Interpretation Act 2005
PART 2 Miscellaneous Rules | ||
Construing ambiguous or obscure provisions, etc. |
5.—(1) In construing a provision of any Act (other than a provision that relates to the imposition of a penal or other sanction)— | |
(a) that is obscure or ambiguous, or | ||
(b) that on a literal interpretation would be absurd or would fail to reflect the plain intention of— | ||
(i) in the case of an Act to which paragraph (a) of the definition of “Act” in section 2 (1) relates, the Oireachtas, or | ||
(ii) in the case of an Act to which paragraph (b) of that definition relates, the parliament concerned, | ||
the provision shall be given a construction that reflects the plain intention of the Oireachtas or parliament concerned, as the case may be, where that intention can be ascertained from the Act as a whole. | ||
(2) In construing a provision of a statutory instrument (other than a provision that relates to the imposition of a penal or other sanction)— | ||
(a) that is obscure or ambiguous, or | ||
(b) that on a literal interpretation would be absurd or would fail to reflect the plain intention of the instrument as a whole in the context of the enactment (including the Act) under which it was made, | ||
the provision shall be given a construction that reflects the plain intention of the maker of the instrument where that intention can be ascertained from the instrument as a whole in the context of that enactment. |