Committee Reports > List of Committees > Joint > 1986 > Committee on Legislation > Report - Statutory Instruments [18]

APPENDIX X

Secretary,

Department of Education.

I am directed by the Chairman of the Joint Committee, Mr. Mervyn Taylor, T.D., to refer to the Vocational Education Committees (Allowances to Members) (Amendment) Rules, 1984.

I am to invite your comments on the fact that the Rules provide for increases in allowances with retrospective effect notwithstanding that the parent legislation contains no specific authority to make such Rules with retrospective effect.

I am to ask why it is considered that section 125 of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 applies to these Rules.

T. DWAN,

Clerk to Joint Committee.

25th April, 1985.

Mr. T. Dwan,

Clerk to Joint Committee,

on Legislation,

Leinster House,

Dublin, 2.

28 Meitheamh, 1985.

A Chara,

I am to refer to your letter of 25th April, 1985 regarding the Vocational Education Committee (Allowances to Members) (Amendment) Rules, 1984.

In this regard I am to explain that the subsistence allowances payable to members of Vocational Education Committees are based on those paid to members of Local Rating Authorities. The subsistence allowances prevailing for the latter group are increased periodically in accordance with increases sanctioned by the Minister for the Environment and the allowances for V.E.C. members can only be increased after the increases have been sanctioned in the local authority area, although the operative dates are similar. The enabling legislation was deliberately framed so as to allow flexibility on the operative date i.e., Section 6(4) of the Vocational Education (Amendment) Act, 1947, as amended by Section 5 of the Vocational Education (Amendment) Act, 1962, confers the authority on the Minister for Education to make Orders for payment of subsistence allowances to V.E.C. members.

The reference to Section 125 of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 in the presentation letters to the Clerks of Dail and Seanad Eireann was made inadvertently in that Section 125 confers power on the Minister to made regulations but not rules in relation to the 1930 Act provisions.

I wish to express regret for any inconvenience caused by the reference to Section 125 of the 1930 Act rather than to Section 6(4) of the Amendment Act of 1947.

Mise, le meas,

D. O Braonain,

Runali.