Local Forces (Relief of Financial Hardship) Act 1953

Local Forces (Relief of
Financial Hardship) Act 1953

2020 REVISED EDITION

This revised edition incorporates all amendments up to and including 1 December 2021 and comes into operation on 31 December 2021

An Act to enable payments in addition to pay and allowances to be paid to members of local forces or their dependants for the relief of financial hardship arising in consequence of their service with such forces.

[20 March 1964]

Short title

1. This Act is the Local Forces (Relief of Financial Hardship) Act 1953.

Interpretation

2. In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires —

“local force” means any force specified in the Schedule;

“Minister” means the Minister charged with the responsibility for defence.

Application

3.—(1) This Act shall apply to any member of a local force who is called out for actual service, active service or full‑time service under the provisions of any written law relating to that force, but only from such date as the Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, appoint.

(2) The Minister may appoint different dates in respect of different local forces under subsection (1).

(3) The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, declare that this Act shall cease to apply to members of any local force specified in the declaration from and after such date as may be appointed therein, but the declaration shall be without prejudice to any right of relief arising out of the service of those members before that date.

Payment of relief in cases of hardship arising from service

4.—(1) Any person to whom this Act applies shall be entitled in accordance with any rules made under section 5 to relief in respect of financial hardship suffered by him or his wife or children or other dependants and arising out of his service.

(2) For the purposes of this section, “service” means actual service, active service or full‑time service in a local force on and after the date appointed under section 3(1).

Power to make rules

5.—(1) The Minister may make rules regulating the application for the grant and the payment of relief under the provisions of this Act.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1), such rules may prescribe —

(a)	the manner in which any application for relief may be made, the form of the application and the person by whom the application may be made;
(b)	the circumstances in which and the conditions under which the relief may be granted;
(c)	the amount of such relief and the principles to be followed in determining the amount;
(d)	the persons or tribunals by whom the applications may be heard and determined;
(e)	the procedure to be followed by those persons or tribunals and all matters relating thereto; and
(f)	such other matters as may be necessary or expedient for carrying this Act into effect.

(3) Every such rule shall, as soon as possible after the making thereof, be presented to Parliament and if, at the next sitting of Parliament after the order is presented to it, a resolution is passed annulling the rule or any part thereof, the whole rule or such part thereof, as the case may be, shall thenceforth be void but without prejudice to the validity of anything done thereunder.

Amendment of Schedule

6. The Minister may, by notification in the Gazette, from time to time as he may think fit add to or delete from the list of local forces specified in the Schedule.

Consultation by Minister

7. The powers conferred upon the Minister by sections 3, 5 and 6 shall not be exercised so as to affect the Singapore Civil Defence Force raised and maintained under the Civil Defence Act 1986, or any member of that Force, without previous consultation with the Minister charged with the responsibility for civil defence.

THE SCHEDULE

Sections 2 and 6

Local Forces

1. The Singapore Civil Defence Force raised and maintained under the Civil Defence Act 1986.

2. The Special Constabulary constituted under Part 8 of the Police Force Act 2004.

3. The Singapore Armed Forces raised and maintained under section 7 of the Singapore Armed Forces Act 1972.

4. The Vigilante Corps raised and maintained under section 3 of the Vigilante Corps Act 1967.

[24/2004]

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

Local Forces (Relief of Financial Hardship) Act 1953

This Legislative History is a service provided by the Law Revision Commission on a best-efforts basis. It is not part of the Act.

Pictorial Overview of Predecessor Acts

http://efile.agc.gov.sg/sites/LEGIS/LawRevisionUnit/Documents/Universal%20Law%20Revision/LH%20diagrams%202020/Local%20Forces%20(Relief%20of%20Financial%20Hardship)%20(WL)%20(v1)%20(20.5.2020).jpg

Legislative History Details

PART I
LOCAL FORCES (CIVIL LIABILITY)
ORDINANCE
(CHAPTER 75, 1955 REVISED EDITION)

Ordinance 34 of 1951—Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance, 1951

Bill

G.N. No. S 223/1951

First Reading

17 July 1951

Second and Third Readings

21 August 1951

Commencement

8 September 1951

G.N. No. S 40/1954—“The Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance, 1951”

Commencement

5 February 1954

G.N. No. S 84/1955—“The Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance, 1951”

Commencement

27 April 1954

1955 Revised Edition—Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance (Chapter 75)

Operation

1 July 1956

G.N. No. S 241/1957—“The Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance”

Commencement

20 September 1957

Ordinance 31 of 1958—Legislative Assembly (Presentation of Subsidiary Legislation) Ordinance, 1958

(Amendments made by section 2 read with the Schedule to the above Ordinance)

Bill

158/1958

First Reading

16 July 1958

Second Reading

13 August 1958

Notice of Amendments

10 September 1958

Third Reading

10 September 1958

Commencement

25 September 1958 (section 2 read with the Schedule)

G.N. No. S (N.S.) 178/1959—Singapore Constitution (Modification of Laws) (No. 4) Order, 1959

Commencement

20 November 1959

PART 2
LOCAL FORCES (RELIEF OF FINANCIAL
HARDSHIP) ACT 1953
(2020 REVISED EDITION)

M. Ordinance 30 of 1953—The Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance, 1953

Commencement

25 June 1953

Application

20 March 1964

Note:

This Ordinance was extended to Singapore by the Modification of Laws (Local Forces) (Civil Liability) (Extension) (Singapore) Order, 1964 (L.N. 435/1964 (G.N. Sp. No. S 218/1964)) on 20 March 1964.

L.N. 435/1964 (G.N. Sp. No. S 218/1964—Modification of Laws (Local Forces) (Civil Liability) (Extension) (Singapore) Order, 1964

Commencement

20 March 1964

Note:

This Order repealed the Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance (Chapter 75, 1955 Revised Edition) and extended the Federation of Malaya Local Forces (Civil Liability) Ordinance, 1953 (M. Ordinance 30 of 1953) to Singapore.

10.

1970 Revised Edition—Local Forces (Civil Liability) Act (Chapter 230)

Operation

31 July 1971

11.

1985 Revised Edition—Local Forces (Civil Liability) Act (Chapter 165)

Operation

30 March 1987

12.

1998 Revised Edition—Local Forces (Relief of Financial Hardship) Act (Chapter 165)

Operation

15 December 1998

13.

Act 24 of 2004—Police Force Act 2004

(Amendments made by section 123(1) read with item (5) of the Second Schedule to the above Act)

Bill

22/2004

First Reading

19 May 2004

Second and Third Readings

15 June 2004

Commencement

12 October 2004 (section 123(1) read with item (5) of the Second Schedule)

14.

2020 Revised Edition—Local Forces (Relief of Financial Hardship) Act 1953

Operation

31 December 2021

Abbreviations

(updated on 29 August 2022)

G.N.

Gazette Notification

G.N. Sp.

Gazette Notification (Special Supplement)

L.A.

Legislative Assembly

L.N.

Legal Notification (Federal/Malaysian)

Malaya/Malaysia (including Federated Malay States, Malayan Union, Federation of Malaya and Federation of Malaysia)

Parl.

Parliament

Subsidiary Legislation

S.I.

Statutory Instrument (United Kingdom)

S (N.S.)

Subsidiary Legislation (New Series)

S.S.G.G.

Straits Settlements Government Gazette

S.S.G.G. (E)

Straits Settlements Government Gazette (Extraordinary)