Committee Reports > List of Committees > Seanad > 1961 > Select Committee on Statutory Instruments > Report No. 03 - Statutory Instruments [15]

APPENDIX III.

Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1960 (S.I. No. 279 of 1960).

An Rúnaí,

An Roinn Tionscail agus Tráchtála.

I am directed by the Select Committee on Statutory Instruments to refer to article 2(2) of the Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1960, which reads as follows:—

“(2) The Minister may prescribe anything in these Regulations referred to as prescribed or to be prescribed.”

The Committee notes that article 2(1) provides that “‘prescribed’ means prescribed by the Minister.”

The Select Committee wishes to draw attention to section 2(1) of the parent statute viz. Factories Act, 1955, in which “prescribed” is defined as meaning “prescribed by regulations made by the Minister under this Act.” The Committee desires to be advised whether it is the intention to prescribe those matters referred to in the Regulations as “prescribed or to be prescribed” otherwise than by further Regulations. If so, the Committee is in doubt as to whether this course could be justified by the language used in the parent statute and it would like to be informed whether there are some insuperable practical difficulties which make it impossible to embody the matters to be prescribed in a statutory instrument.

Cléireach an Rogha-Choiste.

An Roinn Tionscail agus Tráchtála,

Baile Átha Cliath, 2.

Cléireach an Rogha-Choiste

um Ionstraimí Reachtúla.

I am directed by the Minister for Industry and Commerce to refer further to your minute of 27th April, 1961 regarding matters to be prescribed under the Docks (Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations, 1960 (S.I. No. 279 of 1960).

With one exception, i.e., the prescribing of an alternative process to annealing under Paragraph 23 (2) of the Regulations, which the Minister does not propose to prescribe at this stage, the only matters required to be prescribed under these Regulations are forms of certificates, registers etc.

When the Regulations were being drafted it was considered legally possible and preferable not to prescribe these forms in the Regulations but to leave them to be prescribed administratively. This would allow greater flexibility in keeping the forms in conformity with technological changes without the necessity to amend the Regulations. It is understood that a similar procedure was followed by the British authorities in the case of their Dock Regulations.

However, on re-examination of the matter and having consulted the Attorney General the Minister is satisfied that the proper course to be adopted is that indicated by the Select Committee on Statutory Instruments and he accordingly proposes to arrange for the prescribing of these forms by statutory instrument.