Workplace Relations (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021
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Amendment of section 40 of Act of 2015 | ||
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3. Section 40 of the Act of 2015 is amended— | ||
(a) by the insertion of the following subsection after subsection (1): | ||
“(1A) A person shall not be eligible for appointment under subsection (1) to be an adjudication officer where one or more of subparagraphs (i) to (iv) of subsection (6)(d) apply to the person.”, | ||
(b) in subsection (5)— | ||
(i) by the substitution, in paragraph (a), of “if the Government” for “if the Minister”, | ||
(ii) by the substitution, in paragraph (b), of “staff of the Commission,” for “staff of the Commission, or”, | ||
(iii) by the substitution, in paragraph (c), of “expiry of that period, or” for “expiry of that period.”, and | ||
(iv) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c): | ||
“(d) if the adjudication officer concerned— | ||
(i) is convicted on indictment of an offence, | ||
(ii) is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty, | ||
(iii) has a declaration made against him or her under section 819 of the Companies Act 2014 or is deemed to be subject to such a declaration by virtue of Chapter 5 of Part 14 of that Act, or | ||
(iv) is subject to, or is deemed to be subject to, a disqualification order within the meaning of Chapter 4 of Part 14 of the Companies Act 2014 whether by virtue of that Chapter or of any other provision of that Act.”, | ||
(c) in subsection (6)— | ||
(i) by the substitution, in paragraph (a), of “if the Government” for “if the Minister”, | ||
(ii) by the substitution, in paragraph (c), of “have ceased, or” for “have ceased.”, and | ||
(iii) by the insertion of the following paragraph after paragraph (c): | ||
“(d) if the adjudication officer concerned— | ||
(i) is convicted on indictment of an offence, | ||
(ii) is convicted of an offence involving fraud or dishonesty, | ||
(iii) has a declaration made against him or her under section 819 of the Companies Act 2014 or is deemed to be subject to such a declaration by virtue of Chapter 5 of Part 14 of that Act, or | ||
(iv) is subject to, or is deemed to be subject to, a disqualification order within the meaning of Chapter 4 of Part 14 of the Companies Act 2014 whether by virtue of that Chapter or of any other provision of that Act.”, | ||
and | ||
(d) by the substitution of the following subsection for subsection (7): | ||
“(7) (a) The Government may revoke an appointment under this section if the Government is satisfied that one or more of the grounds specified in paragraph (b) apply to the adjudication officer. | ||
(b) The grounds referred to in paragraph (a) are as follows, namely that an adjudication officer: | ||
(i) has become incapable through ill-health of performing his or her functions; | ||
(ii) has engaged in serious misconduct; | ||
(iii) has failed without reasonable cause, in the opinion of the Government, to perform his or her functions for a continuous period of at least 3 months beginning not earlier than 6 months before the date of the giving of the notice under paragraph (c); | ||
(iv) has contravened to a material extent a provision of the Ethics in Public Office Acts 1995 and 2001 that, by virtue of a regulation under section 3 of the Ethics in Public Office Act 1995 , applies to him or her. | ||
(c) Where the Government proposes to revoke the appointment of an adjudication officer under paragraph (a), they shall give notice in writing to the adjudication officer concerned of the proposal. | ||
(d) A notice under paragraph (c) shall include a statement— | ||
(i) of the reasons for the proposed revocation of appointment, | ||
(ii) that the adjudication officer may, within a period of 30 working days from the giving of the notice or such longer period as the Government may, having regard to the requirements of natural justice, specify in the notice, make representations to the Government in such form and manner as may be specified by the Government, as to why the adjudication officer should not have his or her appointment revoked, and | ||
(iii) that where no representations are received within the period referred to in subparagraph (ii) or the period specified in the notice, as the case may be, the Government shall, without further notice to the adjudication officer, proceed with the revocation of the appointment of the adjudication officer in accordance with this subsection. | ||
(e) In considering whether to revoke the appointment of an adjudication officer under paragraph (a), the Government shall take into account— | ||
(i) any representations made by the adjudication officer under paragraph (d)(ii) within the period referred to in that paragraph or the period specified in the notice, as the case may be, and | ||
(ii) any other matter the Government considers relevant for the purpose of their decision. | ||
(f) Where, having taken into account the matters referred to in paragraph (e), the Government decide to revoke the appointment of an adjudication officer, they shall give notice in writing to the adjudication officer of the decision and the reasons for that decision.”. |