Finance Act 1971
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | 1971 c. 68 |
Finance Act 1971
1971 CHAPTER 68
An Act to grant certain duties, to alter other duties, and to amend the law relating to the National Debt and the Public Revenue, and to make further provision in connection with Finance.
[5th August 1971]
Most Gracious Sovereign,
W e , Your Majesty's most dutiful and loyal subjects, the Commons of the United Kingdom in Parliament assembled, towards raising the necessary supplies to defray Your Majesty's public expenses, and making an addition to the public revenue, have freely and voluntarily resolved to give and grant unto Your Majesty the several duties hereinafter mentioned; and do therefore most humbly beseech Your Majesty that it may be enacted, and be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part I
Customs and Excise
1 Relief from import duty for goods of developing countries.
(1) With a view to granting concessions in respect of import duty chargeable on goods of countries claiming to be developing countries, the Treasury, on the recommendation of the Secretary of State, may by order provide for relieving goods of any description specified in the order, being goods of such countries or of countries within such area as may be so specified, from the whole or part of any import duty which would otherwise be chargeable on them.
(2) An order under subsection (1) of this section may make different provision in relation to goods of different descriptions and goods of different countries, and any relief from import duty specified in such an order—
( a ) may be granted, varied or revoked for any period or periods, whether continuous or not, or without limit of period;
( b ) may be made subject to conditions as to the place from which the goods are consigned to the United Kingdom; and
( c ) may be determined by reference to value or to weight or other measure of quantity.
(3) Subsections (1) and (2) of this section shall be construed, and the Import Duties Act 1958 shall have effect, as if those subsections were included in that Act, and in section 13(4) of that Act (statutory instruments containing orders restricting relief etc., to be subject to affirmative resolution) after the words ‘of this Act’ there shall be inserted the words ‘or section 1(1) of the Finance Act 1971’.
(4) At the end of Schedule 3 to the Import Duties Act 1958 (which lists descriptions of goods in respect of which, subject to certain specified conditions, orders may be made providing for relief from import duty) there shall be added the following paragraph—
10. Articles consisting wholly or mainly of cotton or silk, or of a combination of the two, and of a description specified in the order may be relieved from import duty if—
2 Temporary relief from import duty for certain Commonwealth textiles.
Schedule 3 to the Import Duties Act 1958 (which lists descriptions of goods in respect of which, subject to certain specified conditions, orders may be made providing for relief from import duty) shall be amended by adding the following paragraph after that added by section 1(4) of this Act—
11. The following goods, that is to say, cotton yarn and manufactures of woven cotton, may be relieved from import duty if—
3 Excise duty on gas for use as fuel for road vehicles.
(1) A duty of excise shall be charged on gas (as defined in this section) which is sent out from the premises of a person producing or dealing in gas and on which the duty charged by this section has not been paid.
(2) The like duty of excise shall be charged on the setting aside for use, or on the use, by any person, as fuel in a road vehicle, of gas on which the duty charged by this section has not been paid.
(3) The rate of the duty under this section shall be prescribed by order made by the Treasury, and in exercising their power under this subsection the Treasury shall select the rate (whether for all gas or for a particular kind of gas) which in their opinion is for the time being the nearest convenient and suitable rate corresponding to the rate of excise duty on hydrocarbon oil.
In comparing the excise duty with that on hydrocarbon oil account shall be taken of relative average calorific values and of other relevant factors.
(4) An order made under subsection (3) above—
( a ) may express the rate of duty by reference to any method of measuring the gas,
( b ) may prescribe different rates for different kinds of gas,
( c ) may prescribe a rate which depends in whole or in part on the rate for the time being of excise duty charged on hydrocarbon oil,
( d ) may be varied or revoked by a subsequent order so made.
(5) At the end of section 8(2)( c ) of the Finance Act 1964 (separate categories of duties for surcharge and rebate under section 9 of Finance Act 1961 ) insert ‘and gas as road fuel’.
(6) The Commissioners may, with a view to the protection of the revenue make regulations for securing and collecting the excise duty and in particular for any of the matters set out below in this subsection.
1. Prohibiting the production of gas, and dealing in gas on which the excise duty has not been paid, except by persons holding a licence.
2. Fixing the date of expiration of any such licence.
3. Regulating the production, dealing in, storage and warehousing of gas and the removal of gas to and from premises used therefor.
4. Requiring containers for gas to be marked in the manner prescribed by the regulations.
5. Conferring power to require information relating to the supply or use of gas and containers for gas to be given by producers of and dealers in gas, and by the person owning or possessing or for the time being in charge of any road vehicle which is constructed or adapted to use gas as fuel.
6. Requiring a person owning or possessing a road vehicle which is constructed or adapted to use gas as fuel to keep such accounts and records in such manner as may be prescribed, and to preserve such books and documents relating to the supply of gas to or by him, or the use of gas by him, for such period as may be prescribed.
7. Requiring the production of books or documents, relating to the supply or use of gas or the use of any road vehicle.
8. Authorising the entry and inspection of premises (other than private dwelling-houses) and the examination of road vehicles, and authorising, or requiring the giving of facilities for, the inspection of gas found on any premises entered or on or in any road vehicle.
(7) A person who—
( a ) contravenes or fails to comply with any regulations made under this section, or
( b ) uses as fuel in, or takes as fuel into, a road vehicle any gas on which he knows or has reasonable cause to believe that the excise duty has not been paid,
shall be liable to a penalty of three times the value of the goods in respect of which the offence was committed or 100, whichever is the greater, and the goods shall be liable to forfeiture.
(8) In this section—
‘the excise duty’ means excise duty chargeable under this section;
‘gas’ means any substance which is gaseous at a temperature of 60 degrees Fahrenheit, and under a pressure of one atmosphere, and which is for use as...
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