Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) Act, 1939

Divers powers of the Government in relation to Departments of State.

6.—(1) It shall be lawful for the Government, whenever they so think proper, to do by order all or any of the following things, that is to say:—

(a) to alter in such way as they think proper the name (whether in the Irish language or the English language or in both those languages) of any Department of State;

(b) to alter in such way as they think proper the title (whether in the Irish language or in the English language or in both those languages) of any Minister having charge of a Department of State;

(c) to transfer the administration and business of any particular public service or of any branch or part of any such public service from any Department of State to any other Department of State and to make all such transfers of officers and property and do all such other things as shall be incidental to or consequential on such transfer of administration and business;

(d) to transfer from any Minister having charge of a Department of State to the Minister having charge of any other Department of State any particular power, duty, or function vested by or under any statute or otherwise in the said first-mentioned Minister;

(e) to prescribe the organisation of any Department of State and for that purpose to create units of administration within such Department of State;

(f) to allocate to such Department of State as appears to the Government to be appropriate the administration and business of any public service which is not expressly allocated to any particular Department of State or in respect of the allocation of which any doubt, question, or dispute has arisen;

(g) to make all such adaptations of enactments as shall appear to the Government to be consequential on anything done by them under any of the foregoing paragraphs of this sub-section.

(2) If any doubt, question, or dispute shall arise as to the Department of State to which the administration and business of any particular public service or of any branch or part of any such public service is allocated or as to the Minister in whom any particular power, duty, or function is vested, such doubt, question, or dispute shall, without prejudice to the power in that behalf conferred on the Government by the foregoing sub-section of this section, be determined by the Taoiseach.

(3) Whenever any particular power, duty, or function is now or shall hereafter be conferred or imposed by statute on or shall be transferred under this section to a Minister having charge of a Department of State, the administration and business in connection with the exercise, performance, or execution of such power, duty, or function shall be deemed to be allocated to the said Department of State.