Agricultural Land
(Control of Sales and Leases) (Jersey) Law 1974[1]
A LAW to control sales and leases of agricultural
land
Commencement [see endnotes]
1 Interpretation
In this Law, unless the context otherwise requires –
“agricultural land” means land, including land under
glass, used or capable of being used for any purpose of agriculture or
horticulture, but does not include any dwelling house or outbuilding;
“Minister” means the Minister for the Environment.[2]
2 Control of sales and leases of agricultural land
(1) No person shall,
whether as vendor, purchaser, lessor, lessee or other party, and whether as
principal or agent, enter into any contract for the sale or transfer of any
agricultural land or any lease (whether parol or in writing) of any
agricultural land without the consent of the Minister.
(2) The Minister may refuse
consent to any transaction to which this Article refers or may grant consent
either unconditionally or subject to such conditions as the Minister thinks fit
and, in deciding whether or not to grant consent or otherwise, the Minister
shall have particular regard to the desirability of reserving agricultural land
for the use of bona fide inhabitants of Jersey
engaged wholly or mainly in work of an agricultural or horticultural nature in Jersey,
and ensuring that any lease of agricultural land is on terms that encourage the
continued cultivation of the land in accordance with the principles of good
husbandry.[3]
(3) If, in pursuance of paragraph
(2), the Minister grants consent to a sale or transfer or lease of any
agricultural land subject to conditions –
(a) such
conditions shall be binding on, and enforceable against, all persons for the
time being having any estate or interest in the said land;
(b) the
Minister may, at any time thereafter, waive, cancel or vary such conditions, or
any of them, if requested so to do by any person having any estate or interest
in the said land.[4]
(4) Where the Minister
refuses consent he or she shall furnish to the applicant a statement in writing
of the reasons for the decision.
(5) Nothing in this Article
shall apply to –
(a) any
transaction entered into before the date of the coming into force of this Law;
(b) any
contract of partition of inherited or devised real estate;
(c) any
contract for the sale or transfer of any lease of any agricultural land to or
by the Crown, the public or a parish;
(d) any
transaction of a class for the time being exempted from the provisions of this Article
by Regulations made by the States, and in respect of which such conditions as
may be prescribed in such Regulations have been fulfilled.
3 Applications for consent
Every application for the consent of the Minister to any transaction
to which this Law applies shall contain or be accompanied by such particulars,
information and documents as may be required by the Minister and the Minister
may require the application to be verified by an affidavit made by the
applicant or some other person having a knowledge of the facts.
4 Power to revoke consents
(1) The Minister may call
on any person to whom consent has been granted under this Law, at any time
before the completion of the transaction to which the consent relates, to show
cause why that consent should not be revoked on the ground –
(a) that
a false or misleading statement has been made in connection with the
application for consent; or
(b) that
all the material facts in connection with the transaction were not submitted to
the Minister.
(2) Where the Minister
calls on any person to show cause under this Article, that person shall
forthwith surrender to the Minister the evidence of the consent delivered to
the person by the Minister and shall not proceed with the transaction to which
the consent relates until the Minister has determined whether or not the
consent shall be revoked.
(3) Unless cause is shown
to the Minister why the consent should not be revoked, the Minister may revoke
the consent, which shall thereupon be deemed not to have been obtained.
(4) Where the Minister
revokes the consent he or she shall furnish to the person to whom consent had
been granted a statement in writing of the reasons for the revocation.
5 Appeals
Any person aggrieved by any decision of the Minister under Article 2
or 4 may appeal either in term or in vacation to the Royal Court within 2 months
of the date of the notification of the decision on the ground that the decision
was unreasonable having regard to all the circumstances of the case.
6 Power to obtain information in relation to offences
(1) If the Bailiff is
satisfied by information on oath that there is reasonable ground to believe
that an offence against this Law has been committed by any person, the Bailiff
may, in his or her discretion, grant a warrant authorizing any person named in
the warrant, for the purpose of obtaining any information or evidence in
relation to the commission of any such offence, to do from time to time all or
any of the following things –
(a) inspect
and examine any books, accounts, vouchers, records or documents;
(b) require
any person to produce any books, accounts, vouchers, records or documents in the
person’s possession, or under his or her control, and to allow copies of
or extracts from any such books, accounts, vouchers, records or documents to be
made;
(c) require
any person to furnish any information or particulars that may be required of
him or her, not being information or particulars tending to incriminate him or
her;
(d) enter
on and inspect any land.
(2) Any person who –
(a) wilfully
resists, obstructs, hinders, deceives, or attempts to deceive, any person who
is exercising any power or function under this Article;
(b) wilfully
makes any false or misleading statement or any material omission in any
information or particulars furnished under this Article;
(c) fails
to comply in any respect with any requirement under this Article; or
(d) aids,
abets, counsels or procures, or is in any way knowingly concerned with, the
commission of any such offence as aforesaid,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a fine.
7 Offences
(1) Any person who –
(a) without
lawful excuse acts in contravention of or fails to comply with any provision of
this Law or with any condition made or imposed under this Law;
(b) with
intent to deceive makes any false or misleading statement or any material
omission in any application to the Minister, or in any communication (whether
in writing or otherwise) to the Minister or any person, for the purposes of
this Law;
(c) whether
as principal or agent and whether himself, herself or by his or her agent,
enters into, or offers to enter into, or procures or induces or attempts to
procure or induce any other person to enter into, any transaction or
arrangement that is or is intended to be inconsistent with an application made
or to be made, or consent given or to be given, under this Law;
(d) whether
as principal or agent and whether himself, herself or by his or her agent, and whether
as vendor, purchaser, lessor, lessee or other party, or otherwise howsoever, is
party to any device, plan or scheme for any transaction or arrangement that is
or is intended to be in contravention of this Law or inconsistent with any
application made or to be made, or consent given or to be given, under this Law,
shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable to a fine:
Provided that, where any person is convicted of the offence of
failing to comply with any condition made or imposed under this Law and it is
shown to the satisfaction of the court that the offence was substantially a
repetition or continuation of an earlier offence by the person after he or she
had been convicted of the earlier offence, the person shall be liable to a fine
for every day on which the earlier offence has been so repeated or continued by
him or her.[5]
(2) In any proceedings for
an offence against this Law, the burden of proving that the consent of the
Minister has been granted to any transaction, or that this Law did not apply to
any transaction, shall be on the person charged with the offence.
8 Citation
This Law may be cited as the Agricultural Land (Control of Sales and
Leases) (Jersey) Law 1974.