Broadcasting Act, 2001
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SECOND SCHEDULE | ||
Provisions in relation to Teilifís na Gaeilge | ||
1. In this Schedule “the body” means Teilifís na Gaeilge. | ||
2. (1) The body shall consist of not less than 7 nor more than 9 members. | ||
(2) The members of the body shall be appointed by the Government. | ||
(3) Where the number of members of the body for the time being is 7, not less than 3 of them shall be men and not less than 3 of them shall be women. | ||
(4) Where the number of members of the body for the time being is 8 or 9, not less than 4 of them shall be men and not less than 4 of them shall be women. | ||
(5) The period of office of a member of the body shall be such period, not exceeding 5 years, as the Government may determine when appointing him or her. | ||
(6) A member of the body whose term of office expires by effluxion of time shall be eligible for reappointment. | ||
(7) A member of the body may resign his or her membership by letter sent to the Government and the resignation shall take effect on and from the date of receipt of the letter. | ||
(8) A person shall not be appointed to be a member of the body unless— | ||
(a) he or she has experience of or shown capacity in— | ||
(i) media or commercial affairs, | ||
(ii) radio communications engineering, | ||
(iii) trade union affairs, | ||
(iv) administration, or | ||
(v) social, cultural, educational or community activities or Gaeltacht affairs, | ||
and | ||
(b) he or she is able to speak and write proficiently in the Irish language. | ||
3. (1) The Government shall from time to time as occasion requires appoint a member of the body to be chairperson thereof. | ||
(2) The chairperson of the body shall, unless he or she sooner dies, resigns the office of chairperson or ceases to be chairperson under subparagraph (4) of this paragraph, hold office until the expiration of his or her period of office as a member of the body. | ||
(3) The chairperson of the body may at any time resign his or her office as chairperson by letter sent to the Government and the resignation shall take effect at the commencement of the meeting of the body held next after the body has been informed by the Government of the resignation. | ||
(4) Where the chairperson of the body ceases during his or her term of office as chairperson to be a member of the body, he or she shall also then cease to be chairperson of the body. | ||
4. A member of the body may be removed from office by the Government for stated reasons, if, but only if, resolutions are passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas calling for his or her removal. | ||
5. (1) A member of the body shall be paid out of funds at the disposal of the body— | ||
(a) such remuneration as may be fixed from time to time by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, and | ||
(b) such amounts in respect of expenses as the body, with the approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, considers reasonable. | ||
(2) Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, a member of the body shall hold office upon and subject to such terms and conditions as may, from time to time, be determined by the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance. | ||
(3) The Minister shall cause a statement in writing specifying the terms of office and the remuneration of the members of the body to be laid before both Houses of the Oireachtas. | ||
6. A member of the body who has— | ||
(a) any interest in any company or concern with which the body proposes to enter into any contract, or | ||
(b) any interest in any contract which the body proposes to enter into, | ||
shall disclose to the body the fact of the interest and the nature thereof, and shall take no part in any deliberation or decision of the body relating to the contract, and the disclosure shall be recorded in the minutes of the body. | ||
7. (1) The body shall as soon as may be after its establishment provide itself with a seal. | ||
(2) The seal of the body shall be authenticated by the signature of the chairperson of the body or some other member thereof authorised by the body to act in that behalf and the signature of an officer of the body authorised by the body to act in that behalf. | ||
(3) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the body, and every document purporting to be an instrument made by the body and to be sealed with the seal (purporting to be authenticated in accordance with this paragraph) of the body shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without further proof unless the contrary is shown. | ||
8. (1) The body shall hold such and so many meetings as may be necessary for the due fulfilment of its functions. | ||
(2) The Minister may fix the date, time and place of the first meeting of the body. | ||
(3) Subject to the provisions of the Schedule, the body shall regulate its procedure by rules made under this subparagraph. | ||
(4) At a meeting of the body— | ||
(a) the chairperson of the body shall, if present, be chairperson of the meeting, | ||
(b) if and so long as the chairperson is not present or the office of chairperson is vacant, the members of the body who are present shall choose one of their number to be chairperson of the meeting. | ||
(5) Every question at a meeting of the body shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting on the question, and in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairperson of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote. | ||
(6) The body may act notwithstanding one or more vacancies among its members (including one or more vacancies that result in subparagraph (3) or (4) of paragraph 2 not being complied with). | ||
(7) The quorum for a meeting of the body shall be fixed by rules made under subparagraph (3) of this paragraph, but— | ||
(a) it shall not be less than five, and | ||
(b) until it is so fixed, it shall be five. | ||
9. (1) The body shall, with the approval of the Minister, from time to time appoint a person to be the chief executive officer of the body, and such person shall be known, and in this Act is referred to, as the “chief executive”. | ||
(2) The body may, as well as appointing the chief executive, appoint so many other persons to be members of the staff of the body as the body, with the approval of the Minister, given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, from time to time determines. | ||
(3) The body may perform all or any of its functions through or by such members of its staff as may be duly authorised in that behalf by it. | ||
10. (1) A member of the staff of the body (including the chief executive) shall hold his or her office or employment on such terms and conditions as the body, with the approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may from time to time determine. | ||
(2) There shall be paid by the body to its staff (including the chief executive) such remuneration and allowances as the body, with the approval of the Minister given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, thinks fit. | ||
(3) In determining the remuneration or allowances to be paid to its staff or the terms or conditions subject to which such staff hold or are to hold their employment, the body shall comply with any directive with regard to such remuneration, allowances, terms and conditions which the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, may give, from time to time, to the body. | ||
(4) The body may at any time remove any member of the staff of the body from being a member of its staff. | ||
(5) Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions of this paragraph, the chief executive shall not be removed without the consent of the Minister. | ||
11. (1) Where a member of the body is— | ||
(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or | ||
(b) nominated as a candidate for election to either House of the Oireachtas or to the European Parliament, or | ||
(c) regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act, 1997 , as having been elected to the European Parliament, | ||
he or she shall thereupon cease to be a member of the body. | ||
(2) Where a person employed by the body is— | ||
(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or | ||
(b) nominated as a candidate for election to either House of the Oireachtas or to the European Parliament, or | ||
(c) regarded pursuant to the said Part XIII as having been elected to the European Parliament, | ||
he or she shall stand seconded from employment by the body and shall not be paid by, or entitled to receive from, the body any remuneration or allowances— | ||
(i) in case he or she is nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann or is regarded as having been elected to the European Parliament, in respect of the period commencing on such nomination or election, as the case may be, and ending when he or she ceases to be a member of Seanad Éireann or the European Parliament, | ||
(ii) in case he or she is nominated as a candidate for election to either House of the Oireachtas or to the European Parliament, in respect of the period commencing on his or her nomination and ending when he or she ceases to be a member of such House or the European Parliament, as the case may be, or withdraws his or her candidature or fails to be elected, as may be appropriate. | ||
(3) A person who is, for the time being, entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit therein or who is a member of the European Parliament shall, while he or she is so entitled or is such a member, be disqualified from becoming a member of the body or from employment in any capacity by the body. | ||
(4) Without prejudice to the generality of subparagraph (2) of this paragraph, that subparagraph shall be construed as prohibiting the reckoning of a period mentioned in clause (i) or (ii) of that subparagraph as service with the body for the purpose of any pensions, gratuities or other allowances payable on retirement or death. | ||
12. (1) The body may prepare a scheme or schemes for the granting of pensions, gratuities and other allowances on retirement or death to or in respect of such members of the staff of the body (including the chief executive) as it may think fit and the body shall submit any such scheme to the Minister for his or her approval. | ||
(2) Every such scheme shall fix the time and conditions of retirement for all persons to or in respect of whom pensions, gratuities or allowances on retirement or death are payable under the scheme, and different times and conditions may be fixed in relation to different classes of persons. | ||
(3) The body may at any time prepare and submit to the Minister a scheme amending or revoking a scheme previously submitted and approved of under this paragraph. | ||
(4) If any dispute arises as to the claim of any person to, or the amount of, any pension, gratuity or other allowance payable in pursuance of a scheme or schemes under this paragraph, such dispute shall be submitted to the Minister who shall refer it to the Minister for Finance, whose decision shall be final. | ||
(5) A scheme submitted to the Minister under this paragraph shall, if approved of by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for Finance, be carried out by the body in accordance with its terms. | ||
(6) No pension, gratuity or other allowance shall be granted by the body on the resignation, retirement or death of a member of the staff of the body (including the chief executive) otherwise than in accordance with a scheme under this paragraph or, if the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, sanctions the granting of such a pension, gratuity or allowance, in accordance with that sanction. | ||
(7) Every scheme submitted and approved under this paragraph shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is approved of and if a resolution annulling the scheme is passed by either such House within the next 21 days on which that House has sat after the scheme is laid before it, the scheme shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder. | ||
13. It shall be the duty of the body so to conduct its affairs as to ensure that its expenses can be met from its revenues. | ||
14. The body may, with the approval of the Minister, given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, borrow temporarily by arrangement with bankers such sums (including sums in a currency other than the currency of the State) as it may require for the purpose of providing for current expenditure. | ||
15. (1) The body may, with the approval of the Minister, given with the consent of the Minister for Finance, borrow money (including money in a currency other than the currency of the State) by means of the creation of stock or other forms of security to be issued, transferred, dealt with and redeemed in such manner and on such terms and conditions as the body, with the consents aforesaid, may determine. | ||
(2) The borrowing powers conferred by this paragraph on the body may, subject to the consent of the Minister, be exercised for any purpose arising in the performance of its functions, but there may be attached to a consent to borrow the condition that the moneys shall be utilised only for the purpose of a programme of capital works approved by the Minister. | ||
(3) The terms upon which moneys are borrowed under this paragraph may include provisions charging the moneys and interest thereon upon all property of whatsoever kind for the time being vested in the body or upon any particular property of the body and provisions establishing the priority of such charges amongst themselves. | ||
16. The body may invest any of its funds in any manner in which a trustee is empowered by law to invest trust funds. | ||
17. (1) The body 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 it, including an income and expenditure account and a balance sheet. | ||
(2) Accounts kept in pursuance of this paragraph shall be submitted annually by the body to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit at such time as the Minister, with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance, directs. | ||
(3) Immediately after every audit under this paragraph of its accounts, the body shall send to the Minister— | ||
(a) a copy of the income and expenditure account and balance sheet as certified by the Comptroller and Auditor General, | ||
(b) a copy of the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General, and | ||
(c) copies of such of the accounts submitted for audit as the Minister may appoint as accounts of which copies are to be furnished to him or her. | ||
(4) As soon as may be after he or she has received the documents required to be furnished to him or her under this paragraph, the Minister shall cause such documents to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. | ||
18. (1) The body shall, in each year, at such date as the Minister may direct, make a report to the Minister of its proceedings under this Act during the preceding year, and the Minister shall cause copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas. | ||
(2) Whenever the Minister so directs, the annual report shall also include information on such particular aspects of the body's proceedings under this Act as the Minister may specify. | ||
(3) The body shall submit to the Minister such information regarding the performance of its functions as the Minister may from time to time require. |