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3.—This Act shall not apply to any expenses incurred by a Local
Authority before the passing thereof, but shall apply to the
expenses incurred after the passing thereof in the case of any
drain for draining any group or block of houses, whether constructed
before or after the passing of this Act.
4.—The expression "Local Authority," as used in this Act, means any
Vestry or District Board acting under the Metropolis Management
Acts, and includes the Woolwich Local Board.
5.—This Act maybe cited as the Metropolis Management Amendment
Act, 1895, and shall be construed as with the Metropolis Management
Acts.
Plans.— In connection with the supervision of House Drainage, some
statutory power should be obtained for demanding plans, to place on permanent
record the course of House Drainage, as this is necessarily hidden under-ground
and is not open to inspection or exposed a-s above-ground drainage work.
The troubles that have arisen with regard to combined drainage might
never have arisen if proper notice and plans of House Drainage had hitherto
been enforceable. Although there is no statutory power for enforcing the
provision of plans, Builders have in recent years found it more expensive
to work without plans, approved beforehand, than with them, so
that they have in all cases, almost without exception, provided plans
in order to avoid calling into action the undoubted statutory power of
the Vestry, to cause them to remove or undo any work that they may have
done which is not approved in accordance with the Regulations and Directions;
and furthermore the advantages to owners and occupiers of property of being
able at any time to refer to the Vestry's records of plans of House Drainage
must be taken into consideration. In selling, letting, or hiring houses or
parts of houses, this must be of great benefit, and must be of still greater
benefit in saving expense and time that would be otherwise entailed in
excavating and tracing the course of underground drainage, in case of repairs or
amendments, without a plan for guidance.
AVith these facts in mind, your Vestry urged the London County Council
to take such steps as may be necessary for promoting legal provisions to the
following effect, namely: —
(a) Before making any drain and before relaying, reconstructing, or
amending the same, notice in writing shall be given to the Vestry ,
or District Board by the person intending to make such drain.
(b) Before making any drain, or altering the level or course of or making
any addition to or extending or curtailing any existing drain or any
branch drain, a plan of the proposed drain and any existing drain
shall be deposited with the Vestry or District Board by the person
intending to make such drain or to alter or amend any existing
drain.
Copies of these resolutions, and the reasons for their recommendation, were
sent to the Vestries and District Boards of the Metropolis, urging them to
send similar recommendations to the London County Council, and nineteen
Sanitary Authorities took similar action to your Vestry.