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30 1987

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY ACT, 1987

PART III

Administration

Chief Executive.

15. —The Board of the Agency shall appoint a person to be the Chief Executive of the Agency under a contract of service on such terms and conditions as may be agreed to by the Board with the approval of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

Disclosure by member of Board of interest in proposed contract.

16. —A member of the Board who has—

(a) any material or financial interest in any body corporate with which the Board proposes to make any contract, or

(b) any material or financial interest in any contract which the Board proposes to make,

shall disclose to the Board the fact of the interest and the nature thereof, and shall take no part in any deliberation or decision of the Board relating to the contract, and the disclosure shall be recorded in the minutes of the Board.

Membership of Houses of Oireachtas or Assembly of European Communities.

17. —(1) Where a member of the Board is—

(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or

(b) elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or of the Assembly of the European Communities, or

(c) regarded pursuant to section 15 (inserted by the European Assembly Elections Act, 1984 ) of the European Assembly Elections Act, 1977 , as having been elected to such Assembly to fill a vacancy,

he shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Board of the Agency.

(2) Where an officer or servant of the Agency is—

(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or

(b) elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or of the Assembly of the European Communities, or

(c) regarded pursuant to section 15 (inserted by the European Assembly Elections Act, 1984 ) of the European Assembly Elections Act, 1977 , as having been elected to such Assembly to fill a vacancy,

he shall thereupon stand seconded from the employment of the Agency and shall not be paid by, or be entitled to receive from, the Agency any remuneration or allowances in respect of the period commencing on such nomination or election or when he is so regarded as having been elected, as the case may be, and ending when he ceases to be a member of either such House or such Assembly.

(3) In consequence of the foregoing provisions of this section, section 13 of the Act of 1961 shall have effect as follows:

(a) subsections (1) and (2), paragraphs (a) and (b) of subsection (3) and subsection (6) shall cease to have effect;

(b) the references in subsection (3) to an officer or servant who becomes a member of either House of the Oireachtas shall be construed as a reference to a person to whom subsection (2) of this section applies;

(c) the references to secondment and secondment period in the said section 13 shall be construed as references to secondment and the period of secondment under subsection (2) of this section.

(4) A person who is for the time being entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit therein or who is a member of the Assembly of the European Communities shall, while he is so entitled or is such a member, be disqualified from becoming a member of the Board or from employment by the Agency.

Expenditure by Agency.

18. —The funds of the Agency may be used—

(a) for the payment of expenses incurred by it in the performance of its functions, and

(b) for the making of payments, grants or loans for any purpose that, in the opinion of the Agency, is conducive to the promotion and development of scientific and technological activities.

Investment by Agency.

19. —The Agency may invest any of its funds (not being funds to which section 20 (3) of this Act applies) in any manner in which a trustee is empowered by law to invest trust funds.

Acceptance of gifts by Agency.

20. —(1) The Agency may accept gifts of money, land or other property upon such trusts and conditions, if any, as may be specified by the donor.

(2) The Agency shall not accept a gift if the conditions attached to the acceptance by the donor are inconsistent with the functions of the Agency.

(3) Any funds of the Agency, being a gift or the proceeds of a gift to it, may, subject to any terms or conditions of the gift, be investedin any manner in which a trustee is empowered by law to invest trust funds.

Annual report and information to Minister.

21. —(1) The Agency shall make annually, at such date as the Minister may direct, a report to the Minister of its proceedings under this Act during the period of twelve months ending on that date, and the Minister shall cause copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(2) The report submitted to the Minister pursuant to subsection (1) of this section shall contain such information as the Minister may direct regarding the functions of the Agency.

(3) The Agency shall supply the Minister with such information regarding the performance of its functions as he may from time to time require.

Accounts and audits.

22. —(1) The Agency shall keep, in such form as may be approved by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance, all proper and usual accounts of all moneys received or expenses incurred by it and, in particular, shall keep in such form as aforesaid all such special accounts as the Minister or the Minister for Finance may from time to time direct.

(2) Accounts kept in pursuance of this section shall be submitted annually by the Agency to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit and immediately after such audit a copy of the income and expenditure account and of the balance sheet and of such other of the accounts kept pursuant to subsection (1) of this section as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may direct and a copy of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the accounts shall be presented to the Minister who shall cause copies thereof to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

Officers and servants.

23. —(1) The Agency shall appoint such and so many persons to be officers and servants of the Agency as it may determine with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance.

(2) The Agency shall from time to time determine the grades, tenure of office and conditions of service of its officers and servants.

(3) An officer or servant of the Agency shall be paid such remuneration and allowances as the Agency, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, may from time to time determine.

Power to employ consultants.

24. —The Agency may employ such consultants or advisers on short term contracts of service as it considers necessary for the proper discharge of its functions.

Prohibition of disclosure of confidential information.

25. —(1) No person who is or has been a member of the Board or an officer or servant of the Agency, or an adviser or consultant to the Agency shall disclose any information classified by the Agency as confidential which has been obtained by him while performing (or as a result of having performed) duties as such member, officer, servant, adviser or consultant.

(2) A person who contravenes subsection (1) of this section shall be guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £500.

Committees of Board.

26. —(1) The Board may from time to time establish committees to perform such of the functions of the Agency as, in the opinion of the Board, may be better or more conveniently performed by a committee and are assigned to a committee by the Board.

(2) A committee established under this section may, if the Board thinks fit, include in its membership persons who are not members of the Board.

(3) The appointment of a person to act as a member of a committee established under this section shall be subject to such conditions (including conditions as to terms and the tenure of office of the member) as the Board, with the consent of the Minister and the Minister for Finance, may think fit to impose when making the appointment.

(4) A member of a committee established under this section may be removed from office at any time by the Board.

(5) The Board may at any time dissolve a committee appointed under this section.

(6) The acts of a committee established under this section shall be subject to the approval of the Board.

(7) The Board may regulate the procedure of committees established under this section but, subject to any such regulation, committees established under this section may regulate their own procedure.