Adventure Activities Standards Authority Act, 2001
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Investigations and special reports. |
16.—(1) (a) The Authority may at any time direct any of its staff or any other competent person as it considers appropriate to investigate the circumstances surrounding any accident, incident, occurrence or situation or any other matter related to the general purposes of this Act and make a report to it, to be known and in this section referred to as “a special report”, on such matter. | |
(b) The purposes of an investigation under this subsection shall be to determine the cause of the accident, incident, occurrence, or situation and the adequacy of any codes of practice published or approved of under section 34 with a view to recommending changes, where appropriate, and shall not be for the purposes of attributing blame or responsibility for the accident, incident, occurrence, situation or other matter. | ||
(c) A person who is not an inspector undertaking an investigation under this section shall, for the purposes of such investigation, have all the powers of an inspector under this Act. | ||
(2) In the case of an investigation and special report made under subsection (1) (otherwise than by a member of the staff of the Authority), the Authority may pay to the person making it such fees and expenses as the Minister may, with the approval of the Minister for Finance, determine. | ||
(3) The Authority may, to such extent as the Minister may determine, defray the costs, other than those incurred under subsection (2), if any, incurred in the preparation of a special report. | ||
(4) A copy of a special report made under subsection (1) shall be presented to the Minister as soon as may be and the Authority shall cause such report to be made public within a reasonable time and in such manner as it thinks fit. | ||
(5) The Authority shall not have power to direct an investigation into an accident at a place of work (within the meaning of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act, 1989 ) or in Irish waters (within the meaning of the Merchant Shipping (Investigation of Marine Casualties) Act, 2000 ) save with the consent of the Minister given with the concurrence of any other Minister of the Government he or she considers appropriate. |