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Guarantee of borrowings.
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4.—(1) The Minister for Finance may guarantee, in such form and manner and on such terms and conditions as he thinks fit, the due repayment by the Board of the principal of any moneys (including moneys in a currency other than the currency of the State) borrowed by the Board or the payment of interest on such moneys or both the repayment of the principal and the payment of the interest and any such guarantee may include a guarantee of payment of incidental expenses arising in connection with such borrowings.
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(2) The Minister for Finance shall not so exercise the powers conferred on him by this section that the amount, or the aggregate of the amount, of principal which he may at any one time be liable to repay on foot of any guarantees under this section for the time being in force, together with the amount of principal (if any) which the said Minister has previously paid on foot of guarantees under this section and which has not been repaid by the Board exceeds £1,600,000,000.
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(3) For the purpose of calculating the amount of borrowings guaranteed by the Minister for Finance under this section by reference to the limit on principal in subsection (2) of this section, the equivalent in the currency of the State of borrowings in a foreign currency shall be calculated at the exchange rate prevailing at the time of giving the guarantee.
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(4) The Minister for Finance shall, as soon as may be after the expiration of every financial year, lay before each House of the Oireachtas a statement setting out with respect to each guarantee under this section given during that year or given at any time before, and in force at, the commencement of that year—
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(a) particulars of the guarantee,
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(b) in case any payment has been made by the Minister under the guarantee before the end of that year, the amount of the payment and the amount (if any) repaid to the Minister on foot of the payment,
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(c) the amount of principal covered by the guarantee which was outstanding at the end of that year.
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(5) All moneys from time to time required by the Minister for Finance to meet sums which may become payable by him under this section shall be advanced out of the Central Fund or the growing produce thereof.
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(6) Moneys paid by the Minister for Finance under a guarantee under this section shall be repaid to him (with interest thereon at such rate or rates as he appoints) by the Board within two years from the date of the advance of the moneys out of the Central Fund.
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(7) Where the whole or any part of moneys required by subsection (6) of this section to be repaid to the Minister for Finance has not been paid in accordance with that subsection, the amount so remaining outstanding shall be repaid to the Central Fund out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.
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(8) Notwithstanding the provision of moneys under subsection (7) of this section to repay the amount to the Central Fund, the Board shall remain liable to the Minister for Finance in respect of that amount and that amount (with interest thereon at such rate or rates as the Minister for Finance appoints) shall be repaid to the said Minister by the Board at such times and in such instalments as he appoints and, in default of repayment as aforesaid and without prejudice to any other method of recovery, shall be recoverable as a simple contract debt in any court of competent jurisdiction.
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(9) Moneys paid by the Board under subsection (6) or (8) of this section shall be paid into the Exchequer or disposed of for the benefit of the Exchequer in such manner as the Minister for Finance thinks fit.
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(10) In relation to guarantees given by the Minister for Finance in money in a currency other than the currency of the State—
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(i) each of the references to principal, each of the references to interest and the reference to incidental expenses in subsection (1) of this section shall be taken as referring to the equivalent in the currency of the State of the actual principal, the actual interest and the actual incidental expenses, respectively, such equivalent being calculated according to the cost in the currency of the State of the actual principal, the actual interest or the actual incidental expenses, as may be appropriate,
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(ii) the reference to principal in subsection (4) of this section shall be taken as referring to the equivalent in the currency of the State of the actual principal, such equivalent being calculated according to the rate of exchange for the time being for that currency and the currency of the State,
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(iii) each of the references to moneys in subsections (5) to (8) of this section shall be taken as referring to the cost in the currency of the State of the actual moneys.
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(11) A guarantee shall not be given under section 9 of the Act of 1954 after the passing of this Act.
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