I beg to move the Second Reading of the Air Raid Precautions Bill, 1939. The purpose of this Bill is to make provision for precautions to protect persons and property in the event of attack from the air. The precautions are, of course, in the nature of passive defence measures as distinct from the active defence which is the responsibility of the Army. In time of emergency the members of the civil population generally, in areas subject to air attack, would naturally use every effort to protect themselves from the results of such attack. Any steps initiated when an emergency occurred could not hope to have the desired results, and it is only by organising in advance that the maximum of protection can be obtained. Deputies are aware from previous discussions in this House of the general nature of the plans which it is proposed should be followed. The object of the Bill is to enable these plans to be carried out. I do not propose at this stage to go into a detailed exposition of the numerous clauses of the Bill but I shall take the various Parts into which the Bill is divided and explain the principles which are being followed in framing their provisions.
Part I is general in character, and includes definitions, matters relating to procedure, and a financial clause to empower the Minister, with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, to incur expenses for the administration of the Act.
Part II relates to the duties of local authorities with reference to the preparation and carrying out of schemes, and their responsibilities regarding public air-raid shelters and evacuation. This Part requires that certain local bodies shall prepare and submit air raid precautions schemes for the approval of the Minister for Defence. It is proposed to make a beginning with the cities of Dublin, Cork, Waterford and Limerick, and the urban areas of Bray, Cobh, Drogheda, Dundalk, Dun Laoghaire and Wexford. It is intended that in these places schemes of a fairly intensive nature should be organised. The schemes to be organised by the council of a county will be more or less of a nucleus type. The Minister will have power to revoke or amend any scheme and he may by order remove any urban area from the schedule or add to it from time to time such districts as he may consider necessary.
This part also gives local authorities powers which will be valuable to them in expediting their preparations. It will enable them to acquire land compulsorily, if necessary, for the purpose of their schemes. It also gives them power to earmark in advance buildings or parts of buildings for use as public shelters, and authorises them to enter upon such premises to do necessary preliminary work. The Bill provides for appeal to the Minister against a decision by the local authority to earmark or designate particular premises. The grounds of appeal are limited to two. First, that the premises are required for other purposes of public importance; or, secondly, that they are required for use as a private air-raid shelter. The Bill further provides that when a building or part of a building has been strengthened or adapted for the purpose of an air-raid shelter in times of emergency, the owner shall not interfere with the work that has been done without first obtaining the consent of the local authority. It is provided that if the local authority refuses or neglects to consent within a period of six weeks, an appeal shall lie to the Minister. Section 24 contains provisions with regard to compensation to be paid in respect of the period while work is being executed, and for any loss directly suffered through interference with the premises. It provides further that if, after the work has been carried out, the normal utility of the premises has been impaired, there shall be a continuing payment of the compensation based upon the degree of impairment of the utility. Power is taken in Clause 27 to enable the local authority to take possession of designated premises in the event of emergency and compensation in respect of such premises would be paid as the Oireachtas might determine.
The miscellaneous provisions of Part II require (Section 28) that local authorities and other officers shall assist in arrangements for evacuation of the civil population from one area to another in the event of attack from the air. Plans are at present being drawn up to facilitate the voluntary evacuation of certain non-essential categories of the population of Dublin should such a course ever be necessary.
In the event of a local authority failing to discharge its functions under the Act, the Minister for Local Government and Public Health may dissolve such authority.
The financial provisions of Part II provide for the refund in accordance with regulations of a proportion, not exceeding 70 per cent., of the expenses of local authorities on air-raid precautions schemes generally. In the event of any land acquired for air-raid precautions purposes no longer being needed for such purposes, the Minister may require repayment by the local authority of a sum not exceeding the amount of the grant made by him in respect of the acquisition of the land.
Part III is concerned with the powers and duties of essential undertakers, that is to say, persons (other than State Departments) authorised by law to construct and operate a railway, canal, dock, harbour, tramway, water, gas, electricity or other public undertaking, and also any person declared by an order made by the Minister, with the concurrence of the Minister for Industry and Commerce, to be an essential undertaker for the purposes of this Act.
In general, the position of these undertakers in regard to the organisation of domestic air-raid precautions schemes is the same as for other classes of employers. Employers in the special areas where intensive schemes will be organised by the local authority will be expected to establish their own domestic services for warning, first-aid, fire-fighting, decontamination, rescue and demolition. It will be observed in this connection that Section 58 provides for the payment of State grants in respect of the provision of air-raid shelter for employees in the special areas. It is not, however, now proposed that employers should be bound by statute to organise domestic air-raid precautions schemes.
This part of the Bill contains provision requiring essential undertakers to prepare and carry out schemes to ensure the continuance of the services carried on by them. These undertakers will also, where necessary, e.g., in the case of transport companies, be bound to furnish to the Minister such information as he may require for the purpose of assisting the preparation of arrangements for evacuation of civil population. As in the case of local authorities, essential undertakers are empowered to acquire land for the purpose of their air-raid precautions schemes. Section 46 provides for the payment of grants not exceeding 50 per cent. of approved expenditure on air-raid precautions schemes carried out by such undertakers.
There is also provision for the repayment by essential undertakers of State grants in respect of land acquired for the purpose of air raid precautions schemes and which may no longer be required for such purposes. Grants may be paid in respect of approved expenditure incurred any time after the 30th day of September, 1938.
Part IV of the Bill deals with the questions of the obscuration of lights and camouflage in the cases of occupiers of factories, owners of mines and essential undertakers. Here again it is necessary that anticipatory measures should be taken. This Bill, of course, deals with the preparations to be made against a time of emergency and does not generally contain provisions that would be incorporated in legislation to deal with a state of emergency once it had arisen. It may be pointed out that under conditions applicable to a state of war drastic regulations would be applied in regard to the obscuration of light in certain localities. If such regulations are to be effective, without involving a very serious loss of industrial efficiency, it is important that industrial undertakings should make provision in advance for doing what will have to be done in the way of the obscuration of lights on the occurrence of emergency conditions. This part of the Bill, therefore, provides that, when advised accordingly by the Minister, factories, industrial premises and essential undertakings will be so dealt with that the external lighting can be entirely obscured and the internal lighting can be screened. This part of the Bill also covers the taking of the necessary action with regard to any process involving the emission of flames or glare. Provision is made in this part for the payment of grants not exceeding half of the approved capital expenditure involved in taking the necessary steps to meet the requirements of the Minister. Section 53 provides penalties in the case of any person who fails to comply with requirements. Grants will not be paid of course under Part III in respect of expenditure incurred on which grants are paid under Part IV. Powers are taken in Section 55 enabling authorised officers to enter premises at all reasonable hours to ensure that the requirements of the Minister are complied with, and subsection (5) of the same section provides for a penalty in the case of any officer who discloses any information regarding a manufacturing process or trade secret which he has obtained in the course of his duty under the section.
Part V includes a number of provisions some of which are of general application. Reference has been made above to Section 58, which covers the payment of State grants to persons in the special areas who incur expenses of a capital nature in providing approved air-raid shelters for persons employed by them. The grant would be an amount in the £ equal to the standard rate of income-tax for the year beginning on the 6th day of April, 1939. It would be a condition that the shelter should have been provided before the 1st January, 1940, or such later date to be determined by the Minister, or the work on the shelter should have been begun by the 31st day of December, 1939, and the Minister should be satisfied that the shelter will be provided within a reasonable time thereafter. The provisions as to payment of grant to employers in respect of the air-raid shelters will not apply to a building wholly or mainly occupied as a school, college, hotel, restaurant, club, etc. Provision is made in Section 59 for the relief from rates of certain works undertaken with a view to affording air-raid shelter. It might here be mentioned that the Minister for Finance has agreed to include in the Finance Bill provisions for the relief of air raid precautions works from income-tax under Schedule A.
Section 60 in Part V enables the Minister, with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, to provide such services, train such persons and acquire such air raid precautions equipment as he considers necessary for the purposes of affording protection to persons and property in the event of attack from the air, and to lend, supply free of charge, or to sell such equipment. Regulations will be made under the Act relating to the loan, supply, sale and storage of equipment and a penalty is provided in Section 62 in the case of any person who wilfully damages any equipment which is lent or supplied to him free under the Act, or which he has under his control for the purposes of the Act. Section 63 enables the Minister to regulate, including prohibit, the importation or sale of any article of air raid precautions equipment as may be specified in an order by the Minister. Penalties are provided for infringement of regulations made in this matter. In Section 64 it is provided that the Minister for Finance may make a scheme providing for the payment of compensation to persons who may suffer injuries sustained in the course of air raid precautions training.