I, PATRICK COONEY, Minister for Defence, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 2 , 3 and 5 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) Act, 1932 (No. 26 of 1932), and by section 4 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Act, 1938 (No. 33 of 1938), as adapted by the Public Service (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order, 1973 ( S.I. No. 294 of 1973 ), hereby, with the consent of the Minister for the Public Service, make the following Scheme:

1 Short title, collective citation and construction.

1. (1) This Scheme may be cited as the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 7) Scheme, 1984.

(2) The collective citation, "the Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1984", shall include this Scheme.

(3) The Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1984, shall be construed together as one Scheme.

2 Commencement.

2. This Scheme shall come into force on the day after the date on which it is made.

3 Application of the Interpretation Act, 1937 .

3. The Interpretation Act, 1937 (No. 38 of 1937), applies to this Scheme.

4 Definitions.

4. In this Scheme—

"the Principal Scheme" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) Scheme, 1937 (S. R. & O., No. 249 of 1937);

"the Amending Scheme of 1947" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1947 (S. R. & O., No. 81 of 1947);

"the Amending Scheme of 1978" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1978 ( S.I. No. 246 of 1978 );

"the No. 2 Amending Scheme of 1983" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 2) Scheme, 1983 ( S.I. No. 190 of 1983 );

"the No. 5 Amending Scheme of 1984" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 5) Scheme, 1984 ( S.I. No. 172 of 1984 ).

5 Increase of retired pay of officers retired before 2nd of February, 1984.

5. The retired pay payable under Article 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 9A, 10 or 10A of the Principal Scheme (including retired pay increased under Article 13(1) (a) of the Principal Scheme) to an officer shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, be—

( a ) in the case of an officer who retired or was retired before the 2nd day of September, 1983, the amount which would be payable to him if the date of his retirement had been the 2nd day of September, 1983, and his appointment, rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual retirement, increased by 3.25 per cent;

( b ) in the case of an officer who retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of September, 1983, and before the 2nd day of October, 1983, the actual retired pay payable to him at the date of his retirement, increased by 3.25 per cent;

( c ) in the case of an officer who retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of October, 1983, and before the 2nd day of February, 1984, the amount which would be payable to him if the date of his retirement had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and his appointment, rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual retirement.

6 Increase of retired pay under Article 19 of the Amending Scheme of 1960.

6. The retired pay payable under Article 19 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1960 ( S.I. No. 135 of 1960 ), to an officer shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, be the amount which would be payable to him if the date of his retirement had been the 2nd day of September, 1983, and his rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual retirement, increased by 3.25 per cent.

7 Increase of pensions of certain deceased officers' widows.

7. (1) Article 20(1) of the Principal Scheme shall have effect as if for the Table thereto (inserted by Article 7 of the No. 5 Amending Scheme of 1984) there were substituted the following Table:

TABLE

Rank	Amount of Pension
Second Lieutenant or Lieutenant	£1,330.68 a year or 25 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.
Captain	£1,631.16 a year or 30 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.
Commandant	£1,923.36 a year or 31.5 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.
Major or Lieutenant-Colonel	£2,181.72 a year or 28 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.
Colonel	£2,606.04 a year or 27.5 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.
Major-General or higher rank	£2,895.12 a year or 25.5 per cent of the deceased officer's retired pay, whichever is greater.

(2) For the purposes of Article 20(1) of the Principal Scheme, as amended by this Article, a deceased officer's retired pay means—

( a ) in the case of an officer who died while in receipt of retired pay,

(i) where he retired or was retired before the 2nd day of September, 1983, and died before the 1st day of February, 1984, the retired pay which would be payable to him if the date of his retirement had been the 2nd day of September, 1983, and his appointment, rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual retirement, increased by 3.25 per cent;

(ii) where he retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of September, 1983, and before the 2nd day of October, 1983, and died before the 1st day of February, 1984, the actual retired pay payable to him at date of death, increased by 3.25 per cent;

(iii) where he retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of October, 1983, and died before the 1st day of February, 1984, the retired pay which would be payable to him if the date of his retirement had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and his appointment, rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual retirement;

(iv) in any other case the actual retired pay payable to him at the date of death,

( b ) in the case of an officer who died before qualifying for retired pay, his accrued retired pay which will be calculated by crediting him with the amount of pensionable service, including service in his rank, which he would have had if he had served to the retiring age prescribed for his rank, or the age of 65 in the case of a person of higher rank than Major-General, and which will be—

(i) in the case of an officer who died before the 1st day of September, 1983, the appropriate rate of retired pay in force on the 1st day of September, 1983, for an officer of his rank and service, increased by 3.25 per cent;

(ii) in the case of an officer who died on or after the 1st day of September, 1983, and before the 1st day of October, 1983, the approrpiate rate of retired pay, in force on the date of his death, for an officer of his rank and service, increased by 3.25 per cent;

(iii) in the case of an officer who died on or after the 1st day of October, 1983, and before the 1st day of February, 1984, the appropriate rate of retired pay in force on the 1st day of February, 1984, for an officer of his rank and service;

(iv) in any other case, the appropriate rate of retired pay in force on the date of his death, for an officer of his rank and service.

(3) Notwithstanding anything contained in Article 20(1) of the Principal Scheme, where an officer—

( a ) died while serving prior to the 23rd day of July, 1968, with five years' pensionable service or more, or

( b ) retired prior to the 23rd day of July, 1968, and dies while in receipt of retired pay,

there may be paid to the widow of such deceased officer—

(i) the appropriate amount in the Table to the said Article 20(1) (inserted by this Article), or

(ii) an amount equal to five-sixths of the pension which would be payable to her if her deceased husband had been a member of the No. 2 Amending Scheme of 1983 and the date of his death or retirement had been the 2nd day of September, 1983, increased by 3.25 per cent,

whichever is the greater.

(4) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of February, 1984.

8 Increase of pensions of certain deceased officers' children.

8. (1) Every pension payable under Article 20(2) of the Principal Scheme to a child of a deceased officer shall be increased as follows:

( a ) while the child's mother is living — to £446.88 a year,

( b ) after the death of the child's mother — to £656.28 a year.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in Article 20(2) of the Principal Scheme, where an officer—

( a ) died while serving prior to the 23rd day of July, 1968, with five years' pensionable service or more, or

( b ) retired prior to the 23rd day of July, 1968, and dies while in receipt of retired pay,

there may be paid to the child of such deceased officer—

(i) the appropriate amount under subarticle (1) of this Article, or

(ii) an amount equal to five-sixths of the pension which would be payable to the child if the deceased officer had been a member of the No. 2 Amending Scheme of 1983 and the date of his death or retirement had been the 2nd day of September, 1983, increased by 3.25 per cent,

whichever is the greater.

(3) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of February, 1984.

9 Increase of pensions under Article 26A or 27A of the Principal Scheme.

9. The pension payable under Article 26A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 22 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) or Article 27A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 24 of the said amending Scheme of 1947), (including pensions increased under Article 28B (inserted by Article 5 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 4) Scheme, 1984 ( S.I. No. 114 of 1984 ) ) of the Principal Scheme), to a soldier shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, be—

( a ) in the case of a soldier discharged before the 1st day of September, 1983, the amount which would be payable to him if the date of his discharge had been the 1st day of September, 1983, and his rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual discharge, increased by 3.23 per cent;

( b ) in the case of a soldier discharged on or after the 1st day of September, 1983, and before the 1st day of October, 1983, the actual pension payable to him at the date of his discharge, increased by 3.23 per cent;

( c ) in the case of a soldier discharged on or after the 1st day of October, 1983, and before the 1st day of February, 1984, the amount which would be payable to him if the date of his discharge had been the 1st day of February, 1984, and his rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the date of his actual discharge.

10 Increase of pensions of certain members of the Army Nursing Service.

10. The pension payable under Part IV of the Principal Scheme to a member of the Army Nursing Service shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, be—

( a ) in the case of a member who resigned or whose services were terminated with effect from a date prior to the 2nd day of October, 1983, the amount which would be payable to her if the effective date of her resignation or the termination of her services had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and her rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the actual effective date of her resignation or of the termination of her services and such amount shall be calculated by reference to the rate of annual pay appropriate to a member of her rank and service in that rank with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, exclusive of any increase in annual pay appropriate to that rank granted with effect from the 1st day of October, 1983;

( b ) in the case of a member who resigned or whose services were terminated with effect from a date on or after the 2nd day of October, 1983, and before the 2nd day of February, 1984, the amount which would be payable to her if the effective date of her resignation or the termination of her services had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and her rank, service in that rank and total service were the same as those on the actual effective date of her resignation or the termination of her services.

11 Increase of pensions of certain members of the Chaplaincy Service.

11. The pension payable under Part IVA of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 12 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1949 ( S.I. No. 209 of 1949 )), to a member of the Chaplaincy Service shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, be—

( a ) in the case of a member whose services were terminated with effect from a date prior to the 2nd day of October, 1983, the amount which would be payable to him if the effective date of the termination of his services had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and his grade of appointment, service in that grade and total service were the same as those on the actual effective date of the termination of his services and such amount shall be calculated by reference to the rate of annual pay appropriate to a member of his grade of appointment with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, exclusive of any increase in annual pay appropriate to that grade of appointment granted with effect from the 1st day of October, 1983;

( b ) in the case of a member whose services were terminated with effect from a date on or after the 2nd day of October, 1983, and before the 2nd day of February, 1984, the amount which would bepayable to him if the effective date of the termination of his services had been the 2nd day of February, 1984, and his grade of appointment, service in that grade and total service were the same as those on the actual effective date of the termination of his services.

12 Amendment of Article 20 (1) of the Amending Scheme of 1953.

12. Article 20(1) of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1953 ( S.I. No. 259 of 1953 ), shall, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, have effect as if for the Table thereto (inserted by Article 12 of the No. 5 Amending Scheme of 1984) there were substituted the following Table.

"TABLE

Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in Article 38 of the Principal Scheme, no reduction of service pension shall be made under that Article so as to reduce the total of the service pension and the disablement pension to less than the greater of the following amounts:—

( a ) the sum of £3,096 a year,

( b ) the sum of the greater of such pensions and one half the lesser.".

13 Provision regarding abatement of pensions of soldiers in certain cases.

13. The reference in Article 38(1) (b) of the Principal Scheme to a pension under Part III of that Scheme shall, in relation to a soldier discharged before the date of the coming into operation of Article 15 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1956 ( S.I. No. 35 of 1956 ). be deemed to exclude £14.80 a week with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984.

14 Amendment of Article 15 of the Amending Scheme of 1978.

14. (1) Article 15(2) of the Amending Scheme of 1978 (as amended by Article 14 of the No. 5 Amending Scheme of 1984), is hereby further amended, with effect from the 1st day of February, 1984, by the substitution of "£3,096" for "£2,988" and the said Article 15(2) as so amended is set out in the Table to this Article.

"TABLE

15. (2) Where the widow of an officer—

( a ) is granted a service pension and,

( b ) is also in receipt of an allowance,

there may be paid to such widow—

(i) the sum of the greater benefit plus one half of the lesser benefit, or, if greater

(ii) £3,096 a year;

provided that the total amount payable does not exceed one third of the officer's pensionable pay."

(2) For the purposes of Article 15(2) of the Amending Scheme of 1978, as amended by this Article, "pensionable pay"—

( a ) shall include any additional pay in respect of professional or technical qualifiactions which is reckonable for gratuity under Article 5 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 3) Scheme, 1972 ( S.I. No. 306 of 1972 ),

( b ) in the case of an officer, who died in service before the 1st day of September, 1983, or who retired or was retired before the 2nd day of September, 1983, shall be taken as the pay which would be payable to him if he had been serving on the 1st day of September, 1983, increased by 3.25 per cent, and

( c ) in the case of an officer, who died in service on or after the 1st day of September, 1983, and before the 1st day of October, 1983, or who retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of September, 1983, and before the 2nd day of October, 1983, shall be taken as the actual pay payable to him at date of death or retirement, as the case may be, increased by 3.25 per cent, and

( d ) in the case of an officer, who died in service on or after the 1st say of October, 1983, and before the 1st day of February, 1984, or who retired or was retired on or after the 2nd day of October, 1983, and before the 2nd day of February, 1984, shall be taken as the pay which would be payable to him if he had been serving on the 1st day of February, 1984, and

( e ) in any other cases, shall be the actual pay payable at the date of death or retirement, as the case may be.

15 Amendment of Article 4(1) of the No. 5 Amending Scheme of 1979.

15. (1) Article 4 (1) of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) (No. 5) Scheme, 1979 ( S.I. No. 399 of 1979 ), is hereby amended by the insertion in paragraphs (a) and (b) thereof after the word "retires" of the words "or is retired", and the said Article 4(1) as so amended is set out in the Table to this Article.

(2) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of August, 1982.

"TABLE

4. (1) Where an officer—

( a ) retires or is retired from the Permanent Defence Force, without a grant of retired pay, and is re-appointed to the Permanent Defence Force, or

( b ) retires or is retired from the Permanent Defence Force, without a grant of retired pay, is appointed to the Reserve of Officers (First Line) and is called out—

(i) on permanent service, or

(ii) in aid of the civil power

different periods of full-time service may be aggregated for purposes of pensionable service subject to such recovery of any gratuities paid in respect of the previous fulltime service together with compound interest at such rates as may be determined by the Minister from time to time with the consent of the Minister for the Public Service."

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 12th day of September, 1984.

PATRICK COONEY.

The Minister for the Public Service herebyconsents to the foregoing Scheme.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for the Public Service, this

12th day of September, 1984.

JOHN BOLAND.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This Statutory Instrument provides for the Budgetary increases effective from 1st February, 1984 in the pensions of Army personnel (including members of the Nursing and Chaplaincy Services) payable under the Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1984. It also amends, in certain respects, the existing provision relating to the aggregation of different periods of full-time service in the Defence Forces for certain officers.