S.I. No. 599/2016 - Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) Regulations 2016.

Notice of the making of this Statutory Instrument was published in

“Iris Oifigiúil” of 13th December, 2016.

The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission, in exercise of the powers conferred on it by section 2(1)(c) of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act 1962 (No. 32 of 1962) (section 2 having been replaced by the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act 1992 (No. 3 of 1992), and paragraph (c) having been inserted by the Oireachtas (Miscellaneous Provisions) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act 1996 (No. 39 of 1996)), and by section 10(5) and (13) (inserted by section 2 of the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Amendment) Act 2014 (No. 6 of 2014)) of the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act 1938 (No. 38 of 1938) and by section 4(3) of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Act 2003 (No. 28 of 2003) as well as by the amendment of Schedule 1 to that Act (as inserted by section 3 of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 2012 (No. 50 of 2012)) by section 6 of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) Act 2015 (No. 53 of 2015), hereby makes the following regulations:

Introduction and General

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) Regulations 2016.

2. In these Regulations—

“Commission” means the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission established by section 3 of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Act 2003 , and, where the context requires, also includes the Houses of the Oireachtas Service described in section 2(1) of that Act (as inserted by section 2 (b) of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) Act 2009 (No. 44 of 2009));

“Group” means a body of members of the relevant House of the Oireachtas that stands recognized as a Group in accordance with the Standing Orders of that House except where any constituent element of the Group is a qualifying party;

“independent member” means a member of either House of the Oireachtas who is not a member of a qualifying party;

“information systems facilities” are those facilities (including equipment) provision of which is contemplated by Regulation 8;

“Leinster House” includes any office premises provided by the State in the vicinity of Leinster House for use by members of Dáil Éireann or Seanad Éireann;

“Ministerial Office” means the Taoiseach, the Tánaiste, a Minister of the Government, or a Minister of State;

“Parliamentary Office” means the Chairman of Dáil Éireann, the Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann, the Chairman of Seanad Éireann, or the Deputy Chairman of Seanad Éireann;

“pensions administrator” means the Minister of the Government, or the person prescribed pursuant to statute by such a Minister, or the trustees who has or have charge of the pension arrangements referred to in Regulation 9(1)(e);

“special secretarial allowance” means the special secretarial allowance provided for by section 2(2A) and (2B) (as inserted by section 16 of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) and Ministerial, Parliamentary, Judicial and Court Offices (Amendment) Act 1998 (No. 5 of 1998)) of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act 1962 and any regulations made in furtherance of those subsections.

Personnel — Members

3. (1) Subject to Regulation 4, each member of Dáil Éireann, other than a member who holds a Ministerial Office or a Parliamentary Office, is entitled to—

(a) standard secretarial facilities consisting of either one secretarial assistant working full-time or such number of secretarial assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working full-time, and

(b) additional secretarial facilities consisting of one of the following—

(i) one parliamentary assistant working full-time or such number of parliamentary assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one parliamentary assistant working full-time, or

(ii) in cases which the Commission considers exceptional, and with the consent of the Commission, one additional secretarial assistant working full-time.

(2) The Commission may, upon the written application of a member of Dáil Éireann, and with the consent of the Commission—

(a) in cases in which the Commission is satisfied that the grant of the application is warranted by reason of the member’s disability, or

(b) where the member has been appointed by a Group as its co-ordinator,

provide the member in question with additional secretarial facilities up to the equivalent of one secretarial assistant working full-time subject to such conditions as the Commission directs.

4. (1) A member referred to in Regulation 3(1) is entitled to additional secretarial facilities referred to in that paragraph of Regulation 3 only where he or she opts in writing as provided for in paragraph (2) of this Regulation to exercise the entitlement and, subject to that paragraph, does so in the manner and subject to the conditions that the Commission directs from time to time.

(2) Unless the Commission in cases which the Commission considers exceptional permits that exercise on some other occasion—

(a) a member, if he or she wishes to exercise the option referred to in paragraph (1)—

(i) must, subject to clause (ii), do so as soon as practicable after the general election for the 32nd Dáil Éireann,

(ii) may, if he or she did not exercise that option at the time contemplated by clause (i), do so on the first anniversary of that general election,

(b) a member, if he or she has exercised the option referred to in paragraph (1) at the time contemplated by sub-paragraph (a)(i) of this paragraph (2), may notify the Commission in writing at any time following that exercise that he or she wishes to cease to exercise that option, but only if the minimum notice that his or her employee affected by the decision is entitled to by statute would expire not later than the first anniversary of that exercise or at some sooner date.

5. (1) Subject to Regulation 6, each member of Seanad Éireann, other than a member who holds a Ministerial Office or a Parliamentary Office, is entitled to—

(a) standard secretarial facilities consisting of either one secretarial assistant working half-time or such number of secretarial assistants working less than half-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working half-time, and

(b) additional secretarial facilities consisting of one secretarial assistant working half-time or such number of secretarial assistants working less than half-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working half-time.

(2) The Commission may, upon the written application of a member of Seanad Éireann, and with the consent of the Commission—

(a) in cases in which the Commission is satisfied that the grant of the application is warranted by reason of the member’s disability, or

(b) where the member has been appointed by a Group as its co-ordinator,

provide the member in question with additional secretarial facilities up to the equivalent of one secretarial assistant working full-time subject to such conditions as the Commission directs.

6. (1) Any person providing additional secretarial facilities under Regulation 5(1)(b) may be the same person as the secretarial assistant providing standard secretarial facilities under Regulation 5(1)(a).

(2) A member referred to in Regulation 5(1) is entitled to additional secretarial facilities referred to in that paragraph of Regulation 5 only where he or she opts in writing as provided for in paragraph (3) of this Regulation to exercise the entitlement and, subject to that paragraph, does so in the manner and subject to the conditions that the Commission directs from time to time.

(3) Unless the Commission in cases which the Commission considers exceptional permits that exercise on some other occasion—

(a) a member, if he or she wishes to exercise the option referred to in paragraph (2)—

(i) must, subject to clause (ii), do so as soon as practicable after the general election for the 25th Seanad Éireann,

(ii) may, if he or she did not exercise that option at the time contemplated by clause (i), do so on the first anniversary of that general election,

(b) a member, if he or she has exercised the option referred to in paragraph (2) at the time contemplated by sub-paragraph (a)(i) of this paragraph (3), may notify the Commission in writing at any time following that exercise that he or she wishes to cease to exercise that option, but only if the minimum notice that his or her employee affected by the decision is entitled to by statute would expire not later than the first anniversary of that exercise or at some sooner date.

7. (1)(a) Each of the following—

(A) the holder of a Ministerial Office,

(B) the Chairman of Dáil Éireann, and

(C) the Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann,

is entitled to—

(i) one secretarial assistant working full-time or such number of secretarial assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working full-time, and

(ii) either—

(I) one parliamentary assistant working full-time or such number of parliamentary assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one parliamentary assistant working full-time, or

(II) in cases which the Commission considers exceptional, and with the consent of the Commission, one additional secretarial assistant working full-time.

(b)(i) That any of the persons listed in sub-paragraph (a)(A), (B), and (C) avails of the special secretarial allowance does not limit that person’s entitlements provided for in sub-paragraph (a)(ii).

(ii) Where any of the persons listed in sub-paragraph (a)(A), (B), and (C) does not avail of the entitlements provided for in sub-paragraph (a)(ii), he or she may not avail of the special secretarial allowance in an amount greater than if he or she had availed of those entitlements.

(2) The Chairman of Seanad Éireann is entitled to secretarial facilities consisting of either one secretarial assistant working full-time or such number of secretarial assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working full-time.

(3)(a) The Deputy Chairman of Seanad Éireann is entitled to—

(i) subject to clause (ii), secretarial facilities consisting of one secretarial assistant working full-time and one secretarial assistant working half-time, or such number of secretarial assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working full-time and one secretarial assistant working half-time,

(ii) during any interval in respect of which he or she avails of the special secretarial allowance, secretarial facilities consisting of either one secretarial assistant working full-time or such number of secretarial assistants working part-time as are equivalent to one secretarial assistant working full-time.

(b) Where the Deputy Chairman of Seanad Éireann does not avail of the entitlements provided for in sub-paragraph (a), he or she may not avail of the special secretarial allowance in an amount greater than if he or she had availed of those entitlements.

(4) This paragraph confirms, to avoid doubt, that a member of either House of the Oireachtas may make the application contemplated by (as appropriate) Regulation 3(2)(a) or 5(2)(a) of these Regulations, and may have that application granted in accordance with the terms of that provision of Regulation 3(2) or 5(2), notwithstanding that he or she holds a Ministerial Office or a Parliamentary Office.

Information Systems Facilities — Members

8. (1)(a) Each member of Dáil Éireann is entitled to secretarial facilities consisting of 3 suites of computer equipment as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, and one set of facilities as specified in Parts 2 to 4 of that Schedule.

(b) Each member of Seanad Éireann is entitled to secretarial facilities consisting of 2 suites of computer equipment as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1 and one set of facilities as specified in Parts 2 to 4 of that Schedule.

(2)(a) In the case of work sharing arrangements, referred to in Regulation 3(1), Regulation 5(1), and Regulation 7(1)(a), (2), and (3)(a), a maximum of one additional suite of computer equipment, as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, may be issued to the member.

(b) Where additional secretarial facilities referred to in Regulations 3(2) and 5(2) are provided, a maximum of one additional suite of computer equipment, as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, may be issued to the member.

(c) An allocation of computer equipment provided for in sub-paragraph (b) to a member who has been appointed by a Group as its co-ordinator may only be retained by him or her so long as he or she retains the additional secretarial facilities in his or her capacity as co-ordinator in accordance with the relevant decision of the Commission.

9. (1) The following are additional restrictions and conditions for the purposes of section 2(1)(c) of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act 1962 , subject to which the information systems facilities are provided—

(a) the member must on his or her first receipt of any piece of equipment forming part of the information systems facilities—

(i) sign the agreement the terms of which are set out in Schedule 3, and

(ii) lodge with the Commission a deposit of €500,

and, in lodging the deposit, the member permits the Commission to apply it or any portion of it in full or part satisfaction of the member’s liability to the Commission regarding the information systems facilities,

(b) the member in relation to all matters arising from the provision to him or her of the information systems facilities pursuant to these Regulations is subject to the terms of the agreement mentioned in Regulation 9(1)(a)(i) and must abide by that agreement,

(c) the Commission may at any time discontinue the provision of the information systems facilities, or any aspect of them, to a member who stands in breach of the agreement mentioned in Regulation 9(1)(a)(i), and may take any other step provided for in that agreement to ensure the member’s compliance,

(d) the member must indemnify the Commission against any liability the Commission may incur through the member’s possession, control, or use of the information systems facilities,

(e) the member consents by his or her having received any piece of equipment to the deduction from any sums due to him or her from the Commission (whether by way of salary or termination or other allowance or otherwise) or from the pensions administrator having charge of any pension arrangements that may be applicable by virtue of his or her membership of one or other House of the Oireachtas to him or her (and whether during the currency of that membership or after it has ceased) in full or part satisfaction of any liability of the member to the Commission as contemplated by sub-paragraphs (a) and (d) (including for breach of the agreement mentioned in Regulation 9(1)(a)(i)), so far as that liability is not satisfied by applying the deposit provided for in sub-paragraph (a),

(f) the deposit provided for at sub-paragraph (a) must to the extent not otherwise applied in accordance with this Regulation 9(1) be refunded to the member on his or her returning to the Commission in good time and order to the satisfaction of the Commission’s Information and Communications Technology Unit all equipment supplied to him or her under these Regulations,

(g) a reference in this Regulation 9(1) to anything done or omitted to be done by a member is equally a reference to anything done or omitted to be done by any person on the member’s behalf.

(2)(a) Where, when these Regulations were made, any equipment, facilities, devices, or systems stood provided to a member pursuant to the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) Regulations 2013 ( S.I. No. 2 of 2013 ), that member must within 21 days of the making of these Regulations return, have disconnected, or otherwise cease to use, that equipment, and those facilities, devices, and systems, and, on his or her doing so, he or she may have information systems facilities provided to him or her pursuant to these Regulations.

(b) Where a member within that interval of 21 days, or such longer interval as the Commission’s Information and Communications Technology Unit may allow, signs the agreement mentioned in Regulation 9(1)(a)(i), and lodges the deposit referred to in Regulation 9(1)(a)(ii), he or she is deemed to have signed that agreement and lodged that deposit in compliance with Regulation 9(1)(a), and sub-paragraph (a) of this paragraph (2) is deemed never to have applied to that member.

(3) Nothing in these Regulations limits or otherwise affects the Commission’s entitlement to impose charges under section 4(4A) of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Act 2003 as inserted by section 4(c) of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (Amendment) Act 2009 .

Qualifying Parties

10. (1) Each qualifying party is, subject to paragraph (2), entitled to secretarial facilities consisting of employees in accordance with the allocation set out in Schedule 2.

(2) The allocation referred to in paragraph (1) and Schedule 2 must be applied subject to the following sub-paragraphs—

(a) for the purpose of reckoning each qualifying party’s entitlement in accordance with Schedule 2, and, where the context requires, in construing any reference in this Regulation to an employee or to employees, each employee is assumed to be retained at the grade of secretarial assistant,

(b) persons employed by qualifying parties under these Regulations may be employed by those parties at the grade of secretarial assistant, or at the grades of administrative assistant, administrator, chef de cabinet, or at such other grades as may be established from time to time by the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform; the equivalence of those other grades to the grade of secretarial assistant and the manner in which, and the extent to which, they may be combined by qualifying parties is determined from time to time by the Commission,

(c) every political party enjoying the status of a qualifying party at the date when these Regulations were made must be allocated at any time while the party continues to enjoy that status at least one employee,

(d) each qualifying party is additionally entitled to employ a person or persons who is or are covered by the collective agreement generally known and referred to as the “Red Circle Agreement” subject to such conditions as the Commission directs, and the allocation of employees in accordance with Schedule 2 does not restrict that entitlement,

(e) where, after these Regulations are made, but before, as may be appropriate, the dissolution of the 32nd Dáil Éireann or the cessation of the 25th Seanad Éireann—

(i) a candidate is elected to either House of the Oireachtas at a bye-election, or the Taoiseach nominates a person to be a member of Seanad Éireann, and

(ii) because of that election or nomination a party not listed in Schedule 2 thereupon comes to enjoy the status of a qualifying party—

that qualifying party is entitled to be allocated secretarial facilities consisting of one employee.

(3)(a) Each qualifying party is entitled to secretarial facilities consisting of 1 suite of computer equipment as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1 for each employee provided for in this Regulation and the other facilities specified in Parts 2 and 3 of Schedule 1.

(b) Where the number of employees to which a qualifying party is entitled under this Regulation is a fraction (including a mixed fraction), that number is, for the purposes of sub-paragraph (a), to be rounded up to the next integer.

(c) Should any of the employees to which a qualifying party is entitled under this Regulation be permitted to engage in work sharing arrangements analogous to those contemplated by Regulation 3(1), Regulation 5(1), and Regulation 7(1)(a), (2), and (3)(a), a maximum of one additional suite of computer equipment, as specified in Part 1 of Schedule 1, may be issued to the qualifying party in question.

Generally Applicable Provisions regarding Personnel

11. The following are not to be reckoned in the number of persons employed under these Regulations—

(a) persons employed as substitutes for persons providing secretarial facilities, including a substitute who remains employed for a period of time upon the return of a person providing secretarial facilities, that period being determined by the Commission, or

(b) persons on unpaid leave, career breaks or secondment to other employment.

12. A person providing secretarial facilities under these Regulations is the employee of the member or qualifying party to whom the facility is provided under a contract of employment made between them.

13. A person providing secretarial facilities must provide those facilities for—

(a) a member of Dáil Éireann (other than the holder of a Ministerial office), in Leinster House, or in or nearby the member’s constituency, or at or nearby the member’s residence,

(b) a member of Seanad Éireann (other than the holder of a Ministerial office), in Leinster House, or at or nearby the member’s residence,

(c) the holder of a Ministerial Office, in or nearby the offices of the Department to which that Office relates, or at or nearby the member’s residence, or (if the holder of the Ministerial Office is a member of Dáil Éireann), in or nearby that member’s constituency, or

(d) a qualifying party, in Leinster House, or at the address of the party’s headquarters included in the Register of Political Parties maintained pursuant to section 25 of the Electoral Act 1992 (No. 23 of 1992) as replaced by section 11 of the Electoral (Amendment) Act 2001 (No. 38 of 2001),

in accordance with the wishes of the member, the holder of the Ministerial Office, or the qualifying party, as the case may be, and secretarial facilities consisting of equipment may, where practicable, be provided by the Commission for locations outside Leinster House (other than at the address of a qualifying party’s headquarters) to the extent necessary to give effect to this Regulation.

14. Where a member of the 32nd Dáil Éireann or the 25th Seanad Éireann has exercised an option in the nature of the option referred to in Regulations 4(2)(a) and 6(3)(a) before these Regulations were made, he or she is to be treated for all purposes of these Regulations as having exercised that option pursuant to these Regulations.

Printing

15. Every member of Dáil Éireann and every member of Seanad Éireann and every qualifying party is entitled to printing services from a centralized printing facility operating under the control of the Commission, according to such guidelines as may be drawn up by the Commission from time to time.

Graphic Design

16. (1) Those qualifying parties with the greatest, second greatest, and third greatest number of members elected to the 32nd Dáil Éireann are each entitled to avail of the services of a graphic designer at administrative assistant level.

(2) Other qualifying parties and independent members share the services of one graphic designer at administrative assistant level.

(3) A person providing graphic design services under these Regulations is the employee of the qualifying party, qualifying parties, or independent member or members, or the relevant combination of them, to which or to whom the facility is provided under a contract of employment made between the party, parties, person, or persons in question.

(4) Each—

(a) qualifying party is entitled to an annual budget for outsourced graphic design facilities based on the aggregate sum of €398.23 for each member of that party, and

(b) independent member is entitled to such a budget of €398.23,

paid in accordance with Regulation 17.

(5) Paragraph (4) ceases to have effect on the dissolution of the 32nd Dáil.

17. Payment of the graphic design outsourcing budget is effected on the basis of expenditure incurred annually between the period 1st October in any year to 30th September in the following year, or if the Dáil is dissolved in that following year before 1st October upon that dissolution, and vouched in accordance with the form set out in Schedule 4.

Revocations

18. The following are revoked—

(a) the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) Regulations 2013, and

(b) the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) (Amendment) Regulations 2015 ( S.I. No. 164 of 2015 ).

Regulations 8 and 10(3)

SCHEDULE 1

PART 1

A suite of computer equipment consists of the following equipment for use only by the member or qualifying party concerned, as the case may be, or by persons employed or engaged under these Regulations to provide secretarial facilities to the member or qualifying party, as the case may be—

(a) a computer (desktop PC or laptop) which may be linked to the network of the Houses of the Oireachtas, the system for the transmission and receipt of fax messages having been integrated into the e-mail system on that network,

(b) a multi-function print/fax/scan/copy device,

(c) an e-mail account on the Houses of the Oireachtas network,

(d) internet access,

(e) an encrypted USB memory stick,

(f) a hardware, software or SMS-based multi-factor authentication token.

PART 2

1. Within Leinster House—

(a) each member who is not the holder of a Ministerial Office, and

(b) each qualifying party,

is entitled to facilities as set out in paragraph 2(a) on the terms set out in paragraph 2(b).

2. (a) The facilities referred to in paragraph 1 are—

(i) telephone handsets,

(ii) access to a television, and

(iii) access to a shredder.

(b) The terms referred to in paragraph 1 are—

(i) telephone handsets are to be provided in Leinster House only,

(ii) the handsets must have connectivity for local, national, mobile and international calls, and must include voicemail facilities where required, but must not allow connectivity to premium rate numbers other than directory enquiry services,

(ii) in relation to the entitlement of members, one handset must be supplied for each member and one handset must be supplied for each person employed or engaged under these Regulations to provide secretarial facilities to that member in Leinster House,

(iii) in relation to the entitlement of a qualifying party, one handset must be supplied for each person employed or engaged under these Regulations to provide secretarial facilities to that qualifying party in Leinster House, and

(iv) access to a television is to be provided at Leinster House only.

3. (a) Each member who is the holder of a Ministerial Office is entitled to the facilities provided for in paragraph 2(a)(iii) and, subject to the term imposed by paragraph 2(b)(iv), to television access provided for in paragraph 2(a)(ii).

(b) Each member who is the holder of a Ministerial Office is entitled to one handset within Leinster House by way of extension to the offices of the Department where secretarial facilities are provided in accordance with Regulation 13(c).

(c) The handset referred to in sub-paragraph (b) must have connectivity for local, national, mobile and international calls, and must include voicemail facilities where required, but must not allow connectivity to premium rate numbers other than directory enquiry services.

PART 3

1. Each member and each qualifying party is entitled to the following facilities—

(a) at one remote location of his, her, or its choice, a shredder,

(b) computer hardware to facilitate a network connection from one remote location of his, her, or its choice to the Houses of the Oireachtas network for all computer equipment provided pursuant to these Regulations at that remote site, and

(c) connection to the internet only for up to two computers which were not provided pursuant to these Regulations.

2. (a) The Commission may, at a member’s request in writing, provide the member with computer hardware to facilitate a network connection from a second remote location of the member’s choice and the aforementioned ancillary facilities, where the member satisfies the Commission that objective technological, infrastructural, or demographic factors exceptionally warrant that provision.

(b) The Commission’s provision of additional hardware and ancillary facilities contemplated by sub-paragraph (a) is subject to the conditions that—

(i) the connection will only be provided to the member or to a person employed or engaged under these Regulations to provide secretarial facilities to the member, and

(ii) the member must refund to the Commission the full cost (including VAT) of the firewall, support, and broadband integral to the operation of that hardware.

PART 4

Each member may be supplied with one tablet device in addition to the computer devices already provided for in Part 1.

Regulation 10(1)

SCHEDULE 2

Allocations for secretarial facilities for qualifying parties are set out below—

Regulation 9(1)

SCHEDULE 3

INFORMATION SYSTEMS FACILITIES USER’S AGREEMENT

Between the following Parties:

THE HOUSES OF THE OIREACHTAS COMMISSION

-AND-

A.B.,

MEMBER OF DÁIL/SEANAD ÉIREANN

I,......................... , hereby

(a) acknowledge that—

(i) I have been provided with a copy of Regulations 8 and 9 of the Oireachtas (Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices) (Secretarial Facilities) Regulations 2016, and have read those Regulations 8 and 9 (the term “information systems facilities” encompassing all facilities (including equipment) provision of which is contemplated by Regulation 8),

(ii) to the extent that I need professional advice to understand those Regulations 8 and 9 I have obtained that advice,

(iii) I understand those Regulations 8 and 9(1) and the duties they impose on me,

(b) enter into this agreement in consideration of the provision to me of the information systems facilities, and the services, support, and ancillary facilities provided by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission (hereafter “the Commission”) in connection with the information systems facilities (the sufficiency of which consideration each above identified party to this Agreement acknowledges),

(c) agree to retain in a safe place any equipment from time to time forming part of the information systems facilities which has been or may be issued to me for use in connection with my duties as a member of the Houses of the Oireachtas,

(d) agree to notify the ICT Unit of the Houses of the Oireachtas Service (the “ICT Unit”) of any change in the location of that equipment,

(e) agree to promptly return that equipment to the ICT Unit—

(i) subject to any applicable guidelines that may be in place from time to time pursuant to statute, on the dissolution of the Dáil/cessation of the Seanad [delete as applicable],

(ii) upon my ceasing (for whatever reason other than at (i)) to be a Member of the Houses of the Oireachtas,

(iii) from time to time as may be necessary for the purpose of essential repairs, updating, re-configuration, or replacement of the equipment,

(iv) when requested by an appropriate member of the staff of the ICT Unit,

(f) enclose herewith the sum of €500 by way of deposit in accordance with and subject to the provisions of Regulation 9.

I further agree that my signature entered on this form, which will be retained in the ICT Unit or such other office as may be decided from time to time, constitutes my acknowledgement and acceptance that—

(1) any equipment I have received I have received in good order and that equipment and any other equipment I may be supplied with as part of the information systems facilities remains the property of the Commission,

(2) I must take all necessary precautions to safeguard the information systems facilities against misuse, loss, or damage of any kind,

(3) I am liable for all costs arising from any misuse or loss of the equipment, or any damage to it, or any misuse of the other information systems facilities provided to me in connection with the equipment (including by way of breach of any acceptable usage policy published by the Commission),

(4) I will be liable to the Commission in the sum of €200 by way of liquidated damages should I fail to keep the appointment that the ICT Unit will make with me to facilitate my return of equipment as provided for at paragraph (e) above, unless I rescheduled that appointment not later than 48 hours in advance,

(5) the Houses of the Oireachtas Service will only make one such appointment and will only permit rescheduling once, and my failure to keep that appointment or rescheduled appointment will be deemed for the purposes of this agreement to be my failure to return the equipment in question,

(6) should I fail to return the equipment when requested pursuant to paragraph (e) above I will be liable for the depreciated value of the equipment,

(7) any liability comprehended by paragraphs (3) to (6) inclusive that may arise will be met by me in the manner set out in Regulation 9 as mentioned above or in any other manner that the Commission, at its sole discretion, may permit,

(8) in respect of—

(a) any tablet provided to me as part of the information systems facilities,

(b) the connection I am permitted to make of any smartphone or other mobile computing device to the Oireachtas network, and

(c) any cloud computing service I am facilitated in availing of,

that provision, permission, or facilitation is subject to—

(a) all warnings from the ICT Unit about the legal or technical limitations relating to the use of the facility in question, and

(b) all reservations that the Commission makes in relation to that facility to secure the Commission’s own obligations regarding it,

of which the ICT Unit may advise me from time to time.

(9) I am under a legal duty to comply with all licensing requirements/obligations, and

(10) I must procure that my employees, agents, and all other persons acting on my behalf comply with the terms of this Agreement (including the acceptable usage policy mentioned in paragraph (3)).

Regulation 17

SCHEDULE 4

VOUCHER OF GRAPHIC DESIGN EXPNENSES

I, the undersigned, vouch that—

(a) the following graphic design expenses were incurred solely for—

[*] the purposes of facilitating my parliamentary duties, in accordance with section 2(1)(c) of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) Act 1962 ,

*the purposes of facilitating the parliamentary activities of the elected members of the ______________ party in accordance with section 10 (5) of the Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices Act 1938 ,

(b) this graphic design work could not be provided by in-house graphic design facilities provided by the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission,

(c) the external services procured represent value for money, and

(d) the expenditure was incurred between 01 October 20______________ and 30 September 20______________ or, if the Dáil is dissolved before 30 September in that year, the dissolution of the Dáil, whichever is the earlier.

Accordingly, I present these expenses to be paid out of ongoing expenditure of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission.

[*] [delete as appropriate]

The Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Seal,

Affixed hereto

Was authenticated by

Member of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission:

SEÁN Ó FEARGHAÁL,

Ceann Comhairle.

Member of staff of the Commission authorised by the Commission:

ANNE-MARIE FAHY,

Secretary Houses of the Oireachtas Commission. 8 December 2016.