42
(Qiteertzfau^
ANNO VICESIMO PRIMO
ELIZABETHAE SECUNDAE REGINAE
No. 4 of 1972
An Act to declare with respect to the commencement date of
coal-mining leases granted or deemed to exist pursuant
to the Coal Mining Act 1925-1969 and To Provide
for the rights and obligations of lessees thereunder
upon the expiration of the term thereof , and for other
incidental purposes
[ASSENTED TO 12TH OCTOBER, 1972]
BE IT ENACTED by the Queen's Most Excellent Majesty, by and
with the advice and consent of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland
in Parliament assembled , and by the authority of the same , as follows:1. Short title . This Act may be cited as the Coal-mining Leases
Declaratory Act 1972.
2. Interpretation. In this Act, unless a contrary intention appears,
" coal-mining lease " means a lease that may be granted under
the Coal Mining Act 1925-1969;
Minister " means the Minister for Mines or other Minister of
the Crown charged at the material time with the administration
of the Coal Mining Act 1925-1969;
" private land " means land within the meaning of that expression
as defined in Part XII of the Mining Act 1968-1971.
Coal-mining Leases Declaratory Act 1972, No. 4
43
3. Commencement date of coal -mining lease. The term of every
coal-mining lease granted after the commencement of this Act or granted
before the commencement of this Act on or since the first day of January
1926 shall be taken to commence or, as the case may be, to have commenced
on the first day of the month next following the month in which the
application for the lease is, or was, made.
4. Commencement date of certain presumed coal-mining leases.
Where an applicant for a coal-mining lease has entered upon and occupied
land, either before or after the commencement of this Act and is, by
reason of section 20 of the Coal Mining Act 1925-1969, deemed to hold
the land as the lessee thereof the term of lease that he is thereby deemed
to hold(a) shall be and shall be deemed always to have been the term
specified in the notice of approval of the application for the
lease given to the applicant or, failing such specification,
shall be 21 years; and
(b) shall be taken to have commenced on the first day of the
month next following the month in which his application
for the lease was made.
5. Commencement date of renewal of coal-mining lease. (1) Every
first renewal or further renewal of a coal-mining lease (either actually
granted or deemed to exist) renewed or further renewed after the
commencement of this Act or renewed or further renewed before the
commencement of this Act on or since the first day of January 1926(a) in the case of a first renewal, shall be taken to take effect or,
as the case may be, to have taken effect on the date next following
the expiration of the lease calculated, in the case of a lease
referred to in section 3 from the commencement date
prescribed in relation to the lease by that section and, in the
case of a holding deemed to be a lease referred to in section 4
from the commencement date prescribed in relation to the
lease by that section;
(b) in the case of a further renewal, shall be taken to take effect
or, as the case may be, to have taken effect on the date next
following the expiration of the last preceding renewal of the
lease calculated from the commencement date prescribed
in relation to the last preceding renewal by this section.
(2) In this section the expression " first renewal " means the renewal
that is referred to in subsection (3) of section 11 of the Coal Mining Act
1925-1969 as the first renewal and the expression " further renewal "
means any renewal subsequent to the first renewal.
6. Restricted time in which to renew lease terminated by Act.
(1) Where the expiration of the term of a coal-mining lease held or
deemed to be held by any person immediately before the commencement
of this Act is accelerated by reason of the operation of the provisions of
this Act on the lease the person who is or is deemed to be the holder of
the lease at the date of expiration of the term may be granted a renewal
of the lease, subject to and in accordance with the Coal Mining Act
1925-1969, upon an application made as prescribed by this section and
not otherwise.
44
Coal-mining Leases Declaratory Act 1972, No. 4
(2) Every application for renewal of a coal-mining lease referred
to in subsection (1) shall be made within six months after the
commencement of this Act or within six months after the date of expiration
of the term of the lease, whichever period is the later to expire.
7. Coal-mining lease deemed to continue pending renewal . (1) Where
it appears(a) that any person was at any time either before or after the
commencement of this Act in occupation of land under claim
of a coal-mining lease held or deemed to be held by him; and
(b) that
(i) the term of the lease has expired at the material time and
that the expiration was accelerated by reason of the operation
of the provisions of this Act on the lease and that application
for renewal of the lease has been made after the
commencement of this Act in accordance with section 6
or that a renewal of the lease has been granted upon an
application made after the commencement of this Act in
accordance with that section; or
(ii) the term of the lease has expired at the material time and
that the expiration was accelerated by reason of the operation
of the provisions of this Act on the lease and that application
for renewal of the lease has been made before the
commencement of this Act or that a renewal of the lease
has been granted upon an application made before the
commencement of this Act; or
(iii) the term of the lease has expired at the material time and
that the expiration was not accelerated by reason of the
operation of the provisions of this Act on the lease and
that application for renewal of the lease has been made
or that a renewal of the lease has been granted,
the term of the lease shall be deemed to have continued throughout
the interim period and that person shall be deemed to have held the land
throughout the interim period as lessee subject to and with the rights
conferred by the conditions and covenants applicable to such lease.
(2) In this section the expression " interim period " means that
period of time from the date of expiration of the term of the lease in
question until the date when the renewal of that lease is granted or refused
by the Minister under the Coal Mining Act 1925-1969.
8. Ratification of approvals of coal -mining leases. (1) It is declared
that the approval-of an application for a coal-mining lease on receipt
of notice of which the applicant is, by section 20 of the Coal Mining At
1925-1969, at liberty to enter upon and occupy land to which the
application relates is and always has been the approval of the Minister.
(2) An applicant for a coal-mining lease who before the
commencement of this Act on or since the first day of January 1926 has
entered upon and occupied land in reliance on a notice of approval of
his application issued from the Department of Mines shall be taken to
hold and, at all material times, to have held the land as lessee as provided
by section 20 of The Coal Mining Act of 1925.
Coal-mining Leases Declaratory Act 1972, No. 4
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9. Preservation of compensation agreements . Where, pursuant to
section 7 a person is to be deemed to hold as lessee land that is private
land throughout the interim period any agreement duly made by him
or act duly done by him for the payment of compensation to the person
or persons entitled thereto shall be deemed to continue to have throughout
the interim period the force and effect that it had before the commencement
of the interim period and in the case of such an agreement, to be binding
to that extent on all parties thereto throughout the interim period,
notwithstanding that the term of the coal-mining lease in connexion
with which it was made or done has in fact expired.
10. Act not to prejudice past claims of right to land . Where it appears
that any person was at any time before the commencement of this Act
in occupation of land under a claim that depends for its validity upon
the existence at the material time of a coal-mining lease held or deemed
to be held by any person, the claim of that person to be in occupation
of the land at that time and to exercise therein the rights conferred on
him by such a lease shall not be invalidated or otherwise prejudiced by
reason of the operation of the provisions of this Act on the lease in
question.