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“Objectives of Bank in discharging ESCB functions, etc.
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6A.—(1) In discharging its functions and exercising its powers as part of the European System of Central Banks, the primary objective of the Bank is to maintain price stability.
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(2) The Bank also has the following objectives:
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(a) contributing to the stability of the financial system;
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(b) promoting the efficient and effective operation of payment and settlement systems; and
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(c) discharging such other functions and powers as are conferred or imposed on it by the Rome Treaty, the ESCB Statute or any enactment.
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(3) The Minister may, from time to time, request the Governor, the Board or the Regulatory Authority to consult with the Minister, in relation to their respective functions, as regards the performance by the Bank of any function of the Bank (other than one imposed on it by the Rome Treaty or the ESCB Statute).
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(4) The Minister may, from time to time, request the Governor to inform the Minister with respect to the pursuit of the primary objective of the Bank.
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(5) The Governor, or the Board, shall comply with a request made to the Governor or the Board under this section in so far as the request is consistent with the Rome Treaty, the ESCB Statute or any law of the State.
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(6) Without prejudice to the objective of maintaining price stability, the Bank is required to support the general economic policies of the European Union with a view to contributing to the achievement of the objectives of that Union as laid down in Article 2 of the Rome Treaty.
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Offices of the Bank.
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6B.—Where the Board considers—
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(a) that it is necessary for the purpose of the due performance by the Bank of its functions, the Board may build, purchase, lease or otherwise acquire, establish, equip and maintain offices and other premises of the Bank in such places, whether in the State or elsewhere, or
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(b) that it is no longer necessary for that purpose, sell or let any such premises.
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Power of the Bank to establish divisions, etc. within the Bank.
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6C.—(1) The Bank may, from time to time, establish divisions, branches or offices as part of the Bank's structure.
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(2) The Board is responsible for administering the staff of the Bank and its constituent parts and for administering the provision of accommodation and office and other equipment with a view to enabling the Bank and its constituent parts to perform and exercise their respective functions and powers.
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Staff of Bank.
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6D.—(1) Subject to this section, the Board shall appoint a Secretary to the Bank and such other employees of the Bank as it considers necessary for the effective performance and exercise of the functions and powers of the Bank and each of its constituent parts.
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(2) The Regulatory Authority shall appoint a Secretary to that Authority.
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(3) Except as regards the appointment of a Secretary to the Bank and the Secretary to the Regulatory Authority—
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(a) the Governor has the same power to appoint employees of the Bank as the Board has under subsection (1), but that power is only exercisable in respect of responsibilities specified in section 19A(1)(a) and (b) and (2),
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(b) the Chief Executive has the same power to appoint employees of the Bank as the Board has under subsection (1), but that power is only exercisable with the agreement of the Regulatory Authority.
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(4) The Secretary to the Regulatory Authority and employees appointed under subsection (3) are taken, for the purposes of this Act, to have been appointed under subsection (1).
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(5) The employees of the Bank are to be employed on such conditions (including conditions as to remuneration and allowances) as the Board fixes from time to time. However, in fixing the conditions of employment of the Secretary to the Regulatory Authority and employees appointed by the Chief Executive under subsection (3), the Board shall obtain the concurrence of the Regulatory Authority or Chief Executive (as the case requires) with respect to those conditions of employment.
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(6) Subject to subsection (8), an appointment under this section is to be made by competition to be conducted in accordance with rules made by the Board.
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(7) The Board may, in relation to a particular competition, impose conditions of entry, limitations and safeguards. If the competition relates to an appointment to be made under subsection (2) or (3), the Board may impose such conditions only with the concurrence of the Regulatory Authority or the Chief Executive, as the case requires.
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(8) Subsection (6) does not apply to an appointment to a position if the Board, or, in relation to appointments under subsection (2) or (3), if the Regulatory Authority or Chief Executive (as the case requires), decides that appointment to the position by competition would be inappropriate.
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(9) The Board shall establish and operate a policy under which provision is made for employees of the Bank to be given opportunities for training and experience in various activities, and in different constituent parts, of the Bank.
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Assignment of employees of Bank.
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6E.—The Board shall arrange for employees of the Bank to be assigned to the Regulatory Authority and to any divisions, branches or offices established under section 6C. However, any assignment of an employee to or from the Regulatory Authority shall take place only with the agreement of the Chief Executive.
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Bank may engage agents and act as agent for others.
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6F.—The Bank may engage agents, and act as agent for other persons.
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Financial and administrative matters
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General fund of the Bank.
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6G.—(1) The Bank shall continue to keep and operate the fund called the general fund.
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(2) The Bank shall pay into the general fund all money received by the Bank and shall pay from that fund all amounts that it is required to pay.
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(3) The Bank shall pay its surplus income as and when determined under this section into the Exchequer in such manner as the Minister directs and may at any time pending such determination pay into the Exchequer such sums on account of surplus income as may be agreed on by the Minister and the Bank.
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(4) The expenses incurred by the Bank in performing functions or exercising powers under this or any other Act or law are payable out of the general fund of the Bank, except where otherwise provided by or under this or any other Act.
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(5) Any claims on or liabilities to the European Central Bank are to be treated as assets or liabilities of the general fund or any other fund established by order made by the Minister for that purpose.
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(6) The Minister may, after consultation with the Bank, make regulations providing for the periodic determination of the Bank's surplus income and, in particular, such regulations may—
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(a) enable provision to be made for reserves, depreciation and other similar matters before the surplus income is determined, and
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(b) provide for any matter arising from the implementation of Chapters VI, VIII and IX of the ESCB Statute.
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(7) In exercising the powers conferred by this section, the Minister is required to have regard to the functions imposed and the powers conferred on the Bank by or under the Rome Treaty and the ESCB Statute.
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(8) Any regulations in force under
section 23
of the
Central Bank Act 1989
, immediately before the commencement of this section are taken to have been made under section 61A(1), and may be amended or revoked accordingly.
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Accounting and other records of Bank.
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6H.—(1) The Bank shall keep all proper accounting records in respect of all of its transactions.
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(2) Within 6 months after the end of each financial year, the Bank shall prepare and transmit to the Comptroller and Auditor General a statement of accounts for the year concerned. The statement must be in a form approved by the Minister after consulting the Bank. A form of statement approved under this subsection remains in force until superseded by another form of statement so approved.
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(3) The Comptroller and Auditor General shall audit, certify and report on the statement of accounts and, as soon as practicable after completing the report, give the report and the statement to the Minister.
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(4) As soon as practicable after being given the report and statement of account, the Minister shall arrange for copies of those documents to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.
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(5) The accounts of the Bank may be audited in accordance with Article 27 of the ESCB Statute and, for that purpose, the Bank shall provide any auditors appointed in accordance with that Article with full information, books and records.
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(6) The Bank shall keep its accounting records for at least 6 years.
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Report and returns by Bank.
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6I.—(1) Within 6 months after the end of each financial year, the Bank shall prepare a report of its operations during the year and present the report to the Minister.
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(2) As soon as practicable after receiving such a report, the Minister is required to arrange for copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas, together with any other reports required to be included in or attached to the report.
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(3) The Bank shall give to the Minister for publication in Iris Oifigiúil such periodical returns concerning the transactions of the Bank as the Minister directs from time to time.
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Exemption of Bank from taxes.
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6J.—Profits, income and chargeable gains of the Bank are exempt from corporation tax, income tax and capital gains tax despite any contrary provisions of any enactment providing for corporation tax, income tax or capital gains tax.
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Provisions relating to documents of the Bank.
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6K.—(1) The Bank may keep its documents wholly or partly in a non-legible form so long as they are capable of being reproduced in a legible form.
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(2) The Bank is not required to keep any of its documents (including accounting records) for longer than 6 years after the latest date of the period to which such documents relate. This subsection has effect despite any other enactment to the contrary.
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(3) In any legal proceedings, a copy or reproduction in legible form of a document, or an entry in a document, kept or formerly kept by the Bank is admissible as evidence of the entry and the matters contained in it where the document has been destroyed or is kept by the Bank in a non-legible form.
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(4) In this section, ‘document’ means any record of information, and includes—
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(a) anything on which there is writing, or
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(b) anything on which there are marks, figures, symbols or perforations having a meaning for persons qualified to interpret them, or
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(c) anything from which sounds, images or writings can be reproduced with or without the aid of anything else, or
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(d) a map, plan, drawing or photograph.”.
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