| New Laws passed by the Fianna Fail – Progressive Democrats – Green Party Partnership Government for 2009 |
| Name of New Law and Its Number: | What does this Act do? | Contact Department: | Signed by the President on: |
Anglo Irish Bank Corporation Act 2009 No 1 of 2009 | The purpose of the Act is, in the public interest, to maintain the stability of the financial system in the State through taking Anglo Irish Bank into public ownership. The Bill primarily provides for the transfer to the Minister for Finance of all the shares in Anglo Irish Bank and the appointment of an Assessor to assess what compensation, if any, is payable in respect of the transferred shares, and to provide for the payment of that compensation. A number of the Minister’s functions may be exercised by the Minister’s nominee. | Department of Finance | 21st January 2009 |
Residential Tenancies [Amendment] Act 2009 No 2 of 2009 | This Act deems the appointment of certain members (ten) of the Dispute Resolution Committee (DRC) of the Private Residential Tenancies Board (PRTB) to be valid.The Act also deems Tenancy Tribunals constituted under section 102 of the Act and established from among the members of the Dispute Resolution Committee to be valid. There is a limiting provision that the Act deems valid and effectual only those acts done by the Dispute Resolution Committee, or a Tenancy Tribunal, which would otherwise be invalid were it not for the passing of the Act. There is a saving provision in the Act to say that nothing in the Act shall affect any proceedings commenced in any court concerning the validity of any appointment referred to, or acts done, where such proceedings were commenced before the passing of the Act. | Department Environment, Heritage & Local Government | 28th January 2009 |
Gas [Amendment] Act 2009 No 3 of 2009 | An Act to amend and extend the Gas Acts 1976 to 2002. Under Section 23 of the 1976 Act the Board may borrow money, including money in a currency other than the currency of the State, to defray its legitimate capital expenditure. This Act increases the borrowing limit from €1,700,000,000, to €3,000,000,000. | Dept. Communication Energy & Natural Resources | 17th February 2009 |
Electoral [Amendment] Act 2009 No 4 of 2009 | The main purpose of this Act is to revise the Dáil and European Parliament constituencies in the light of the 2006 Census of Population and, in this context, to implement the recommendations contained in the Constituency Commission’s Report on Dáil and European Parliament Constituencies 2007. The Commission was established under Part II of the Electoral Act 1997 (No. 25 of 1997) to report on the constituencies for the election of members to Dáil Éireann and the European Parliament. The Act amends the law relating to Constituency Commissions and it also establishes new procedures for the nomination of non-party candidates at European Parliament and local elections. These new procedures were in force at the Dáil general election in 2007 and are now being applied to local and European elections. | Dept. Environment, Heritage & Local Government | 24th February 2009 |
Financial Emergency Measures In the Public Interest Act 2009 No 5 of 2009 | The Act introduces a number of financial emergency measures in the public interest. These are the making of a new deduction from the remuneration of public servants who are members of a public service pension scheme or who have an analogous arrangement; provisions to allow public bodies to reduce the professional fees paid by them to external service providers; changes in the early childcare supplement and in the Farm Waste Management Scheme. The Act was introduced in the context of the priority to be given to the stabilisation of the public finances. The Act provides that savings accruing from these measures will be remitted to the benefit of the Exchequer. | Department of Finance., | 27th February 2009 |
The Charities Act 2009 No 6 of 2009 | The Charities Bill 2007 was enacted on 28 February 2009. The Act does not come into force automatically on enactment however. It is to be commenced in stages over time by Ministerial order(s). (Details of commencement of provisions will be available at www.pobail.ie).The Charities Act 2009 is designed to ensure accountability and to protect against abuse of charitable status and fraud, and thus enhance public trust and confidence in charities. ‘Charitable purposes’ are defined in primary legislation for the first time in the Charities Act. The Act provides for the establishment of a new Charities Regulatory Authority to regulate the sector and to encourage better administration of charities. The Authority will have extensive powers to investigate charities. The Authority will establish and maintain a public Register of Charities, upon which all charities operating in the State must be registered. Decisions of the Authority will be subject to independent review by an appeals tribunal. It will be an offence for non-charities to present themselves to the public as charities. The Act also updates fundraising legislation, particularly to bring collections of direct debits within the permit system for the first time. The Act is subject to a statutory review after 5 years in operation. | Department of Community, Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs | 28th February 2009 |
Investment of the National Pensions Reserve Fund and Miscellaneous Provisions Act 2009 No 7 of 2009 | The Act allows the Minister for Finance to direct the National Pensions Reserve Fund Commission to invest in a listed credit institution. It allows the Minister to make additional contributions to the National Pensions Reserve Fund for the purposes of investing in a listed credit institution and to vary the payment dates for the annual contribution. The Act also allows the Minister to introduce regulations requiring holders of financial instruments, including contracts for difference, to disclose their holdings. | Department of Finance | 5th March 2009 |
Legal Services Ombudsman Act 2009 No 8 of 2009 | The Act provides for the establishment of a Legal Services Ombudsman. The functions of the Ombudsman are to receive and investigate complaints from clients of solicitors and barristers who are dissatisfied with the handling of a complaint made to the Law Society or Bar Council, to review the complaints procedures in place in these bodies, and to assess and report annually on the adequacy of the admissions policies of both professions. The Ombudsman will also promote public awareness of the complaints procedures of the Law Society and Bar Council. | Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform | 10th March 2009 |
Electoral [Amendment] (No.2) Act 2009 No 9 of 2009 | The purpose of this Act is to amend the Local Elections (Disclosure of Donations and Expenditure) Act 1999 to provide for the introduction of limits on expenditure by candidates and political parties at local elections. In addition, the formula for setting the period for the reckoning of election expenses has been also been revised. The Act provides for the administration and oversight of the scheme by local authorities as an extension of their existing statutory responsibilities under the 1999 Act. The 2009 Act also amends the Litter Pollution Act 1997 to clarify the commencement date from which posters may be exhibited at elections and referenda. | Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government | 25th March 2009 |
The Social Welfare and Pensions Act No 10 of 2009 | | | 29th April 2009 |
The Industrial Development Act 2009 No 11 of 2009 | | Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment | 19th May 2009 |
The Finance Act 2009 No 12 of 2009 | The main purpose of the Act is to give legislative form to the taxation proposals in the Budget Statement of 7 April 2009. It also contains provisions which are consequential on the Budget measures and other changes in the taxation code. The Act is in six parts covering Levies, Income Tax, Corporation Tax, Capital Gains Tax, Excise, Value-Added Tax, Stamp Duties, Capital Acquisitions Tax and Miscellaneous tax provisions. The Act runs to 32 sections. | The Department of Finance | 3rd May 2009 |
The Financial Services [Deposit Guarantee Scheme] Act 2009 No 13 0f 2009 | This Act enables the Minister for Finance to subsequently make Regulations amending the deposit guarantee scheme. The legal basis for that scheme is the European Communities (Deposit Guarantee Schemes) Regulations 1995, SI No.168 of 1995, which transposed the relevant 1994 EU Directive. The Act empowers the Minister, in the follow-on Regulations, to prescribe the amount payable under the scheme to an eligible depositor of a credit institution which fails and the contribution to be made by credit institutions to the Central Bank to fund the scheme. The Minister can also extend the coverage of the scheme to credit union savers. (Note: the subsequent Regulations are SI No. 228 of 2009.) | The Department of Finance | 18th June 2009 |
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