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10 1946

TURF DEVELOPMENT ACT, 1946

PART IV.

Financial Provisions.

Grant to the Board in respect of expenses of experimental and research work.

52. —(1) In the financial year current at the establishment date and in each of the nine subsequent financial years, the Minister may, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, pay, subject to the limitation imposed by subsection (2) of this section to the Board a grant, towards the expenses incurred by the Board under section 19 (which relates to experimental and research work by the Board in relation to turf and turf products) of this Act, of such amount as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may fix.

(2) The total amount of grants to be made under this section shall not exceed the sum of one hundred and twenty thousand pounds.

(3) Any grants made under this section shall be applied by the Board solely towards defraying expenses incurred by the Board under section 19 of this Act.

Advances to the Board out of the Central Fund.

53. —(1) For the purpose of enabling the Board to exercise or perform its functions, the Minister for Finance may, on the recommendation of the Minister, advance from time to time to the Board, out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof, such sums (not exceeding in the aggregate three million seven hundred and fifty thousand pounds) as the Board may from time to time request.

(2) The sums advanced under this section shall be expended by the Board solely for the purpose of the functions of the Board.

(3) The sums advanced under this section shall be repayable with interest in accordance with the subsequent provisions of this Act.

Provision of money for advances to the Board out of Central Fund.

54. —(1) The Minister for Finance may, for the purpose of providing for the advance of sums out of the Central Fund under section 53 of this Act borrow on the security of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof such sums as shall be required for that purpose, and the said Minister may, for the purposes of such borrowing, create and issue securities bearing such rate of interest and subject to such conditions as to repayment, redemption, or otherwise as he thinks fit, and shall pay all moneys so borrowed into the Exchequer.

(2) The principal of and interest on all securities issued under this section shall be charged on and payable out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof.

Payment of interest on repayable advances.

55. —(1) Subject to section 57 of this Act, the Board shall pay to the Minister for Finance on every sum advanced to the Board out of the Central Fund under section 53 of this Act and which is repayable interest from the date of the advance of such sum until the same is repaid at such rate as shall from time to time be appointed by the Minister for Finance in respect of such sum, and such interest shall be so paid by half-yearly payments on such days in every year as the Minister for Finance shall from time to time appoint.

(2) If the Board fails to pay to the Minister for Finance any interest payable by it under this section at the time appointed in that behalf under this section, the Board shall pay to the said Minister interest at the rate appointed by the said Minister on the interest so unpaid from the time appointed as aforesaid until the same is actually paid.

(3) All interest paid to the Minister for Finance by the Board under this section shall be paid into or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in such manner as the said Minister may direct.

Repayment of repayable advances.

56. —(1) For the purpose of providing for the repayment by the Board of the advances made to it out of the Central Fund under section 53 of this Act which are repayable, the Board shall make to the Minister for Finance half-yearly payments commencing on such date, and continuing for such number of years and being of such amounts and payable at such times as the said Minister, after consultation with the Minister, shall appoint, and different such dates, numbers of years, amounts, and times may be so appointed in respect of different portions of such advances.

(2) The several half-yearly payments to be made to the Minister for Finance by the Board under this section shall be applied by the said Minister as sinking funds for the repayment of the several portions of the advances in respect of which such half-yearly payments are made and when the Board has paid to the said Minister the full number of the half-yearly payments appointed under this section in respect of any portion of such advances (together with any interest which may have become payable under this section in respect of any of such half-yearly payments) such portion of such advances shall be deemed to be fully repaid by the Board, without prejudice to the liability of the Board for any interest then unpaid in respect of such portion of such advances.

(3) If the Board fails to pay to the Minister for Finance any half-yearly payment or portion of a half-yearly payment payable by it to the said Minister under this section at the time appointed in that behalf under this section, the Board shall pay to the said Minister on such half-yearly payment or portion of a half-yearly payment interest at such rate as shall from time to time be appointed by the said Minister in respect thereof from the time appointed as aforesaid until the same is actually paid.

(4) All moneys paid by the Board to the Minister for Finance under this section in repayment of advances shall be paid into the Exchequer.

(5) All sums paid by the Board to the Minister for Finance under this section on foot of interest shall be paid into or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in such manner as the said Minister may direct.

Waiver of interest on certain advances to the Board.

57. —(1) The following provisions shall apply in respect of any advances (in this subsection referred to as the said advances) made to the Board under section 53 of this Act during the period (in this subsection referred to as the quinquennial period) of five years commencing on the establishment date, that is to say:—

(a) no interest shall be payable by the Board on the said advances in respect of any period ending on the day immediately preceding the date on which the Minister for Finance makes an order under paragraph (c) of this section,

(b) the Minister for Finance shall, immediately after the expiration of the quinquennial period, examine the finances of the Board,

(c) after such examination, the said Minister shall, having regard to the existing state of the finances of the Board and its future financial prospects, either—

(i) by order (in this section referred to as the exemption order) exempt the Board from the liability to pay interest on the said advances in respect of the period during which the exemption order is in force, or

(ii) by order declare the Board liable to pay interest on the said advances in respect of any period commencing on or after the date of the order,

(d) where the said Minister makes the exemption order, he may at any time thereafter by order revoke the exemption order.

(2) The Minister for Finance shall before making any order under subsection (1) of this section consult the Minister with regard to the proposed order.

(3) If the exemption order is made it shall be laid before Dáil Éireann as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution is passed by Dáil Éireann within the next subsequent twenty-one days on which Dáil Éireann has sat after the order is laid before it annulling the order, the order shall be annulled accordingly.

Power of the Board to borrow temporarily.

58. —The Board may, with the consent of the Minister, given after consultation with the Minister for Finance, borrow temporarily by arrangement with bankers such sums as it may require for the purpose of providing for current expenditure.

Accounts and Audits.

59. —(1) The Board shall keep in such form as shall be approved by the Minister after consultation with the Minister for Finance all proper and usual accounts of all moneys received or expended by them, including a capital account, revenue account, profit and loss account, and a balance sheet, and in particular shall keep in such form as aforesaid all such special accounts as the Minister on his motion or at the request of the Minister for Finance shall from time to time direct.

(2) The accounts of the Board for each year shall be audited within ninety days or such longer time as the Minister may in any particular case allow after the end of that year and shall be the subject of a report by duly qualified auditors appointed annually for the purpose by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, and the fees of such auditors and the expenses generally of such audits shall be paid by the Board.

(3) The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance appoint the time, place, and method of conducting the audit of the accounts of the Board under this section and may also appoint the accounts of which copies are to be furnished to the Minister under this section and the accounts which are to be published and put on sale under this section and the time and method of such publication and sale.

(4) Immediately after every audit under this section of the accounts of the Board, the Board shall send to the Minister a copy of the capital account, revenue account, profit and loss account and balance sheet as certified by the auditors, a copy of the auditors' report, and copies of such of the accounts submitted to the auditors as are appointed in that behalf under this section or may be specially called for by the Minister, and shall publish and put on sale such of the accounts submitted to the auditors as are appointed in that behalf by the Minister.