Local Government (Superannuation) Act , 1956

Type Act
Publication 1956-03-27
Last updated 1956-03-21
State In force
articles 71
Reform history JSON API

PART I. Preliminary and General.

1 Short title.

1.—This Act may be cited as the Local Government (Superannuation) Act, 1956.

2 Interpretation.

2.—In this Act—

“the Act of 1925” means the Local Government Act, 1925 (No. 5 of 1925);

“the Act of 1948” means the Local Government (Superannuation) Act, 1948 (No. 4 of 1948);

“the appropriate Minister” means—

(a) in case the local authority in question are a vocational education committee, the Minister for Education,

(b) in case the local authority in question are a committee of agriculture, the Minister for Agriculture,

(c) in any other case, the Minister;

“civil service”, when used without qualification, includes, in addition to the civil service of the Government, the civil services mentioned in paragraphs (a), (b), (e) and (f) of subsection (1) of section 2 of the Superannuation Act, 1936 (No. 39 of 1936);

“emolument” means, subject to sections 26 and 46, any apartments, rations, or other perquisites in kind (or, as the case may require, a monetary payment given in lieu of such apartments, rations, or other perquisites) appertaining to an office or employment and all fees, poundage and commission of an officer or servant as such for his own use;

“established position”, when used in relation to the civil service, has the same meaning as it has in the Superannuation Act, 1936 (No. 39 of 1936);

“fire brigade officer” means an officer of a fire brigade authority under the Fire Brigades Act, 1940 (No. 7 of 1940), who is whole-time as such and whose duties include attendance at fires;

“fire brigade servant” means a servant of a fire brigade authority under the Fire Brigades Act, 1940 (No. 7 of 1940), who is whole-time as such and whose duties include attendance at fires;

“harbour authority” means a harbour authority within the meaning of the Harbours Act, 1946 (No. 9 of 1946);

“local authority” means, subject to subsection (6) of section 5 of this Act, any of the following bodies:

(a) a local authority for the purposes of the Local Government Acts, 1925 to 1955, other than a mental hospital board,

(b) a vocational education committee,

(c) a committee of agriculture,

(d) a school attendance committee,

(e) the Dublin Fever Hospital Board;

“mental hospital board” means a joint board within the meaning of the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945);

“mental hospital officer” means an officer whose duties relate wholly to the functions now vested in a mental hospital authority under the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945);

“mental hospital servant” means a servant whose duties relate wholly to the functions now vested in a mental hospital authority under the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945);

“the Minister” means the Minister for Local Government;

“officer” does not include a mental hospital officer or a person holding any of the offices mentioned in section 17 of the Local Government Act, 1941 (No. 23 of 1941);

“pensionable local service”—

(a) in relation to a pensionable officer, has the meaning assigned to it in section 12 of this Act, and

(b) in relation to a pensionable servant, has the meaning assigned to it in section 35 of this Act;

“pensionable officer” means an officer of a local authority whose name is entered in the register of pensionable officers maintained by such local authority under section 7 of this Act;

“pensionable servant” means a servant of a local authority whose name is entered in the register of pensionable servants maintained by such local authority under section 30 of this Act;

“permanent officer” means an officer whose appointment was, at the time thereof, declared to be an appointment in a permanent capacity;

“registrable officer” means a permanent officer who—

(a) devotes the whole of his time to the service of one or more than one local authority,

(b) in the case of an officer who acts as superintendent registrar of births, deaths and marriages or as registrar of marriages, devotes the remainder of his time to the service of one or more than one local authority,

(c) is required to be a registered medical practitioner, or

(d) is a midwife whose name is entered under section 28;

“salary” means, subject to section 26, payments as salary to an officer as such for his own use and, in the case of an officer who is suspended or absent on leave and who, as respects the period of suspension or absence, does not receive a part of the payments as salary to him for his own use which he would have received if he had not been suspended or absent on leave, includes that part;

“servant” includes a person holding any of the offices mentioned in section 17 of the Local Government Act, 1941 (No. 23 of 1941), other than the office of coroner, but does not include a mental hospital servant;

“service day” means—

(a) a day on which the servant worked in a wholetime capacity for one or more than one local authority, the work not being work (other than work in a supervisory capacity or work calling for special experience or skill which is not given to him by reference to the provision of employment for him or the relief of his distress) on any work or scheme of works the expenses of which are in whole or in part met from moneys provided by the Oireachtas for the provision of employment and the relief of distress,

(b) a day (other than a Sunday) in respect of which the servant was given paid leave,

(c) a day (other than a Sunday) in respect of which the servant was paid compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1934 to 1955 by a local authority, provided that the accident occurred on a day such as is referred to in paragraph (a) of this definition and that either—

(i) the whole of the period in respect of which the compensation was paid was not more than one year, or

(ii) where the whole of the period in respect of which the compensation was paid was more than one year, the day occurred during such portion of the period as was before the expiration of one year from its commencement, or

(d) a day (other than a Sunday or a day on which he was on permanent service) on which the servant was attending and performing his duty as a member of the Reserve Defence Force on full pay;

“the Superannuation Acts” means the Superannuation Acts, 1834 to 1954;

“unfitness” means unfitness of an officer or servant for his office or employment, but does not include unfitness due to infirmity of mind or body or old age;

“wages” means, subject to section 46, payments as wages to a servant as such for his own use and—

(a) in the case of a servant who is suspended or absent on leave and who, as respects the period of suspension or absence, does not receive a part of the payments as wages to him for his own use which he would have received if he had not been suspended or absent on leave, includes that part, and

(b) in the case of a servant being paid compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1934 to 1955, by a local authority, includes the wages that he would have received if he had not been in receipt of such compensation.

3 Laying of regulations before Houses of the Oireachtas.

3.—Every regulation made under this Act shall be laid before each House of the Oireachtas as soon as may be after it is made and, if a resolution annulling the regulation is passed by either such House within the next subsequent twenty-one days on which that House has sat after the regulation is laid before it, the regulation shall be annulled accordingly, but without prejudice to the validity of anything previously done thereunder.

4 Commencement of Part II.

4.—Part II of this Act shall come into operation on such day as the Minister by order appoints for that purpose.

5 Commencement of Part III.

5.—(1) Part III of this Act shall come into operation in relation to a local authority, being a local authority who passed a resolution under section 5 of the Act of 1948, on the 1st day of April next after the passing of this Act.

(2) A local authority, not being a local authority who have passed a resolution under section 5 of the Act of 1948, may by resolution decide to adopt Part III of this Act as on and from a specified day (being a 1st day of April) not earlier than one month after the date of the resolution.

(3) The passing of a resolution under this section shall be a reserved function for the purposes of the County Management Acts, 1940 to 1955, and for the purposes of the Acts relating to the management of any county borough.

(4) Where a local authority pass a resolution under this section deciding to adopt Part III of this Act as on and from a specified day, that Part shall come into operation in relation to them on that day.

(5) Part III of this Act shall come into operation as provided by subsections (1) and (4) of this section and not otherwise.

(6) A reference in Part III of this Act to a local authority does not include a reference to any local authority in relation to whom that Part has not come into operation save where the reference is in relation to service as an officer.

(7) The commencement of Part III of this Act in relation to a local authority shall not have the effect of applying section 53 of the Act of 1925 to such local authority.

6 Expenses of the Minister.

6.—The expenses incurred by any Minister in the administration of this Act shall, to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Finance, be paid out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas.

PART II. Pensionable Officers.

7 Register of pensionable officers.

7.—(1) A local authority shall maintain a register to be known as the register of pensionable officers (in this Part of this Act referred to as the register).

(2) Where a person becomes a registrable officer of a local authority, the local authority shall enter his name in the register and shall notify him accordingly within one month.

(3) An officer of a local authority aggrieved by the refusal of or failure by the local authority to enter his name in the register may appeal against the refusal or failure to the appropriate Minister and that Minister may either refuse the appeal or direct the name to be entered in the register as from a specified date and, in the latter case, the local authority shall enter the name in the register as from that date.

(4) A local authority shall keep at their principal office the register open at all reasonable times for inspection by their officers and by either—

(a) in the case of the corporation of a borough, the members of the council of the borough, or

(b) in any other case, the members of the local authority.

8 Removal from the register of person ceasing to be registrable officer.

8.—(1) A local authority shall remove from the register the name of any person who ceases to be a registrable officer of such local authority and shall notify him accordingly within one month.

(2) The removal of a name from the register may be effected by a note on the register indicating that the name has been removed and the date of the removal, and the reinstatement of a name in the register may be effected by a note on the register indicating that the name has been reinstated and the date of the reinstatement.

(3) A person aggrieved by the removal of his name by a local authority from the register may, within six months after the removal is notified to him, appeal against the removal to the appropriate Minister and that Minister may either refuse the appeal or direct the name to be reinstated in the register and, in the latter case, the local authority shall reinstate the name in the register.

9 Notification to local authority of cesser of office under another local authority.

9.—Where a pensionable officer of a local authority ceases to hold any office under them, they shall so inform any other local authority under whom such officer holds any office or employment.

10 General limitations on service to be reckoned by pensionable officer.

10.—(1) A provision of this Part of this Act entitling a pensionable officer to reckon as service any period shall be subject to the overriding qualification that he shall not be entitled so to reckon a particular period more than once nor shall he be entitled so to reckon any of the following:

(a) any period as respects which, when ordinarily entitled to remuneration in respect of a position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, he was not in receipt of that remuneration, being a period after the commencement of this Part of this Act and not being a period continuous with a similar period ending on such commencement,

(b) any period in respect of which he has already received a lump sum, an allowance or a gratuity under this or any other Act relating to superannuation or under any scheme relating to superannuation service for the purposes of which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, unless in the case of a gratuity, having been entitled to repay such gratuity, he has done so,

(c) any period in respect of which any contributions for superannuation have been returned to him, unless, having been entitled to repay such contributions, he has done so,

(d) any period before a date on which he was removed or discharged from his position for misconduct or for unfitness,

(e) being a person entitled to reckon under this Act service which is not under a local authority, any period of that service which he would have been unable to reckon if he had continued to hold the position in which he had that service,

(f) any period before a date after the commencement of this Part of this Act on which he absents himself from the place where he performs his duties under a local authority or refrains from performing those duties, such absence or refraining being deliberate and unauthorised.

(2) Where a period of service of an officer of a local authority has, having regard to paragraph (f) of subsection (1) of this section, become forfeited—

(a) the local authority shall give notice in writing of the forfeiture to the officer,

(b) the officer may, not later than one month after notice has been given to him, appeal to the appropriate Minister against the forfeiture,

(c) the appropriate Minister may either refuse the appeal or declare that all or part of the period of service shall be restored and, in the latter case, the said paragraph (f) shall have effect subject to the declaration.

11 Reckoning service of pensionable officer.

11.—(1) A pensionable officer of a local authority shall be entitled to reckon as service any of the following:

(a) service as a pensionable officer of the local authority or of any other local authority,

(b) service as a pensionable servant of the local authority or of any other local authority,

(c) service during which he was a mental hospital officer or servant and which he was entitled to reckon as service for the purposes of Part VIII of the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945), or any earlier enactment corresponding to the said Part VIII,

(d) service in a pensionable position under a harbour authority,

(e) service which is reckonable for the purposes of the Superannuation Acts (or which, had it continued until the commencement of section 7 of the Social Welfare Act, 1950 (No. 14 of 1950), would have been reckoned by virtue of that section for the purposes of the Superannuation Acts) being service continuous with subsequent service as a pensionable officer or pensionable servant of the local authority or any other local authority or with subsequent service in a position in which service for the purposes of those Acts is reckonable,

(f) service (to such extent as the Minister either generally or in any particular case may approve) in a pensionable position under a body approved of by the Minister for the purposes of this paragraph on the basis of being a body granting pension rights such that they and the pension rights provided for by this Act are reciprocal generally,

(g) service as respects an officer of a vocational education committee that consists of—

(i) any period of pensionable service as a secondary or national school teacher other than any period, contributions being payable in respect of service during that period, in respect of which such contributions were not paid,

(ii) any period as a secondary teacher that ceased before the latest date on which he could have opted for membership of the Secondary Teachers' Superannuation Schemes and that is certified by the Minister for Education as service that could have been reckoned as pensionable and gratuity service for the purpose of those Schemes, subject to compliance by the officer with such conditions (including payment of contributions to the local authority) as the Minister for Education requires as a condition of issuing such certificate, or

(iii) a period of not less than five years, or periods of not less than five years in the aggregate,—

(I) which began after the officer attained the age of twenty-one years and ended before the 31st July, 1924, and

(II) as respects which the Minister for Education is satisfied that during the whole period thereof such officer devoted the whole of his time under the direction of Connradh na Gaeilge to the teaching of the Irish language or to the organisation of such teaching,

(h) having been a servant of a local authority, service with the Defence Forces as respects which and to the extent to which the Minister, after consultation with the Minister for Defence, considers that it would have been service as a servant of the local authority, but for its being service with the Defence Forces.

(2) In paragraph (a) and paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of this section “service as a pensionable officer” shall be deemed to include service—

(a) which, at any time before the commencement of this Part of this Act, the officer was entitled to reckon under Part II of the Act of 1948 (for this purpose subsection (1) of section 13 of the Act of 1948 being regarded as having been enacted without paragraph (b)),

(b) which the officer would, at any time before the commencement of this Part of this Act, have been entitled to reckon under Part II of the Act of 1948 if section 18 of that Act had been enacted with paragraph (b) omitted therefrom, or

(c) which, immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act, he was entitled to reckon under Part IV of the Act of 1925 or such Act passed before the Act of 1925 and relating to superannuation as may have applied to him.

(3) Where, as respects a pensionable officer,—

(a) he had a period of service for the purposes of Part IV of the Act of 1925 or for the purposes of such Act passed before the Act of 1925 and relating to superannuation as may have applied to him, and

(b) the period specified in paragraph (a) of this subsection was immediately succeeded by a period of service in a position service in which is, apart from subsection (2) of this section, capable of being reckoned by him under this Act,

such person shall, as respects the period specified in paragraph (a) of this subsection, be entitled to reckon it as service.

(4) In paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section “service as a pensionable servant” shall be deemed to include service (being service which, apart from this subsection, would not be service as a pensionable servant) as a servant of a local authority which is service that the officer would have been entitled to reckon for superannuation purposes if he had continued to be such servant.

12 Pensionable local service of pensionable officer.

12.—(1) For the purposes of this Act, the pensionable local service of a pensionable officer at any time shall be the period or the aggregate of the periods which under this Part of this Act he is entitled at that time to reckon as service.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, where the period or the aggregate of the periods which under this Part of this Act a pensionable officer who is a fire brigade officer is entitled to reckon as service is more than twenty and one-half years, then, for the purposes of this Part of this Act, the pensionable local service of such officer shall be that period or aggregate together with the excess of that period or aggregate over twenty years.

13 Addition to pensionable local service of pensionable officer.

13.—(1) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority has not less than ten years of pensionable local service and—

(a) he is removed from office for a cause other than misconduct or unfitness,

(b) his office is abolished, or

(c) his position has been materially altered to his detriment by changes in its conditions made without reasonable cause and he resigns his office,

the local authority may, if they so think fit, add to his pensionable local service a period not exceeding—

(i) if his pensionable local service is twenty years or more—ten years,

(ii) if his pensionable local service is less than twenty years—half that service.

(2) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority whose pensionable local service is ten years or more ceases to hold his office otherwise than by removal for misconduct or unfitness, the local authority may, if they so think fit, add to his pensionable local service a period not exceeding ten years or, where a period has been added under subsection (1) of this section, not exceeding the difference between that period and ten years, but such an addition shall not be made save in the following circumstances and in accordance with regulations made by the Minister:

(a) where the officer retires from an office to which, at the time of the retirement, the Local Authorities (Officers and Employees) Act, 1926 (No. 39 of 1926), applies because the qualifications of the office are professional,

(b) where the officer retires because of permanent infirmity of mind or body,

(c) where the officer retires from an office on account of an age limit and it had not been a condition of his appointment that he should retire at that age,

(d) where—

(i) during a period or continuous periods, the officer held an office or offices under a local authority or local authorities in a temporary capacity,

(ii) the period or periods would have been reckonable under this Act if he had held the office or offices during the period or periods in a permanent capacity, and

(iii) the period or periods was or were continuous with and immediately preceding service as an officer of a local authority reckonable under this Act,

(e) where the officer, before the commencement of this Part of this Act, was employed as a personal assistant by an officer of a local authority under an arrangement approved of by that local authority and the period of that employment was continuous with and preceded service as an officer of a local authority reckonable under this Act,

(f) where the officer, before the commencement of this Part of this Act, held an office in a permanent capacity for a period that would have been reckonable for the purposes of this Act had it been immediately succeeded by service reckonable under this Act, or

(g) where the aggregate service of the officer amounted to a number of completed years and a fraction of a year exceeding three-quarters.

(3) An addition by reference to paragraph (d), paragraph (e) or paragraph (f) of subsection (2) of this section shall not exceed one-half of (as may be appropriate) the period or periods referred to in the said paragraph (d) or the period referred to in the said paragraph (e) or paragraph (f).

(4) A local authority may, if they so think proper, add a period in accordance with paragraph (d) of subsection (2) of this section notwithstanding that the officer has less pensionable local service than ten years, and such period so added as is necessary for the purpose of bringing the officer's pensionable local service up to five years in the case of a gratuity or ten years in the case of any allowance and lump sum may be regarded as pensionable local service for that purpose.

(5) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing subsections of this section, a period added pursuant to this section shall not be such as to make the service greater than forty years.

14 Service of pensionable officer at termination of office.

14.—For the purposes of this Part of this Act, the service of a pensionable officer at the termination of his office shall be his pensionable local service together with any additional years added under section 13 of this Act.

15 Grant of lump sum and allowance to pensionable officer on his ceasing to hold office.

15.—(1) Where—

(a) a pensionable officer of a local authority ceases to hold his office and is not employed in another position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, and

(b) the local authority either are of opinion that in general he has served in such office with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction or, not being of that opinion, they nevertheless decide that, in the special circumstances of his case, he should be granted a reduced lump sum and allowance,

the local authority shall grant him a lump sum and allowance in any of the cases specified in subsection (2) of this section.

(2) The cases referred to in subsection (1) of this section are the following:

(a) where the officer has ceased to hold his office otherwise than by removal and—

(i) he has attained the age of sixty years and has not less than twenty years of pensionable local service,

(ii) he is a fire brigade officer, has attained the age of fifty-five years and has not less than twenty years of pensionable local service, or

(iii) he has become incapable of performing his duties by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body and has not less than ten years of pensionable local service;

(b) where the officer was removed from his office for a cause other than misconduct or unfitness and has not less than ten years of pensionable local service;

(c) where the office of the officer was abolished and he has not less than ten years of pensionable local service;

(d) where the position of the officer was materially altered to his detriment by changes in its conditions made without reasonable cause and he resigned his office having not less than ten years of pensionable local service;

(e) where the officer has ceased to hold his office on account of having attained the age limit therefor and has not less than ten years of pensionable local service,

subject to the exclusion of any case, being a case such as is specified in paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of this subsection, in which the officer was removed or resigned from office under section 24 of the Local Government Act, 1941 (No. 23 of 1941), or that section as amended by section 17 of the Local Government Act, 1955 (No. 9 of 1955), in circumstances such that subsection (2) of the said section 24 does not, by virtue of subsection (3) of that section, apply.

16 Determination of lump sum granted to pensionable officer.

16.—(1) The amount of the lump sum to be granted under section 15 of this Act to a pensionable officer shall be equal to—

(a) one-thirtieth of his pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number of whole years in his service at the termination of his office, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, or

(b) one and one-half times his pensionable remuneration,

whichever is the less.

(2) Where subsection (6) of section 37 of the Act of 1948 applied in respect of a pensionable officer, in any application to him of subsection (1) of this section, that subsection shall be construed as if it provided that the lesser sum therein referred to should be increased by one-half per cent. of that sum multiplied by the number of whole years referred to in the said subsection (6).

17 Determination of allowance granted to pensionable officer.

17.—The allowance to be granted to a pensionable officer under section 15 of this Act on his ceasing to hold office shall be—

(a) an allowance at the rate per annum of one-eightieth of his pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number of whole years in his service at the termination of his office, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, or

(b) an allowance at the rate per annum of one-half of his pensionable remuneration,

whichever is the less.

18 Reduction of lump sum and allowance of pensionable officer for unsatisfactory service.

18.—Where a local authority decide under section 15 of this Act that a pensionable officer shall be granted a reduced lump sum and allowance, they shall reduce the amount of the lump sum and the rate per annum of the allowance granted to him under section 15 of this Act below the amount and rate that would be appropriate therefor under sections 16 and 17 of this Act and to an extent not less than fifty per cent.

19 Grant of short service gratuity to pensionable officer.

19.—(1) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority having not less than one year and less than five years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his office, the local authority shall, in any of the cases specified in subsection (3) of this section, grant to him a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding one-twelfth of his pensionable remuneration, multiplied by the number of whole years in his pensionable local service, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, as they consider proper.

(2) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority having not less than five years and less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his office, the local authority shall, in any of the cases specified in subsection (3) of this section, grant to him a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding his pensionable remuneration, as they consider proper.

(3) The cases referred to in subsection (1) and subsection (2) of this section are the following:

(a) where the officer has ceased to hold his office on account of being incapable of performing his duties by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body;

(b) where the officer was removed from his office for a cause other than misconduct or unfitness;

(c) where the office of the officer was abolished;

(d) where the officer has resigned in a case in which his position was materially altered to his detriment by changes in its conditions made without reasonable cause,

subject to the exclusion of any case, being a case such as is specified in paragraph (b) or paragraph (c) of this subsection, in which the officer was removed or resigned from office under section 24 of the Local Government Act, 1941 (No. 23 of 1941), or that section as amended by section 17 of the Local Government Act, 1955 (No. 9 of 1955), in circumstances such that subsection (2) of the said section 24 does not, by virtue of subsection (3) of that section, apply.

20.—(1) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority dies in office having not less than one year and less than five years of pensionable local service, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding one-twelfth of his pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number of whole years in his pensionable local service, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, as they consider proper.

(2) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority dies in office having not less than five years of pensionable local service, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity of an amount equal to—

(a) one-thirtieth of his pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number (subject to a maximum of forty-five) of whole years in his pensionable local service, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, or

(b) his pensionable remuneration,

whichever is the greater.

21.—Where a person, who was a pensionable officer of a local authority and who was granted under section 15 of this Act a lump sum and allowance on ceasing to hold office, dies before the total of all the sums received by him on foot of the lump sum and allowance is equal to his pensionable remuneration, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity equal to the difference between the said total amount and the said pensionable remuneration.

22 Grant of gratuity to female pensionable officer on marriage.

22.—Where a female pensionable officer of a local authority who has not less than five years of pensionable local service, having ceased to hold her office by reason of her marriage or intended marriage, produces, before the expiration after such cesser of three months or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, to the local authority a marriage certificate showing that she has been married, the following provisions shall have effect:

(a) if the local authority are of opinion that she has served in her office with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction, the local authority shall grant to her a gratuity of an amount equal to—

(i) one-twelfth of her pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number of whole years in her pensionable local service, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded, or

(ii) her pensionable remuneration, whichever is the less;

(b) if the local authority, although not being of opinion that she has served in her office with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction, nevertheless decide that, in the special circumstances of the case, she should be granted a reduced gratuity, they shall grant to her a gratuity of an amount equal to the amount that would be appropriate under paragraph (a) of this section reduced to such extent, not less than fifty per cent. as they consider proper.

23 Contributions by pensionable officers.

23.—(1) A pensionable officer of a local authority shall contribute to such local authority for the purposes of this Part of this Act at the rate of five per cent. of—

(a) his annual rate of salary, and

(b) the annual value of his emoluments,

subject to the proviso that there shall be no contributions in respect of a period in respect of which he had neither salary nor emoluments.

(2) The contribution to be made by a pensionable officer of a local authority under this section may be obtained by such local authority by means of periodical deductions from his salary and emoluments, but, if any such deduction proper to be made by a local authority from his salary and emoluments is not made, such local authority may, without prejudice to any other remedy, recover the amount by retaining it out of any sums due by them to him or out of any lump sum, allowance or gratuity payable by them to or in respect of him.

(3) Where, under section 55 of this Act, lump sums, allowances or gratuities granted by a local authority are paid by another local authority, the first-mentioned local authority shall from time to time (but not less frequently than once in each quarter) transfer to the other local authority—

(a) in case the first-mentioned local authority are a vocational education committee—one-half of all sums received by them by way of contribution under this section, or under sub-paragraph (ii) of paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of section 11 of this Act, and

(b) in any other case—the whole of all such sums.

24 Return of contributions to pensionable officers.

24.—(1) In this Part of this Act “the contributions” means, in relation to a pensionable officer, the aggregate amount of his contributions for superannuation in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act.

(2) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority who has less than one year of pensionable local service dies, the local authority shall return the contributions to his legal personal representative.

(3) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority who has less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his office for any cause other than misconduct, does not accept any other position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and is not granted a gratuity under section 19 or section 22 of this Act, the local authority shall return to him the contributions.

(4) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority having not less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his office for any cause other than misconduct, does not accept any other position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and is not entitled to a lump sum and allowance under section 15 of this Act or a marriage gratuity under section 22 of this Act, the local authority shall return to him the contributions.

(5) Where a pensionable officer of a local authority is removed from office for misconduct, the local authority shall have power, which shall be exercisable at their discretion and as respects which, notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, there shall be no appeal, to return to him the contributions if they are of opinion that there are special reasons for so doing.

(6) Where a local authority return the contributions and the amount returned includes a sum for contributions for superannuation made by the officer in question in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and held by any other body, that body shall recoup such sum to the local authority.

(7) Where a body service under which is capable of being reckoned under this Act return contributions made for superannuation in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and the amount returned includes a sum for contributions held by any local authority, that local authority shall recoup such sum to the body.

(8) The proviso to subsection (1) of section 31 of the Finance Act, 1922, shall apply in relation to a return of contributions made under this section.

25 Repayment of returned contributions (pensionable officer).

25.—(1) Where, after the contributions have been returned under section 24 of this Act to a pensionable officer of a local authority on his ceasing to be a pensionable officer, he becomes employed in a position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, he shall be entitled, before the expiration of twelve months, or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, after the subsequent appointment, to repay to the local authority the amount so returned by them and, if he does repay the said amount and any other body recouped any part of it, the local authority shall make the appropriate repayment to the other body.

(2) Where, contributions having been returned under section 32 of the Act of 1948 by a local authority to a person, he becomes employed in a position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, he shall be entitled, before the expiration of twelve months, or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, after becoming so employed, to repay to the local authority the amount so returned by them, and, if he does repay the said amount and any other body recouped any part of it, the local authority shall make the appropriate repayment to the other body.

(3) Where—

(a) a pensionable officer of a local authority has any period of service (other than as an officer or servant of a local authority) that would, if he made the repayment provided for by this subsection, be capable of being reckoned under this Act, and

(b) contributions in respect of the service have been returned to him,

he shall be entitled to repay the amount so returned to the local authority before the expiration of such period as the local authority consider reasonable in the circumstances of the case.

(4) Where—

(a) a repayment has been made under this section to a local authority, and

(b) the case is one in which any lump sum, allowance or gratuity that might be granted by that local authority would be paid by another local authority,

the first-mentioned local authority shall transfer to the other local authority—

(i) in case the first-mentioned local authority are a vocational education committee—one-half of the repayment, and

(ii) in any other case—the whole of the repayment.

26 Exclusions from salary and emoluments.

26.—(1) In this Part of this Act neither “salary” nor “emoluments” shall include any of the following:

(a) payments for overtime,

(b) travelling expenses,

(c) payments for acting as clerk to a local pensions committee under section 8 of the Old Age Pensions Act, 1908, or to a sub-committee appointed by any such committee,

(d) payments for acting as superintendent registrar of births, deaths and marriages or as registrar of marriages,

(e) payments for special work of a casual or temporary nature,

(f) payments for filling a position temporarily unless the period for which the payments are made is two years or more reckoned back from cesser of office.

(g) allowances to cover particular expenses or needs.

(2) The Minister may, if he thinks fit, direct that payments of a specified kind, being a kind mentioned in paragraph (a) or paragraph (g) of subsection (1) of this section, shall be for the purposes of this Part of this Act part of the salary of a particular officer, of officers of a particular class or of every officer, and thereupon, notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, “salary” shall in this Part of this Act, include, as respects that officer, officers of that class or every officer (as may be appropriate) payments of that kind.

27 Calculation of pensionable remuneration of pensionable officer.

27.—(1) A local authority shall from time to time determine the annual money value of every (if any) emolument, being any apartments, rations or other perquisites in kind, of a pensionable officer.

(2) The pensionable remuneration of a pensionable officer for the purposes of this Part of this Act shall be—

(a) in case he has been an officer of a local authority during the whole of the relevant period and his salary has, during the relevant period and the period (if any) thereafter ending on cesser of office, not changed otherwise than in accordance with changes applicable generally to the class, description or grade of officers to which he belonged at the expiration of the relevant period—his annual rate of salary at the date of cesser of office together with the annual average of his emoluments (if any) in respect of the relevant period;

(b) in any other case—the annual average of his salary and emoluments (if any) during the relevant period.

(3) Where the officer has been an officer for part only of the relevant period and, during the whole or part of the remainder of that period, he was a servant of a local authority, his wages as such servant shall, for the purposes of paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of this section, be regarded as salary.

(4) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Act, in subsection (2) of this section “salary” and “emoluments” shall, in relation to any position not under a local authority service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, have the same meanings respectively as they have in the provisions relating to superannuation applicable to the position and, in addition, “salary” shall include remuneration of a servant in any such position.

(5) Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of this section shall not have the effect, in the case of an officer who has been promoted, of causing any allowance, lump sum or gratuity to be less than if he had not been promoted.

(6) In this section “the relevant period” means—

(a) in case the period or the aggregate of periods which the officer is entitled to reckon as service under this Part of this Act is less than three years—such period or the aggregate of such periods, and

(b) in any other case—the period or the aggregate of the periods comprising the last three years of his service.

28 Transitional provisions for Part II.

28.—(1) There shall be entered in the register, as from the commencement of this Part of this Act,—

(a) the name of every person whose name stood entered in the former register immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act, and

(b) the name of every person whose name would have stood entered in the former register immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act if he had made the application provided for by subsection (1) of section 37 of the Act of 1948.

(2) For the purposes of paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of this section, subsection (1) of section 37 of the Act of 1948 shall be regarded as having been enacted without the restriction as to not having reached the age of fifty-five years or the age of sixty years.

(3) It shall be the duty of a local authority to complete the entries in the register under this section (apart from entries made as a result of appeals under subsection (13) of this section) within six months after the commencement of this Part of this Act.

(4) Where a person registered under this section by the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses of Dublin had any period of service as an officer or servant of Irish Enterprises Ltd. or any of its predecessors, he shall be entitled to reckon that period as service.

(5) Where, as respects a person whose name is entered under paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section, the following conditions are complied with:

(a) immediately before he became an established officer within the meaning of the Act of 1948, he held a position in the civil service of the Government, and

(b) immediately before he commenced to hold that position, he had a period of service for the purposes of Part IV of the Act of 1925,

such person may reckon as service the period referred to in paragraph (b) of this subsection.

(6) No contribution under section 23 of this Act shall be required during a continuous period of service beginning on the commencement of this Part of this Act, from a person whose name is entered under this section if, immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act, his name did not stand entered in the former register or, if it did stand so entered, he was not then a person liable to make contributions under the Act of 1948.

(7) (a) No contribution under section 23 of this Act shall be required, during a period of continuous service beginning on the commencement of this Part of this Act, from a person whose name is entered under this section, being a person referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section, if, immediately before his name was entered in the former register, subsection (5) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 applied to him or subsection (5) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 would have applied to him in case he had made an application under subsection (1) or subsection (2) of that section or if, immediately before his name was entered in the former register, he was a servant and subsection (5) of section 48 of this Act would apply to him but for his name having been so entered.

(b) For the purposes of paragraph (a) of this subsection, subsection (1) and subsection (2) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 shall each be regarded as having been enacted without the restriction as to not having reached the age of fifty-five years or the age of sixty years.

(8) No contribution under section 23 of this Act shall be required, during a continuous period of service after becoming a pensionable officer, from a person who, immediately before he became a pensionable officer, was a person to whom subsection (5) or (8) of section 48 of this Act applied.

(9) In the case of a person whose name is entered under this section, subsection (2) of section 13 of this Act shall have effect as if “or the officer is a part-time dispensary midwife” were added at the end of paragraph (a).

(10) (a) A person whose name is entered under this section in a case in which there is not an appeal under subsection (13) of this section, being a person whose continuous permanent service as an officer of a local authority ending on the commencement of this Part of this Act began before the 1st day of April, 1948, may, within twelve months after such commencement, give notice in writing to the local authority that the provisions specified in subsection (11) of this section are to apply in his case, and the said provisions shall thereupon so apply.

(b) A person whose name is entered under this section in a case in which there is an appeal under subsection (13) of this section, being a person whose continuous permanent service as an officer of a local authority ending on the commencement of this Part of this Act began before the 1st day of April, 1948, may, within six months after the determination of the appeal has been notified to him, give notice in writing to the local authority that the provisions specified in subsection (11) of this section are to apply in his case, and the said provisions shall thereupon so apply.

(11) The provisions referred to in subsection (10) of this section are the following:

(a) a lump sum shall not be granted pursuant to section 15 of this Act,

(b) in section 17 of this Act “one-sixtieth” shall be substituted for “one-eightieth” and “two-thirds” shall be substituted for “one-half”,

(c) section 18 of this Act shall not apply,

(d) in section 19 of this Act, “one-sixth” shall be substituted for “one-twelfth” in subsection (1) and “one and one-half times” shall be inserted in subsection (2) before “his pensionable remuneration”,

(e) sections 20 and 21 of this Act shall not have effect.

(12) Where the name of a person is entered under this section and the appointment to the office held by him when the entry is made was not, at the time thereof, declared to be an appointment in a permanent capacity, the said appointment shall be regarded for the purposes of this Part of this Act as having been then so declared.

(13) (a) A person aggrieved by the refusal or failure by a local authority to enter under this section his name in the register may, within twelve months after the commencement of this Part of this Act, appeal against the refusal or failure to the appropriate Minister and that Minister may either refuse the appeal or direct the name to be entered in the register as from the commencement of this Part of this Act and, in the latter case, the local authority shall enter the name in the register as from such commencement.

(b) A person aggrieved by the entry by a local authority under this section of his name in the register may, within twelve months after the commencement of this Part of this Act, appeal against the entry to the appropriate Minister and that Minister may either refuse the appeal or direct the deletion of the entry in the register and, in the latter case, the local authority shall delete the entry in the register as from such commencement.

(14) In this section “the former register” means such register as was maintained before the commencement of this Part of this Act by the local authority under section 8 of the Act of 1948.

29 General restriction on grants (officers).

29.—(1) Save under this Act, a local authority shall not grant any pension, allowance, gratuity, lump sum or return of contributions to or in respect of any of their officers.

(2) Nothing in subsection (1) of this section shall affect paragraph 3 of the Second Schedule to the Arterial Drainage Act, 1945 (No. 3 of 1945).

PART III. Pensionable Servants.

30 Register of pensionable servants.

30.—(1) A local authority shall maintain a register to be known as the register of pensionable servants (in this Part of this Act referred to as the register).

(2) Where, as respects a person who is not a pensionable servant of a local authority, on the expiration of any local financial year (including the local financial year ending on the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to that local authority), he has had in that local financial year two hundred or more service days in relation to that local authority or to that local authority and any other local authority or local authorities, that local authority shall enter his name in the register unless, within one month after the expiration of that local financial year, he gives notice in writing to that local authority that his name is not to be so entered.

(3) Where a person who becomes a servant of a local authority was, immediately before becoming such servant, a pensionable officer of that or another local authority, a pensionable servant of another local authority or the holder of a position not under a local authority service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, the first-mentioned local authority shall enter his name in the register.

(4) A local authority shall keep at their principal office the register open at all reasonable times for inspection by their servants and by either—

(a) in the case of the corporation of a borough, the members of the council of the borough, or

(b) in any other case, the members of the local authority.

31 Removal from the register of person ceasing to be servant, etc.

31.—(1) A local authority shall remove from the register the name of a person—

(a) who ceases to be a servant of the local authority, or

(b) who during any month of April gives notice in writing to the local authority that his name is to be removed from the register.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, where it is the practice of a local authority to take from time to time any particular person into their employment as a servant after a period during which he is not so employed—

(a) the local authority shall not remove the name of such person from the register on any particular occasion when he ceases to be so employed unless they have decided not to so employ him again or he dies and, so long as his name remains in the register on account of this paragraph, he shall for the purposes of section 36, section 39, section 40, section 42 and subsections (4) and (5) of section 44 of this Act be regarded as not having ceased to be so employed,

(b) where, during any particular period when such person is not so employed by the local authority, they decide not to so employ him again or he dies they shall remove his name from the register and, for the purposes of section 36, section 39, section 40, section 42 and subsections (4) and (5) of section 44 of this Act, he shall be regarded as having then ceased to hold his employment.

(3) The removal of a name from the register may be effected by a note on the register indicating that the name has been removed and the date of the removal and the reinstatement of a name in the register may be effected by a note on the register indicating that the name has been reinstated and the date of reinstatement.

32 Notification to local authority of cesser of employment under another local authority.

32.—Where a pensionable servant of a local authority ceases to hold any employment under them, they shall so inform any other local authority under whom such servant holds any employment or office.

33 General limitations on service to be reckoned by pensionable servant.

33.—A provision of this Part of this Act entitling a pensionable servant to reckon as service any period shall be subject to the overriding qualification that he shall not be entitled so to reckon a particular period more than once nor shall he be entitled so to reckon any of the following:

(a) any period in respect of which he has already received a lump sum, an allowance or a gratuity under this or any other Act relating to superannuation or under any scheme relating to superannuation service for the purposes of which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, unless, in the case of a gratuity, having been entitled to repay such gratuity, he has done so,

(b) any period in respect of which any contributions for superannuation have been returned to him, unless, having been entitled to repay such contributions, he has done so,

(c) any period before a date on which he was discharged or removed from his position for misconduct or unfitness,

(d) any period of employment under a local authority during a local financial year during which he had not two hundred or more service days,

(e) being a person entitled to reckon under this Act service which is not under a local authority, any period of that service which he would have been unable to reckon if he had continued to hold the position in which he had that service.

34 Reckoning service of pensionable servants.

34.—(1) A pensionable servant of a local authority shall be entitled to reckon as service any of the following:

(a) service as a pensionable servant of the local authority or of any other local authority,

(b) service as a pensionable officer of the local authority or of any other local authority,

(c) service during which he was a mental hospital officer or servant and which he was entitled to reckon as service for the purposes of Part VIII of the Mental Treatment Act, 1945 (No. 19 of 1945), or any earlier enactment corresponding to the said Part VIII,

(d) service in a pensionable position under a harbour authority,

(e) service which is reckonable for the purposes of the Superannuation Acts, being service continuous with subsequent service as a pensionable servant or service as a pensionable officer of the local authority or any other local authority or with subsequent service in a position in which service for the purposes of those Acts is reckonable,

(f) service (to such extent as the Minister either generally or in any particular case may approve) in a pensionable position under a body approved of by the Minister for the purposes of this paragraph on the basis of being a body granting pension rights such that they and the pension rights provided for by this Act are reciprocal generally,

(g) service with the Defence Forces as respects which and to the extent to which the Minister, after consultation with the Minister for Defence, considers that it would have been service as a servant of a local authority but for its being service with the Defence Forces.

(2) In paragraph (a) and paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of this section “service as a pensionable servant” shall be deemed to include—

(i) service (being service which, apart from this subsection, would not be service as a pensionable servant) as a servant of a local authority which is service that the servant would have been entitled to reckon for superannuation purposes if he had continued to be such servant, and

(ii) any period of employment, being before the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to the local authority and not being any period which he is entitled to reckon under subsection (4) of this section, under that or any other local authority during a local financial year in which he had two hundred or more service days.

(3) For the purposes of paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section and that paragraph as extended by subsection (2) of this section (but not for the purposes of that paragraph as extended by subsection (4) of this section as respects that extension), a person shall be deemed to have service on service days only (disregarding, where the service days in a particular local financial year exceed three hundred, the service days in excess of three hundred) and the aggregate of those days shall be expressed in terms of years by dividing such aggregate by three hundred.

(4) In paragraph (a) and paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of this section “service as a pensionable servant” shall be deemed to include any period of service as a servant under the local authority or any other local authority which the servant was entitled to reckon for superannuation purposes under any Act passed before the Act of 1948 and relating to superannuation which applied to him (including, notwithstanding paragraph (d) of section 33 of this Act, any such period during a local financial year during which he had not two hundred or more service days).

(5) In paragraph (b) and paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of this section “service as a pensionable officer” shall be deemed to include service—

(a) which, at any time before the commencement of this Part of this Act, the officer was entitled to reckon under Part II of the Act of 1948 (for this purpose subsection (1) of section 13 of the Act of 1948 being regarded as having been enacted without paragraph (b)),

(b) which the officer would, at any time before the commencement of this Part of this Act, have been entitled to reckon under Part II of the Act of 1948 if section 18 of that Act had been enacted with paragraph (b) omitted therefrom, or

(c) which, immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act, he was entitled to reckon under Part IV of the Act of 1925 or such Act passed before the Act of 1925 and relating to superannuation as may have applied to him.

(6) Where, as respects a pensionable servant,—

(a) he had a period of service for the purposes of Part IV of the Act of 1925 or for the purposes of such Act passed before the Act of 1925 and relating to superannuation as may have applied to him, and

(b) the period specified in paragraph (a) of this subsection was immediately succeeded by a period of service in a position service in which is, apart from subsection (5) of this section, capable of being reckoned by him under this Act,

such person shall as respects the period specified in paragraph (a) of this subsection, be entitled to reckon it as service.

(7) Where the records of the service before the 1st day of April, 1948, of a pensionable servant are incomplete, the local authority may, if they so think fit, take as his period of service a period determined on the assumption that his service record as respects the period covered by records and his service record as respects the period not covered by records are similar.

35 Pensionable local service of pensionable servant.

35.—(1) For the purposes of this Act, the pensionable local service of a pensionable servant at any time shall be the number of whole years in the period or in the aggregate of the periods which under this Part of this Act he is entitled to reckon as service, any odd fraction of a whole year being disregarded.

(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, where the period or the aggregate of the periods which under this Part of this Act a pensionable servant who is a fire brigade servant is entitled to reckon as service is more than twenty and one-half years, then, for the purposes of this Part of this Act, the pensionable local service of such servant shall be that period or aggregate together with the excess of that period or aggregate over twenty years, any odd fraction of a year being disregarded.

36 Grant of allowance to pensionable servant on his ceasing to hold employment.

36.—(1) Where—

(a) a pensionable servant of a local authority ceases to hold his employment and is not employed in another position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, and

(b) the local authority either are of opinion that he has served in such employment with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction or, not being of that opinion, they nevertheless decide that, in the special circumstances of his case, he should be granted a reduced allowance,

the local authority shall grant him an allowance in any of the cases specified in subsection (2) of this section.

(2) The cases referred to in subsection (1) of this section are the following:

(a) where the servant has ceased to hold his employment otherwise than by being discharged for misconduct or unfitness and—

(i) he has attained the age of sixty years and has not less than twenty years of pensionable local service,

(ii) he is a fire brigade servant, has attained the age of fifty-five years and has not less than twenty years of pensionable local service, or

(iii) he has become incapable of performing his duties by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body and has not less than ten years of pensionable local service;

(b) where the servant has ceased to hold his employment on account of having attained the age limit therefor and has not less than ten years of pensionable local service.

37 Determination of allowance granted to pensionable servant.

37.—The allowance to be granted to a pensionable servant under section 36 of this Act on his ceasing to hold his employment shall be either—

(a) an allowance at the rate per week of one-sixtieth of his pensionable remuneration multiplied by the number of the years of his pensionable local service, or

(b) an allowance at the rate per week of two-thirds of his pensionable remuneration,

whichever is the less.

38 Reduction of allowance of pensionable servant for unsatisfactory service.

38.—Where a local authority decide under section 36 of this Act that a pensionable servant shall be granted a reduced allowance, they shall reduce the allowance granted to him under section 36 of this Act below the amount that would be appropriate therefor under section 37 of this Act and to an extent not less than fifty per cent.

39 Grant of short service gratuity to pensionable servant.

39.—(1) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority having not less than one year and less than five years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his employment on account of being incapable of performing his duties by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body, the local authority shall grant to him a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding his pensionable remuneration multiplied by four and one-third multiplied by the number of the years of his pensionable local service, as they consider proper.

(2) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority having not less than five years and less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to hold his employment on account of being incapable of performing his duties by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body, the local authority shall grant to him a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding his pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two, as they consider proper.

40.—(1) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority dies in his employment having not less than one year and less than five years of pensionable local service, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity of such amount, not exceeding his pensionable remuneration multiplied by four and one-third multiplied by the number of the years of his pensionable local service, as they consider proper.

(2) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority dies in his employment having not less than five years of pensionable local service, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity of an amount equal to his pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two.

41.—Where a person, who was a pensionable servant of a local authority and who was granted under section 36 of this Act an allowance on his ceasing to hold his employment, dies before the total of all sums received by him on foot of the allowance is equal to his pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity equal to the difference between the said total amount and the said pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two, the local authority shall grant to his legal personal representative a gratuity equal to the difference beween the said total amount and the said pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two.

42 Grant of gratuity to female pensionable servant on marriage.

42.—Where a female pensionable servant of a local authority who has not less than five years of pensionable local service, having ceased to hold her employment by reason of her marriage or intended marriage, produces, before the expiration after such cesser of three months or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, to the local authority a marriage certificate showing that she has been married, the following provisions shall have effect:

(a) if the local authority are of opinion that she has served in her employment with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction, the local authority shall grant to her a gratuity of an amount equal to—

(i) her pensionable remuneration multiplied by four and one-third multiplied by the number of years of her pensionable local service, or

(ii) her pensionable remuneration multiplied by fifty-two,

whichever is the less;

(b) if the local authority, although not being of opinion that she has served in her employment with diligence and fidelity and to their satisfaction, nevertheless decide that, in the special circumstances of the case, she should be granted a reduced gratuity, they shall grant to her a gratuity of an amount equal to the amount that would be appropriate under paragraph (a) of this section reduced to such extent, not less than fifty per cent., as they consider proper.

43 Contributions by pensionable servants.

43.—(1) A pensionable servant of a local authority shall contribute to such local authority for the purposes of this Part of this Act at the rate of four and one-sixth per cent. of—

(a) his weekly rate of wages, and

(b) the weekly value of his emoluments,

subject to the proviso that there shall be no contributions in respect of a period in respect of which he had neither wages nor emoluments or in respect of which he was paid compensation under the Workmen's Compensation Acts, 1934 to 1955, by such local authority.

(2) The contribution to be made by a pensionable servant of a local authority under this section may be obtained by such local authority by means of periodical deductions from his wages and emoluments, but, if any such deduction proper to be made by a local authority from his wages and emoluments is not made, such local authority may, without prejudice to any other remedy, recover the amount by retaining it out of any sums due by them to him or out of any gratuity or allowance payable by them to or in respect of him.

(3) Where, under section 55 of this Act, lump sums, allowances or gratuities granted by a local authority are payable by another local authority, the first-mentioned local authority shall transfer from time to time (but not less frequently than once in each quarter) to the other local authority—

(a) in case the first-mentioned local authority are a vocational education committee—one-half of all sums received by them by way of contribution under this section, and

(b) in any other case—the whole of all such sums.

44 Return of contributions to pensionable servants.

44.—(1) In this Part of this Act “the contributions” means, in relation to a pensionable servant, the aggregate amount of his contributions for superannuation in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act.

(2) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority who has less than one year of pensionable local service dies, the local authority shall return the contributions to his legal personal representative.

(3) Where, as respects a pensionable servant of a local authority, it is ascertained after any particular local financial year that he has not had two hundred or more service days in respect of that year, the local authority shall return to him any contributions made by him under section 43 of this Act in respect of that year.

(4) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority who has less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to be such pensionable servant otherwise than consequent on paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 31 of this Act or on account of being discharged for misconduct, is not employed in another position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and is not granted a gratuity under section 39 or section 42 of this Act, the local authority shall return to him the contributions.

(5) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority having not less than ten years of pensionable local service ceases to be such pensionable servant otherwise than consequent on paragraph (b) of subsection (1) of section 31 of this Act or on account of being discharged for misconduct, is not employed in another position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and is not entitled to an allowance under section 36 of this Act or a marriage gratuity under section 42 of this Act, the local authority shall return to him the contributions.

(6) Where a pensionable servant of a local authority is discharged for misconduct, the local authority shall have power, which shall be exercisable at their discretion and as respects which, notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, there shall be no appeal, to return to him the contributions if they are of opinion that there are special reasons for so doing.

(7) Where a local authority return the contributions and the amount returned includes a sum for contributions for superannuation made by the servant in question in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and held by any other body, that body shall recoup such sum to the local authority who returned the contributions.

(8) Where a body service under which is capable of being reckoned under this Act return contributions made for superannuation in respect of service which is capable of being reckoned under this Act and the amount returned includes a sum for contributions held by any local authority, that local authority shall recoup such sum to the body.

(9) The proviso to subsection (1) of section 31 of the Finance Act, 1922, shall apply in relation to a return of contributions made under this section.

45 Repayment of returned contributions (pensionable servant).

45.—(1) Where, after the contributions have been returned under section 44 of this Act to a pensionable servant of a local authority on his ceasing to be a pensionable servant, he becomes employed in a position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, he shall be entitled, before the expiration of twelve months, or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, after the subsequent appointment, to repay to the local authority the amount so returned by them and, if he does repay the said amount and any other body recouped any part of it, the local authority shall make the appropriate repayment to the other body.

(2) Where, contributions having been returned under section 57 of the Act of 1948 by a local authority to a person, he becomes employed in a position service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, he shall be entitled, before the expiration of twelve months, or such longer period as the local authority in the circumstances of the particular case consider reasonable, after becoming so employed, to repay to the local authority the amount so returned by them and, if he does repay the said amount and any other body recouped any part of it, the local authority shall make the appropriate repayment to the other body.

(3) Where—

(a) a pensionable servant of a local authority has any period of service (other than as a servant or officer of a local authority) that would, if he made the repayment provided for by this subsection be capable of being reckoned under this Act, and

(b) contributions in respect of that service have been returned to him,

he shall be entitled to repay the amount so returned to the local authority before the expiration of such period as the local authority consider reasonable in the circumstances of the case and, if he does repay the said amount and any other body recouped any part of it, the local authority shall make the appropriate repayment to the other body.

(4) Where—

(a) a repayment has been made under this section to a local authority, and

(b) the case is one in which any allowance or gratuity that might be granted by that local authority would be paid by another local authority, the first-mentioned local authority shall transfer to the other local authority—

(i) in case the first-mentioned local authority are a vocational education committee—one-half of the repayment, and

(ii) in any other case—the whole of the repayment.

46 Exclusions from wages and emoluments.

46.—(1) In this Part of this Act neither “wages” nor “emoluments” shall include any of the following:

(a) payments for overtime,

(b) travelling expenses,

(c) payments for special work of a casual or temporary nature,

(d) payments for filling a position temporarily unless the period for which the payments are made comprises six hundred or more service days reckoned back from termination of employment (any service day occurring during a local financial year in which the servant had less than two hundred service days being disregarded),

(e) allowances to cover particular expenses or needs.

(2) The Minister may, if he thinks fit, direct that payments of a specified kind, being a kind mentioned in paragraph (a) or paragraph (e) of subsection (1) of this section, shall be for the purposes of this Part of this Act part of the wages of a particular servant, of servants of a particular class or of every servant, and thereupon, notwithstanding subsection (1) of this section, “wages” shall in this Part of this Act, include, as respects that servant, servants of that class or every servant (as may be appropriate), payments of that kind.

47 Calculation of pensionable remuneration of pensionable servant.

47.—(1) A local authority shall from time to time determine the weekly money value of every (if any) emolument, being any apartments, rations or other perquisites in kind, of a pensionable servant.

(2) The pensionable remuneration of a pensionable servant for the purposes of this Part of this Act shall be—

(a) in case he has been a servant of a local authority during the whole of the relevant period or during so much of that period as he is entitled to reckon as service and, at the expiration of the relevant period, his rate of wages is a rate of wages that has not changed during the relevant period otherwise than in accordance with changes applicable generally to the class, description or grade of servants to which he belonged at the expiration of the relevant period—his weekly rate of wages at the expiration of the relevant period together with the weekly average of his emoluments (if any) in respect of that period;

(b) in any other case—the average weekly rate of wages and emoluments (if any) applicable to his employment or employments during the relevant period.

(3) Where the servant has been a servant for part only of the relevant period and, during the whole or part of the remainder of that period, he was an officer of a local authority, his salary as such officer shall, for the purposes of paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of this section, be regarded as wages.

(4) Notwithstanding any other provisions of this Act, in subsection (2) of this section “wages” and “emoluments” shall, in relation to any position not under a local authority service in which is capable of being reckoned under this Act, have the same meanings respectively as they have in the provisions relating to superannuation applicable to the position and, in addition, “wages” shall include remuneration of an officer in any such position.

(5) Paragraph (b) of subsection (2) of this section shall not have the effect, in the case of a servant who has been promoted, of causing any allowance or gratuity to be less than if he had not been promoted.

(6) (a) In this section “the relevant period” means—

(i) in case the first day of the service of the servant capable of being reckoned under this Act was less than three years before his last service day—the period beginning on the commencement day and ending on his last service day, and

(ii) in any other case—the three years ending on his last service day.

(b) In subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of this subsection “the commencement day” means—

(i) in case the servant's first service day was preceded by service which he is entitled to reckon under this Act, which was in a position other than employment as a servant of a local authority and which commenced on a day less than three years before his last service day—the day on which that service commenced, and

(ii) in any other case—the servant's first service day.

48 Transitional provisions (Part III).

48.—(1) In the case of a local authority in relation to whom this Part of this Act came into operation pursuant to subsection (1) of section 5 of this Act, there shall be entered in the register as from the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to the local authority—

(a) the name of every person whose name stood entered in the former register immediately before the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to the local authority, and

(b) the name of every person, not being a person referred to in paragraph (a) of this subsection, as respects whom the following conditions are fulfilled:

(i) during any local financial year being a local financial year which ended before the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to the local authority and which began on or after the 1st day of April in the completed local financial year which immediately preceded the commencement of Part III of the Act of 1948 in relation to the local authority, he had two hundred or more service days, and

(ii) at the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to the local authority, either he is a servant of the local authority or they intend again to take him into their employment as a servant.

In this subsection “the former register” means such register as was maintained by the local authority, before the commencement of this Part of this Act in relation to them, under section 38 of the Act of 1948.

(2) Where a person registered under this section by the Right Honourable the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses of Dublin had a period of service as a servant or officer of Irish Enterprises Ltd. or any of its predecessors, he shall be entitled to reckon that period as service.

(3) Where, as respects any service day of a person in relation to a local authority between the commencement in relation to them of Part III of the Act of 1948 and the commencement in relation to them of this Part of this Act (other than a service day of a person whose name was entered pursuant to subsection (1) or subsection (2) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 in the register maintained by a local authority under section 38 of that Act, which occurred between the commencement in relation to the local authority of Part III of that Act and the time when his name was so entered), no contributions were contributed by him to the local authority—

(a) the service day shall not be reckoned as such unless he makes to the local authority in respect of the service day such contributions as would have been contributed by him under this Part of this Act if, on the service day, it had been in operation in relation to the local authority and he had been a pensionable servant, and

(b) subsections (2) and (3) of section 43 of this Act shall have effect in relation to the contributions under this subsection in like manner as they apply in relation to contributions under that section.

(4) Subsection (3) of this section shall not apply in relation to—

(a) a person who was disqualified for making an application under subsection (1) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 on account of paragraph (b) of that subsection,

(b) a person who was disqualified for making an application under subsection (2) of the said section 63 on account of paragraph (b) of that subsection, or

(c) a person to whom subsection (5) of this section applies.

(5) No contribution under section 43 of this Act shall be required from—

(a) a person referred to in subsection (5) of section 63 of the Act of 1948,

(b) a person to whom that subsection would have applied at the commencement of this Part of this Act if he had made an application under subsection (1) or subsection (2) of the said section 63,

(c) a person who, on the commencement of Part III of the Act of 1948 in relation to the Lord Mayor, Aldermen and Burgesses of Cork, could have made an application to that Corporation under subsection (1) or subsection (2) of the said section 63,

(d) a person—

(i) who, on the commencement of Part III of the Act of 1948 in relation to the local authority, was disqualified for making an application under subsection (1) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 on account of paragraph (b) of the said subsection (1) or disqualified for making an application under subsection (2) of the said section 63 on account of paragraph (b) of the said subsection (2), and

(ii) whose continuous service ending on the commencement of this Part of this Act began before the commencement of Part III of the Act of 1948.

(6) For the purposes of paragraph (b) and paragraph (c) of subsection (5) of this section, if the person in question was, at the commencement of Part III of the Act of 1948 in relation to the local authority, disqualified for making an application under subsection (1) of section 63 of the Act of 1948 on account of paragraph (b) of the said subsection (1) or disqualified for making an application under subsection (2) of the said section 63 on account of paragraph (b) of the said subsection (2), that fact shall be disregarded.

(7) The exemption under paragraph (d) of subsection (5) of this section shall continue so long only as the service of the person from the commencement of this Part of this Act is continuous.

(8) No contribution under section 43 of this Act shall be required from a person who, immediately before he became a pensionable servant, was a person to whom subsection (6), (7) or (8) of section 28 of this Act applied during a continuous period of service after becoming a pensionable servant.

49 General restriction on grants (servants).

49.—Save under this Act, a local authority shall not grant any pension, allowance, gratuity or return of contributions to or in respect of any of their servants.

PART IV. Additional Benefits.

50 Allowance to widow.

50.—(1) Subject to regulations, a local authority and a male pensionable officer of such authority who is married and whose wife is living may enter into an agreement for the purposes of this section for the benefit of such wife.

(2) Subject to regulations, where—

(a) a person has entered into an agreement for the purposes of this section with a local authority,

(b) he dies while he is an officer of that local authority or while an allowance under section 15 of this Act is payable to him by that local authority, and

(c) he is survived by his wife, such wife being the wife for whose benefit the agreement was entered into,

the local authority shall pay to the wife an allowance equal to

(i) in case he was in the service of that local authority at the time of his death, one-third of the allowance that he would have been granted if he had not died but had ceased to hold his office by reason of permanent infirmity of mind or body, or

(ii) in case an allowance under section 15 of this Act is payable to him by that local authority at the time of his death, one-third of that allowance.

(3) An allowance under this section shall, notwithstanding section 60 of this Act, cease to be payable if and when the widow remarries.

(4) An agreement for the purposes of this section shall have effect in accordance with its terms (subject, however, to the regulations) notwithstanding any other provision of this or any other Act.

(5) A local authority shall have a discretion as to whether they will or will not enter into an agreement for the purposes of this section, subject to the proviso that they shall not enter into the agreement unless they are satisfied that the officer is in good health.

(6) In this section “agreement for the purposes of this section” means an agreement that any lump sum or death gratuity that may become payable under this Act to or in respect of the officer concerned shall be diminished by deducting therefrom the appropriate fraction.

(7) In subsection (6) of this section “the appropriate fraction” means—

(a) in a case in which either a lump sum is payable and an allowance under this section may subsequently become payable or a death gratuity and an allowance under this section is payable—such fraction as, at the time when such sum or gratuity becomes payable, stands specified by regulations as the fraction proper for the purposes of this section in that case, and

(b) in any other case—the appropriate one of such fractions (less than the fraction referred to in paragraph (a) of this subsection) as, at the time when such sum or gratuity becomes payable, stand specified by regulations as the proper fractions for the purposes of this section in those cases.

(8) The Minister may make regulations for the purposes of this section and the regulations shall be in such terms as, in the opinion of the Minister, secure that deductions from lump sums and death gratuities are, in general and taking one period with another, not less than sufficient to meet the liabilities of local authorities under such agreements as they may enter into under this section.

(9) As soon as may be after the expiration of ten years from the passing of this Act, and thereafter at intervals of not more than ten years, the Minister shall review the operation of this section and, where appropriate in consequence of any such review, shall amend the regulations under this section.

51 Surrender of portion of allowance.

51.—(1) Where—

(a) a male officer or servant of a local authority ceases to hold his office or employment, and

(b) he is entitled to an allowance under Part II or Part III of this Act,

he may apply to the local authority to be allowed to surrender a specified portion, not exceeding one-third, of such allowance in consideration of an allowance for his wife or one specified dependant.

(2) Where—

(a) a female officer or servant of a local authority ceases to hold her office or employment, and

(b) she is entitled to an allowance under Part II or Part III of this Act,

she may apply to the local authority to be allowed to surrender a specified portion, not exceeding one-third, of such allowance in consideration of an allowance for one specified dependant.

(3) An application under subsection (1) of this section for an allowance for the wife of the applicant shall be either—

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