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22 1942

CENTRAL BANK ACT, 1942

PART IV.

Extinction of Consolidated Bank Notes.

Definitions in respect of this Part of this Act.

34. —(1) In this Part of this Act the word “half-year” means a period of six months ending on the 31st day of March or the 30th day of September, and the expression “Associated Bank” means one of the eight banks named in the second column of the Third Schedule to this Act and does not apply to any other bank.

(2) References in this Part of this Act to consolidated bank notes outstanding with an Associated Bank shall be construed as referring to and including all consolidated bank notes which, at the time to which the reference relates, have been issued by the Commission or by the Bank to that Associated Bank and have not been accepted by either the Commission or the Bank for retirement.

Restrictions on amount of consolidated bank notes outstanding.

35. —(1) The maximum amount of consolidated bank notes which may be outstanding with any particular Associated Bank mentioned in the second column of the Third Schedule to this Act—

(a) on any day during the period commencing on the day after the date of the passing of this Act and ending on the 31st day of December, 1944, shall not exceed the amount stated in the third column of the said Third Schedule opposite the name of such Associated Bank in the second column of that Schedule;

(b) on any day during the triennial period ending on the 31st day of December, 1947, shall not exceed the amount stated in the fourth column of the said Third Schedule opposite the name of such Associated Bank in the second column of that Schedule;

(c) on any day during the triennial period ending on the 31st day of December, 1950, shall not exceed the amount stated in the fifth column of the said Third Schedule opposite the name of such Associated Bank in the second column of that Schedule;

(d) on any day during the triennial period ending on the 31st day of December, 1953, shall not exceed the amount stated in the sixth column of the said Third Schedule opposite the name of such Associated Bank in the second column of that Schedule.

(2) The Commission shall before the appointed day and the Bank shall on and after that day each take such steps, by restriction of issue or otherwise, as it thinks fit towards ensuring that the amount of consolidated bank notes outstanding with an Associated Bank on any day during a period mentioned in the foregoing sub-section of this section does not exceed the maximum amount indicated in that sub-section in respect of such Associated Bank for such period.

(3) No consolidated bank notes shall be issued by the Bank to any Associated Bank after the 31st day of December, 1953.

(4) It shall not be lawful for any Associated Bank to pay out any consolidated bank notes in respect of which it is the responsible bank after the 31st day of December, 1953, and if any Associated Bank shall pay out any consolidated bank note in contravention of this sub-section, such Associated Bank shall be liable to pay to the Bank a sum equal to one-tenth of the amount of such note.

(5) Sub-section (3) of section 58 of the Currency Act shall cease to have effect as on and from the 1st day of January, 1954, and every regulation made and direction given under that sub-section which is in force immediately before that day shall similarly cease to have effect.

(6) No consolidated bank notes shall be issued by the Commission or by the Bank to any bank which is not one of the eight banks named in the second column of the Third Schedule to this Act.

(7) Whenever any amalgamation, partition, transfer, or other change occurs amongst the eight banks mentioned in the second column of the Third Schedule to this Act, it shall be lawful for the Board, with the consent of the Minister, to make such (if any) adjustment of all or any of the amounts stated in the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth columns respectively of the said Third Schedule as shall, in the opinion of the Board, be requisite or desirable in consequence of such amalgamation, partition, transfer, or other change.

Payment in respect of consolidated bank notes outstanding after cesser of issue.

36. —(1) Every Associated Bank shall, after the 31st day of December, 1953, and before the 1st day of January, 1957, pay to the Bank such sum as shall be equal to the amount (if any) of consolidated bank notes outstanding with such Associated Bank on the date of such payment.

(2) Every sum paid by an Associated Bank to the Bank in accordance with sub-section (1) of this section shall be placed by the Bank to the credit of the currency reserve.

(3) Upon payment by an Associated Bank to the Bank in accordance with sub-section (1) of this section of the sum required by that sub-section to be so paid by such Associated Bank, the following provisions shall have effect in respect of such Associated Bank, that is to say:—

(a) such Associated Bank shall cease to be liable to pay the amount of any consolidated bank note outstanding with such Associated Bank on the date of such payment or to pay any payment on consolidated bank notes in respect of any period subsequent to the date of such payment to the Bank;

(b) the Bank shall surrender to such Associated Bank all securities which, on the date of such payment to the Bank, are held by the Bank from such Associated Bank in respect of consolidated bank notes;

(c) all consolidated bank notes outstanding with such Associated Bank on the said date shall be payable by the Bank on presentation at its principal office in Dublin and shall be so payable out of the currency reserve.

Payments by Associated Banks on consolidated bank notes.

37. —(1) Every Associated Bank shall pay to the Commission or to the Bank (as the case may require), in respect of every half-year ending after the date of the passing of this Act, the following sums, that is to say:—

(a) in respect of the half-year (if any) which is partly before and on and partly after the date of the passing of this Act or which commences on that date—

(i) for the portion of such half-year which ends on or consists of the date of the passing of this Act, a sum calculated in accordance with sub-section (1) (except paragraph, (e) thereof) of section 65 of the Currency Act, and

(ii) for the portion of such half-year which is subsequent to the date of the passing of this Act, a sum calculated at such rate, not exceeding two and one-half per cent. per annum, as shall from time to time be appointed in that behalf by the Minister on the amount of consolidated bank notes outstanding (up to the maximum amount authorised by this Act to be so outstanding) from day to day with such Associated Bank during the said portion of such half-year;

(b) in respect of every half-year which begins after the date of the passing of this Act, a sum calculated at such rate, not exceeding two and one-half per cent. per annum, as shall from time to time be appointed in that behalf by the Minister on the amount of consolidated bank notes outstanding. (up to the maximum amount authorised by this Act to be so outstanding) from day to day with such Associated Bank during such half-year;

(c) in respect of every half-year ending after the date of the passing of this Act, a sum calculated at such rate, not exceeding three per cent. per annum, as shall from time to time be appointed in that behalf by the Minister on the amount of consolidated bank notes (if any) outstanding after the said date from day to day with such Associated Bank during such half-year in excess of the amount authorised by this Act to be so outstanding;

(d) in respect of every half-year, ending after the date of the passing of this Act, such share of the expenses incurred during such half-year by the Commission or by the Bank in providing consolidated bank notes as shall be prescribed by regulations made by the Commission or by the Bank and for the time being in force.

(2) At the end of every half-year the Commission or the Bank (as the case may require) shall ascertain in respect of every Associated Bank the amount of the payments on consolidated bank notes payable under this section by such bank in respect of such half-year and shall send to every Associated Bank a certificate showing the said amount so ascertained in respect of it and how such amount is made up, and every Associated Bank shall within fourteen days after receiving any such certificate pay to the Commission or the Bank (as the case may require) the amount stated in such certificate to be payable by it.

(3) Every sum payable by an Associated Bank to the Commission under this section shall be recoverable by the Commission or the Bank (as the case may be) from such Associated Bank as a civil debt in any court of competent jurisdiction, and the non-payment of any such sum by an Associated Bank within the time specified in this section for payment thereof shall be a ground for removing such bank from being an Associated Bank.

(4) A certificate under the seal of the Commission or of the Bank stating the amount payable on any occasion by an Associated Bank to the Commission or the Bank under this section and that such amount or a specified portion thereof is due and unpaid shall, in any proceedings by the Commission or the Bank to recover such amount, be evidence until the contrary is proved of the said matters so stated in such certificate.

Stamp duty in respect of consolidated bank notes.

38. Section 49 of the Finance Act, 1932 (No. 20 of 1932), as amended by section 15 of the Finance Act, 1937 (No. 18 of 1937), shall apply and have effect in relation to the half-year (if any) which is partly before and on and partly after the date of the passing of this Act or which commences on that date as if the portion of such half-year which ends on or consists of the said date were a half-year, and the said section 49 as so amended shall, in pursuance of the repeal thereof by this Act, not apply or have effect in relation to the portion of such half-year which is subsequent to the said date.

Notes of former banks of issue.

39. —(1) In the case of every Associated Bank which was, at the passing of the Currency Act, a bank of issue, so much of the proportion of notes mentioned in sub-section (4) of section 60 of that Act as is for the time being not redeemed in pursuance of that section shall not, in respect of any day after the date of the passing of this Act, be deemed for the purposes of this Part of this Act to be consolidated bank notes outstanding with such Associated Bank.

(2) As on and from the day after the date of the passing of this Act, the appropriate rate per cent. per annum for the purposes of sub-section (1) of section 66 of the Currency Act shall be such rate, not exceeding two and one-half per cent. per annum, as shall from time to time be appointed by the Minister.

Power of banks of issue to write off certain notes.

40. —(1) Where, for the purpose of computing the payments to be made under section 66 of the Currency Act by an Associated Bank which was, at the passing of that Act, a bank of issue, it is necessary to have regard to the total amount, as ascertained by the Commission, of the notes of such Associated Bank outstanding (including notes in the tills or vaults of such Associated Bank) immediately before the appointed day mentioned in section 60 of the Currency Act, such Associated Bank may, for the said purpose, from time to time write off, with the sanction of the Minister, from the said total amount as so ascertained an amount not exceeding the amount of so many of the said notes of such Associated Bank still outstanding at the time of such writing off as are estimated by such Associated Bank to be unlikely ever to be presented to such Associated Bank for payment.

(2) The Minister may attach to any sanction given by him to a writing off under the foregoing sub-section of this section such conditions as he shall, having regard to the circumstances, think proper, and may in particular require that the Associated Bank making such writing off shall pay to the Bank for addition to the currency reserve a specified proportion of the amount so written off, but subject to the limitation that the amount of such specified proportion shall not exceed the amount of the proportion appertaining to Saorstát Eireann determined by the Commission under sub-section (4) of section 60 of the Currency Act in respect of the notes of such Associated Bank outstanding immediately before the appointed day mentioned in that sub-section.

(3) Every writing off under this section by an Associated Bank shall have effect as on and from the date on which the sanction of the Minister thereto is given.

(4) Whenever an Associated Bank has written off an amount under this section, due regard shall be had to such writing off when computing the amount of any payment under section 66 of the Currency Act, as amended by this Act, payable by such Associated Bank in respect of a period wholly or partly subsequent to the date as on and from which such writing off has effect.

(5) No writing off under this section by an Associated Bank shall operate to release such Associated Bank from liability to pay any of its notes.