There is hereby established a Council to be called the National Hydatids Council.

The Council shall consist of—

No member of the Council shall represent more than one organisation at the one time.

The Council shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal, and shall be capable of acquiring, holding, and disposing of real and personal property, and of suing and being sued, and of doing and suffering all such other acts and things as bodies corporate may lawfully do and suffer.

The members of the Council shall be appointed by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the Minister.

The members of the Council shall hold office—

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Act, every member of the Council, unless he sooner vacates his office otherwise than by effluxion of time, shall continue to hold office until his successor comes into office.

With respect to the first members of the Council, other than the members appointed under paragraph (a) or paragraph (b)of subsection two of section three of this Act, the following provisions shall apply:

The Minister may from time to time appoint any member of the Council to be the Chairman of the Council, to hold office as such during the pleasure of the Minister:

Provided that the officer of the Department of Agriculture who is a member of the Council under paragraph (a) of subsection two of section three of this Act shall be the first Chairman of the Council.

During any vacancy in the office of Chairman, or whenever the Chairman is unable to act, whether by reason of absence or otherwise, the Minister may appoint any member of the Council, or any deputy attending a meeting of the Council in the absence of a member, to exercise and perform all the powers and duties of the Chairman.

Where the Minister is satisfied that any member of the Council is incapacitated by illness, absence, or other sufficient cause from performing the duties of his office, the Minister may appoint a deputy to act for that member during his incapacity, and any such deputy shall, while he acts as such, be deemed to be a member of the Council.

In the case of a nominated member, every appointment of a deputy under subsection one of this section shall be made only on the nomination of the body that nominated the member.

No appointment of a deputy and no act done by him as such, and no act done by the Council while any deputy is acting as such, shall in any proceedings be questioned on the ground that the occasion for his appointment had not arisen or had ceased.

Any member of the Council may at any time be removed from office by the Governor-General for disability, insolvency, neglect of duty, or misconduct, or may at any time resign his office by writing addressed to the Minister.

If any member of the Council dies, or resigns, or is removed from office, the vacancy so created shall be filled in the manner in which the appointment to the vacant office was originally made, and, in the case of a vacancy in the office of a nominated member, every person so appointed shall, subject to the provisions of this Act, hold office for the residue of the term for which his predecessor was appointed.

The powers of the Council shall not be affected by any vacancy in the membership thereof.

The first meeting of the Council shall be held on a day to be appointed in that behalf by the Minister.

Subsequent meetings of the Council shall be held at such times and places as the Council or the Chairman appoints from time to time.

The Chairman of the Council, or any five members thereof, may at any time call a meeting of the Council.

At all meetings of the Council five members, of whom at least one shall be the officer of the Department of Agriculture who is a member of the Council or his deputy, shall form a quorum.

At any meeting of the Council the Chairman shall have a deliberative vote, and, in the case of an equality of the votes, shall also have a casting vote.

All questions before the Council shall be decided by a majority of the valid votes recorded thereon.

The functions of the Council shall be to control, prevent, and eradicate hydatids.

The Council shall have all such powers, rights, and privileges as may be reasonably necessary or expedient to enable it to carry out its functions, and, in particular, without limiting the generality of the powers of the Council, it may from time to time—

The Council may from time to time appoint a committee or committees consisting of two or more persons, whether members of the Council or not, and may from time to time delegate to any such committee any of its functions or powers under this Act.

The Council may from time to time delegate to any local authority, or to any organisation approved for the purpose by the Minister, any of its functions or powers under this Act.

Any delegation made under the foregoing provisions of this section may at any time be modified or revoked by the Council, and no such delegation shall prevent the performance of any function or the exercise of any power by the Council.

The Council may enter into any contract for any purpose connected with the performance of its functions under this Act.

Any contract which, if made between private persons, must be by deed shall, if made by the Council, be in writing under the seal of the Council.

Any contract which, if made between private persons, must be in writing signed by the parties to be charged therewith shall, if made by the Council, be either in writing under the seal of the Council or in writing signed by two members of the Council or by one member and one officer of the Council, acting in each case on behalf of and by direction of the Council.

Any contract which, if made between private persons, may be made orally may be made in the manner specified in subsection two of this section as in the case of a deed, or in the manner specified in subsection three of this section as in the case of a contract required to be in writing, or may be made orally by or on behalf of the Council by the Chairman or by any two members of the Council or by one member and one officer of the Council, acting in each case by direction of the Council, but no oral contract shall be made involving the payment by the Council of a sum exceeding two hundred pounds.

Notwithstanding anything in the foregoing provisions of this section, no contract made by or on behalf of the Council shall be invalid by reason only that it was not made in the manner provided by this section, if it was made pursuant to a resolution of the Council or to give effect to a resolution of the Council in relation to contracts generally or in relation to that particular contract.

In every financial year there shall be paid to the Council out of money appropriated by Parliament such sum, not exceeding thirty-five thousand pounds, as in the opinion of the Minister is necessary to defray the expenses of the Council in performing its functions and exercising its powers under this Act:

Provided that in respect of the period commencing on the date of the passing of this Act and ending with the thirty-first day of March, nineteen hundred and sixty, there shall be paid to the Council out of money appropriated by Parliament such sum as the Minister thinks fit towards the cost of establishing the Council and enabling the Council to perform its functions and exercise its powers under this Act.

Not later than the thirty-first day of January in every year, the Council shall submit to the Minister an estimate of its revenue and expenditure for the financial year commencing on the first day of April in that year.

Every such estimate shall be in such form as may from time to time be determined by the Minister, and shall be supported by such statements as may be required by the Minister.

The Minister may, in any way he thinks fit, alter or amend any such estimate, and his approval of the estimate shall be sufficient authority for the Council to receive revenue and incur expenditure during the financial year to which the estimate relates.

The Council shall not in any financial year incur expenditure exceeding the total net amount of expenditure set out in the estimate approved by the Minister under this section in respect of that financial year.

Except with the approval of the Minister, no capital expenditure exceeding two hundred pounds shall be incurred by the Council in respect of any individual item.

The Council may, at any branch or branches of a bank approved by the Minister, establish in the name of the Council such accounts as it deems necessary or advisable for the performance of its functions and the exercise of its powers under this Act.

No money shall be withdrawn from any such account except by authority of the Council, and any cheque or other withdrawal notice shall be signed by such person or persons as the Council from time to time appoints for the purpose and countersigned either by a member or officer of the Council authorised from time to time by the Council to do so.

All money belonging to the Council shall be paid into an account established under this section.

With the consent of the Minister, the Council may from time to time set aside in a separate bank account any money to form a fund or funds for any special purpose or as a reserve.

The Council may from time to time apply the money so set aside to form any such fund only to the purpose for which the fund was established, and may invest in the manner specified in subsection three of this section any money so set aside and pay the proceeds of the investment into the fund.

The Council may invest any part of any such fund in manner following:

Separate accounts shall be kept by the Council of all money paid or received by it in respect of any such fund.

With the consent of the Minister, the Council may from time to time out of its funds make grants, advances, or other payments to any person for any purpose in connection with the control, prevention, or eradication of hydatids.

The Council is hereby declared to be a Statutory Board within the meaning of the Fees and Travelling Allowances Act 1951.

There shall be paid to the members of the Council, and to the members of any committee appointed by the Council, remuneration by way of fees or allowances, and travelling allowances and expenses, in accordance with the Fees and Travelling Allowances Act 1951, and the provisions of that Act shall apply accordingly:

Provided that any money received pursuant to this section by any member of the Council or of any committee who is an employee of the Public Service shall be subject to the provisions of the Public Service Act 1912.

The Council shall keep full and correct accounts of all money received and expended by it, including a general account, an account for each fund established under section fifteen of this Act, and an account for any hydatid-control fees received by the Council under section twenty-six of this Act.

The accounts shall be audited by the Audit Office, which for that purpose shall have all powers that it has under the Public Revenues Act 1953 in respect of public money and the audit of local authorities’ accounts.

The Council shall, as soon as possible after the end of any financial year, cause its accounts for that year to be balanced, and full and true statements and accounts of all the money received and expended by it in that year and of its assets and liabilities at the end of that year to be prepared and submitted to the Audit Office.

The Council may from time to time appoint such Inspectors and other officers and servants as it considers necessary for the efficient performance of its functions and exercise of its powers under this Act, and may, out of its funds, pay to such Inspectors, officers, and servants such salaries and allowances as the Council, with the approval of the Minister, decides.

The Council may, out of its funds and for the purpose of providing superannuation or retiring allowances for any of its servants, subsidise the National Provident Fund or any other fund or scheme established with the approval of the Minister of Finance.

Subject to the provisions of this section, any local authority and any approved organisation may from time to time appoint such Inspectors and such other officers and servants as it considers necessary for the purposes of hydatid control, prevention, and eradication in its district or area.

Before taking any action to appoint any Inspector under this section, every local authority or approved organisation shall prepare and submit for the approval of the Council its plans for the control, prevention, and eradication of hydatids in the district of the local authority or, as the case may be, in the area over which the organisation has, or is to have, jurisdiction for the purposes of controlling, preventing, and eradicating hydatids.

The Council may approve any such plans, subject to such conditions as it thinks fit to impose, and at any time after it has approved any such plans may require the local authority or organisation, as the case may be, to modify them in such manner as the Council considers necessary or desirable.

No appointment of an Inspector shall be made by any local authority or by any approved organisation unless and until its plans for the control, prevention, and eradication of hydatids have been submitted to, and approved by, the Council in accordance with the foregoing provisions of this section.

It shall be the duty of every local authority and of every approved organisation to carry out its plans for the control, prevention, and eradication of hydatids as approved by the Council, and in accordance with any modification which the Council at any time requires to be made thereto.

Every appointment of an Inspector under the provisions of this section shall be notified to the Council within fourteen days of the date of the appointment.

Any appointment of an Inspector under this section may at any time be revoked by the local authority or organisation which made the appointment, and shall, at the request of the Council, be so revoked where the Council is satisfied that the local authority or organisation has failed to carry out the plans approved by the Council in respect of that local authority or organisation, or has failed to effect any modification required by the Council to be made thereto.

Where any local authority or approved organisation does not appoint any Inspector under section twenty of this Act, or at any time is employing such number of Inspectors as, in the opinion of the Council, is insufficient for the purposes of controlling, preventing, and eradicating hydatids in its district or area, or where the appointment of any Inspector is revoked pursuant to subsection seven of that section, the Council may in respect of the district of the local authority, or, as the case may be, of the area over which the organisation exercises jurisdiction, appoint such Inspectors as the Council considers necessary or desirable.

The cost of employing any Inspectors appointed under subsection one of this section shall, to the extent to which the funds in its Hydatid Control Account are sufficient for the purpose, be borne by the local authority or organisation, as the case may be, or be refunded to the Council by the local authority or organisation in any case where that cost is first paid by the Council.

No person shall be eligible for appointment as an Inspector under this Act unless he possesses such qualifications as are from time to time prescribed in that behalf by the Council.

Where the Council is satisfied that any person is eligible for appointment as an Inspector under this Act, it may issue to him a certificate certifying that he possesses the qualifications prescribed in that behalf by the Council.

Every Inspector shall have power—

Where, as a direct result of the failure of any person to comply with any notice or direction issued or given by an Inspector under this Act, the Inspector incurs expenses which, but for the failure of the person as aforesaid, would not otherwise have been incurred, those expenses shall be recoverable by the local authority or approved organisation or the Council, as the case may be, by which the Inspector was appointed from that person as a debt.

In exercising his powers under this section, an Inspector shall not be liable for any loss or damage occasioned to the owner of any dog or other property by any act of the Inspector, unless the loss or damage is occasioned by his wilful neglect or default.

Every owner or occupier to whom any notice is given by an Inspector under paragraph (c) or paragraph (d) of subsection one of section twenty-three of this Act, may within fourteen days after the giving of the notice appeal in writing to the Council against the requirements of the Inspector on the ground that those requirements are unreasonable. The appellant shall at the same time send a copy of the notice of appeal to the local authority or approved organisation by which the Inspector was appointed.

The Council shall either cancel the notice or confirm it, either absolutely or partially or subject to such conditions and modifications as it thinks fit.

The decision of the Council shall be final.

Upon the determination of any appeal, the Inspector whose requirements are the subject of the appeal, or any other Inspector, shall give to the appellant a further notice, which shall state the decision of the Council, and, if the effect of the decision is to confirm the requirements of the Inspector partially or subject to conditions or modifications, shall set forth those requirements as so varied.

As from the lodging of an appeal with the Council, and pending the giving of a further notice upon the determination of the appeal, the notice setting out the requirements that are the subject of the appeal shall be suspended.

Any local authority or approved organisation may from time to time, by resolution publicly notified in one or more newspapers circulating in the district of the local authority or, as the case may be, in the area over which the organisation has, or is to have, control, fix at such rate or rates as it thinks fit, not exceeding one pound, and in accordance with any system of classification of dogs it may adopt for the purpose, the hydatid-control fee payable in any year commencing on the first day of January in respect of every dog in that district or area, as the case may be:

Provided that the total hydatid-control fees payable in any year by any person who is the owner of five or more dogs shall not exceed five pounds:

Provided also that the total hydatid-control fees payable in any year by any person who is the owner of more than ten dogs shall be an amount calculated at a rate fixed from time to time by the local authority or approved organisation, not exceeding ten shillings per dog.

For the purposes of subsection one of this section, the term “owner”, in relation to any dogs, means the person who satisfies the local authority or approved organisation, by statutory declaration or otherwise, that the property in the dogs is vested in him.

The hydatid-control fee payable in respect of any dog which attains the age of six months at any time after the month of July in any year shall be half the prescribed fee.

Where the hydatid-control fee for any year is paid in respect of any dog to a local authority, an approved organisation, or the Council, no further hydatid-control fee shall be payable in that year in respect of that dog, whether to the same or any other local authority or approved organisation or to the Council.

Every hydatid-control fee payable under this section shall be paid by the owner of the dog to the local authority or to the organisation, as the case may be, which fixed the fee, in such manner and at such time as the local authority or organisation requires.

Where a local authority or approved organisation does not exercise its power to fix any hydatid-control fee under section twenty-five of this Act, the Council may fix the hydatid-control fee to be paid in respect of every dog in the district of the local authority or, as the case may be, in the area under the control of the organisation, and the provisions of that section, as far as they are applicable, and with the necessary modifications, shall apply with respect to every hydatid-control fee so fixed by the Council.

Every hydatid-control fee fixed under this section and received by the Council shall be recorded in an account established under section fourteen of this Act, and shall be used solely for the purposes of controlling, preventing, and eradicating hydatids in the district of the local authority or, as the case may be, in the area under the control of the organisation.

The hydatid-control fees received by a local authority shall be credited to a separate account to be called the Hydatid Control Account.

The hydatid-control fees received by an approved organisation shall be paid into an account to be established by the organisation and to be called the Hydatid Control Account.

The funds in every Hydatid Control Account shall be used for the purposes of controlling, preventing, and eradicating hydatids in accordance with the plans of the local authority or approved organisation in that behalf approved by the Council, and for no other purpose.

Every local authority or approved organisation shall submit to the Council, not later than the thirtieth day of June following the immediately preceding financial year, a statement in a form approved by the Council of its Hydatid Control Account for that financial year.

The Hydatid Control Account of every approved organisation shall be duly audited to the satisfaction of the Council.

Where any person is employed by any local authority or approved organisation partly for the purpose of controlling, preventing, and eradicating hydatids and partly for the purpose of doing other work, there may be charged against the Hydatid Control Account of the local authority or organisation, as the case may be, only such portion of his salary and expenses as the Council approves.

It shall not be necessary for any dog to be inspected, examined, or treated for hydatids, or for any owner to comply with a notice given under paragraph (b) of section twenty-three of this Act, in any case where the owner produces to an Inspector a certificate issued by a registered veterinary surgeon certifying that—

Nothing in this section shall be deemed to exempt any owner from payment of the hydatid-control fee fixed under section twenty-five or, as the case may be, under section twenty-six of this Act.

The Council, with the approval of the Minister, may from time to time, by notice in the Gazette—

Nothing in the Municipal Corporations Act 1954 or in the Counties Act 1956 or in the Health Act 1956, shall be deemed to authorise the making of any bylaw which purports to regulate or licence the keeping of dogs within any borough or town district or county or road district on the basis that the dogs, have, or have not, been treated for hydatids.

Every person commits an offence, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding two hundred pounds, who wilfully feeds, or causes to be fed, to any dog any raw diseased meat or any raw offal.

Every person commits an offence, and is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding fifty pounds, who—

The Council shall, not later than the thirtieth day of June in every year, furnish to the Minister a report of its proceedings and operations for the preceding financial year, together with a copy of its accounts for that year certified by the Audit Office.

A copy of the report and of the accounts so certified shall be laid before Parliament within twenty-eight days after the date of the receipt thereof by the Minister if Parliament is then in session, and, if not, shall be laid before Parliament within twenty-eight days after the date of the commencement of the next ensuing session.

The Governor-General may, from time to time, by Order in Council, make all such regulations as may in his opinion be necessary or expedient for giving full effect to the provisions of this Act and for the due administration thereof.

Without limiting the general power hereinbefore contained, it is hereby declared that regulations may be made under this section for all or any of the following purposes:

All regulations made under this section shall be laid before Parliament.

The Dogs Registration Act 1955 is hereby amended—

The following regulations are hereby revoked: