S.I. No. 22/1975 - The Health Education Bureau (Establishment) Order, 1975.


S.I. No. 22 of 1975.

THE HEALTH EDUCATION BUREAU (ESTABLISHMENT) ORDER, 1975.

The Minister for Health in exercise of the powers conferred on him by Sections 3 to 6 of the Health (Corporate Bodies) Act, 1961 (No. 27 of 1961), hereby orders as follows:—

1. This Order may be cited as the Health Education Bureau (Establishment) Order, 1975.

2. A body to be known as an Bíuró Oideachais Sláinte or, in the English language, the Health Education Bureau, is hereby established.

3. In this Order—

"the Bureau" means the Health Education Bureau established by this Order;

"the Chairman" means the Chairman for the time being of the Bureau;

"the Minister" means the Minister for Health.

4. The functions of the Bureau are as follows:—

( a ) to advise the Minister on the aspects of health education which should have priority at national level;

( b ) to draw up, in accordance with the agreed national priorities, programmes of health education for promotion at national and local level;

( c ) to carry out such programmes with the co-operation of the statutory and voluntary bodies engaged in health education;

( d ) to maintain contact with voluntary bodies engaged in particular aspects of health education and, in accordance with the agreed national priorities, to give financial assistance to such bodies as appropriate and to the extent that the resources of the Bureau will permit;

( e ) to provide statutory and voluntary bodies engaged in health education with help in carrying out their local programmes, including the production and distribution of educational material;

( f ) to promote and conduct research and to evaluate health education activities;

( g ) to act as a national centre of expertise and knowledge in all aspects of health education;

( h ) to promote greater concern for health education generally in the community.

5. The Bureau shall consist of ten members appointed by the Minister.

6. The term of office of a member of the Bureau shall be such period not exceeding four years as may be specified by the Minister when appointing him and he shall hold office for the period for which he is appointed unless he sooner dies, resigns by letter addressed to the Minister or ceases to be a member in accordance with Article 7 of this Order.

7. A member shall cease to be a member of the Bureau on his being requested by the Minister to resign.

8. The Minister shall appoint from amongst the members of the Bureau a Chairman who shall hold office until he ceases to be a member of the Bureau or until the Minister appoints another person to be Chairman.

9. The quorum of the Bureau shall be four.

10. The Bureau shall hold such and so many meetings as may be necessary for the performance of its functions.

11. The proceedings of the Bureau shall not be invalidated by any vacancy or vacancies amongst its members or by any defect in the appointment of the Bureau or any member thereof.

12. (1) The Chairman may, at any time, call a meeting of the Bureau.

(2) If the Chairman refuses to call a meeting of the Bureau after a requisition for that purpose, signed by three members of the Bureau, has been presented to him, any three members of the Bureau may forthwith, on that refusal, call a meeting of the Bureau, and, if the Chairman (without so refusing) does not, within seven days after the presentation of the requisition, call a meeting of the Bureau, any three members of the Bureau may, on the expiration of these seven days, call a meeting of the Bureau.

13. At a meeting of the Bureau—

( a ) the Chairman shall, if he is present, be chairman of the meeting;

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

14. Minutes of the proceedings of each meeting of the Bureau shall be entered in a book kept for that purpose and shall be signed by the chairman of the meeting or of the next ensuing meeting.

15. (1) The names of the members present at a meeting of the Bureau shall be recorded in the minutes of the proceedings of the Bureau.

(2) The names of the members voting on any question arising at a meeting of the Bureau shall be recorded in the minutes of the proceedings of the meeting and the record shall show which members vote for and which against the question.

16. (1) A person shall not receive any remuneration for acting as a member of the Bureau.

(2) Members of the Bureau may be paid travelling and subsistence allowances in accordance with such scale as may from time to time be approved by the Minister.

17. (1) All acts of the Bureau and all questions coming or arising before the Bureau may be done and decided by the majority of such members of the Bureau as are present and vote at a meeting of the Bureau.

(2) In case of equality of votes on any question arising at a meeting of the Bureau, the chairman of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

(3) A memorandum signed by all the members (for the time being) of the Bureau shall be effective for all purposes as a resolution of the Bureau passed at a meeting duly convened, held and constituted.

18. (1) In order to facilitate the discharge of the functions of the Bureau, the Bureau may establish committees consisting of members of the Bureau.

(2) The Bureau may assign to such committees the discharge of such particular aspects of their functions as the Bureau may decide.

19. The seal of the Bureau shall be authenticated by the signature of the Chairman or some other member of the Bureau duly authorised by the Bureau to act in that behalf and the signature of an officer of the Bureau duly authorised by the Bureau to act in that behalf.

20. (1) The Bureau shall cause to be kept proper accounts of all income and expenditure of the Bureau, and of the sources of such income and the subject matter of such expenditure, and of the property, credits and liabilities of the Bureau.

(2) The financial year of the Bureau shall be the period of twelve months ending on the 31st day of December in any year and for the purposes of this provision the period commencing on the date of this Order and ending on the 31st of December 1975 shall be deemed to be a financial year.

(3) A statement of accounts of the Bureau for each financial year shall, as soon as may be after the end of such financial year, be prepared and after such preparation be audited by and be subject to a report by an auditor appointed for the purpose by the Minister after consultation with the Bureau.

(4) The expenses generally of such audit shall be paid by the Bureau as soon as may be after each audit.

(5) A copy of the accounts and the auditor's certificate and report thereon shall be presented to the members of the Bureau and to the Minister.

(6) The Bureau and the officers thereof, shall whenever so requested by the Minister, permit any person appointed by him to examine the books and accounts of the Bureau in respect of any financial year or other period and shall facilitate any such examination and the Bureau shall pay such fee therefor as may be fixed by the Minister.

21. (1) The Bureau, shall in each year, not later than such date as the Minister shall direct, make a report to the Minister of its activities during the preceding year.

(2) The Bureau shall submit to the Minister such information regarding the performance of its functions as the Minister may from time to time require.

22. (1) The Bureau may appoint such and so many officers and employ such and so many servants as the Bureau may, from time to time, think proper and in appointing any officer or employing any servant the Bureau shall comply with any directions given by the Minister relating to the procedure to be followed.

(2) Every officer of the Bureau holding office in a permanent capacity shall cease to hold his office on attaining the age of sixty-five years.

(3) The Bureau shall determine the remuneration and conditions of service of each officer and each servant.

(4) The Bureau shall, from time to time, assign such duties as they consider appropriate to each officer and servant of the Bureau and each such officer and servant shall perform the duties so assigned to him.

(5) The Minister may, whenever and so often as he thinks fit, declare that any of the powers conferred on the Bureau by this Article shall be exercisable only with the consent of the Minister, and whenever any such declaration is in force, the said powers may, in relation to any office or employment to which the declaration applies, be exercised only with such consent.

23. A person who for the time being holds any office under or is in the employment of the Bureau shall be disqualified from being a member of the Bureau.

24. The Local Government (Superannuation) Act, 1956 , (No. 10 of 1956) shall apply to the Bureau as if it were a local authority.

25. (1) For the purpose of the performance of its functions, the Bureau may, with the consent of the Minister, borrow money and purchase or take on lease any land.

(2) The Bureau may, with the consent of the Minister, sell, exchange, let or otherwise dispose of any land vested in it.

26. (1) The Bureau may accept gifts of money, land and other property upon such trusts and conditions, if any, as may be specified by the donor.

(2) The Bureau may not accept a gift if the conditions attached by the donor to its acceptance are not consistent with the functions of the Bureau.

GIVEN under the Official Seal of the Minister for Health this 30th

day of January, 1975.

BRENDAN CORISH,

Minister for Health.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

The effect of the Order is to establish under the Health (Corporate Bodies) Act, 1961 , a body to be known as the Health Education Bureau which will advise the Minister on the formulation of policy in relation to health education and will co-ordinate the development and provision of health education programmes.