S.I. No. 88/1997:

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION (BOROUGH OF WEXFORD VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AREA AND COUNTY WEXFORD VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AREA) AMALGAMATION ORDER, 1997.

VOCATIONAL EDUCATION (BOROUGH OF WEXFORD VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AREA AND COUNTY WEXFORD VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AREA) AMALGAMATION ORDER, 1997.

I, NIAMH BHREATHNACH, Minister for Education, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 100 (2) of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 (No. 29 of 1930), hereby make the following order:

1. (1) This Order may be cited as the Vocational Education (Borough of Wexford Vocational Education Area and County Wexford Vocational Education Area) Amalgamation Order, 1997.

(2) In accordance with section 100 (3) (as amended by paragraph 4 of the Exchequer and Local Financial Years Act (Adaptation of Enactments and Statutory Instruments) Order, 1974 ( S.I. No. 215 of 1974 )) of the Vocational Education Act, 1930 (No. 29 of 1930, this Order shall come into operation as on and from the 1st day of January next after the day on which this Order is made (hereinafter referred to as the "operative date").

2. (1) In this Order, the "scheduled urban district" means the Borough of Wexford as referred to in the first Schedule to the Vocational Education Act, 1930 .

(2) The Interpretation Act, 1937 (No. 38 of 1937), applies to this Order.

3. The urban district vocational education area comprising the scheduled urban district is hereby amalgamated with the vocational education area comprising the county of Wexford.

4. (1) All assets, whether real or personal (including choses-in-action), which, immediately before the operative date, were vested in or belonged to or were held in trust for the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee and all rights, powers, licence and privileges relating to or connected with any such assets shall, on the operative date, without any conveyance or assignment, but subject, where necessary, to transfer in the books or other records of any bank, corporation or company, be transferred to and become and be vested in or the property of or held in trust for County Wexford Vocational Education Committee for all the estate, term or interest for which the same, immediately before the operative date, was vested in or belonged to or was held in trust for the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee but subject to all trusts and equities affecting the same and then subsisting and capable of being performed.

(2) Any asset transferred by this paragraph which, immediately before the operative date, was standing in the books or other records of any bank or was registered in the books or other records of any bank, corporation, or company in the name of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall, upon the request of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee, at any time on or after the operative date, be transferred in such books or other records by such bank, corporation or company into the name of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee.

(3) On and from the operative date, every chose-in-action transferred in accordance with the provisions of this paragraph may be sued upon, recovered or enforced by County Wexford Vocational Education Committee in its own name, and it shall not be necessary for County Wexford Vocational Education Committee to give notice to the person bound by such chose-in-action of the transfer effected by this paragraph.

(4) Section 12 of the Finance Act, 1895 (58 & 59 Vict, c.l6), shall not apply to any transfer effected by or under this Order.

5. (1) Every debt and other liability (including stock and mortgage debts, and unliquidated liabilities arising from torts or breaches of contract) which immediately before the operative date was owing and unpaid or had been incurred and was undischarged by the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall, on that date, become and be, the debt or liability of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee and shall be paid or discharged by and may be recovered from or enforced against County Wexford Vocational Education Committee accordingly.

(2) An amalgamation under this order shall not invalidate or otherwise affect any payable order or cheque issued by the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee which is not presented for payment before the operative date or any authority given by the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee for the payment of the amount of a paying order, and County Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall make arrangements for the payment of the amount of every such paying order upon due presentation within a reasonable time after the operative date.

6. Every bond, guarantee or other security of a continuing character made or given by the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee to another person or by any person to the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee and in force immediately before the operative date and every contract or agreement in writing made between the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee and another person and not fully executed and completed before the operative date shall, notwithstanding the amalgamation, continue in force on and after the operative date, but shall be construed and have effect as if the name of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee was substituted therein for the name of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee, and such security, contract or agreement shall be enforceable by or against County Wexford Vocational Education Committee accordingly.

7. (1) Nothing in this Order shall affect the validity of any act that was duly done before the operative date by or on behalf of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing any thing done or treated by virtue of any enactment as having been done by, to or in relation to the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee before the operative date in the exercise or performance of or by such Committee of any of its functions shall, on and after the operative date, be treated as having been done by County Wexford Vocational Education Committee.

8. (1) Every person who, immediately before the operative date, is an officer or servant of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall, as and from the operative date, become and be an officer or servant, as the case may be, of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee, subject to such conditions as shall be determined by the Minister following consultation with trade unions and staff associations concerned.

(2) Until such time as the remuneration and the terms and conditions of service of a person to whom subparagraph (1) applies are varied by County Wexford Vocational Education Committee following consultation with any recognised trade unions and staff association concerned, the remuneration to which the person was entitled and the terms and conditions of service, restrictions, requirements and obligations to which the person was subject immediately before such transfer shall continue to apply and may be applied or imposed by County Wexford Vocational Education Committee while the person is in the service of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee and no such variation shall operate to worsen the remuneration or the terms and conditions of service aforesaid applicable to the person immediately before he or she was accepted into the employment of County Wexford Vocational Education Committee, save in accordance with a collective agreement negotiated with any recognised trade unions and staff associations concerned.

(3) Previous service with the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee of a person to whom subparagraph (1) applies shall be reckonable for the purposes of, but subject to any exceptions or exclusions in, the Redundancy Payments Acts, 1967 to 1991, the Holidays (Employees) Acts, 1973 and 1991, the Minimum Notice and terms of Employment Acts. 1973 to 1991, and the Unfair Dismissals Acts, 1977 to 1993.

9. (1) The accounts of all income and expenditure of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee up to the operative date shall be prepared, completed and maintained and, as soon as conveniently may be after the operative date, be audited, and any disallowance, surcharge, charge or penalty in relation to the accounts, income or expenditure shall be made, and, subject to any necessary modification, may be recovered and enforced as if this order had not been made.

(2) Until the audit required by subparagraph (1) is completed, any officer of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee whose duty it is to make-up any accounts of or to account for any portion of the income and expenditure of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee and every member of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall, for the purposes of the audit, be deemed to continue in office and be bound to perform the same duties and render the same accounts and be subject to the same liabilities as if this order had not been made.

10. In any action, suit prosecution or other legal proceeding which was pending immediately before the operative date in any court or tribunal and to which the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee was a party, County Wexford Vocational Education Committee shall, on the operative date, become and be a party in the place of and substituted for the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Committee and every such proceeding shall be continued between County Wexford Vocational Education Committee and the other parties thereto, and no such proceeding shall abate or be discontinued or prejudicially affected by reason of this amalgamation order.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 21st day of February, 1997.

NIAMH BHREATHNACH,

Minister for Education.

EXPLANATORY NOTE.

This order provides for the amalgamation of the Town of Wexford Vocational Education Area with the County of Wexford Vocational Education Area and related matters.