Draft Water (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law 200-
European Convention on Human Rights
In accordance with the provisions of Article 16 of the
Human Rights (Jersey) Law 2000 the Minister for Planning and Environment has
made the following statement –
In the view of the Minister for Planning and
Environment the provisions of the Draft Water (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey)
Law 200- are compatible with the Convention Rights.
(Signed) Senator F.E. Cohen
REPORT
The Draft Law
This Draft
Law amends the existing Water (Jersey) Law 1972 by allowing Jersey Water to
carry out the replacement and renewal of its pipes and apparatus on private
land.
Background
Jersey Water
have been in discussion with the Director of Environment in respect of
difficulties that have been experienced in being required to serve notice on
all the owners of private land when carrying out the replacement or renewal of
pipe work. Whilst the Water (Jersey) Law 1972 under Article 3(8) provides
for Jersey Water to have “access thereto by its servants or agents at all
reasonable times for the purpose of inspection, maintenance and repair”, legal
advice has concluded that it is not clear if this can be construed to include
the replacement and renewal of pipes and equipment. As many modern repairs are
achieved by laying new pipes adjacent to existing ones and by upgrading
equipment with modern equivalents, e.g. a meter chamber rather than a valve
box, they are not specifically “like for like” and may be judged to be going
beyond the meaning of “repair”. The practicalities therefore involved in Jersey
Water operating in compliance with the existing Water (Jersey) Law 1972 are not
consistent with the States policy of reducing red tape.
It was concluded after discussion with the Law Officers Department that to overcome these difficulties the Law would need a minor amendment. The Chairman of Jersey Water wrote to the Minister in November 2007 to seek such a change to the Law and this has now been encompassed in the Draft Water (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey) Law 200- .
Financial and manpower
implications
There are no financial or manpower implications associated with the passing of this Law.
European Convention on Human Rights
Article 16 of the Human Rights (Jersey) Law 2000
requires the Minister in charge of a Projet de Loi to make a statement about
the compatibility of the provisions of the Projet with the Convention rights
(as defined by Article 1 of the Law). On 7th April 2008 the Minister for Planning
and Environment made the following statement before Second Reading of this
Projet in the States Assembly –
In the view of the Minister for Planning and
Environment the provisions of the Draft Water (Amendment No. 3) (Jersey)
Law 200- are compatible with the Convention Rights.
Explanatory Note
The main purpose of this Law is to give The Jersey New Waterworks Company Limited the right to enter private land to reconstruct, renew or remove its works on the land in addition to its existing right to enter the land to inspect, maintain or repair the works.
The opportunity has been taken to make it clear that the Company is not limited to replacing like with like when it carries out other work on its water supply network.
