PART 4

Accounts and Audits of HRI and Bord na gCon and Accountability of their Chief Executive Officers to Oireachtas Committees

13. —Section 28 of the Act of 1994 is amended by the substitution for subsection (2) of the following subsections:

“(2) Accounts kept in pursuance of this section shall be submitted not later than 3 months after the end of the financial year to which they relate by HRI to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit and, immediately after the audit, a copy of the income and expenditure account, the balance sheet and such other (if any) accounts kept pursuant to this section as the Minister, after consultation with 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.

(3) The chief executive shall, whenever required to do so by the Committee of Dáil Éireann established under the Standing Orders of Dáil Éireann to examine and report to Dáil Éireann on the appropriation accounts and reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, give evidence to that Committee on—

(a) the regularity and propriety of the transactions recorded or required to be recorded in any book or other record of account subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General which HRI is required by this Act to prepare,

(b) the economy and efficiency of HRI in the use of its resources,

(c) the systems, procedures and practices employed by HRI for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of its operations, and

(d) any matter affecting HRI referred to in a special report of the Comptroller and Auditor General under section 11(2) of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act, 1993 , or in any other report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (in so far as it relates to a matter specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)) that is laid before Dáil Éreann.”.

14. —The Act of 1958 is amended by the substitution for section 19 of the following section:

“19.—(1) The Board shall keep in such form and in respect of such accounting periods as may be approved of by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, all proper and usual accounts of moneys received or expended by it, including an income and expenditure account and a balance sheet.

(2) Accounts kept in pursuance of this section shall be submitted not later than 3 months after the end of the accounting period to which they relate by the Board to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit and, immediately after the audit, a copy of the income and expenditure account, the balance sheet and such other (if any) accounts kept pursuant to this section as the Minister, after consultation with 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.

(3) The chief executive officer of the Board shall, whenever required to do so by the Committee of Dáil Éireann established under the Standing Orders of Dáil Éireann to examine and report to Dáil Éireann on the appropriation accounts and reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General, give evidence to that Committee on—

(a) the regularity and propriety of the transactions recorded or required to be recorded in any book or other record of account subject to audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General which the Board is required by this Act to prepare,

(b) the economy and efficiency of the Board in the use of its resources,

(c) the systems, procedures and practices employed by the Board for the purpose of evaluating the effectiveness of its operations, and

(d) any matter affecting the Board referred to in a special report of the Comptroller and Auditor General under section 11(2) of the Comptroller and Auditor General (Amendment) Act, 1993 , or in any other report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (in so far as it relates to a matter specified in paragraph (a), (b) or (c)) that is laid before Dáil Éireann.”.

15. —(1) In this section—

“chief executive” other than in subsection (2), means the chief executive officer of HRI or Bord na gCon, as the case may be;

“Committee” means a Committee appointed by either House of the Oireachtas or jointly by both Houses of the Oireachtas (other than the Committee of Public Accounts or the Committee on Members' Interests of Dáil Éireann or the Committee on Members' Interests of Seanad Éireann) or a subcommittee of such a Committee.

(2) Subject to subsection (3), at the request in writing of a Committee—

(a) the chief executive officer of HRI shall attend before it to give account for the general administration of HRI, and

(b) the chief executive officer of Bord na gCon shall attend before it to give account for the general administration of Bord na gCon.

(3) The chief executive shall not be required to give account before a Committee for any matter which is or has been the subject of proceedings before a court or tribunal in the State.

(4) Where the chief executive is of the opinion that a matter in respect of which the chief executive is requested to give an account before a Committee is a matter to which subsection (3) applies, he or she shall inform the Committee of that opinion and the reasons for the opinion and, unless the chief executive is before it, the information shall be so conveyed in writing.

(5) Where the chief executive has informed a Committee of his or her opinion in accordance with subsection (4) and the Committee does not withdraw the request referred to in subsection (2) in so far as it relates to a matter the subject of that opinion—

(a) the chief executive may, not later than 21 days after being informed by the Committee of its decision not to do so, apply to the High Court in a summary manner for determination of the question whether the matter is one to which subsection (3) applies, or

(b) the chairperson of the Committee may, on behalf of the Committee, make such an application,

and the High Court may determine the matter.

(6) Pending the determination of an application under subsection (5), the chief executive shall not attend before the Committee to give account for the matter the subject of the application.

(7) If the High Court determines that the matter concerned is one to which subsection (3) applies, the Committee shall withdraw the request referred to in subsection (2), but if the High Court determines that subsection (3) does not apply, the chief executive shall attend before the Committee to give account for the matter.