S.I. No. 102/1958 - An Foras Talútais (Nomination of Members of the Council by Agricultural and Rural Organisations) Order, 1958.

The Government, in exercise of the powers conferred on them by subsection (8) of section 5 of the Agriculture (An Foras Talúntais) Act, 1958 (No. 1 of 1958), hereby order as follows :

1. This Order may be cited as An Foras Talúntais (Nomination of Members of the Council by Agricultural and Rural Organisations) Order, 1958.

2. In this Order—

" the Council " means the Council of An Foras Talúntais ;

" the Minister " means the Minister for Agriculture ;

" the Secretary " means the Secretary of the Department of Agriculture.

3. The nomination under subsection (8) of section 5 of the Agriculture (An Foras Talúntais) Act, 1958 (No. 1 of 1958), of five persons to be ordinary members of the Council shall be made by the agricultural and rural organisations specified in the Schedule to this Order.

4. The nomination mentioned in Article 3 of this Order shall be made in the manner specified in this Order.

5. Each of the five groups of organisations set out in the Schedule to this Order (in this Order referred to as groups) shall nominate one person to be an ordinary member of the Council.

6. Each organisation in a group may propose one person for nomination by that group to be an ordinary member of the Council.

7. (1) A person may be proposed under Article 6 of this Order by an organisation in a group by sending by registered post addressed to the Secretary so as to reach him within the time fixed for the receipt of proposals under this Article, a proposal made by that organisation in relation to that person which complies with the provisions of this Article.

(2) The following provisions shall apply in respect of a proposal :

(i) the proposal shall be in writing signed by a person authorised in that behalf by the organisation making it,

(ii) the proposal shall contain the full name, address and occupation of the person to whom it relates and the name and address of the organisation making it,

(iii) the Minister shall fix the time for the receipt of proposals and the Secretary shall inform the organisations specified in the Schedule to this Order of such time,

(iv) if the proposal is received by the Secretary within the time for the receipt of proposals, the Secretary shall endorse thereon the date and time of receipt, and, if it is not void under paragraph (x) of this Article shall inform the other organisations in the group to which the organisation which made the proposal belongs of the full name, address and occupation of the person proposed,

(v) if the proposal is not received by the Secretary within the time for the receipt of proposals, the Secretary shall, subject to the provisions of this Order, disregard it and it shall be void,

(vi) the proposal may be withdrawn by sending a notice of withdrawal of the proposal (in this Order referred to as a withdrawal notice) by registered post addressed to the Secretary so as to reach him within the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices,

(vii) a withdrawal notice shall be in writing, shall specify the proposal to which it relates, shall signify the intention to withdraw it and shall be signed by a person authorised in that behalf by the organisation which made the proposal,

(viii) the Minister shall fix the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices and the Secretary shall inform the organisations specified in the Schedule to this Order of such time,

(ix) if the proposal is withdrawn, the person to whom it related shall be deemed not to have been proposed and the organisation which made the proposalshall, subject to paragraph (xi) of this Article, be entitled, if it so desires, to make another proposal in lieu of it, which, if made, shall be sent by registered post to the Secretary so as to reach him within the time fixed under paragraph (iii) of this Article for the receipt of proposals,

(x) (a) if the proposal is of a person who stands proposed by an organisation in another group, the proposal shall be void, and the organisation which made it shall, subject to paragraph (xi) of this Article be entitled, if it so desires, to make another proposal which, if made, shall be sent by registered post to the Secretary so as to reach him within such time after the expiration of the time for the receipt of proposals but before the expiration of the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices as the Secretary may fix,

(b) The Secretary shall inform the organisation of the time fixed by him under this paragraph,

(xi) if a proposal which is made by an organisation in lieu of a void or withdrawn proposal is itself void or withdrawn, the organisation shall not be entitled to make another proposal in lieu of the first-mentioned proposal.

8. If, in respect of any group, at the expiration of the time fixed for the receipt of withdrawal notices, one person, but not more than one person, stands proposed under Article 6 of this Order by the organisations in that group, that person shall be deemed to have been nominated by that group under Article 5 of this Order to be an ordinary member of the Council.

9. If, in respect of any group, at the expiration of the time fixed for the receipt of withdrawal notices, more than one person stands proposed under Article 6 of this Order by the organisations in that group, the person to be nominated by that group shall be selected from the persons who stand proposed as aforesaid by means of a poll which shall be held among the organisations in that group, and the person declared under Article 10 of this Order to be nominated shall be deemed to be nominated by that group to be an ordinary member of the Council.

10. The following provisions shall apply in respect of a poll held under Article 9 of this Order among the organisations in any group :

(i) the poll shall be held on the system of proportional representation, by means of the single transferable vote and by postal ballot,

(ii) there shall be a returning officer who shall be the Secretary,

(iii) the poll shall be conducted by the returning officer in accordance with the provisions of this Article and with such arrangements as the returning officer, with the approval of the Minister, thinks proper to make,

(iv) each organisation shall have one vote,

(v) not later than seven days after the expiration of the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices, the returning officer shall send one ballot paper by registered post to each organisation in the group,

(vi) the ballot paper shall contain the names, addresses and occupations of all the persons who at the expiration of the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices stood proposed by those organisations under Article 6 of this Order, arranged in the alphabetical order of their surnames and, in cases of identity of surname, of their other names,

(vii) the vote of an organisation shall be given by placing on the ballot paper the figure 1 opposite the name of the person for whom the organisation votes, and in addition, at the option of the organisation, by placing on the ballot paper the figures 2 and 3, or 2, 3 and 4, and so on, opposite the names of other persons in the order of its preference,

(viii) the ballot paper, marked with the vote of the organisation to which it was sent and signed by a person authorised in that behalf by that organisation, shall be sent to the returning officer by registered post so as to reach him not later than 5 p.m. on the twenty-first day after the day on which the time for the receipt of withdrawal notices expires,

(ix) a ballot paper in respect of which there has been a contravention of the provisions of this Article or of any arrangements made by the returning officer shall be declared by the returning officer to be invalid, and, if so declared, it shall be invalid and shall be rejected by him and the vote marked on it shall not be counted,

(x) the rules set forth in the Second Schedule to the Seanad Electoral (Panel Members) Act, 1947 (No. 42 of 1947), shall apply with the necessary modifications to the counting of the votes cast at the poll,

(xi) the returning officer shall ascertain, in accordance with the rules referred to in and as applied by paragraph (x) of this Article, the result of the poll and declare to be nominated by the group the person so ascertained to be nominated.

(xii) every question which arises at or in relation to the poll shall be decided by the returning officer and his decision on any question shall be final and unappealable.

SCHEDULE.

GROUP I.

Agricultural Association of Ireland.

Irish National Fruit Growers' Association.

Irish Sugar Beet Growers' Association, Limited.

National Farmers' Association.

National Ploughing Association of Ireland, Limited.

GROUP II.

Federation of Irish Bee-keepers.

Federation of Rural Workers.

Irish Countrywomen's Association.

Macra na Feirme.

Muintir na Tíre.

GROUP III.

Agricultural Science Association.

General Council of Committee of Agriculture.

Irish Agricultural Officers' Organisation.

Irish Grassland Association.

Royal Dublin Society.

GROUP IV.

Cork District Milk Board.

Dublin District Milk Board.

Irish Agricultural Organisation Society, Limited.

Irish Creamery Managers' Association.

Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers' Association.

GROUP V.

Bloodstock Breeders' and Horse Owners' Association of Ireland.

Irish Bacon Curers' Association.

Irish Eggs, Limited.

Irish Fresh Meat Exporters' Society, Limited.

National Executive of Irish Livestock Trade.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Government, this 22nd day of April, 1958.

ÉAMON DE VALÉRA

Taoiseach.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The Order specifies the agricultural and rural organisations which shall nominate five persons to be members of the Council of An Foras Talúntais in accordance with section 5 (8) of the Agriculture (An Foras Taluntais) Act, 1958 , and also sets out the manner in which the nominations shall be made.