Health (Eastern Regional Health Authority) Act, 1999

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PART V

The Health Boards Executive

Health Boards Executive.

21.—(1) There shall stand established, on the appointed day, an agency to be known as the Health Boards Executive and in this section referred to as “the Executive”.

(2) The Executive shall be a body corporate with the power to sue and be sued.

(3) The Executive shall provide itself with a seal and all courts of justice shall take judicial notice of the seal.

(4) The Executive shall perform, on behalf of the health boards—

(a) such executive functions of the health boards as may be specified, from time to time, by the members of the Executive, and

(b) such other executive functions in relation to improving the efficiency and effectiveness of the health and personal social services as the Minister may, from time to time, direct.

(5) The members of the Executive shall be the chief executive officers of the health boards and the area chief executives.

(6) (a) The expenses of the Executive, in so far as not met from other sources, shall be met by the health boards in such proportions as the members of the Executive may agree upon from time to time, or, failing such agreement, in such proportions as may be determined by the Minister.

(b) In default of payment by a health board of the amount payable by it under paragraph (a), the amount involved may be deducted from any moneys payable to the health board by the Minister for any purpose whatsoever and shall be paid to the Executive by the Minister.

(7) The Executive shall keep all usual and proper accounts of its income and expenditure and of the sources of such income and of the subject matter of such expenditure and of the assets and liabilities of the Executive.

(8) The annual financial statements of the Executive for each year shall be prepared in accordance with accounting standards specified by the Minister and shall be submitted to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit within 3 months of the end of the year to which they relate and an audit shall be carried out by the Comptroller and Auditor General in accordance with section 5 of the Act of 1993.

(9) Upon completion of the audit under subsection (8), the Comptroller and Auditor General shall draw up a report in writing in relation to the accounts and shall submit a copy of the accounts together with his or her report thereon to the Minister, each health board and the Area Health Boards, and the Minister shall, as soon as may be, cause a copy of the report and a copy of the accounts to which the report relates to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(10) The Executive shall, not later than the 31st day of March in each year, make a report on its activities during the preceding year and shall submit a copy of the report to the Minister, each health board and the Area Health Boards.

(11) (a) The Executive may, with the consent of the Minister and the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, appoint such and so many persons to be members of the staff of the Executive as it may determine and in appointing any such person the Executive shall comply with any directions given by the Minister relating to the procedure to be followed.

(b) Every member of the staff of the Executive serving in a permanent capacity shall cease to be such a member on attaining the age of 65 years.

(c) The Executive shall, with the consent of the Minister and the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, determine the remuneration and conditions of service of each member of its staff.

(d) The Executive shall, from time to time, assign such duties as it considers appropriate to each member of the staff of the Executive and each such member shall perform the duties so assigned to him or her.

(e) Schemes and regulations made under the Local Government (Superannuation) Act, 1980 , shall apply to the members of the staff of the Executive appointed in a permanent capacity as if the Executive were a health board.

(12) For the purpose of the performance of its functions, the Executive may, subject to such terms and conditions (if any) as the Minister may specify—

(a) purchase or take on lease any land or other property,

(b) sell, exchange, let or otherwise dispose of any land or other property vested in it,

(c) make arrangements with another person for the use by the Executive of premises or equipment belonging to that person or for the use by the Executive of the services of employees of that person or body,

(d) accept gifts of money, land and other property upon such trusts and conditions, if any, as may be specified by the donor, save that the Executive shall not accept a gift where the conditions attached by the donor to its acceptance are not consistent with the functions of the Executive.

(13) (a) The Executive shall not borrow money without the prior consent of the Minister, given with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance,

(b) The borrowing of moneys by the Executive shall be subject to such terms and conditions (if any) as may be specified by the Minister with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance.

(14) The Minister may make regulations in respect of all or any of the following—

(a) the terms and conditions of the membership of the Executive,

(b) rules and proceedings at its meetings,

(c) the establishment of committees of it,

(d) the payment of expenses to its members.

(15) The Minister shall by order appoint a day to be the appointed day for the purposes of this section.

(16) Notwithstanding section 4(1) (inserted by section 24 ) of the No. 3 Act of 1996, the chief executive officer of a health board may require the Executive to carry out a function on his or her behalf and, where that officer makes such a requirement, he or she shall, as soon as may be, inform the health board concerned.

(17) In this section a reference to a health board includes a reference to the Authority and a reference to a chief executive officer of a health board includes a reference to the Regional Chief Executive.