Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916: Difference between revisions

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In 1916, following the death of his son Alan at the [[Second_Battle_of_Ypres#Battle_of_Bellewaarde_(24–25_May)|Battle of Bellewaarde]] on 16 June 1915, Robert Buchanan proposed gifting land near the village of [[Bosbury]], Herefordshire, to the nation for the settlement of servicemen returned from war.<ref name=lc/><ref name=buch>{{cite web |title=A Brief History |url=https://www.buchanan-trust.org.uk/history |website=The Buchanan Trust ~ The Bosbury Estate |access-date=4 January 2023 |language=en}}</ref> The [[Board of Agriculture and Fisheries]] was unsure whether it had the ability under existing law to accept the gift.<ref name=lc/>
In 1916, following the death of his son Alan at the [[Second_Battle_of_Ypres#Battle_of_Bellewaarde_(24–25_May)|Battle of Bellewaarde]] on 16 June 1915, Robert Buchanan proposed gifting land near the village of [[Bosbury]], Herefordshire, to the nation for the settlement of servicemen returned from war.<ref name=lc/><ref name=buch>{{cite web |title=A Brief History |url=https://www.buchanan-trust.org.uk/history |website=The Buchanan Trust ~ The Bosbury Estate |access-date=4 January 2023 |language=en}}</ref> The [[Board of Agriculture and Fisheries]] was unsure whether it had the ability under existing law to accept the gift.<ref name=lc/>


To provide a basis in law for the acceptance of gifts of land by the board and [[local authorities]], for the purpose of providing employment for ex-servicemen, the [[Asquith coalition ministry]] proposed the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Bill to the [[House of Commons]] on 23 November 1916.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bill Presented |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-11-23/debates/688e714e-05cc-4089-bd5c-11a7f1c1db30/BillPresented?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-7731c189-11fa-4558-a2ad-c88b47061073 |website=Hansard Volume 87: debated on Thursday 23 November 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref> It received a [[second reading]] on 28 November and was passed, unamended, in the [[House of Lords]] by 19 December (by this time Asquith's government had been replaced by [[Lloyd George ministry|that of Lloyd George]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Sailors And Soldiers (Gifts Or Land Settlement) Bill |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-11-28/debates/db6307a9-112e-4eb8-9025-d9068d738def/SailorsAndSoldiers(GiftsOrLandSettlement)Bill |website=Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 28 November 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Message From The Lords |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-12-19/debates/3700249f-2600-4994-b8fb-0fb0fbd3f944/MessageFromTheLords?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-89cafead-1eb2-49b7-8d8a-daa67b2c01ec |website=Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 19 December 1916}}</ref> The act received [[royal assent]] on 22 December 1916.<ref>{{cite web |title=Royal Assent |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-12-22/debates/bbafb4c2-f8f4-446f-93da-ff581583c6c6/RoyalAssent?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-17d52aae-1e5b-455d-938b-cdfb0487d3b5 |website=Hansard Volume 88: debated on Friday 22 December 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref>
To provide a basis in law for the acceptance of gifts of land by the board and [[local authorities]], for the purpose of providing employment for ex-servicemen, the [[Asquith coalition ministry]] proposed the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Bill to the [[House of Commons of the United Kingdom|House of Commons]] on 23 November 1916.<ref>{{cite web |title=Bill Presented |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-11-23/debates/688e714e-05cc-4089-bd5c-11a7f1c1db30/BillPresented?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-7731c189-11fa-4558-a2ad-c88b47061073 |website=Hansard Volume 87: debated on Thursday 23 November 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref> It received a [[second reading]] on 28 November and was passed, unamended, in the [[House of Lords]] by 19 December (by this time Asquith's government had been replaced by [[Lloyd George ministry|that of Lloyd George]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Sailors And Soldiers (Gifts Or Land Settlement) Bill |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-11-28/debates/db6307a9-112e-4eb8-9025-d9068d738def/SailorsAndSoldiers(GiftsOrLandSettlement)Bill |website=Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 28 November 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Message From The Lords |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-12-19/debates/3700249f-2600-4994-b8fb-0fb0fbd3f944/MessageFromTheLords?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-89cafead-1eb2-49b7-8d8a-daa67b2c01ec |website=Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 19 December 1916}}</ref> The act received [[royal assent]] on 22 December 1916.<ref>{{cite web |title=Royal Assent |url=https://hansard.parliament.uk/Commons/1916-12-22/debates/bbafb4c2-f8f4-446f-93da-ff581583c6c6/RoyalAssent?highlight=%22sailors%20and%20soldiers%20%28gifts%20for%20land%20settlement%29%22#contribution-17d52aae-1e5b-455d-938b-cdfb0487d3b5 |website=Hansard Volume 88: debated on Friday 22 December 1916 |access-date=4 January 2023}}</ref>


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Revision as of 11:43, 4 January 2023

Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916
Long titleAn Act to authorise the acceptance and administration by certain Government Departments and Local Authorities of Gifts for the settlement or employment on land of men who have served in His Majesty's Forces.
Citation1916 c. 60
Territorial extent United Kingdom
Dates
Royal assent22 December 1916
Repealed21 July 2008
Other legislation
Repealed byStatute Law (Repeals) Act 2008
Status: Repealed
Text of statute as originally enacted
Revised text of statute as amended

The Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Act 1916 was an act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

Description

In 1916, following the death of his son Alan at the Battle of Bellewaarde on 16 June 1915, Robert Buchanan proposed gifting land near the village of Bosbury, Herefordshire, to the nation for the settlement of servicemen returned from war.[1][2] The Board of Agriculture and Fisheries was unsure whether it had the ability under existing law to accept the gift.[1]

To provide a basis in law for the acceptance of gifts of land by the board and local authorities, for the purpose of providing employment for ex-servicemen, the Asquith coalition ministry proposed the Sailors and Soldiers (Gifts for Land Settlement) Bill to the House of Commons on 23 November 1916.[3] It received a second reading on 28 November and was passed, unamended, in the House of Lords by 19 December (by this time Asquith's government had been replaced by that of Lloyd George.[4][5] The act received royal assent on 22 December 1916.[6]



Authorised the government's departments of agriculture and local authorities to accept gifts to give former servicemen employment in the agriculture industry. The receiving authority held the land gifted and administered any trusts. Act followed a proposal by Robert Buchanan of Bosbury, Herefordshire. Buchanan had lost his only son killed in action in 1916 and proposed donating land to the Board of Agriculutre to be used as smallholdings for ex-servicemen. There were doubts that the board had the legal standing to accept the gift and the act was proposed as a means of doing so. Inention was to provide work for ex-servicemen, relieving potential pressures on the labour market at demobilisation, and to increase agricultural outputs. [1]

Asisde from this act the Small Holdings Colonies Act 1916 authorised the government to purchase up to 20,000 acres (8,100 ha) of land for use as colonies for veterans.[7]

Bosbury Trust Estate

Beacon Hill Farm, part of the Bosbury Trust Estate[8]

The gift proceeded and the land, known originally as the Bosbury Trust Estate, is now administered by a trust, the Buchanan Trust. The trustees are Herefordshire County Council and the land remains in use as small holdings. [1]

The Bosbury Trust Estate was accepted by the Board of Agriculture & Fisheries on 21 September 1918, receiving 288 acres (117 ha), a further 500 acres (200 ha) was donated in May 1919. Following the foot and mouth outbreak in 1967, which caused significant losses on the estate, the estate was reorganised under a Charity Commission Scheme with Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries & Food as trustee/ The trusteeship was transferred to Herefordshire Council in 1998 and, after recommendations by the CHarity Commission, to The Buchanan Trustee Company Ltd. The trust plans to expand accomodation on its site to provide 20-40 almshouses to military veterans.[2]

Repeal

The atc was recommended for repeal by the Eigthteeth report on statute law repeals by by th eLaw Commission and the Scottish Law Commission of January 2008. Tehy argued that no public body would today be willing to accept land gifted with a restriction that it could only be used by veterans and changes in farming practices had reduced the number of people that could be supported on land. The National Archives shw that the Bosbury Trust Estate was the only land ever donated under the act.[1]


Repealed by the Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008, though that act included a provision that the repeal did not affect any gifts previouslt made under the act.[9]


References

  1. ^ a b c d e "Stature Law Repeals: Eighteenth Report" (PDF). The Law Commission and The Scottish Law Commission. pp. 42–43. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  2. ^ a b "A Brief History". The Buchanan Trust ~ The Bosbury Estate. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  3. ^ "Bill Presented". Hansard Volume 87: debated on Thursday 23 November 1916. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  4. ^ "Sailors And Soldiers (Gifts Or Land Settlement) Bill". Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 28 November 1916. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  5. ^ "Message From The Lords". Hansard: Volume 88: debated on Tuesday 19 December 1916.
  6. ^ "Royal Assent". Hansard Volume 88: debated on Friday 22 December 1916. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  7. ^ Leneman, Leah (1989). "Land Settlement in Scotland after World War I". The Agricultural History Review. 37 (1): 55. ISSN 0002-1490.
  8. ^ "Bosbury farmer is celebrating after nearly decade in legal struggle with Herefordshire Council". Hereford Times. 21 February 2011. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  9. ^ "Statute Law (Repeals) Act 2008". Legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 4 January 2023.