This Act may be cited as the Broadcasting Amendment Act, 1937, and shall be read together with and deemed part of the Broadcasting Act, 1936 (hereinafter referred to as the principal Act).

In connection with the broadcasting service carried on pursuant to the principal Act there may be carried on a commercial broadcasting service to be known as the National Commercial Broadcasting Service (hereinafter referred to as the commercial service).

There may from time to time be appointed a fit and proper person to be called the Controller of the National Commercial Broadcasting Service (hereinafter referred to as the Controller), who, under the direction of the Minister, shall be in charge of the commercial service.

The Controller shall be appointed by the Governor-General in Council, to hold office during his pleasure:

Provided that no person appointed as Controller shall hold office continuously without reappointment for a longer term than three years.

On the occurrence from any cause of a vacancy in the office of Controller (whether by reason of death or resignation or otherwise), and in case of the absence from duty of the Controller (from whatever cause arising), the powers, duties, and functions of the Controller may be exercised and performed by any person authorized in that behalf by the Minister.

The fact that any person exercises or performs any power, duty, or function of the Controller with the concurrence of the Minister shall be conclusive evidence of his authority so to do.

For the purposes of this section the powers, duties, and functions of the Controller shall be deemed to include such of the powers of the Minister as may be delegated to the Controller in accordance with the provisions of this section in that behalf.

The person holding office as the Controller of the National Commercial Broadcasting Service at the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to have been duly appointed, and shall continue to hold office as if he had been appointed under this section.

Any powers conferred on the Minister by the principal Act may, in so far as they relate particularly to the commercial service, be delegated by him to the Controller. Section eight of the principal Act shall apply to the delegation of any powers to the Controller in accordance with this section as if the references therein to the Director were references to the Controller.

Subsection one of section five of the principal Act (relating to the general powers of the Director) shall be read subject to the provisions of this section.

Section eighteen of the principal Act is hereby amended by omitting from subsection two thereof the words “by the Director”.

The Broadcasting Account established in accordance with section ten of the principal Act shall be operated on only by cheque signed by or on behalf of the Director, and countersigned by the Audit Office. For the purposes of this section, the Minister of Finance may from time to time authorize any person holding office under section six of the principal Act to sign cheques on behalf of the Director.

Subsection three of section ten of the principal Act is hereby repealed.

Any moneys which by section twelve or by section thirteen of the principal Act are made payable into or out of the Broadcasting Account may, with the authority of the Minister of Finance and in accordance with such directions as he may from time to time give in that behalf, be paid into or out of any subsidiary account established under section eleven of the principal Act.

All cheques drawn on any subsidiary account into which moneys may be paid in accordance with the last preceding subsection shall be signed by a person authorized in that behalf by the Paymaster-General and shall be countersigned by the Audit Office.