PART III

Amendment of Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Acts, 1938 to 1952.

7. —(1) In this Part of this Act “the Principal Act” means the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act, 1938 .

(2) The Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act, 1938 , the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act, 1949 , the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act, 1952 , and this Part of this Act may be cited together as the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Acts, 1938 to 1960.

8. —The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsection (1) of section 3 of the Principal Act:

“(1) There shall be paid to the Taoiseach an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding £3,000 and to each other member of the Government an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £2,000.”

9. —The following section is hereby substituted for section 4 of the Principal Act:

“4. There shall be paid to the Attorney General an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £3,500.”

10. —The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsection (1) of section 5 of the Principal Act:

“(1) There shall be paid to the Chairman of Dáil Éireann an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £2,000, and to the Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £850.”

11. —The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsection (1) of section 6 of the Principal Act:

“(1) There shall be paid to the Chairman of Seanad Éireann an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £1,250, and to the Deputy Chairman of Seanad Éireann an annual sum by way of salary not exceeding the sum of £500.”

12. —The following section is hereby substituted for section 9 of the Principal Act:

“9. (1) In this Part of this Act “qualified Party” means a Party in Dáil Éireann, other than the Government Party, in respect of which the following conditions are complied with:

(a) that it contested the then next preceding general election for members of Dáil Éireann as an organised party, and

(b) that not less than seven members of the Party were elected at such general election.

(2) Where two or more Parties in Dáil Éireann are of equal numerical strength in Dáil Éireann—

(a) the question as to which of them is to be regarded for the purposes of this Act as that one of those Parties which is of the greater or greatest numerical strength in Dáil Éireann shall be decided by the Chairman of Dáil Éireann,

(b) the decision shall be given in writing and shall for the purposes of this Act be final and conclusive and binding on all persons and tribunals whatsoever,

(c) the Chairman of Dáil Éireann shall, in giving the decision, have regard to the relative numbers in which such Parties were returned to Dáil Éireann at general elections held prior to the then next preceding general election for members of Dáil Éireann.”

13. —The following subsections are hereby substituted for subsections (1) to (4) of section 10 of the Principal Act:

“(1) Where there is one qualified Party and not more, there shall be paid to the Leader of that Party an annual sum by way of allowance for expenses of £4,500.

(2) Where there are two qualified Parties and not more—

(a) there shall be paid to the Leader of that one of the qualified Parties which is of the greater numerical strength in Dáil Éireann an annual sum by way of allowance for expenses of £3,000, and

(b) there shall be paid to the Leader of the other qualified Party an annual sum by way of allowance for expenses of £1,500.

(3) Where there are three or more qualified Parties—

(a) there shall be paid to the Leader of that one of the qualified Parties which is of the greatest numerical strength in Dáil Éireann an annual sum by way of allowance for expenses of £2,250,

(b) there shall be paid to each of the Leaders of the other qualified Parties an annual sum by way of allowance for expenses of £2,250 divided by the number of the other qualified Parties.

(4) An allowance payable to a person under this section shall be in addition to the allowance payable to him under the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act, 1938 , and shall not be payable save in respect of a period in respect of which the last-mentioned allowance is payable to him.”

14. —The following section is hereby substituted for section 11 of the Principal Act:

“11. The following provisions shall apply in relation to an allowance provided for by paragraph (b) of subsection (2) or paragraph (b) of subsection (3) of the next preceding section:

(a) the allowance shall not be paid unless the numerical strength in Dáil Éireann of the Party concerned is not less than seven;

(b) the allowance shall cease to be paid if the numerical strength in Dáil Éireann of the Party concerned at any time falls below seven;

(c) if the numerical strength in Dáil Éireann of the Party concerned falls below seven by reason of the death, resignation or disqualification of a member or members of said Party, the numerical strength thereof shall, for the purposes of this section, be deemed to be not less than seven until the vacancy or each of the vacancies in Dáil Éireann caused by such death, resignation or disqualification is filled.”

15. —The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsection (3) of section 14 of the Principal Act:

“(3) A ministerial pension shall be at the following rates, that is to say:

so long as the pensionable service of the person entitled thereto is three years, three hundred pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is four years, three hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is five years, four hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is six years, five hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is seven years, six hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

in case such person's pensionable service is eight or more years, seven hundred and fifty pounds per annum.”

16. —The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsection (3) of section 16 of the Principal Act:

“(3) A secretarial pension shall be at the following rates, that is to say:

so long as the pensionable service of the person entitled thereto is three years, two hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is four years, three hundred pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service, is five years, three hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is six years, four hundred pounds per annum,

if and so long as such person's pensionable service is seven years, four hundred and fifty pounds per annum,

in case such person's pensionable service is eight or more years, five hundred pounds per annum.”

17. —The following paragraph is hereby substituted for paragraph (b) of section 18 of the Principal Act:

“(b) either—

(i) where there is in Dáil Éireann one qualified Party within the meaning of Part III of this Act and not more, the Leader of that Party, or

(ii) where there are in Dáil Éireann two or more qualified Parties within that meaning and not more, the Leader of that one of those Parties which is of the greater numerical strength in Dáil Éireann, or

(iii) where there are in Dáil Éireann three or more such qualified Parties, the Leader of that one of those Parties which is of the greatest numerical strength in Dáil Éireann,

or a person nominated by such Leader,”.

18. —(1) The following subsection is hereby substituted for subsections (1) and (2) of section 23 of the Principal Act:

“(1) Where—

(a) a person to whom a pension under Part IV is for the time being payable is in receipt of any payment out of public moneys, and

(b) the aggregate of the annual amount of the pension and the annual amount of the payment out of public moneys exceeds one thousand pounds,

the annual amount of the pension under Part IV shall be reduced by the amount of the said excess.”

(2) Subsection (3) of section 23 of the Principal Act is hereby amended by the addition at the end of the definition of “payment out of public moneys” of the following word and paragraph:

“or

(g) an allowance under the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act, 1938 (No. 34 of 1938).”

19. —The Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act, 1947 , is hereby repealed.