Ministerial, Parliamentary and Judicial Offices and Oireachtas Members (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2001

Amendment of the 1938 Act — insertion of sections 3B, 3C and 3D.

26.—The 1938 Act is amended by inserting the following sections after section 3A (as inserted by section 5 of the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act, 1973 ):

“Salaries to be adjusted automatically by reference to salary increases in Civil Service.

3B.—(1) Whenever remuneration in the Civil Service is increased with effect from a particular day in accordance with agreements or arrangements that have effect on a general basis in the Civil Service (whether or not they also apply in relation to persons employed other than in the Civil Service), the salaries payable under section 3 are, by the operation of this section, increased on and from that day by the same proportion.

(2) It is not necessary to make an order under section 3A in order to give effect to an increase made by the operation of subsection (1).

(3) In this section ‘Civil Service’ has the meaning given by the Civil Service Commissioners Act, 1956 .

Right of member of Oireachtas to elect not to accept increase in salary.

3C.—(1) A person who is entitled to be paid a salary under section 3 may, by notice in writing given to the Minister for Finance, elect not to accept the amount of an increase of the salary that would become payable but for the election.

(2) Such an election does not affect the application of section 3A or 3B to the remaining part of the salary whenever salaries payable under section 3 are generally increased.

(3) A person who has made an election under this section may revoke the election by a further notice in writing given to the Minister for Finance, but the revocation has effect only prospectively.

(4) Subject to subsection (3), an election made by a person under this section continues in effect—

(a) despite a dissolution of the House of the Oireachtas concerned, and

(b) even if the person is subsequently returned as a member of that House after a period during which the person was not such a member.

Payments to persons who are members at dissolution of Dáil Éireann.

3D.—A person who is a member of Dáil Éireann on a day on which Dáil Éireann is dissolved is entitled to be paid an amount equal to one-eighteenth of the salary payable to that member under this Act. The amount is to be calculated by reference to the rate of that salary existing on that day.”.