First Previous (PART II Establishment and Administration) Next (FIRST SCHEDULE Repeal of Enactments)

26 1988

FORESTRY ACT, 1988

PART III

Transitional Provisions

Transfer of land.

39. —(1) On the vesting day all land (other than land designated by the Minister) which, immediately before that day, was vested in the Minister and was used or had been acquired for the purposes of functions assigned by this Act to the company and all rights, powers and privileges relating to or connected with such land shall, without any conveyance or assignment, but subject to subsection (2), stand vested in the company for all the estate or interest for which immediately before the vesting day it was vested in the Minister but subject to all trusts and equities affecting the land subsisting and capable of being performed.

(2) Subsection (1) shall not operate to vest in the company any minerals or any right of mining or taking minerals, or any foreshore, within the meaning of the Foreshore Act, 1933 .

(3) The Minister may on his own initiative and shall on the application of the company issue a certificate in respect of specified land certifying, as he thinks proper, that the land vested in the company under this section or did not so vest and the certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the facts so certified.

Transfer of other property.

40. —(1) On the vesting day all property other than land, including choses-in-action, which immediately before that day was the property of the Minister and was used or had been acquired in connection with the functions assigned by this Act to the company shall stand vested in the company without any assignment.

(2) The Minister may on his own initiative and shall on the application of the company issue a certificate in respect of specified property certifying, as he thinks proper, that the property vested in the company under this section or did not so vest and the certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the facts so certified.

(3) Every chose-in-action transferred by subsection (1) to the company may, after the vesting day, be sued on, recovered or enforced by the company in its own name and it shall not be necessary for the company or the Minister to give notice to the person bound by the chose-in-action of the transfer effected by that subsection.

Transfer of rights and liabilities.

41. —(1) All rights and liabilities of the Minister arising by virtue of any contract or commitment (expressed or implied) entered into by him or by the Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland on his behalf before the vesting day in relation to functions assigned to the company under this Act shall on that day stand transferred to the company.

(2) The Minister may on his own initiative and shall on the application of the company issue a certificate in respect of a specified contract or commitment certifying, as he thinks proper, that the rights and liabilities of the Minister thereunder were transferred on the vesting day to the company under this section or were not so transferred and the certificate shall be conclusive evidence of the facts so certified.

(3) Every right and liability transferred by subsection (1) to the company may, on and after the vesting day, be sued on, recovered or enforced by or against the company in its own name and it shall not be necessary for the company or the Minister to give notice to the person whose right or liability is transferred by this section of such transfer.

(4) The company shall comply with such obligations (excluding repayment of principal or interest payments) as may be specified by the Minister for Finance in relation to his contractual obligations under foreign loan contracts, entered into before the vesting day, relating to functions assigned to the company under this Act.

Exemption from stamp duty.

42. —Section 12 of the Finance Act, 1895, shall not apply to the vesting in the company of any property or rights transferred by this Act.

Provisions applicable to staff transferred to company.

43. —(1) The company shall accept into its employment with effect from the vesting day in accordance with the terms of this Act every person who immediately before the vesting day is a member of the staff of the Department of Energy and is designated, whether before, on or after the vesting day, by the Minister for employment by the company.

(2) Save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned, a member of the staff of the Department of Energy referred to in subsection (1) shall not, while in the service of the company, be brought to less beneficial conditions of service or of remuneration than the conditions of service or of remuneration to which he was subject immediately before the vesting day.

(3) Until such time as the scales of pay and conditions of service of staff so transferred are varied by the company, following consultation with recognised trade unions and staff associations, the scales of pay to which they were entitled and the conditions of service, restrictions, requirements and obligations to which they were subject immediately before their transfer shall continue to apply to them and may be exercised or imposed by the company while they are in its service.

(4) The conditions in regard to tenure of office which are granted by the company in relation to a member of the staff so transferred shall not, while he is in the service of the company, be less favourable to him than those prevailing for the time being in the civil service; any alteration in the conditions in regard to tenure of office of any such member shall not be less favourable to him than the prevailing conditions in the civil service at the time of such alteration, save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade union or staff association concerned. If a dispute arises between the company and any such member as to conditions prevailing in the civil service, the matter shall be determined by the Minister for Finance after consultation with the Minister.

(5) In relation to staff transferred to the company, previous service in the civil service shall be reckonable for the purposes of, but subject to any other exceptions or exclusions in, the Redundancy Payments Acts, 1967 to 1984, the Holidays (Employees) Act, 1973 , the Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Acts, 1973 and 1984, and the Unfair Dismissals Act, 1977 .

Superannuation.

44. —(1) The company shall prepare and submit to the Minister a scheme or schemes for the granting of pensions, gratuities and other allowances on resignation, retirement or death to or in respect of such members of the staff of the company as it may think fit.

(2) Every such scheme shall fix the time and conditions of retirement for all persons to or in respect of whom pensions, gratuities or allowances are payable under the scheme, and different times and conditions may be fixed in respect of different classes of persons.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), every such scheme may be amended or revoked by a subsequent scheme submitted and approved of under this section.

(4) Every scheme under this section shall provide for not less favourable conditions in respect of persons who, immediately before the vesting day, were members of the staff of the Department of Energy than those to which they were entitled immediately before the vesting day.

(5) Disbursement of pensions, gratuities and other allowances which may be granted to or in respect of persons who, immediately before the vesting day, were members of the staff of the Department of Energy shall not be on less favourable conditions than would apply if the benefits referred to had continued to be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

(6) A scheme submitted by the company under this section shall, if approved by the Minister with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, be carried out by the company in accordance with its terms.

(7) No pension, gratuity or allowance shall be granted by the company on the resignation, retirement or death of a member of the staff of the company otherwise than in accordance with a scheme under this section.

(8) Where a superannuation allowance falls due for payment to or in respect of a person to whom subsection (4) applies in the period beginning on the vesting day and ending immediately before the coming into operation of a scheme submitted by the company and approved of under this section, the allowance shall be calculated and paid by the company in accordance with such superannuation scheme or such enactments in relation to superannuation, as applied to such person immediately before the vesting day and, for that purpose, his pensionable service with the company shall be aggregated with his previous pensionable service.

(9) The Minister for Finance shall make such contribution as may, with his consent, be specified in a scheme or schemes under this section towards the pensions, gratuities and other allowances related to reckonable service given before the vesting day which may be granted to or in respect of persons who, immediately before that day, were members of the staff of the Department of Energy, and such scheme or schemes shall, with the like consent, fix the manner and times of the payment of such contribution.

(10) (a) Notwithstanding anything in the Superannuation Acts, 1834 to 1963, and the Superannuation and Pensions Act, 1976 , the Minister for Finance may, following consultation with the company, delegate to the company the payment of pensions, gratuities and other allowances to or in respect of such persons who were members of the staff of the Department of Energy or of other Departments and who were engaged in functions assigned to the company under this Act and who retired or died before the vesting day as he may specify.

(b) Any delegation under paragraph (a) shall provide for not less favourable conditions than would apply if the benefits referred to had continued to be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

(c) The company shall make payments in accordance with any such delegation to it and shall be reimbursed by the Minister for Finance in respect thereof in such manner and at such times as may be specified in the articles of association of the company.

(11) Moneys required to be paid by the Minister for Finance under this section shall be advanced out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof.

Power of Commissioners of Public Works to undertake work.

45. —(1) The Commissioners of Public Works in Ireland shall have power to undertake work at the request of the company.

(2) In exercise of the powers conferred by subsection (1), the said Commissioners shall, in respect of any work undertaken by them at the request of the company on or after the vesting day, be deemed not to be a State authority for the purposes of the Local Government (Planning and Development) Acts, 1963 to 1983.

Charge of rates on property of company.

46. —Rateable property vested in the company on the vesting day shall, from the commencement of the next following financial year, cease to be exempt from the rate chargeable by a local authority notwithstanding that the property may appear as exempt on a valuation list.

Liability for loss occurring before vesting day.

47. —(1) A claim in respect of any loss or injury alleged to have been suffered by any person arising out of the exercise before the vesting day of functions assigned to the company by this Act shall, after that day, lie against the company, whether or not any claim in respect thereof was made before that day and, subject to section 49 , not against the Minister, any other State authority or the State.

(2) Where, before the vesting day in a claim to which subsection (1) relates, agreement in settlement of the claim has been reached between the parties and the terms of the agreement have not been implemented or judgment has been given in favour of the injured person and the judgment has not been enforced, the terms of the agreement or the judgment, as the case may be, shall, in so far as enforceable against the Minister, any other State authority or the State, be enforceable against the company and, subject to section 49 , not against the Minister, any other State authority or the State.

(3) Any claim made or proper to be made by the Minister, any other State authority or the State in respect of any loss or injury arising from the act or default of any person before the vesting day shall, where the claim relates to functions assigned to the company by this Act, be regarded as made by or proper to be made by the company and may be pursued and sued for by the company as if the loss or injury had been suffered by the company.

(4) Where, before the vesting day, in a claim to which subsection (3) relates, agreement in settlement of the claim has been reached between the parties and the terms of the agreement have not been implemented or judgment has been given in favour of the Minister, any other State authority or the State and the judgment has not been enforced, the terms of the agreement or the judgment, as the case may be, shall, in so far as enforceable by the Minister, any other State authority or the State, be enforceable by the company.

(5) This section does not apply to a claim by one State authority against another.

Continuance of pending legal proceedings.

48. —All legal proceedings in respect of functions assigned to the company by this Act and pending immediately before the vesting day to which the Minister, any other State authority or the State is a party shall be continued with the substitution for any such party of the company.

Enforcement of judgments.

49. —(1) Where judgment is given against the company in any proceedings in pursuance of a claim to which section 47 (1) relates or in proceedings continued under section 48 and the person in whose favour the judgment is given has been unable to enforce the judgment, in whole or in part, against the company, he shall be entitled to enter judgment against the Minister for Finance in any court of competent jurisdiction for any amount not recovered on foot of the judgment as a debt due to him by the said Minister.

(2) The Minister for Finance shall be entitled to recover from the company any payment made by him to a person in satisfaction of a judgment entered against him under subsection (1).

(3) Moneys required by the Minister for Finance to meet payments required by him under this section shall be advanced to him out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof, and shall be repaid to the Central Fund out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

Continuance of certain notices, certificates, declarations and bonds.

50. —From the vesting day—

(a) every notice, certificate and declaration given by or to the Minister,

(b) every court order directed to any person, and

(c) every bond given by any person to the Minister,

which relates to functions assigned under this Act to the company, shall, where its operation, effect or term has not ceased or expired before the vesting day, continue in force and have effect as if the functions of the Minister were on that day performable by the company.

Continuance of licences and permissions granted by the Minister.

51. —Every licence or permission granted by the Minister in relation to land or other property vested in the company under this Act, and in force immediately before the vesting day, shall continue in force as if granted by the company.

Continuance of planning consultations.

52. —For the purpose of section 84 of the Local Government (Planning and Development) Act, 1963—

(a) any consultation which is completed before the vesting day between the Minister and a planning authority in relation to the construction or extension of a building which from that day is to be used in connection with the functions assigned by this Act to the company shall have effect as if the company were a party to that consultation;

(b) any such consultation which is commenced by the Minister but which is not completed before the vesting day in relation to the construction or extension of any building which from that day is to be used as aforesaid shall be completed by the company and not by the Minister.

Transitional financial provisions.

53. —(1) The company shall pay to or in respect of every member of the staff of the Department of Energy transferred to the service of the company any amount due to or in respect of that member in respect of service with the Department and unpaid on the vesting day and the company shall, with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, be reimbursed by the Minister.

(2) The Minister shall, with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, pay to the company an amount equal to advance payments received by him before the vesting day in respect of goods or services to be provided by the company on or after the vesting day.

(3) The company shall pay to the Minister an amount equal to sums collected by it on or after the vesting day in respect of goods or services provided by the Minister before the vesting day in respect of functions assigned by this Act to the company.

(4) All sums required to be paid under this section shall become due and payable on such date as the Minister, in consultation with the company and with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, may determine.

(5) The company shall supply the Minister with such information, records and documents as the Minister may require for the purposes of this section and the Minister and his officers shall have the right to inspect and take copies of all relevant records and documents of the company.

(6) In the event of a disagreement as to any amount to be paid by the Minister to the company or by the company to the Minister under this section the decision of the Minister, given with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, shall be final.