S.I. No. 70/1956:

COMMITTEES OF AGRICULTURE (OFFICERS' TRAVELLING EXPENSES AND MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE AND EXPENSES) REGULATIONS, 1956.

COMMITTEES OF AGRICULTURE (OFFICERS' TRAVELLING EXPENSES AND MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE AND EXPENSES) REGULATIONS, 1956.

I, JAMES M. DILLON, Minister for Agriculture, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 28 of the Agriculture Act, 1931 (No. 8 of 1931), hereby make the following regulations :--

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Committees of Agriculture (Officers' Travelling Expenses and Maintenance Allowance and Expenses) Regulations, 1956.

2. The Interpretation Act, 1937 (No. 38 of 1937), applies to these Regulations.

3. The allowance of travelling and maintenance expenses to officers of committees of agriculture who have to travel in the performance of their duties and the rates of such travelling and maintenance expenses shall, in the cases specified in the Schedule hereto, be in accordance with the provisions of that Schedule.

4. The Committees of Agriculture (Officers' Travelling Expenses and Maintenance Allowance and Expenses) Regulations, 1952 ( S.I. No. 318 of 1952 ), are hereby revoked.

5. These Regulations shall come into operation on the 1st day of April, 1956.

SCHEDULE.

TRAVELLING EXPENSES AND MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE AND MAINTENANCE EXPENSES OF OFFICERS OF COMMITTEES OF AGRICULTURE.

PART I.

PRELIMINARY.

1. In this Schedule--

the expression " the Minister " means the Minister for Agriculture ;

the word " committee " means a committee of agriculture ;

the expression " the county " means, in relation to a committee, the county in respect of which such committee is the committee, and

the expressions " within the county " and " outside the county " shall be construed accordingly ;

the expression " district " means, in relation to an officer of a committee, the part of the county assigned by a committee to such officer for the performance of his official duties ;

the word " existing " in relation to an officer of a committee means a person who is an officer of a committee on the date on which these regulations come into operation.

PART II.

TRAVELLING EXPENSES.

2.--(1) Every committee shall, subject to the provisions of this paragraph, pay to each of its officers, in respect of all necessary travelling within the county done by him in the course of his duties as such officer, travelling expenses at the rates fixed by this Part of this Schedule.

(2) Each committee shall in each year fix in respect of each one of its officers the sum which, having regard to all the circumstances of the case, appears to the committee to be the maximum amount of travelling expenses which it would be reasonable for the officer to incur in that year.

(3) The total amount of travelling expenses paid under this paragraph to any officer in respect of travelling in any year shall not exceed, without the consent in writing of the Minister, the maximum amount fixed under sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph.

3. Travelling expenses, at the rates fixed by this Schedule, may be paid by a committee to its officers in respect of necessary travelling by the officers outside the county in the course of or in connection with the duties of such officers, if, in the opinion of the committee, such expenses should be paid, and if the Minister approves in writing of such payments being made by the committee.

4.--(1) The rates at which travelling expenses shall be paid by a committee to its officers in respect of necessary travelling by the officer whether within the county or outside the county shall be as follows, that is to say--

(a) the actual railway fare expended by the officer on such class as is approved by the committee and the Minister, or the actual omnibus fare expended by the officer, and

(b) a rate of two pence per mile in respect of the use of a pedal cycle, and

(c) a rate of three pence half-penny per mile for mileage up to four thousand per year subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, and two pence per mile for mileage in excess of four thousand per year in respect of the use of a motor-cycle without a side-car, and

(d) a rate of four pence per mile for mileage up to four thousand per year subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, and two pence farthing per mile for mileage in excess of four thousand per year in respect of the use of a motor-cycle with sidecar, and

(e) a rate of eight pence three farthings per mile for mileage up to four thousand per year subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, and four pence farthing per mile for mileage in excess of four thousand per year in respect of the use of a motor-car of which the horse-power is less than ten, and

(f) a rate of ten pence per mile for mileage up to four thousand per year subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, and four pence half-penny per mile for mileage in excess of four thousand per year in respect of the use of a motor-car of which the horse-power is not less than ten and less than twelve, and

(g) a rate of ten pence half-penny per mile for mileage up to four thousand per year subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph, and five pence half-penny per mile for mileage in excess of four thousand per year in respect of the use of a motor-car of not less than twelve horse-power, and

(h) the amount paid for hire of a conveyance where the hire is justified by special circumstances and subject to such directions as may be given by a committee to its officers in connection with arrangements for the hiring of conveyances.

(2) Where a vehicle is not covered by comprehensive insurance the appropriate rate in respect of mileage up to four thousand per year shall be abated as follows :--

(a) by one farthing in the case of a motor-cycle with or without a sidecar ;

(b) by one half-penny in the case of a motor-car.

(3) For the purpose of this paragraph the horse-power of a motor-car shall be the horse-power as reckoned for taxation purposes.

PART III.

MAINTENANCE ALLOWANCE AND MAINTENANCE EXPENSES.

5.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this paragraph a maintenance allowance towards subsistence expenses shall be granted and paid at the rates mentioned in this sub-paragraph by a committee to the following officers in respect of travelling within the county in the course of their official duties, that is to say--

(a) at the rate of £95 per annum to Chief Agricultural Officers and Instructors in Agriculture, and

(b) at the rate of £75 per annum to Instructors in Horticulture and Bee-keeping, Instructors in Poultry-keeping and Butter-making, Instructors in Forestry and County Foresters.

(2) Whenever any of the officers mentioned in clause (a) or clause (b) of sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph are, in any period of twelve months, absent from their duties for more than six weeks on account of sick leave or for a period or periods of sick and annual leave which together amount to more than eight weeks, the said sum of £95 mentioned in the said clause (a) and the said sum of £75 mentioned in the said clause (b) shall be so reduced that the sums by which the said sums of £95 and £75 respectively are reduced shall bear the same proportion to £95 and £75 as the period of sick leave in excess of six weeks or the period of sick and annual leave in excess of eight weeks (as the case may be) bears to the said period of twelve months.

6. Maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a night and day allowance shall be paid at the rates mentioned in this Part of this Schedule by a committee to its Secretary and to Clerical Assistants to its Secretary and to Clerical Assistants to its Chief Agricultural Officer in respect of subsistence expenses incurred by the Secretary and the Assistants when travelling within the county in the course of their official duties.

7. Maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a night and day allowance shall, if the consent in writing of the Minister is first obtained, be paid by a committee to its officers in respect of subsistence expenses incurred by the officers when travelling outside the county in the course of, or in connection with, their official duties.

8. Maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a night and day allowance shall, when the Minister so directs, and may, in exceptional circumstances on the application of a committee and with the written approval of the Minister, be paid to an officer of the committee in respect of subsistence expenses incurred by the officer in the course of, or in connection with, his official duties when travelling within the county but outside his district.

9. The rates of maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a night and day allowance payable by a committee to an existing officer in accordance with the provisions of this Schedule shall not be less than the rates at which such officer was entitled to be paid immediately prior to the date on which these regulations come into operation.

10.--(1) Subject to the the provisions of paragraph 9 of this Schedule, the following shall be the rates of maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a night allowance which shall be payable by a committee to its officers, that is to say--

(a) where the salary of an officer exceeds £613 per annum the rate shall be twenty-six shillings and six pence per night covering a period of twenty-four hours' absence from the officer's headquarters ; after a continuous period of absence of seven nights in any one place the rate of twenty-six shillings and six pence shall be reduced to the rate of twenty-three shillings per night for the remainder of the officer's stay, and

(b) where the salary of an officer is not less than £384 but does not exceed £613 per annum the rate shall be twenty-two shillings per night covering a period of twenty-four hours' absence from the officer's headquarters ; after a continuous period of absence of seven nights in any one place the rate of twenty-two shillings shall be reduced to the rate of eighteen shillings and six pence per night for the remainder of the officer's stay, and

(c) where the salary of an officer is less than £384 per annum the rate shall be nineteen shillings per night covering a period of twenty-four hours' absence from the officer's headquarters ; after a continuous period of absence of seven nights in any one place the rate of nineteen shillings shall be reduced to the rate of fourteen shillings and six pence per night for the remainder of the officer's stay.

(2) In this paragraph the word " salary " shall be construed as excluding any allowance for travelling and maintenance expenses.

11. The following shall be the rates of maintenance expenses in the form and by way of a day allowance payable by a committee to such of its officers as are entitled to a day allowance, that is to say--

(a) where an officer of a committee is absent from headquarters for a period of not less than ten hours (not extending overnight) or a period of not less than ten hours immediately following the period of twenty-four hours covered by a night allowance, the rate shall be one-third of the rate payable to the officer in the case of a night allowance applicable to the first seven nights of a continuous period of absence by the officer in any one place ;

(b) where an officer of a committee is absent from headquarters for a period of not less than seven but less than ten hours (not extending overnight) or a period of not less than seven but less than ten hours immediately following the period of twenty-four hours covered by a night allowance, the rate shall be--

(i) four shillings, in case the rate of night allowance payable to the officer in respect of the first seven nights of a continuous period of absence in any one place is twenty-six shillings and six pence ;

(ii) three shillings and nine pence, in case the rate of night allowance payable to the officer in respect of the first seven nights of a continuous period of absence in any one place is twenty-two shillings ;

(iii) three shillings and six pence in any other case.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 23rd day of March, 1956.

JAMES M. DILLON,

Minister for Agriculture.