Air Force (Canteens) Regulations (Cth)

STATUTORY RULES.

1945. No. 175.

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REGULATIONS UNDER THE AIR FORCE ACT 1923-1941.*

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL in and over the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Air Force Act 1923-1941.

Dated this twentieth day of November, 1945.

HENRY

Governor-General.

By His Royal Highness’s Command,

ARTHUR S. DRAKEFORD.

Minister of State for Air.

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Air Force (Canteens) Regulations.

Citation.

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Air Force (Canteens) Regulations.

Definition.

2. In these Regulations, unless the contrary intention appears—

“canteen property” means any property (other than property belonging to the Commonwealth or an authority of the Commonwealth or to a person not a member of the Air Force (in this definition referred to as “excepted property”)) purchased, leased, hired or otherwise acquired or used for the purpose of, or in connexion with, the Canteens Service, and any moneys, securities, cheques, bills or other negotiable instruments representing the proceeds of the sale of any such property, which is in the possession and under the control of the Board or any of the Committees referred to in this definition, and, without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, includes—

(a)all property (other than excepted property) heretofore possessed, controlled or used by the committee known as the R.A.A.F. Canteen Services Central Committee and all moneys standing to the credit of that Committee in any banking account and all other moneys and credits to which it is otherwise entitled;

(b)all property (other than excepted property) heretofore possessed, controlled or used by Station, Unit, or Mobile Cinema Committees or other Committees of Air Force personnel for or in connexion with the provision of cinema entertainment for members of the Air Force, and all moneys standing to the credit of any of these committees in any banking account, and all other moneys and credits to which these committees, or any of them, are otherwise entitled, and

* Notified in the Commonwealth Gazette on 22nd November, 1945.

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(c) all property (other than excepted property) at any time supplied, to, or acquired or used by, or under the control of, any Station or Unit Welfare Committee, or any other committee of Air Force personnel for the purpose of providing entertainment, recreation or other amenities for members of the Air Force; and

(d)all moneys which have been received by the Air Board as representing the funds of airmen’s messes and paid by it into the official trust account known as the “Trust fund—Other trust moneys” account;

“the Board” means the R.A.A.F. Canteen Services Board constituted under these Regulations;

“the Minister” means the Minister of State for Air.

Establishment of Canteens Service for Air Force

3.The Canteens Service for the supply and provision of goods, services, entertainment, recreation and other amenities to or for members of the Air Force shall be deemed to havebeen established under, and shall be maintained and conducted in accordance with, the provisions of these Regulations.

Control of Canteens Service.

4. The Canteens Service shall be under the general control of the Air Board, and the Air Board may issue orders and instructions in relation to the continuance, establishment, maintenance, supervision, management, conduct and control of the Service, and in relation to the powers, duties, functions, and obligations of the Board and for the purpose of regulating the meetings and proceedings of the Board.

Delegation.

5.—(1.) The Air Board may from time to time delegate any of its powers under these Regulations to any of its members.

(2.) A delegation under this regulation shall be revocable at will by the Air Board and shall not prevent the exercise by the Air Board of any of the powers delegated.

R.A.A.F. Canteens Service Board.

6.—(1.) For the purposes of these Regulations there shall be a R.A.A.F. Canteens Service Board.

(2.) The Board shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal, and may acquire, hold, and dispose of, real and personal property, and shall be capable of suing and being sued.

Completion of Board, &c.

7—(1.) The Board shall consist of—

(a) three persons nominated by the Air Board and approved by the Minister, at least one of whom shall be an officer of the Citizen Air Force and one an airman;

(b)a person nominated by the Treasurer; and

(c)a person who is not a member of the Air Force nominated by the Minister.

(2.) Every Director of the Canteens Service appointed under these Regulations shall, whilst he continues to hold that office, be a member of the Board, and shall be deemed to be one of the members nominated by the Air Board pursuant to paragraph (a) of sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation.

(3.) A member of the Board, who shall be nominated by the Air Board or, in the absence of a member so nominated, a member selected by the Board, shall act as chairman of the Board.

(4.) Any member of the Board may be removed from office by the person or authority on whose nomination he became a member, but a member nominated by the Air Board shall not be removed except with the approval of the Minister.

(5.) Any vacancy on the Board occasioned by the death, removal or resignation, of a member or in any other manner howsoever shall be filled by nomination made in like manner to that of the member who previously held the vacant office.

(6.) At any meeting of the Board, three members shall form a quorum, and questions arising shall be decided by a majority of these present.

(7.) The Board may engage, employ and dismiss a Secretary and such other employees as the Board considers necessary, and may determine the conditions of employment applicable to them and fix the rates of remuneration to be paid to them, but the rates so fixed shall not be lower than these fixed by the appropriate award.

(8.) The Air Force (Civil Staff) Regulations shall not apply to employees engaged by the Board.

(9.) Neither a member of the Board nor of any committee constituted by the Board shall be entitled to receive any remuneration for his services, but nothing in this regulation shall prevent the payment to such a member of out-of-pocket expenses reasonably incurred by him in carrying out his duties under these Regulations, nor affect the right of any such member who is a member of the Air Force or a servant of any Department of the Commonwealth to receive the pay and allowances due to him in that capacity.

Powers and functions of Board.

8.—(l.) Subject to these Regulations and to any orders or directions from time to time issued by the Air Board, the Board shall be charged with the general administration and control of the Canteens Service, and as from the date when these Regulations come into operation may—

(a) take and assume possession and control, and direct the application, removal and disposal, of all canteen property;

(b)undertake responsibility for, and pay, satisfy and discharge, all debts, obligations and liabilities incurred by the R.A.A.F. Canteen Services Central Committee or with its authority in connexion with the establishment or conduct of Air Force canteens, or by Unit, Mobile or other committees, or with the authority of any of these committees, in connexion with cinema entertainment for Air Force personnel;

(c) supply and provide, either directly or through committees of members of the Air Force goods, services, entertainment, recreation and other amenities to and for any member or members of the Air Force within or beyond the limits of the Commonwealth, and for that purpose may purchase, lease, hire or otherwise acquire property,

and establish, continue, conduct, manage, administer and control canteens, cinemas and other institutions and facilities, and enter into all transactions and do all acts and things which may be considered necessary or convenient;

(d)issue directions and instructions for or in connexion with the general administration and control of the Canteens Service and canteens, cinemas, institutions and other facilities established or provided for the purpose thereof;

(e) accept gifts and donations of money or other property and apply them to any of the purposes or objects to which canteen property may be applied under these Regulations;

(f) make contributions inthe form of gifts or advances of cash or in any other convenient form to persons or committees or associations of persons, whether members of the Air Force or not, for the purpose of the contributions being used in or towards the provision of goods, services, entertainments, recreation or other amenities for the use, benefit or enjoyment of members of the Air Force, either alone or together with members of any other part of the Defence Force or members of any Allied Force, or may make contributions to any fund established or existing for the purposes mentioned in this paragraph or any of them.

(2.) The Board shall open a banking account with the Commonwealth Bank of Australia or the Commonwealth Savings Bank of Australia or, if facilities for opening accounts with these banks are not available, with such other bank as the Board determines, and all moneys received by the Board or on its behalf shall be paid to the credit of that banking account and all payments by the Board shall be made by cheque except in the case of petty cash payments, which may be made by means of imprest petty cash account.

Director of Canteens Service.

9.—(1.) The Air Board may, with the approval of the Minister, appoint either an officer of the Air Force who has had suitable business experience or some other person with such experience to be the Director of Canteens Service, and may, with the Minister’s approval, remove from office any officer or person so appointed.

(2.) Subject to these Regulations, the executive authority of the Board shall be vested in the Director, who shall, subject to the decisions, orders and directions of the Board, act as its representative in the establishment, conduct, management, administration and control of the Canteens Service.

Regional Committees.

10.—(1.) The Board may, with the approval of the Air Board, constitute regional committees for the purpose of exercising in respect of the Canteens Service in regions to be determined by the Board such ofthe functions and powers of the Board as it may delegate to such committees.

(2.) The Board may appoint and remove the members of regional committees so constituted and make Orders concerning the procedure to be followed by such committees in the exercise of their functions.

Board to be a service institution for certain proceedings against members.

11.For the purpose of the Imperial Act called the Air Force Act, the Rules of Procedure and the King’s Regulations and Air Council Instructions as applied in relation to the Air Force and the members thereof, the Board shall be deemed to be a service institution and, for the purpose of any proceedings in respect of an offence under that Act against any person subject to that Act or any deduction from the pay of such a person or any proceedings, civil or criminal, against any other person, all canteen property shall be deemed to belong to the Board.

Payment to Board of penal deductions from pay of members.

12.—(1.) Any penal deduction made from the pay of a member of the Air Force in respect of a sum required to make good any loss, damage or destruction of canteen property or compensation therefor, whether such deduction is made in consequence of the sentence or award of a court-martial or Commanding Officer or without any such sentence or award, shall be paid to the Board.

(2.) The receipt of any payment under the provisions of sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation shall not affect the right of the Board to recover by action or other proceedings the amount of any loss or damage resulting from theloss, damage or destruction of canteen property less the amount of any payment received in pursuance of sub-regulation (1.) of this regulation from any member or other person responsible for that loss, damage or destruction.

Disposal of Canteen property, investment of Canteen funds.

13.—(1.) Canteen property may be realized by the Board and the net proceeds of such realization shall be paid to the credit of the banking account of the Board.

(2.) Any moneys which are canteen property may be invested in the name of the Board in any form of security authorized for the investment of trust moneys under the law of the Commonwealth or of any of the States.

Financial records.

14.—(1.) The financial records to be used, kept and maintained by the Board and regional committees and the financial statements to be furnished by the Board and regional committees shall be as ordered or directed by the Air Board.

(2.) Such financial records shall be audited by a public accountant or a firm of public accountants nominated by the Air Board and audited balance sheets and profit and loss accounts of the Canteens Service shall be furnished by the Board to the Air Board within three calendar months after the end of each accounting period as fixed from time to time by the Air Board.

(3.) A copy of each audited balance sheet and profit and loss account shall be forwarded by the Air Board to the Auditor-General.

Application of Canteen property to certain trusts or objects.

15.—(1.) The Board may, from time to time, and shall, at any time when so directed by the Minister, after receiving a recommendation from the Air Board—

(a) vest in, advance to, or otherwise place at the disposal or under the control of, any committee or trustees nominated by the Air Board and approved by the Minister any canteen property for the purpose of such property being applied, held or administered upon such trusts for the benefit of members or former members of the Air Force

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or the families or dependants of members or former members, including deceased members, as the Minister, after receiving a recommendation from the Air Board, directs;

(b)vest in, or otherwise place at the disposal or under the control of, such trustees as the Minister, after receiving a recommendation from the Air Board directs, any canteen property for the purpose of the property being applied, held or administered upon such trusts for the benefit of the children of deceased or seriously incapacitated members of the Defence Force who served in the war after the third day of September, 1939, as the Minister, after receiving a recommendation from the Air Board, directs;

(2.) No application of canteen property shall be made to any of the objects mentioned in sub-regulation (l.) of this regulation unless at the time of such application, the Minister, after receiving the recommendation of the Air Board and a report from the Board as tothe amount required to meet the reasonable current requirements of members of the Air Force in respect of goods, services, entertainment, recreation, and other amenities, is of the opinion that the financial position of the Board warrants the particular application.

Board not responsible as to application of Canteen property to trust or object.

16.The Board shall not, nor shall any members of the Board, be responsible to see to the application of, or be responsible for the misapplication of, any canteen property vested in advanced, to, or placed under the control of, any committee, association or trustees pursuant to the provisions of any of these Regulations.

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By Authority: L. F. Johnston, Commonwealth Government Printer, Canberra.