Petroleum (Consolidation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929 facts for kids

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Petroleum (Consolidation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929

Act of Parliament
Parliament of Northern Ireland
Long title	An Act to consolidate, as respects Northern Ireland, the enactments relating to petroleum and petroleum-spirit
Citation	1929 chapter 13
Territorial extent	Northern Ireland
Dates
Royal assent	19 December 1929
Commencement	At Royal Assent
Other legislation
Amends	Petroleum Acts 1871 to 1881
Amended by	see text
Status: Amended

The Petroleum (Consolidation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929 was a law passed by the Parliament of Northern Ireland. This Act brought together and updated older laws about petroleum and petroleum-spirit. It made sure that Northern Ireland had similar rules for these substances as the rest of the United Kingdom.

Why This Law Was Needed

Before 1929, the main law for controlling petroleum and its products was the Petroleum Act of 1871. This law was quite old. By the late 1920s, a lot had changed.

Cars and Petrol

Cars were becoming very popular, and more people were using petrol (gasoline). The old laws from 1871 just weren't good enough for these new uses. They needed to be updated to keep people safe.

Updating Laws for Northern Ireland

In 1928, a new law called the Petroleum (Consolidation) Act 1928 was passed. This law updated and combined petroleum rules for England, Wales, and Scotland. However, it did not apply to Northern Ireland. So, the 1929 Act was created to do the same for Northern Ireland. It made sure that the rules for petroleum were modern and consistent across the whole UK.

About the 1929 Petroleum Act

The Petroleum (Consolidation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929 became law on 19 December 1929. Its main goal was to combine and update all the rules about petroleum and petroleum-spirit in Northern Ireland.

What the Act Covered

This Act had 25 sections and 3 schedules. It covered important topics related to petroleum safety. Here are some of the main areas it dealt with:

Rules for Keeping Petroleum-Spirit

• It made it a rule that you needed a special licence to keep petroleum-spirit.
• It explained how local authorities (like city councils) would give out these licences.
• It also set out the fees you had to pay for a licence.

Labelling and Transport

• The Act required that containers holding petroleum-spirit had to be properly labelled. This helped people know what was inside and how to handle it safely.
• It also included rules about how petroleum-spirit should be transported by road. There were also rules about ships carrying petroleum, though some of these have been updated since.

Using Petroleum for Vehicles

• The law had special rules for how petroleum-spirit should be stored and used for things like cars, motor boats, and aircraft. These rules were important for preventing accidents.

Dealing with Accidents

• The Act included rules for what to do if an accident happened involving petroleum-spirit. This included reporting accidents and investigating them.

Inspections and Safety Checks

• Government inspectors were given powers to check if people were following the rules.
• There were also rules about searching for and taking petroleum-spirit if it was being kept unsafely.

Applying the Act to Other Substances

• The Act allowed for new rules to be made to apply this law to other dangerous substances, not just petroleum.

Related Laws and Updates

The 1929 Act was an important step, but laws often need to be updated over time.

Later Changes

The Petroleum (Consolidation) Act (Northern Ireland) 1929 is still in force today (as of November 2020). However, it has been changed and updated many times by other laws and rules. These updates help to keep the law relevant as technology and safety standards improve. Some of the later changes include:

• The Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1972.
• Various Statutory Rules (like SR 1991/509 and SR 2003/152) that updated rules for dangerous substances.
• The Major Hazard Accident Regulations (Northern Ireland) 2015.

See also

• Petroleum Act