Garda Síochána (Complaints) Act, 1986

FIRST SCHEDULE

The Garda Síochána Complaints Board

Section 3 .

1. (1) The Board shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and power to sue and be sued in its own name and, with the consent of the Minister, to acquire, hold and dispose of land or an interest in or rights over or in respect of land.

(2) The Board shall be independent in the exercise of its functions.

2. (1) The Board shall consist of a chairman and eight ordinary members.

(2) The members of the Board shall be appointed from time to time as occasion requires by the Government and, subject to the provisions of this Schedule, shall hold office upon such terms and conditions as the Government may determine.

(3) The term of office of a member of the Board shall be five years and, subject to the provisions of this Schedule, a member of the Board shall be eligible for re-appointment as such member.

(4) (a) At least three persons each of whom is a practising barrister, or a practising solicitor, of not less than ten years' standing shall be appointed to be ordinary members of the Board and if such a member ceases during his term of office as such member to be a practising barrister or a practising solicitor, as the case may be, he shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Board.

(b) (i) The Commissioner or such other officer of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of assistant commissioner as the Commissioner may nominate shall be appointed an ordinary member of the Board.

(ii) If the member of the Board who is the Commissioner or other officer of the Garda Síochána not below the rank of assistant commissioner nominated in that behalf by the Commissioner ceases during his term of office as such member to be the Commissioner or to hold a rank in the Garda Síochána not below that of assistant commissioner, as the case may be, he shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Board.

(c) The membership of the Board shall not include any person who is or has been a member of the Garda Síochána other than the member of the Garda Síochána appointed under clause (b) of this subparagraph to be an ordinary member of the Board.

(d) If a complaint concerns the conduct of a deputy commissioner or an assistant commissioner—

(i) the Commissioner shall act on the Board in relation to any business concerned with the complaint in the place of any deputy commissioner or assistant commissioner who is a member of the Board and, notwithstanding anything in this Act, the Commissioner shall be deemed for that purpose to be a member of the Board, and

(ii) if, arising out of the complaint, a matter is referred by the Board to a tribunal pursuant to section 7 (5) of this Act, the Commissioner shall, notwithstanding paragraph 1 (c) of the Second Schedule to this Act be a member of the tribunal.

(5) A member of the Board may at any time resign his office as such member by letter addressed to the Secretary to the Government and the resignation shall take effect on and from the date of receipt of the letter.

(6) Where a casual vacancy occurs among the members of the Board, the Government shall, as soon as may be, take such steps as are necessary to fill the vacancy and the person appointed to fill the vacancy shall hold office for the remainder of the term of office for which his predecessor was appointed.

(7) Members of the Board (other than a member who is the holder of a judicial office) shall be paid such remuneration (if any), and members of the Board shall be paid such allowances for expenses, as the Minister, with the consent of the Minister for the Public Service, may from time to time determine.

(8) The Government may remove from office any member of the Board who, in the opinion of the Government, has become incapable through ill-health of effectively performing his functions or has committed stated misbehaviour.

3. (1) The Government shall from time to time as occasion requires appoint a member of the Board to be chairman thereof.

(2) The chairman of the Board shall be a practicing barrister, or a practising solicitor, of not less than ten years' standing and, if he ceases to be a practicing barrister or a practicing solicitor during his term of office as such chairman, he shall thereupon cease to be such chairman and to be a member of the Board.

(3) Where the chairman of the Board ceases during his term of office as such chairman to be a member of the Board, he shall thereupon also cease to be chairman of the Board.

(4) The chairman of the Board shall, unless he sooner dies, resigns or otherwise ceases to be chairman, hold office as such chairman until the expiration of his term of office as a member of the Board but, if he is re-appointed as a member of the Board, he shall be eligible for re-appointment as chairman of the Board.

4. (1) The Board may appoint such and so many persons to be officers and servants of the Board as may be approved of from time to time by the Minister with the consent of the Minister for the Public Service.

(2) (a) There shall be a chief executive officer of the Board (who is referred to in this Act as the chief executive).

(b) The chief executive shall be appointed on the recommendation of the Civil Service Commission.

(c) The chief executive shall perform the functions conferred on him by this Act and such other functions (if any) as may be assigned to him by the Board.

(d) Specified functions of the chief executive under this Act may, with the consent of the Board, be performed by such officer of the Board as may be authorised in that behalf by the chief executive.

(e) The functions of the chief executive under this Act may be performed during his temporary absence by such officer of the Board as may be designated for that purpose by the Board.

(3) (a) Officers and servants of the Board shall be civil servants in the Civil Service of the State.

(b) The appropriate authority (within the meaning of the Civil Service Commissioners Act, 1956 , and the Civil Service Regulation Acts, 1956 and 1958) in relation to officers and servants of the Board shall, for the purposes of those Acts, be the Minister.

(c) The Minister may delegate to the Board the powers exercisable by him under section 5 of the Civil Service Commissioners Act, 1956 , and the Civil Service Regulation Acts, 1956 and 1958, as the appropriate authority in relation to officers and servants of the Board and, if he does so, then, so long as the delegation remains in force—

(i) those powers shall, in lieu of being exercisable by the Minister, be exercisable by the Board, and

(ii) The Board shall, in lieu of the Minister, be, for the purposes of the said section 5 and the said Acts, the appropriate authority in relation to officers and servants of the Board.

(d) The Minister may revoke a delegation made by him under this paragraph but such revocation shall not affect anything done by virtue of the delegation under the said section 5 or the said Acts and anything so done shall continue in force and shall, for the purposes of the said section 5 and the said Acts, have effect as if done by the Minister.

5. (1) The Board shall hold such meetings as may be necessary for the due fulfilment of its functions.

(2) The quorum for a meeting of the Board shall be three or such other number (being not less than three) as may be determined from time to time by the Board.

(3) At a meeting of the Board—

(a) the chairman of the Board shall, if present, be chairman of the meeting,

(b) if and so long as the chairman of the Board is not present or if the office of chairman is vacant, the members of the Board who are present shall choose one of their number to be chairman of the meeting.

(4) Every question at a meeting of the Board shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members present and voting on the question and, in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

(5) The Board may act notwithstanding one or more than one vacancy among its members.

(6) Subject to the provisions of this Act, the Board shall determine, by standing orders or otherwise, the procedure and business of the Board.

6. (1) There may be paid to the Board in each financial year of the Board, out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas, a grant or grants of such amount or amounts as the Minister, with the approval of the Minister for Finance, may determine.

(2) The Board shall, in relation to each financial year of the Board, prepare and send to the Minister (on a date not later than a date specified by the Minister) an estimate in such form as the Minister may specify of its expenditure for that year.

7. (1) The Board shall keep, in such form as may be approved of by the Minister, all proper and usual accounts of all moneys received or expended by it and all such special accounts (if any) as the Minister may direct.

(2) Accounts kept in pursuance of this paragraph shall be submitted annually (on a date not later than a date specified by the Minister) by the Board to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit and, as soon as may be after the audit, a copy of such of those accounts, or of such extracts from such accounts, as the Minister may specify and a copy of the Comptroller and Auditor General's report on the accounts shall be presented by the Board to the Minister who shall cause copies of the documents presented to him to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

8. (1) The Board shall, as soon as may be after the establishment day, provide itself with a seal.

(2) The seal of the Board shall be authenticated by the chairman of the Board or some other member of the Board authorised by the Board to act in that behalf.

(3) Judicial notice shall be taken of the seal of the Board and every document purporting to be an instrument made by the Board and to be sealed with the seal (purporting to be authenticated in accordance with subparagraph (2) of this paragraph) of the Board shall be received in evidence and be deemed to be such instrument without proof, unless the contrary is shown.

9. (1) A member of the Board who is either directly or indirectly interested in any contract which the Board proposes to make—

(a) shall disclose to the Board the fact and the nature of such interest at the meeting of the Board at which the question of entering into such a contract is first considered or, if he has no such interest at that time, as soon as may be after he has acquired such interest,

(b) shall take no part in any deliberations of the Board relating to such a contract save to such extent as the chairman of the Board may permit,

(c) shall not vote on a decision relating to such a contract, and

(d) shall not be counted in the quorum present at any meeting while such a contract is being considered.

(2) A disclosure under this paragraph shall be recorded in the minutes of the Board.

(3) Where the Minister is satisfied that a member of the Board has failed to comply with a requirement of subparagraph (1) of this paragraph, the Government may, on the recommendation of the Minister, remove that member from office, and, if a person is removed from office pursuant to this subparagraph, he shall thenceforth be disqualified for membership of the Board.

10. Any contract or instrument which, if entered into or executed by a person not being a body corporate, would not require to be under seal may be entered into or executed on behalf of the Board by any person generally or specially authorised by the Board in that behalf.