EUMETSAT (Immunities and Privileges) Order 1988
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 1988/1298 |
| Year | 1988 |
1988 No. 1298
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNITIES AND PRIVILEGES
The EUMETSAT (Immunities and Privileges) Order 1988
Made 26th July 1988
Coming into force
At the Court at Buckingham Palace, the 26th day of July 1988
Present,
The Queen’s Most Excellent Majesty in Council
Whereas a draft of this Order has been laid before Parliament in accordance with section 10(1) of the International Organisations Act 19681(hereinafter referred to as the Act) and has been approved by resolution of each House of Parliament:
Now, therefore, Her Majesty, by virtue and in exercise of the powers conferred on Her by section 12of the Act or otherwise in Her Majesty vested, is pleased, by and with the advice of Her Privy Council, to order, and it is hereby ordered, as follows:
PART I
GENERAL
1. This Order may be cited as the EUMETSAT (Immunities and Privileges) Order 1988. It shall come into force on the date on which the Protocol on the Privileges and Immunities of the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT)3opened for signature at Darmstadt on 1st December 1986 (hereinafter referred to as the Protocol) enters into force in respect of the United Kingdom. The date shall be notified in the London, Edinburgh and Belfast Gazettes.
2.—(1) For the purposes of this Order, the official activities of the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (hereinafter referred to as the Organisation) means all activities carried out by the Organisation in pursuance of its objectives as defined in Article 2 of the Convention for the Establishment of a European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT)4, opened for signature at Geneva on 24th May 1983 (hereinafter referred to as the Convention), and includes its administrative activities.
(2) In this Order—
“United Kingdom national” means a person who is a British citizen, a British Dependent Territories citizen, a British Overseas citizen or a British National (Overseas);
“the 1961 Convention Articles” means the Articles (being certain Articles of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations signed in 1961) which are set out in Schedule 1 to the Diplomatic Privileges Act 19645;
“Party” means a State party to the Convention;
“archives” means all records, including correspondence, documents, manuscripts, photographs, films, optical and magnetic recordings, data recordings, and computer programmes belonging to or held by the Organisation;
“staff members” means the Director and all persons employed by the Organisation, who hold permanent appointments and are subject to its Staff Rules;
“expert” means a person other than a staff member appointed to carry out a specific task on behalf of the Organisation and at its expense;
“property” means anything that may be subject to a right of ownership as well as contractual rights.
The EUMETSAT (Legal Capacities) Order 1985 is hereby revoked.
3. The EUMETSAT (Legal Capacities) Order 19856is hereby revoked.
PART II
THE ORGANISATION
4. The Organisation is an organisation of which the United Kingdom and other sovereign Powers are members.
5. The Organisation shall have the legal capacities of a body corporate.
6.—(1) The Organisation shall, within the scope of its official activities, have immunity from suit and legal process except in the following cases—
(a)
(a) to the extent that the Council of the Organisation shall have expressly waived such immunity in a particular case;
(b)
(b) in respect of a civil action brought by a third party for damage arising from an accident caused by a motor vehicle or any other means of transport belonging to or operated on behalf of the Organisation, or in respect of a traffic offence involving such a vehicle or means of transport;
(c)
(c) for the execution of an arbitration award made under Article 14 of the Convention or Articles 21, 22 or 23 of the Protocol;
(d)
(d) in the event of the attachment or, in Scotland, arrestment, pursuant to a decision by the administrative or judicial authorities, of the salaries and emoluments including pensions, owed by the Organisation to a staff member or former staff member;
(e)
(e) in respect of a counter-claim directly connected with judicial proceedings instituted by the Organisation;
(f)
(f) in respect of any commercial activity in which the Organisation might engage.
(2) The property of the Organisation, wherever located shall be immune—
(a)
(a) from any form of requisition, confiscation or expropriation;
(b)
(b) from any form of sequestration and administrative or provisional judicial constraint, except in the cases provided for in paragraph (1) of this Article.
7. The Organisation shall have the like inviolability in respect of its archives as, in accordance with the 1961 Convention Articles, is accorded in respect of the official archives of a diplomatic mission.
8. Within the scope of its official activities, the Organisation, its property and income shall have exemption from taxes on income and capital gains.
9. The Organisation shall have the like relief from rates on its official premises as, in accordance with Article 23 of the 1961 Convention Articles, is accorded in respect of the premises of a diplomatic mission.
10. The Organisation shall have exemption from duties (whether of customs or excise) and taxes on the importation by the Organisation of goods necessary for the exercise of the official activities of the Organisation, such exemption to be subject to compliance with such conditions as the Commissioners of Customs and Excise...
To continue reading
Request your trial