The Buchanan Trust

Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916

1916 CHAPTER 60 6 and 7 Geo 5 [22nd December 1916]

1. Power to accept and administer gifts for settlement
of ex-sailors and soldiers on land.

It shall be lawful for the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries or for the council of any county or county borough to accept any gift by will or otherwise to be applied wholly or mainly for the settlement or employment in agriculture on land in England or Wales of men who have served in any of His Majesty’s naval or military forces, and to hold any land or estate or interest in land, the subject of any such gift and to administer the trusts affecting the gift, and for the purpose of those trusts to borrow money on the security of the trust property, so, however, that all expenses incurred by the Board or the council in relation to any such trust shall be defrayed out of the trust property or the proceeds or income thereof, or out of money borrowed on the security of the trust property.

Provided that land so given to the Board shall not be deemed to be acquired by the Board under the Small Holding Colonies Act, 1916, unless the gift is expressly made for the purposes of that Act.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
SAILORS AND SOLDIERS (GIFTS OR LAND SETTLEMENT) BILL.

HC Deb 28 November 1916 vol 88 c 278

Order for Second Reading read.

The PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY to the BOARD of AGRICULTURE (Mr. ACLAND) I beg to move, “That the Bill be now read a second time.”
This Bill is at the same time a very small one and, in possibility, a very large one. It enables the Board of Agriculture or local authorities to accept gifts of land for the purpose of the settlement or employment of men who have served in the Army or Navy. That was necessary because it is a principle of general acceptance that public Departments and authorities are not allowed to do anything which they are not particularly and expressly enabled to do by statutory authority, and there was some doubt as to whether the Board of Agriculture were enabled to accept gifts of this kind and act as trustees for carrying out trusts in connection with such gifts, and therefore it has been thought right to settle the matter by allowing the State or public authorities to accept gifts of land of that nature. So far the House will agree the matter is a small one. But it has within it large possibilities. We know already of one case in which a public-spirited man who wishes to give, as a memorial of his son, some land, so that other soldiers who have had the good fortune to return will be able to settle on that land and make a living out of it. And this gentleman would like the Board of Agriculture to see that his wishes in that respect are carried out. I have no permission to give the gentleman’s name, therefore I do not give it, but it is my hope at any rate, and I think it will be the hope of hon. Members who happen to be here, that other persons may be inspired in the same public-spirited way to give as a memorial of their sons or other relatives grants of land for this extremely practical object. I have always felt that a grant of land for settlement by soldiers who have come back from the War, and the building of cottages and the provision of gardens around the cottages, would be the finest possible war memorial which the villages up and down the countryside could possibly make.
[c 279] For the landowner who has lost a son or near relative to give a piece of land, and for the local builders to contribute in building, and labourers to give their labour in building and in preparation of the gardens and so forth, seems to me a finer war memorial than any number of clocks, or crosses, or things of that sort so often erected in these cases. If other persons possibly notice it, and if they follow the example which has been set, and in this way commemorate the splendid deeds of cither their own relations or people of their own village, this Bill may have considerable consequences in making it possible for them to secure that the land they offer is properly used, and that their wishes that there should be a permanent memorial of the patriotism of the people whose deeds are a rich memory will be properly carried out. It is not proposed in this Bill that either the Board of Agriculture itself or the local authorities who are prepared to accept these gifts shall contribute funds out of the rates or out of the funds at the disposal of the State to maintain this land that may be handed over to them. The maintenance of the trust will come out of the funds of the trust, and therefore there is no charge on the ratepayers or the taxpayers. The Bill, as I said, is simply to enable owners to hand over land to the local authorities for the purpose of settlement and use by members of His Majesty's Forces, and I hope the House will be willing to give the Bill a Second Reading.

Captain BATHURST [Captain Sir Charles Bathurst, MP for Wilton Division of Wiltshire] I would like to offer a word of welcome to this little Bill, that had its origin in the very generous and patriotic offer made to myself by Mr. Robert Buchanan, of Bosbury, in Herefordshire, in order to commemorate the death of his only son, who fell at the front some three or four months ago. I was rather shocked to find, when the offer was made, and which I at once transmitted to the Board of Agriculture, that in this country alone, I should imagine, amongst the countries of the world, there was no power in any Department of the State to accept a gift of land from any of its subjects in this country, to be held in trust for a definite purpose of public utility, of providing, by means of a gift, the financial requirements for carrying it out. The Board of Agriculture have wisely, in my judgment, decided to render possible, not only in this case but in any [c 280] other similar cases, during the War, for any patriotically-minded person to constitute a trust in the hands of the Board of Agriculture for this desirable purpose of settling ex-soldiers and ex-sailors upon the land of the country for which they have fought so bravely. I welcome this Bill, and I only venture to hope, with the right hon. Gentleman, that this gift of land will prove to be, the first case, not the only case, but the first of many similar cases, where public-spirited citizens are prepared to constitute, a war memorial of the kind to which the right hon. Gentleman has referred.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
LAND FOR SAILORS AND SOLDIERS.

HC Deb 04 November 1918 vol 110 cc1763-4

16. Major NEWMAN asked the President of the Board of Agriculture how much land for the purpose of settlement thereon of those who have served or are serving in the forces has been acquired under the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act or similar legislation; how many men are now actually in occupation of their holdings; how many are under instruction; and how many have applied or signified their desire to obtain a portion of land?

Sir R. WINFREY [Richard Winfrey, MP for Norfolk SW] Under the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act, 1916, the Board accepted a gift of 312 acres from a gentleman at Bosbury, in Hereford. A further gift of 500 acres from the same gentleman has been offered, subject to certain conditions with which the Board hope to be able to comply. The Board obtain vacant possession of the 312 acres in February next.

Under the Small Holding Colonies Act 1916, the Board have acquired a total area of, approximately, 6,000 acres in four colonies. Possession of one colony in Wales was only obtained at Michaelmas. Twenty-seven men are now in occupation of their holdings; 16 are under instruction; and 389 have signified their desire to obtain a portion of land; of these 116 are still serving with His Majesty’s Forces.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
SMALL HOLDING COLONIES.

HL Deb 13 May 1919 vol 34 c 646

VISCOUNT GALWAY rose to call attention to the colonies established by the Board of Agriculture under the Act of 1916, and to move for a Return showing the number of soldiers established on them, the profit and loss account of those farms, and separate account of the capital expenditure on cottages, buildings, roads, etc.

THE PRESIDENT OF THE BOARD OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES (LORD ERNLE) [c 647] My Lords, I most decidedly agree to the Motion, and as I have some little explanation to offer I gladly avail myself of the opportunity. I am afraid that the Board of Agriculture has been very much under-staffed and over-worked in the last two years. . . .

[c 652] There is also an estate, Bosbury in Herefordshire, which was presented to the Board as a free gift by a Mr. Buchanan and which is to be developed as a colony for officers.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
LAND SETTLEMENT.

HC Deb 01 November 1920 vol 134 c 89W

Mr. G. LOCKER-LAMPSON asked the Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry [c 90W] of Agriculture what is the number of ex-officers settled at the Bosbury Land Settlement, and the number six months ago; what are the Ministry’s intentions with regard to the settlement; whether officers of the Ministry visited the settlement in July last; and if he can make their Report public, or any other recent Report on the subject?

Sir A. BOSCAWEN The number of ex-officers settled on small holdings at the Bosbury Farm Settlement is 8, and the number has not increased during the last six months. It is proposed to divide the whole estate into small holdings as the remainder of the land comes in hand. Ultimately there will be 16 small holdings, all of which, it is expected, will be let to ex-officers. Officers of the Ministry frequently visit the settlement: no special visit was made in July, nor have any reports been made other than those normally required for administrative purposes. A report on this and other farm settlements will shortly be submitted to Parliament in accordance with Section 10 of the Small Holdings Colonies Act, 1916.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE FARMS.

HL Deb 04 December 1922 vol 52 c 258

THE PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY OF THE MINISTRY OF AGRICULTURE AND FISHERIES (THE EARL OF ANCASTER) With one thing to which the noble Lord [LORD STRACHIE] referred I am thoroughly in agreement, and that is that these experiments which have been made of farming from London are certainly very valuable object lessons as regards the nationalisation of land, because here one very strong case is mentioned in the Auditor General’s Report. It is that of the Bosbury Farm Settlement. There, although the land was presented to the Ministry for nothing — it is true the land was in a very bad state of cultivation when the present was made — we were unable to show a profit. Therefore I think it looks as if, even if the State were to take over all the agricultural land in England, and although they took it for nothing, it would result in a heavy loss to the State.

IN HANSARD (TRANSCRIPTION OF PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES).
FARM SETTLEMENTS (LOSS).

HC Deb 14 February 1927 vol 202 c 549

Mr. CADOGAN asked the Minister of Agriculture what are the cumulative losses shown up to date in the combined balance sheet of the farm settlements of the Ministry of Agriculture; and whether further disposals of farm settlements are in contemplation?

The MINISTER of AGRICULTURE (Mr. GUINESS) As the reply is rather long I propose, with my hon. Friend’s permission, to circulate it in the OFFICIAL REPORT.
Following is the reply:

The total loss shown in the trading accounts for the Ministry’s farm settlements up to 31st March, 1926, the last date at which the annual accounts were [c 550] made up, amounts to £494,855. This sum includes farm and estate losses in respect of several properties which, owing to a change of policy in the interests of economy, were sold shortly after being acquired by the Ministry, or were transferred to county councils after being equipped and sub-divided into small holdings. The amount mentioned also includes the loss on settlements still managed by the Ministry. In each case the loss shown in the balance sheet has been arrived at after providing for hypothetical interest charges, depreciation and headquarters’ administrative expenses, which items account for approximately 80 per cent. of the total loss.
In addition to the sum already mentioned, the accounts of the Bosbury (Buchanan Trust) Estate show a loss of £13,874 up to 31st March, 1926.

LAW COMMISSION

STATUTE LAW REVISION

Definition: Statute law revision is the process of repealing statutes that are no longer of practical utility. The purpose is to modernise and simplify the statute book. Implementation of the Commissions’ statute law revision proposals is by means of special Statute Law (Repeals) Bills.

ARMED FORCES REPEAL PROPOSALS [2006]

Pages 51-54

Reference: Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 (6 & 7 Geo.5 c.60)
Extent of repeal or revocation: The whole Act.

1. The purpose of the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 (“the 1916 Act”) was to authorise the Government’s agriculture Departments and local government to accept gifts for the purpose of providing former servicemen with employment in agriculture.

2. Section 1(1) of the 1916 Act is the main provision and sets out the basis on which the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries (now the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs) and county councils could accept such gifts. The gifts could be by will or otherwise and, if accepted, had to be applied wholly or mainly for the settlement or employment in agriculture of men who had served in any of His Majesty’s naval or military forces. The recipient Department or county council had to hold any land, the subject of any such gift and to administer the trusts affecting the gift. Power was given to borrow on the security of the trust property. All expenses were to be defrayed out of the trust property or its income.

3. Subsections (3) and (4) of section 1 applied subsection (1) to Scotland and Northern Ireland with necessary modification as to the references to the central and local government authorities in those countries.

4. The origins of the 1916 Act lay in a gift made by Robert Buchanan of Bosbury, Herefordshire. In order to commemorate the death of his only son who was killed in action in 1916, Mr Buchanan wished to donate some land to the Board of Agriculture to be held on trust to provide smallholdings for servicemen returning from the First World War. As the law stood, however, there were doubts about whether the Government could accept such a gift. As the Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Agriculture explained during the Commons Second Reading debate on 28 November 1916-

“This Bill is ... necessary because it is a principle of general acceptance that public Departments and authorities are not allowed to do anything which they are not particularly and expressly enabled to do by statutory authority, and there was some doubt as to whether the Board of Agriculture were enabled to accept gifts of this kind and act as trustees for carrying out trusts in connection with such gifts, and therefore it has been thought right to settle the matter by allowing the State or public authorities to accept gifts of land of that nature ..... I have always felt that a grant of land for settlement by soldiers who have come back from the War, and the building of cottages and the provision of gardens around the cottages, would be the finest possible war memorial which the villages up and down the countryside could possibly make. Hansard (HC), vol 88, col 278 (Mr Acland)

5. The passing of the 1916 Act facilitated the gift of land that Mr Buchanan wished to make. The land became known as the Bosbury Trust Estate. The trust was registered as a charity on 22 July 1964 under the name of the Buchanan Trust. The objects of the trust are to provide ‘land for smallholdings for ex-servicemen particularly those who served in the 1914-19 [sic] war’. The land is still used as smallholdings. The trustees are Herefordshire Council.

6. The 1916 Act is best viewed in the context of the social and economic conditions prevailing in the United Kingdom at the time of the First World War. Its immediate purpose was to overcome a legal obstacle in relation to gifts to public authorities. But the main underlying purpose seems to have been to provide work for ex-servicemen who had served in the war, thereby relieving pressure on the labour market. There was also a need to maximise the yield from agricultural land during and just after the war. The 1916 Act had much in common with another Act of that year, the Small Holding Colonies Act 1916 whereby ex-servicemen (mostly without farming experience) were put to work on agricultural smallholdings that the State had acquired for the purpose. [Footnote: The practical value of the Small Holding Colonies Act 1916 was limited and most of that Act was repealed by the Agriculture Act 1970, s113(3), Sch 5, Pt 3.]

7. The need for the 1916 Act no longer exists. No public authority today would wish to accept gifts that had to be applied in settling ex-servicemen on the land.1 Moreover changes in agriculture during the second half of the twentieth century have greatly reduced the numbers that can be employed on the land.2 In short, the 1916 Act has no practical modern use and its repeal is recommended on that basis. Records at the National Archives indicate that the land gifted by Mr Buchanan is the only estate that has triggered the use of the 1916 Act.3

[Footnotes: 1 Nowadays local authorities have power to accept, hold and administer gifts of property in particular circumstances: Local Government Act 1972, s 139. 2 Some of these changes relate to adjustments in farming methods, including improvements resulting in increased food production. Other changes came about because of the influence of the Common Agricultural Policy after the United Kingdom joined the EEC in 1973 and because of more general social and economic developments since the 1950s. 3 National Archives Catalogue Reference MAF 139/57.

8. However, the fact that the provisions of the 1916 Act have been invoked on this one occasion at least means that a savings provision may be necessary to ensure that the relevant public authorities are able to continue to administer any land or other property that they still hold as a result of gifts that they have accepted pursuant to the 1916 Act. The attached Schedule of consequential and connected provisions contains this savings provision. The views of consultees are invited on whether such a saving is actually necessary.

Extent

9. The 1916 Act extends throughout the United Kingdom.

Consultation

10. The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, HM Treasury, the Ministry of Defence, the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister (in relation to local government), the Charity Commission, Herefordshire County Council (as trustee for the Buchanan Trust), the Local Government Association, the Welsh Local Government Association and the relevant authorities in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have been consulted about this repeal proposal.

(32/195/49)LAW/005/005/06 25 January 2006

SCHEDULE
OF
CONSEQUENTIAL AND CONNECTED PROVISIONS

Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 (c.60)

The repeal by this Act of the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 shall not affect the operation of section 1 of that Act in relation to any gift accepted before the commencement of this Act.

Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008

2008 CHAPTER 12

An Act to promote the reform of the statute law by the repeal, in accordance with recommendations of the Law Commission and the Scottish Law Commission, of certain enactments which (except in so far as their effect is preserved) are no longer of practical utility, and to make other provision in connection with the repeal of those enactments. [21st July 2008]

Be it enacted by the Queen’s most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—

Reference: Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 (6 & 7 Geo.5 c.60)
Extent of repeal: The whole Act.

Consequential and Connected Provisions: The repeal by this Act of the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 does not affect the operation of section 1 of that Act (power to accept and administer gifts for settlement of ex-sailors and soldiers on land) in relation to any gift accepted before the commencement of this Act.

Source: Website http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ accessed on 1st February 2011 and reproduced under the terms of the Open Government Licence.