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9 1946

HARBOURS ACT, 1946

PART III.

Removal from Office of Members of Harbour Authority.

Commencement of Part III.

29. —This part of this Act shall come into operation in relation to a harbour authority on the second Thursday in the month of October in the year appointed in respect of them under section 6 of this Act.

Removal from office of members of harbour authority.

30. —(1) If and whenever—

(a) the Minister, after holding a local inquiry into the performance by a harbour authority of their duties, is satisfied that such duties are not being duly and effectually performed, or

(b) a harbour authority refuses or neglects to comply with a judgment, order or decree of any court, or

(c) a harbour authority refuses after due notice to allow their accounts to be audited by the auditor appointed by the Minister, or

(d) the members of a harbour authority capable of acting are less in number than the quorum for meetings of such harbour authority, or

(e) a harbour authority refuses or wilfully neglects to comply with an express requirement which is imposed on them by or under any statutory or other enactment,

the Minister may by order remove from office the members of such harbour authority.

(2) On the removal from office of the members of a harbour authority—

(a) the membership of all the members of any committee, being a committee appointed by the harbour authority under section 23 of this Act, shall terminate, and

(b) the membership of all the members of any committee, being a committee appointed by the harbour authority acting as a pilotage authority, shall terminate.

(3) In this Part of this Act, every reference to a removal from office shall be construed as a reference to a removal from office under this section.

(4) Every order made under this section shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as conveniently may be after it is made, and, if a resolution annulling such order is passed by either such House within the next twenty-one days on which such House has sat after such order is laid before it, such order shall be annulled accordingly but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

Reconstitutíon of membership of harbour authority after removal of members.

31. —(1) The Minister shall fix a year (in this Part of this Act referred to as the reconstitution year) for the reconstitution of the membership of a harbour authority whose members have been removed from office and such year, if it is not an election year, shall be deemed for the purposes of such reconstitution to be an election year.

(2) The reconstitution year shall be—

(a) in case the members of the relevant harbour authority were removed from office in a year immediately preceding an election year—such election year or any of the three next following years, and

(b) in any other case—any of the three years next following the year in which the members of the relevant harbour authority were removed from office.

(3) During the period between the removal from office of the members of a harbour authority and the second Thursday in the month of October in the reconstitution year, no appointment, election and nomination of the members of the harbour authority shall take place other than the appointment, election and nomination of the said members in the reconstitution year.

(4) Subject to subsection (2) of this section, the removal from office of the members of a harbour authority shall not alter the election years as respects the harbour authority.

Appointment of commissioners.

32. —(1) For the purposes of enabling a harbour authority whose members have been removed from office to function during the period between the removal from office and the second Thursday in the month of October in the reconstitution year, the Minister shall from time to time appoint one or more than one person to be the commissioner or commissioners for the harbour authority.

(2) The Minister may—

(a) remove any commissioner for a harbour authority appointed under this section and appoint another person to be commissioner for the harbour authority in his place,

(b) when there is or are one or more than one commissioner appointed under this section for a harbour authority, appoint one or more than one person to be an additional commissioner or additional commissioners for the harbour authority,

(c) where there are two or more commissioners appointed under this section for a harbour authority, reduce the number of the commissioners and for that purpose remove one or more than one of the commissioners.

(3) In the subsequent sections of this Part of this Act, the word “commissioner” means a commissioner appointed under this section.

Exercise of powers, etc., by commissioners.

33. —(1) During the period between the removal from office of the members of a harbour authority and the second Thursday in the month of October in the reconstitution year, every power, function or duty (including every power, function or duty of the harbour authority acting as a pilotage authority) which is exercisable or to be performed by the members of the harbour authority acting together in a meeting of the harbour authority shall be exercised or performed by the commissioner or commissioners for the harbour authority.

(2) In subsection (1) of this section, the word “power” includes the power to appoint a committee under section 23 of this Act.

(3) So long as a power of a harbour authority to appoint a committee is exercisable under this section by a commissioner or commissioners, the membership of the committee shall not be restricted to members of the harbour authority.

Tenure of office and remuneration of commissioner.

34. —(1) The Minister may fix the tenure of office of any commissioner.

(2) The Minister may direct the payment of remuneration to any commissioner and may fix its amount, and such remuneration as so fixed shall be paid out of the revenue of the relevant harbour authority as part of their working and establishment expenses.

Orders enabling this Part of this Act to have full force and effect.

35. —(1) The Minister may by order do all such things and make all such regulations as are in his opinion necessary or expedient in order to enable a harbour authority whose members are removed from office to function duly and effectually and, generally, to enable this Part of this Act to have full force and effect.

(2) The Minister, in exercise of the powers conferred on him by subsection (1) of this section but without prejudice to the generality thereof, may by order—

(a) provide for the exercise and performance by deputy of the powers and duties of a commissioner who is sick or absent on leave, and

(b) where there are two or more commissioners for a harbour authority, provide generally or as regards particular matters for the acting of the commissioners individually, collectively or by a majority.

(3) The Minister may by order amend or revoke any order made under this section (including any order made under this subsection).

Adaptation of enactments.

36. —The Minister may by order make all such adaptations of any enactment (including this Act other than this Part of this Act) as appear to him to be necessary or expedient for enabling this Part of this Act to have full force and effect or for enabling such enactment to have effect in conformity with this Part of this Act.

Continuity of existence.

37. —The continuity of the existence of a harbour authority, by the title appropriate to them according to law, as a corporate body shall not be affected by the removal from office of the members of the harbour authority nor by the vacancy in the office of chairman or vice-chairman occasioned by the removal.