No. 50/1933:

OIREACHTAS (PAYMENT OF MEMBERS) ACT, 1933

ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS

1 The Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts.

2 Commencement of allowances and travelling facilities.

3 Provisions for certain special cases.

4 Repeals.

5 Commencement of this Act.

6 Short title and citation.

AN ACT TO AMEND, IN CONSEQUENCE OF THE DELETION OF ARTICLE 17 OF THE CONSTITUTION, THE LAW RELATING TO THE PAYMENT OF ALLOWANCES TO AND THE PROVISION OF FREE TRAVELLING FACILITIES FOR MEMBERS OF THE OIREACHTAS.

[15th December, 1933.]

BE IT ENACTED BY THE OIREACHTAS OF SAORSTÁT EIREANN AS FOLLOWS:—

1.—In this Act the expression "the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts" means the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Act, 1923 (No. 18 of 1923), the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) (Amendment) Act, 1925 (No. 29 of 1925), and the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Act, 1928 (No. 17 of 1928).

2.—The allowance and travelling facilities to be paid to and received by a member of the Oireachtas under the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts shall (subject to the provisions of those Acts in relation to members holding certain offices and subject to the provisions of this Act) commence and be payable—

( a ) in the case of a member of Dáil Eireann elected to be such member at a general election, as on and from the day on which the Oireachtas is summoned to meet next after such general election or, if under the Standing Orders of Dáil Eireann such member is, by reason of his failure to comply with those Standing Orders, not entitled to sit in Dáil Eireann as a member thereof on that day, the first day thereafter on which be becomes, by compliance with the said Standing Orders, entitled thereunder to sit in Dáil Eireann as a member thereof, and

( b ) in every other case, as on and from the day on which such member first becomes, by compliance with the Standing Orders of the House of which he is a member, entitled under those Standing Orders to sit in that House as a member thereof.

3.—(1) If—

( a ) a member of the Oireachtas is prevented by illness or by some other involuntary and innocent cause from so complying with the Standing Orders of the House of which he is a member as to become entitled under those Standing Orders to sit as a member of the said House on the first day on which such House sits after his then last election thereto, and

( b ) such member so complies with the said Standing Orders as to be entitled thereunder to sit as a member of the House on the first day on which such House sits after such illness or other cause has ceased,

then and in that case such member shall be deemed for the purposes of the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts as amended by this Act to have so complied with the said Standing Orders as to have been entitled thereunder to sit in the said House as a member thereof on the first day on which such House sat after his then last election thereto.

(2) Notwithstanding anything contained in the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts as amended by this Act, a member of the Oireachtas shall be entitled to receive and be paid travelling facilities under those Acts as so amended in respect of travelling once to Dublin for the purpose of so complying with the Standing Orders of the House of which he is a member as to become entitled under the said Standing Orders to sit as a member of such House, and shall be entitled so to receive and be paid such travelling facilities in all respects as if such travelling had taken place after the commencement of his right to receive and be paid travelling facilities under the said Acts as so amended.

(3) If any question or dispute shall arise as to whether, or the extent to which, a member of the Oireachtas is entitled to the benefit of either of the foregoing sub-sections of this section, such question or dispute shall be determined—

( a ) in the case of a member of Dáil Eireann, by the Ceann Comhairle, and

( b ) in the case of a member of Seanad Eireann, by the Cathaoirleach,

and in every such case the determination of the Ceann Comhairle or the Cathaoirleach (as the case may be) shall be final.

4.— Sections 4 and 5 of the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Act, 1923 (No. 18 of 1923) and so much of sub-section (1) of section 6 of that Act as defines the expression "the oath" and the expression "take the oath" and other like expressions are hereby repealed.

5.—This Act shall be deemed to have come into operation on the passing of the Constitution (Removal of Oath) Act, 1933 (No. 6 of 1933), and shall have and be deemed always to have had effect as on and from the passing of that Act.

6.—(1) This Act may be cited as the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Act, 1933 .

(2) The Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts and this Act may be cited together as the Oireachtas (Payment of Members) Acts, 1923 to 1933.