Referendum (Amendment) Act, 1946

Amendment of First Schedule to the Principal Act.

3.—The First Schedule to the Principal Act is hereby amended in the following respects—

(a) by the insertion, after Rule 23, of the following Rule—

“23A. The local returning officer for a constituency—

(a) shall appoint, as the place at which he will open the ballot boxes—

(i) in case the constituency consists wholly or partly of a county borough, some place within the county borough, or

(ii) in any other case, some place in the constituency, but may, with the consent of the Minister (which shall not be given unless the Minister is satisfied that there is not, within the constituency, any place available and suitable for the counting of the votes), appoint some place outside but convenient to, the constituency,

(b) shall open the ballot boxes at the place so appointed,

(c) give to every person nominated under Rule 29 of this Schedule and of whose nomination he receives notice, notice in writing of the place so appointed.”;

(b) by the substitution of the following Rule for Rule 24—

“24. At the hour of 9 o'clock a.m. on the day after the close of the poll in a constituency and at the place appointed by him under Rule 23A of this Schedule, the local returning officer for that constituency shall commence to open the ballot boxes used at the poll in that constituency, take out the ballot papers therein, count and record the numbers thereof, and then mix together the whole of the ballot papers contained in the said boxes.”;

(c) by the deletion, in paragraph (1) of Rule 30, of the word “seven” and the substitution therefor of the word “eleven”;

(d) by the insertion in paragraph (3) of Rule 32, of the words “President and the” before the word “Taoiseach”;

(e) by the insertion in paragraph (4) of Rule 32, of the words “President and the” before the word “Taoiseach”.