Growth Centres (Development Corporations) Act 1974

If a member of a board of a development corporation, or a member of a committee or a sub-committee of such a board, has an interest, directly or indirectly, in land, proposals in respect of the development or use of which are to be considered by the board, committee or sub-committee, as the case may be, or has a pecuniary interest, direct or indirect, in a contract or proposed contract with the corporation or in any other matter in which the corporation is concerned and is present at a meeting of the board, committee or sub-committee, as the case may be, at which the proposals are or the contract, proposed contract or other matter is the subject of consideration, the member shall, at the meeting, as soon as practicable after the commencement thereof, disclose his or her interest and shall not take part in the consideration or discussion of or vote on any question with respect to the proposals or the contract, proposed contract or other matter.

For the purposes of this section, a person shall be treated as having an indirect interest in land or a contract, proposed contract or other matter if—

the person or any nominee of the person is a member of a company or other body which has an interest in the land, or with which the contract is made or is proposed to be made or which has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in the other matter under consideration, or

the person is a partner, or is in the employment of, a person who has an interest in the land, or with whom the contract is made or is proposed to be made or who has a direct or indirect pecuniary interest in the other matter under consideration.

Notwithstanding subsection (2)—

that subsection does not apply to membership of or employment under any council or statutory body,

a member of a company or other body shall not, by reason only of the person’s membership, be treated as being so interested if the person has no beneficial interest in any shares of that company or other body, and

a member of a company having not less than twenty-five members shall not be treated as having an interest in land or in any contract or proposed contract with the corporation or in any other matter in which the corporation is concerned by reason only that the company has an interest in the land or the contract or proposed contract is with or the other matter concerns the company.

In the case of a married couple who are living together, or de facto partners who are living together, the interest of one spouse or de facto partner shall, if known to the other, be deemed, for the purposes of this section, to be also an interest of the other spouse or de facto partner.

A general notice in writing to the secretary or the prescribed officer of the development corporation by a member of a board of a development corporation, or a member of a committee or a sub-committee of such a board, to the effect that the member or the member’s spouse or de facto partner is a member, or is in the employment of a specified company or other body, or that the member or the member’s spouse or de facto partner is a partner or in the employment of a specified person shall, unless and until the notice is withdrawn, be deemed to be a sufficient disclosure of the member’s interest in any land in which that company or other body has an interest or in any contract, proposed contract or other matter relating to that company or other body or to that person which may be the subject of consideration after the date of the notice.

The Secretary or officer referred to in subsection (5) shall record in a book to be kept for the purpose particulars of any disclosure made under subsection (1) and of any notice given under subsection (5) and the book shall be open at all reasonable hours to the inspection of any person on payment of such fees as may be determined by the development corporation from time to time.

Subject to subsection (8), if any person fails to comply with the provisions of subsection (1), the person is guilty of an offence against this Act and liable to a penalty not exceeding 4 penalty units, unless the person proves that the person did not know that proposals in respect of the development and use of the land in which the person had an interest were, or that the person did not know that a contract, proposed contract or other matter in which the person had a pecuniary interest was, the subject of consideration at the meeting.

The Minister may, subject to such conditions as the Minister thinks fit to impose, remove any disability imposed by subsection (1) in any case in which the number of members referred to in subsection (1) so disabled at any one time would be so great a proportion of the whole of the members of the board of a development corporation, or a committee or a sub-committee of such a board, as to impede the transaction of business, or in any other case in which it appears to the Minister that it is in the public interest that the disability should be removed.

The board of a development corporation, or a committee or a sub-committee of such a board, may, by resolution, provide for the exclusion of any member thereof from a meeting of the board, committee or sub-committee, as the case may be, while any proposal, in respect of any land or any contract, proposed contract or other matter in which that person has an interest as referred to in this section is under consideration.

In this section, shares includes stock.

The provisions of this section apply to a member of a council in relation to an interest in land that is within a growth centre and held by the member, directly or indirectly, proposals in respect of the development and use of which are to be considered by the council at a meeting of the council in the same way as they apply to a member of a board of a development corporation having an interest, directly or indirectly, in land proposals in respect of the development and use of which are to be considered by the board of the development corporation at a meeting.

(Repealed)