Veterinary Surgeons Act , 1931

1 Definitions.

1.—In this Act—

the expression “the Minister” means the Minister for Agriculture;

the expression “the Council” means the Veterinary Council constituted by this Act;

the expression “the register” means the Register of Veterinary Surgeons for Saorstát Eireann to be established and maintained under this Act;

the expression “the general veterinary register” means the register of veterinary surgeons maintained by the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in pursuance of the charters and statutes governing that College;

the expression “registered veterinary surgeon” in relation to anything done or to be done or an event happening before the establishment of the register means a person registered in the general veterinary register and in relation to anything done or to be done or an event happening after the establishment of the register means a person registered in the register;

the word “prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Council.

2 Confirmation of agreement and consequential amendments of the law.

2.—(1) The Agreement set forth in the First Schedule to this Act is hereby confirmed and shall take effect on whichever of the following dates is the later, that is to say, the date of the passing of this Act and the date of the passing into law by the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland of legislation to give statutory effect to the said Agreement.

(2) For the purpose of enabling the said Agreement to have statutory effect in Saorstát Eireann it is hereby enacted that—

(a) the said Agreement, in so far as the terms thereof are inconsistent with the Veterinary Surgeons Acts, shall be deemed to amend or modify to that extent those Acts, and those Acts are hereby amended and modified accordingly;

(b) the Veterinary Surgeons Acts as so amended or modified shall be and continue in force in Saorstát Eireann so far as is so provided by the said Agreement or is necessary to enable the said Agreement to have full force and effect in Saorstát Eireann;

(c) save as is otherwise enacted in the foregoing paragraph the Veterinary Surgeons Acts shall cease to have effect on the date of the passing of this Act

(3) In this section the expression “the Veterinary Surgeons Acts” means the Veterinary Surgeons Act, 1881, the Veterinary Surgeons Amendment Act, 1900, and the Veterinary Surgeons Act (1881) Amendment Act, 1920.

3 Constitution of the Veterinary Council.

3.—(1) A Council to be styled the Veterinary Council (in this Act referred to as the Council) shall be established in accordance with this Act to fulfil the functions assigned to it by this Act.

(2) The Council shall be a body corporate having perpetual succession and may provide itself with a seal and may sue and be sued under its said style and name.

(3) The Council shall consist of eight members who shall in the first instance be nominated and subsequently be elected by the persons and in the manner provided in this Act.

4 Nominated members of the Council.

4.—(1) As soon as may be after the passing of this Act, the Executive Council on the request of the Minister shall nominate eight registered veterinary surgeons resident in the Irish Free State to be members of the Council (in this Act referred to as nominated members) and shall appoint the order of seniority of such members amongst themselves for the purposes of the provisions of this Act relating to the expiration of the terms of office of such members.

(2) Every nominated member of the Council shall, unless he sooner dies, resigns, or becomes disqualified, hold office until the date on which his term of office expires under this Act.

(3) Whenever a nominated member of the Council dies, resigns, or becomes disqualified before the expiration of his term of office the Minister shall nominate a registered veterinary surgeon to be a nominated member of the Council in the place and with the seniority and for the residue of the term of office of the member who so died, resigned, or became disqualified.

(4) If and whenever a nominated member of the Council ceases to be a registered veterinary surgeon or ceases to be resident in the Irish Free State he shall be disqualified for being and shall forthwith cease to be a member of the Council.

(5) A nominated member of the Council may at any time resign his office as such member by letter addressed and sent to the Minister.

5 Preliminary and final establishments of the Council.

5.—(1) The preliminary establishment of the Council shall take place by virtue of this section on the date on which the eight nominated members of the Council are nominated by the Executive Council in accordance with this Act, and references in this Act to the preliminary establishment of the Council as a point in time shall be construed as referring to that date.

(2) The final establishment of the Council shall take place by virtue of this section on the 31st day of May next after the preliminary establishment of the Council unless such final establishment is postponed by the Minister under this section.

(3) If the Minister is of opinion, on the representation of or after consultation with the Council, that it is not convenient that the final establishment of the Council should take place on the 31st day of May next after the preliminary establishment of the Council, the Minister may by order postpone the final establishment of the Council to the 31st day of May next after the above-mentioned 31st day of May, and if such order is so made the final establishment of the Council shall take place by virtue of this section on the 31st day of May to which such final establishment is postponed by such order.

(4) References in this Act to the final establishment of the Council as a point in time shall be construed as referring to the 31st day of May on which such final establishment takes place under the foregoing provisions of this section.

(5) Every order made by the Minister under this section shall be published in the Iris Oifigiúil.

6 Expiration of terms of office of nominated members of the Council.

6.—(1) The terms of office of the first, second, third, fourth and fifth, in order of seniority of the nominated members of the Council shall expire at the final establishment of the Council.

(2) The several terms of office of the sixth, seventh and eighth in order of seniority of the nominated members of the Council shall expire respectively on the first, second, and third anniversaries of the final establishment of the Council.

(3) A nominated member of the Council shall be eligible (if otherwise qualified) to be elected as and to become and be an elected member of the Council as from the expiration of his term of office as a nominated member.

7 Elected members of the Council.

7.—(1) From and after the final establishment of the Council, the members of the Council (other than the nominated members whose terms of office have for the time being not expired) shall be elected in accordance with this Act and all members so elected are in this Act referred to as elected members.

(2) From and after the final establishment of the Council four (in this Act referred to as general elected members) of the elected members of the Council shall be registered veterinary surgeons who are for the time being also registered in the general veterinary register and are resident in Saorstát Eireann, and such general elected members shall be elected in accordance with this Act by the registered veterinary surgeons who are for the time being also registered in the general veterinary register and are resident in Saorstát Eireann.

(3) From and after the final establishment of the Council the elected members of the Council who are not general elected members shall be registered veterinary surgeons resident in Saorstát Eireann and shall be elected by the registered veterinary surgeons who are for the time being resident in Saorstát Eireann.

(4) Elected members of the Council who are not general elected members are in this Act referred to as limited elected members.

(5) Registration in the general veterinary register shall neither disqualify nor be a qualification for being elected or holding office as a limited elected member of the Council or for voting at an election of limited members of the Council.

8 Times for elections of elected members of the Council.

8.—(1) Before, but not more than one month before, the final establishment of the Council an election (in this Act referred to as the first election) of elected members of the Council shall be held in accordance with this Act and at such election four general elected members of the Council and one limited elected member of the Council shall be elected in accordance with this Act.

(2) Before, but not more than one month before, every anniversary of the final establishment of the Council an election shall be held in accordance with this Act for the election of one general elected member and one limited elected member of the Council and of such other persons as are required by this Act to be elected at such election to fill casual vacancies.

(3) In this Act the expression “annual election” means an election held in pursuance of this section.

9 Conduct of elections of elected members of the Council.

9.—(1) Not less than three weeks before the final establishment of the Council the Council shall appoint the President of the Council if he is willing to act or, if he is not so willing, some other member of the Council willing to act to be the returning officer for the first election of elected members of the Council.

(2) Not less than one month before every anniversary of the final establishment of the Council the Council shall appoint the President of the Council if he is willing to act or, if he is not so willing, some other member of the Council willing to act to be the returning officer for the election of persons to become and be elected members of the Council on such anniversary.

(3) Every returning officer appointed under this section shall immediately upon his appointment hold and conduct in accordance with this Act the election for which he is so appointed and shall so hold and conduct such election that the same is completed before the commencement of the term of office of the persons elected thereat.

(4) Every election of elected members of the Council shall be conducted in accordance with the Rules set forth in the Second Schedule to this Act and such other rules (if any) not inconsistent therewith as the Council shall think proper to make.

(5) Every returning officer appointed under this section shall immediately upon the completion of the election for which he was so appointed communicate in writing to the Council the names of the persons elected thereat and such other information in relation to such election as may be prescribed by regulations made by the Council.

(6) Every returning officer appointed under this section shall be entitled to the assistance of the officers and servants of the Council in the holding and conduct of the election for which he was so appointed.

10 Terms of office of elected members of the Council.

10.—(1) The four general elected members of the Council elected at the first election of members of the Council shall (unless they sooner die, resign or become disqualified) respectively hold office as such members for the following periods reckoned in every case from the final establishment of the Council, that is to say, the first in seniority of such members shall hold office for four years, and the second, third and fourth in seniority of such members shall respectively hold office for three years, two years, and one year.

(2) The limited elected member of the Council elected at the first election of members of the Council shall (unless he sooner dies, resigns or becomes disqualified) hold office for four years from the final establishment of the Council.

(3) Save as is otherwise provided in the foregoing sub-sections of this section and subject to the provisions of this section in relation to persons elected to fill casual vacancies, every elected member of the Council shall (unless he sooner dies, resigns or becomes disqualified) hold his office as such member for the term of four years reckoned from the expiration of the term of office of his predecessor.

(4) A member of the Council elected at an annual election to fill a casual vacancy in the Council shall, unless he sooner dies, resigns, or becomes disqualified, hold office for the residue of the term for which the member whose death, resignation, or disqualification occasioned the vacancy would have held office if he had not died, resigned or become disqualified.

(5) An elected member of the Council shall not, during his term of office as such member, be eligible to be a candidate for election as a member of the Council, save that every elected member of the Council shall, if otherwise qualified, be eligible for election at or before the expiration of his term of office to become and be an elected member of the Council at such expiration.

11 Casual vacancies amongst elected members of the Council.

11.—(1) An elected member of the Council may at any time resign his office as such member by letter addressed and sent to the registrar, and every such resignation shall take effect at the commencement of the meeting of the Council commencing next after the receipt of such resignation by the registrar.

(2) Every general elected member of the Council shall, upon his either ceasing to be a registered veterinary surgeon, or ceasing to be registered in the general veterinary register, or ceasing to be resident in Saorstát Eireann forthwith be disqualified for continuing to be a member of the Council.

(3) Every limited elected member of the Council shall, upon his either ceasing to be a registered veterinary surgeon or ceasing to be resident in Saorstát Eireann, forthwith be disqualified for continuing to be a member of the Council.

(4) Whenever a vacancy (in this Act called a casual vacancy) occurs in the membership of the Council by reason of the death, resignation, or disqualification of an elected member, such vacancy shall (save as is hereinafter otherwise provided) be filled at the annual election held next after the occurrence of such vacancy unless the term of office of such member was due to expire at the anniversary of the establishment of the Council next after the occurrence of such vacancy.

(5) Whenever a casual vacancy occurs in the membership of the Council in the period between the appointment of a returning officer for an annual election and the anniversary of the establishment of the Council in relation to which such annual election is held, such vacancy shall be filled at the annual election held in the following year unless the term of office of the member whose death, resignation, or disqualification occasioned the vacancy was due to expire at the said anniversary or at the next following such anniversary.

(6) Whenever a casual vacancy occurs in the membership of the Council, the Council may, if it thinks proper so to do, itself elect a qualified person to fill such vacancy temporarily until the filling of such vacancy under the foregoing provisions of this section or the date at which the term of office of the member whose death, resignation, or disqualification occasioned the vacancy was due to expire, whichever first happens.

(7) A person elected by the Council under this section to fill a casual vacancy temporarily shall be eligible for election as a member of the Council at any annual election held while he so temporarily fills such vacancy.

12 Irish Free State representatives.

12.—(1) Every general elected member of the Council shall be an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and the election of a person (whether at an annual election or to fill a casual vacancy) to be a general elected member of the Council shall be deemed to be an election of such person to be an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.

(2) Every general elected member of the Council elected at an annual election (otherwise than to fill a casual vacancy) shall, unless he sooner dies, resigns, or becomes disqualified, hold office as an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons for the term appointed by the Agreement set forth in the First Schedule to this Act and every person elected at an annual election to be a general elected member of the Council to fill a casual vacancy therein shall, unless he sooner dies, resigns or becomes disqualified, hold office as an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons for the term for which the general elected member whose death, resignation or disqualification occasioned the vacancy would have held office as such representative if he had not died, resigned or become disqualified.

(3) Every person elected by the Council to fill temporarily a casual vacancy amongst the general elected members of the Council shall hold office as an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons for the period during which he so fills such casual vacancy.

(4) A general elected member of the Council who ceases by any means to be an Irish Free State representative on the Council of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons shall be disqualified for being and shall forthwith cease to be a member of the Council.

(5) In this section the expression “Irish Free State representative” has the meaning assigned to it in the Agreement set forth in the First Schedule to this Act.

13 The first meeting of the Council.

13.—(1) When the Executive Council has duly nominated in accordance with this Act eight nominated members of the Council, the Minister shall by notice in writing sent by post to each of the members of the Council so nominated appoint a time and place for the first meeting of the Council.

(2) The Council shall meet at the time and place appointed under this section for their meeting and shall thereupon enter upon their duties under this Act and in particular shall at such meeting or as soon as may be thereafter proceed to establish the register.

14 President of the Council.

14.—(1) It shall be the duty of the Council at their first meeting and thereafter from time to time as occasion requires to elect a member of the Council to be the President of the Council.

(2) Every president of the Council shall hold office as such president from the date of his election to that office until the happening of whichever of the following events first happens, that is to say:—

(a) the expiration of his term of office as a member of the Council;

(b) his ceasing to be a member of the Council otherwise than by the expiration of his term of office;

(c) his resigning the office of president of the Council.

(3) Every president of the Council on the expiration of his term of office as president shall be eligible for re-election so long as he remains a member of the Council.