butter trader” means a person (not being the registered proprietor of a creamery) who is a butter trader within the meaning of the Dairy Produce Act, 1931 (No. 29 of 1931).

• (2) The Minister may, whenever and so often as he thinks fit, by order declare—

• (a) that a specified date (in this sub-section referred to as the appointed date) shall be the appointed date for the purposes of such order, and

• (b) that there shall be paid to the Minister—

• (i) by every registered proprietor and every butter trader who holds or on whose behalf there is held anywhere on the appointed date not less than three hundredweight of creamery butter (not being creamery butter intended for export and subsequently exported) a levy on such butter at the rate specified in such order in respect of creamery butter, and

• (ii) by every registered proprietor and every butter trader who holds or on whose behalf there is held anywhere on the appointed date not less than three hundredweight of non-creamery butter (not being non-creamery butter intended for export and subsequently exported) a levy on such butter at the rate specified in such order in respect of non-creamery butter.

• (3) Every order made by the Minister under this section shall have the force of law.

• (4) Every levy under this section shall become due and payable—

• (a) in the case of butter which, on the date declared by the order imposing such levy to be the appointed date for the purposes of such order, is held in cold store under and in accordance with a scheme approved of by the Minister—on the seventh day after the day on which the butter is removed from cold store, and

• (b) in every other case—on the seventh day after the said appointed date.

• (5) Sections 21 and 23 of the Principal Act shall apply in respect of any levy under this section with and subject to the following modifications, that is to say:—

• (a) references in the said sections to Part III of the Principal Act shall be construed as references to this section,

• (b) references to a levy month shall be construed as references to the date which is declared by the order imposing such levy to be the appointed date for the purposes of such order.

• (6) All moneys from time to time received by the Minister on foot of any levy under this section shall be paid into the dairy produce (price stabilisation) fund.

• (7) Section 4 of the Dairy Produce (Price Stabilisation) (Amendment) Act, 1938 (No. 30 of 1938), is hereby repealed.

5 Returns.

5.—(1) The Minister may serve a notice in writing on any registered proprietor or butter trader requiring him to make to the Minister within three days after the service of such notice a return of the amount of butter held anywhere by such proprietor or trader or on his behalf on a date mentioned in such notice, being a date declared by an order under the next preceding section to be the appointed date for the purposes of such order.

• (2) A return under this section shall be made in such form and shall contain such particulars as are specified in regulations made by the Minister for the purposes of this section (which he is hereby authorised to make).

• (3) If any person on whom a notice is served under this section either refuses to make a return in accordance with such notice or makes a return which to his knowledge is false or misleading in any material respect, such person shall be guilty of an offence under this section and shall be liable on summary conviction thereof to a fine not exceeding twenty pounds.

• (4) A notice under this section may be served by delivering it to the person to whom it is addressed or by leaving it with a person over the age of sixteen years at the premises where the person to whom it is addressed carries on business or by sending it by registered post to the person to whom it is addressed at the premises where he carries on business.

• (5) Every offence under this section may be prosecuted by or at the suit of the Minister.

6 Amendment of section 18 of the Principal Act.

6.—Section 18 of the Principal Act shall have effect as if it provided—

• (a) that the Minister may, by regulations made under the said section 18, prescribe the date of either the first or any subsequent day in a month as the date on which any particular rate of levy shall come into force, and

• (b) that where the Minister prescribes as aforesaid a date in a month other than the date of the first day thereof, the part of such month prior to such date and the remainder of such month shall each be deemed to be a levy month for the purposes of Part III of the Principal Act.

7 Amendment of sub-section (6) of section 41 of the Principal Act.

7.—(1) Sub-section (6) of section 41 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the insertion therein after the word “butter” of the words “or any milk product”, and the said sub-section shall be construed and have effect accordingly.

• (2) This section shall have and be deemed always to have had effect as on and from the 1st day of October, 1939.

8 Amendment of sub-section (7) of section 41 of the Principal Act.

8.—Sub-section (7) of section 41 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the deletion therein of the words “by this section” and the substitution in lieu of the words so deleted of the words “for the time being by law”, and the said sub-section shall be construed and have effect accordingly.

9 Provisions in relation to central marketing organisations.

9.—(1) In this section the expression “authorised body” means a central marketing organisation operating under rules approved, whether before or after the passing of this Act, by the Minister under the Principal Act.

• (2) The following provisions shall have effect in relation to every authorised body, that is to say:—

• (a) the Minister may pay all or so much of the expenses of such body as he thinks fit out of the dairy produce (price stabilisation) fund,

• (b) the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may guarantee the repayment of any sum borrowed by such body and may pay any sum required from him in fulfilment of such guarantee out of the dairy produce (price stabilisation) fund,

• (c) the total amount of the sums standing at any particular time guaranteed under the immediately preceding paragraph shall not exceed five hundred thousand pounds,

• (d) such body shall keep all such accounts as the Minister directs and shall, within three months after the end of each financial year, prepare and transmit to the Comptroller and Auditor-General a statement of accounts in respect of that year in such form as the Minister directs,

• (e) the Comptroller and Auditor-General shall audit, certify, and report upon every statement of accounts so transmitted, and

• (f) every such report of the Comptroller and Auditor-General, together with the statement of accounts to which it relates, shall be transmitted by him to the Minister and the Minister shall cause them to be laid before Dáil Eireann as soon as conveniently may be.

10 Short title and citation.

10.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Dairy Produce (Price-Stabilisation) (Amendment) Act, 1941.

• (2) The Dairy Produce (Price Stabilisation) Acts, 1935 and 1938, and this Act may be cited together as the Dairy Produce (Price Stabilisation) Acts, 1935 to 1941