Land Drainage Act 1991
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| Act of Parliament | |
 | |
| Long title | An Act to consolidate the enactments relating to internal drainage boards, and to the functions of such boards and of local authorities in relation to land drainage, with amendments to give effect to recommendations of the Law Commission. |
|---|---|
| Citation | 1991 c. 59 |
| Territorial extent | England and Wales |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 25 July 1991 |
| Commencement | 1 December 1991 |
| Other legislation | |
| Amended by | Environment Act 1995, Land Drainage Act 1994 |
Status: Amended | |
| Records of Parliamentary debate relating to the statute from Hansard | |
| Text of statute as originally enacted | |
| Revised text of statute as amended | |
The Land Drainage Act 1991 (c. 59) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that consolidates legislation relating to internal drainage boards. It is organised into five parts, with part I containing 13 sections relating to the functions of internal drainage boards. Part II has 18 sections dealing with provisions for facilitating and securing the drainage of land. Part III contains four sections on powers to modify existing obligations, Part IV has 26 sections covering financial provisions, while part V has 15 miscellaneous and supplemental sections. These are followed by six schedules.[1]
Prior to the 1930s, land drainage in the United Kingdom was regulated by the Statute of Sewers (23 Hen. 8. c. 5), passed by King Henry VIII in 1531, and several further acts which built upon that foundation. However, there was some dissatisfaction with these powers, as although there were administrative bodies with powers to manage the drainage of low-lying areas, they did not have sufficient resources to do this effectively. Existing drainage boards and those who lived and worked in the areas they covered made complaints to the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries during the 1920s, and the government decided that a thorough review of the situation should be carried out.[2]
This led to the passing of the Land Drainage Act 1930.[3] One unusual aspect of the act was that it repealed most of the legislation that had preceded it. In total, 16 acts dating from 1531 to 1929 were repealed, and three others were amended.[4] The process of consolidating legislation was continued by the Land Drainage Act 1976 and by this act of 1991.[5]
The Water Resources Act 1991 was passed on the same day as the Land Drainage Act 1991, and together they defined a tiered system for land drainage in England and Wales. The top tier consisted of Central Government, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, and the Welsh Office. Both the Department of the Environment and the Welsh Office had an important function concerning works which involve planning permission. The second tier is the Environment Agency, which has to supervise all aspects of flood defence, but must delegate its own land drainage functions to others. The third tier consists of Regional Flood Defence Committees, who usually delegate responsibility to local flood defence committees. Internal drainage boards comprise the fourth tier. These were originally set up to manage drainage in specific areas where it was necessary. They are responsible for supervision of all drainage matters within their geographical area. Tier five consists of internal drainage districts, which are areas within the area managed by a regional flood defence committee where land drainage will be beneficial or prevent danger. Finally, there are a number of local authorities and sometimes local commissioners, who have long-standing powers to make or maintain land drainage works, and these form tier six.[6]