I, CAOIMHGHÍN Ó BEOLÁIN, Minister for Defence, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by sections 2 , 3 and 5 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) Act, 1932 (No. 26 of 1932), and by section 4 of the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Act, 1938 (No. 33 of 1938), hereby, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, make the following scheme :

1 Short title, construction and collective citation.

1.—(1) This Scheme may be cited as the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1959.

(2) The Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1957, and this Scheme shall be construed together as one Scheme and may be cited together as the Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1959.

2 Commencement.

2. This Scheme shall come into operation immediately upon its being confirmed by resolution of each House of the Oireachtas.

3 Application of Interpretation Act, 1937 .

3. The Interpretation Act, 1937 (No. 38 of 1937), applies to this Scheme.

4 Definitions.

4. In this Scheme—

"the Principal Scheme" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) Scheme, 1937 ( S. R. & O. No. 249 of 1937 ), as amended by subsequent Schemes ;

"the Amending Scheme of 1947" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1947 ( S. R. & O. No. 81 of 1947 ) ;

"the Amending Scheme of 1953" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1953 ( S.I. No. 259 of 1953 ) ;

"the Amending Scheme of 1956" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) (Amendment) Scheme, 1956 ( S.I. No. 35 of 1956 ) ;

"the Schemes" means the Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1957.

5 Increase of retired pay of certain officers retiring on or after 2nd April, 1958.

5.—(1) This Article applies to an officer who retires or is retired on or after the 2nd day of April, 1958, and whose retiring rank is lieutenant, captain or commandant except a special service officer, within the meaning of Article 13 of the Principal Scheme, whose retiring rank is commandant and who is not serving with the Army School of Music or the Air Corps.

(2) Where retired pay is granted under Articles 5, 7, 8, 9, 10 or 10A of the Principal Scheme to an officer to whom this Article applies, the retired pay shall be increased by the appropriate percentage indicated in the Table to this Article opposite the mention of the officer's retiring rank.

(3) For the purposes of this Article "retired pay" shall be deemed not to include any increase granted under Article 14 of the Amending Scheme of 1947, Article 4 of the Amending Scheme of 1953 or Article 4 of the Amending Scheme of 1956 but, in relation to an officer who—

(a) is, immediately preceding his retirement, a special service officer within the meaning of Article 13 of the Principal Scheme, and

(b) does not exercise the election conferred on him by paragraph (b) of sub-article (1) of the said Article 13,

shall include the increase granted under paragraph (a) of sub-article (1) of the said Article 13.

(4) Article 4 of the Amending Scheme of 1956 shall not apply to an officer to whom this Article applies, and any payments made in respect of the increase granted under that Article shall be deemed to be payments on foot of the increase granted by this Article.

(5) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 2nd day of April, 1958.

TABLE

Retiring Rank by reference to which retired pay was calculated	Married Officer	Single Officer
Commandant	79%	69%
Captain	90%	90%
Lieutenant	77%	75%

6 Increase of gratuities of certain married officers.

6.—(1) This Article applies to an officer to whom Article 5 of this Scheme applies.

(2) Where a gratuity is payable under Article 11 of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 9 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) to an officer to whom this Article applies, the gratuity shall be increased by—

(a) if he holds the retiring rank of commandant, seventy-nine per cent.,

(b) if he holds the retiring rank of captain, eighty-seven per cent.,

(3) In this Article " retiring rank " has the meaning assigned to it in Rule I of the Fifth Schedule to the Principal Scheme.

(4) For the purposes of this Article a gratuity under Article 11 of the Principal Scheme shall be deemed not to include any increase granted under Article 5 of the Amending Scheme of 1953 or Article 5 of the Amending Scheme of 1956.

(5) Article 5 of the Amending Scheme of 1956 shall not apply to an officer to whom this Article applies and any payments made in respect of the increase granted under that Article shall be deemed to be payments on foot of the increase granted by this Article.

(6) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 2nd day of April, 1958.

7 Children's gratuities under Article 11A of the Principal Scheme.

7. For the removal of doubt, it is hereby declared that—

(a) a gratuity shall not be, and was not at any time payable under Article 11A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 10 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) to any child of a deceased officer unless, on the date of the death of the officer, such child was, if a boy, under the age of eighteen years or, if a girl, under the age of twenty-one years and unmarried ;

(b) a gratuity shall not be payable under the said Article 11A to any adopted child (within the meaning of Article 17 of this Scheme) of a deceased officer unless, on the date of the death of the officer, such child was, if a boy, under the age of eighteen years or, if a girl, under the age of twenty-one years and unmarried.

8 Amendment of Article 12A of the Principal Scheme.

8. Article 12A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 8 of the Amending Scheme of 1953) is hereby amended by the insertion in paragraph (a) after "five and a half years" of "and was appointed to such temporary commissioned rank not later than the 31st day of December, 1958."

9 Amendment of Article 12B of the Principal Scheme.

9. Article 12B of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 12 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) is hereby amended—

(a) by the insertion in sub-article (2) after "particular period" of "(being a period which expired not later than the 31st day of March, 1950)," and

(b) by the insertion after sub-article (2) of the following sub-article :

"(2A) For the purposes of this Article a person shall be treated as having been a married man during a particular period (being a period which commenced on or after the 1st day of April, 1950) if, but only if, during the whole of that period, he was a married officer within the meaning of the Defence Force regulations with respect to the pay of officers in force during the whole of that period."

10 Revocation of Article 18 of the Principal Scheme.

10. Article 18 of the Principal Scheme is hereby revoked.

11 Amendment of Article 20 of the Principal Scheme.

11.—(1) Article 20 of the Principal Scheme shall apply to an officer—

(a) who was appointed to commissioned rank in the Forces on the 8th day of December, 1933, and

(b) who, before the commencement of this Scheme, died after retirement from the Forces, and

(d) who was at the date of his death in receipt of retired pay, and

(e) whose pensionable service was twelve years or more.

(2) Notwithstanding sub-article (9) of Article 20 of the Principal Scheme, a pension granted under that Article to the widow or child of a deceased officer to whom, by virtue of paragraph (1) of this Article, the said Article 20 applies shall commence to be payable upon the commencement of this Scheme.

12 Amendment of Article 26A of the Principal Scheme.

12.—(1) Article 26A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 22 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) shall, as respects a long-service soldier discharged on or after the 1st day of April, 1958, have effect as if—

(a) the pension payable to him under sub-article (1) of that Article, as amended by Article 13 of the Amending Scheme of 1956, in lieu of being payable at the rate specified in the Table to the said Article 13, were payable at the rate specified in the Table to this Article opposite the mention of his retiring rank,

(b) a married pension payable to him under sub-article (3) of that Article, as amended by the said Article 13, in lieu of being payable at the rate of eleven shillings and three-pence per week, were payable at the rate of twelve shillings per week.

(2) In this Article and in the Table thereto "retiring rank" has the meaning assigned to it in Article 25 of the Principal Scheme.

(3) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of April, 1958.

TABLE

Retiring Rank	Rate per week of pension in respect of 21 years' qualifying service
	s.	d.
Sergeant-Major	50	3
Battalion Quartermaster-Sergeant	46	0
Company Sergeant	41	9
Company Quartermaster-Sergeant	39	6
Sergeant	36	3
Corporal	33	0
Private	27	0

13 Further amendment of Article 26A of the Principal Scheme.

13.—(1) Article 26A of the Principal Scheme is hereby amended by the substitution, for paragraph (c) of sub-Article 4, of the following paragraph :

"(c) a soldier shall continue to be a married man for so long after the death of his wife or the lawful annulment or lawful dissolution of his marriage as he lives and has a child living the issue of a marriage contracted by him before the date of his discharge who is a son under the age of eighteen years or a daughter under the age of twenty-one years and unmarried."

(2) Paragraph (1) of this Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 2nd day of September, 1946.

14 Amendment of Article 28A of the Principal Scheme.

14.—(1) Article 28A of the Principal Scheme (inserted by Article 26 of the Amending Scheme of 1947) as amended by Article 14 of the Amending Scheme of 1956 shall, as respects a soldier discharged or transferred to the Reserve on or after the 1st day of April, 1958, have effect as if the gratuity payable thereunder to such soldier, in lieu of being calculated by reference to Table II to the said Article 14, were calculated by reference to the Table to this Article.

(2) This Article shall be deemed to have come into operation on the 1st day of April, 1958.

TABLE

Ref. No.	Retiring Rank	Rate for each year of qualifying service where total qualifying service less than 7 years.			Rate for each year of qualifying service where total qualifying service not less than 7 years but less than 13 years.			Rate for each year of qualifying service where total qualifying service not less than 13 years but less than 21 years.
(1)	(2)	(3)			(4)			(5)
		£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.	£	s.	d.
1.	Private	2	12	0	5	3	0	7	15	0
2.	Any rank being that of Corporal oe Sergeant	3	9	0	6	18	0	10	6	0
3.	Any rank being that of Company Quartermaster-Sergeant, Company Sergeant, Battalion Quartermaster-Sergeant or Sergeant-Major	4	6	0	8	12	0	12	18	0

15 Amendment of Article 43 of the Amending Scheme of 1947.

15.—Article 43 of the Amending Scheme of 1947 shall have effect as if the references therein to a pension included references to retired pay.

16 Amendment of First Schedule to the Principal Scheme.

16.—The First Schedule to the Principal Scheme is hereby amended by the insertion in sub-rule (d) of Rule 3, after "National Army," of "and to whom a grant of retired pay has been made."

17 Adopted Children.

17.—(1) For the purposes of the Schemes, a child (in this Article referred to as an adopted child) adopted under the Adoption Act, 1952 (No. 25 of 1952), by an officer and his wife before the officer's retirement from the Forces or by a soldier and his wife before the soldier's discharge from the Forces shall be considered as the child of the adopters born to them in lawful wedlock and not to be the child of any other person.

(2) Where an adopted child to whom a pension is payable under the Schemes, as amended by paragraph (1) of this Article, is in receipt of any continuing allowance payable out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas or out of the funds of a local authority or of any body established by statute and the allowance is payable by reason of services rendered by the child's natural father or by his mother, being services which were remunerated out of such moneys or funds, the following provisions shall have effect :

(a) if the amount per annum of the allowance equals or exceeds the amount of the pension, the pension shall not be payable while such allowance continues to be paid ;

(b) if the amount per annum of the allowance is less than the amount of the pension, the amount of the pension which shall, subject to the Principal Scheme, be payable shall, while such allowance continues to be paid, be an amount equal to the difference between the amount per annum of the allowance and the amount of the pension.

18 Restriction on benefits payable on final retirement to officer granted short service gratuity.

18.—(1) This Article applies to an officer who—

(a) either before or after the commencement of this Scheme retires voluntarily, is granted a gratuity under sub-article (1) of Article 12 of the Principal Scheme and is subsequently appointed an officer, and

(b) retires finally after the commencement of this Scheme.

(2) Any benefits payable under the Schemes, as amended by this or any subsequent Scheme, on final retirement to an officer to whom this Article applies shall not, when added to the gratuity granted to him under sub-article (1) of Article 12 of the Principal Scheme, exceed the benefits which would be payable to him under those Schemes on his final retirement if his periods of pensionable service as an officer were aggregated.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (2) of this Article, the Minister for Finance may determine the annual value of the gratuity paid to the officer concerned on his first retirement and of any gratuity payable to him on his final retirement.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 20th day of April, 1959.

CAOIMHGHÍN Ó BEOLÁIN.

The Minister for Finance hereby consents to the foregoing scheme.

SÉAMAS Ó RIAIN.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Finance, this 20th day of April, 1959.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This statutory instrument provides for increases in the amount of retirement benefits payable to certain officers of the Permanent Defence Force retiring on or after 2nd April 1958 and in the pensions or gratuities payable to soldiers discharged or transferred to the Reserve Defence Force on or after 1st April 1958. It also extends and amends in other respects the Defence Forces (Pensions) Schemes, 1937 to 1957.