Military Service Pensions (Amendment) Act, 1945
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Retrospective amendment of certain provisions of the Act of 1934. |
2.—(1) Section 6 of the Act of 1934 shall have effect as if the following subsection were substituted for subsection (1):— | |
“(1) There shall be established a committee to be styled and known as the Advisory Committee (in this section referred to as the Committee), each member whereof shall, if so requested by the Referee, assist him, in such manner as he may request, in the exercise of his functions under this Act.”. | ||
(2) Subsection (4) of section 8 of the Act of 1934 is hereby amended by the deletion of the words “before the Referee”. | ||
(3) Nothing in the Act of 1934 or in any regulations or rules made thereunder shall be construed as— | ||
(a) requiring the Referee, in investigating an application for a service certificate,— | ||
(i) to summon the applicant, or | ||
(ii) to hear the applicant, or | ||
(iii) to be present at any time when the applicant is being heard, or | ||
(b) prohibiting the Referee, in investigating an application for a service certificate, from authorising or permitting a person to hear the applicant. | ||
(4) Nothing in the Act of 1934 or in any regulations or rules made thereunder shall be construed as— | ||
(a) requiring the Referee, in investigating an application for a service certificate,— | ||
(i) to make inquiries from any person, or | ||
(ii) to summon any person who is not the applicant, or | ||
(iii) to hear any person who is not the applicant, or | ||
(iv) to be present a any time when any person who is not the applicant is being heard, or | ||
(b) prohibiting the Referee from investigating and reporting on an application for a service certificate, notwithstanding that— | ||
(i) there is a vacancy amongst the members of the Advisory Committee, or | ||
(ii) a member of the Advisory Committee is temporarily incapacitated from performing his duties as such member, or | ||
(c) prohibiting the Referee, in investigating an application for a service certificate, from authorising or permitting a person to hear any person who is not the applicant. | ||
(5) The Referee, in investigating an application for a service certificate, shall not be obliged— | ||
(a) to inform the applicant of any evidence or information obtained as the result of inquiries made by the Referee or on his behalf or furnished by any person, or | ||
(b) to allow any person to be present at any time when any other person is being heard, or | ||
(c) to afford the applicant an opportunity of tendering rebutting evidence. | ||
(6) The Referee in making his report on an application for a service certificate may take into account any evidence or information which is in his opinion relevant. | ||
(7) (a) References in subsections (3) and (4) of this section to hearing a person shall be construed as including references to— | ||
(i) examining that person, | ||
(ii) receiving representations made by, or on behalf of, that person, | ||
(iii) taking evidence (whether on oath or otherwise) from that person. | ||
(b) References in subsections (3), (4) and (5) of this section to a time when a person is being heard shall be construed as including references to a time when— | ||
(i) that person is being examined, | ||
(ii) representations are being made by or on behalf of that person, | ||
(iii) evidence (whether on oath or otherwise) is being taken from that person. | ||
(8) The preceding subsections of this section shall be deemed to have come into operation on, and shall have effect as on and from, the 13th day of September, 1934. | ||
(9) Where a conditional order of certiorari, directing the Minister to send before the High Court for the purpose of being quashed a report of the Referee on an application for a service certificate, has been made absolute by order of the Supreme Court or the High Court made before the 1st day of February, 1945, the following provisions shall have effect— | ||
(a) the application shall be again investigated and a report made thereon by the Referee as if subsections (1), (2) and (3) of this section had not been enacted, | ||
(b) if— | ||
(i) before the making of the said order of the Supreme Court or the High Court, a pension under the Act of 1934 was granted to the applicant, and | ||
(ii) as a result of the report made in pursuance of paragraph (a) of this subsection a pension under the Act of 1934 is granted to the applicant, | ||
then, any payments made on foot of the first-mentioned pension shall be treated as payments on foot of the second-mentioned pension. |