A principle by which the conduct of public authorities is judged and which is enshrined in the following sentence from the judgment of Lord Greene MR in Associated Provincial Picture Houses Ltd v Wednesbury Corporation (1947): "It is true to say that, if a decision on a competent matter is so unreasonable that no reasonable authority could ever have come to it, then the courts can interfere."

See PERIODIC TENANCY.

A machine used for weighing vehicles, loaded or unloaded; it is usually set into the roadway, with an ancillary office.

An opportunity cost of money rate based on an organisation's historic average weighted cost of funding projects.

1. A vertical hole or shaft in the ground, usually lined or piped and from which water or oil may be extracted.

2. A vertical space in a building, sometimes containing stairs and/or lifts or providing light and air.

A colloquial term for a payment made under Schedule 23 to the Housing Act 1985 at the discretion of the local housing authority for an unfit house which has nevertheless been well maintained. The payment is made to the person(s) who incurred the cost of maintenance and is currently (1988) 14 times the rateable value but subject to its not exceeding the amount by which the full market value of the unfit house exceeds the site value compensation paid on its acquisition. (See Housing (Payments for Well Maintained Houses) Order 1982, section 1). See SLUM CLEARANCE; UNFIT PROPERTY.

A government-sponsored organisation set up in 1976 under the Welsh Development Agency Act 1975 for the purposes of seeking, fostering, developing and implementing opportunities for the growth of business, employment and wealth in Wales. The agency concentrates its activities mainly in South Wales and North Wales. Cf SCOTTISH DEVELOPMENT AGENCY; DEVELOPMENT BOARD FOR RURUAL WALES.

A colloquial term for a longitudinal area on both sides of the M4 motorway from London to Bristol, originally characterised by employment growth in the electronics industries.

A colloquial term for undeveloped, usually rural, land not the subject of any specific planning proposals or notation on a development plan; such land may have hope value for eventual (although unspecified) development.

A type of official publication, originally under a white cover, setting out government policy on a particular subject, especially that proposed for legislation. Cf GREEN PAPER; YELLOW PAPER. See COMMAND PAPERS.

May 15^th, a Scottish quarter day.

The financial market for funds derived from banks, pension funds and other institutions. Cf RETAIL MONEY MARKET.

For the purposes of Part I of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, this means; "any animal (other than a bird) which is or (before it was killed or taken) was living wild."

For the purposes of Part I of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 this means: "any bird of a kind which is ordinarily resident in or is a visitor to Great Britain in a wild state" excluding poultry or any game bird, except in section 5 (prohibition of certain methods of killing or taking wild birds) and section 16 (power to grant licences).

For the purposes of Part I of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 this means: "any plant which is or (before it was picked, uprooted or destroyed) was growing wild and is of a kind which ordinarily grows in Great Britain in a wild state."

A written statement, duly witnessed, setting out an individual's intentions as to the distribution of his estate upon death; to be valid it must comply with the formal requirements of the Wills Act 1837 and subsequent statues. See EXECUTOR(S); RULES OF INTESTACY.

An assumption sometimes made for rental valuation purposes, eg when so required by a rent review clause, that the lessor is willing to let the property concerned and that there is at least one genuine prospective lessee, whether or not such is actually the case at the date of valuation.

An assumption sometimes made for valuation purposes that the owner of the property concerned is willing to dispose of his interest therein and that there is at least one genuine purchaser in the market for that interest, whether or not such is actually the case at the date of valuation.

The procedure for terminating the affairs of a business, company or project. See LIQUIDATION; LIQUIDATOR.

A phrase used to enable parties to negotiate an agreement or settle a dispute, either orally or in writing, without any statement or admission made being subsequently quoted or produced in evidence at any legal hearing bearing on the subject-matter of the proposed agreement or dispute. In claiming this privilege, care must be taken to avoid statements which are untrue or of a defamatory nature, which might entitle the court to allow their admission in evidence at the request of the other party. In any event, the privilege applies only to the proceedings in question, so that "without prejudice" statements (verbal or written) can, in certain circumstances, be produced in evidence in some other, unrelated, dispute.