PART III.

1963 Increases.

17. —(1) A pension—

(a) which is a pension specified in Part I (other than paragraphs (l), (m) and (n)) of the Schedule to this Act,

(b) which was in course of payment in whole or in part on the 1st day of November, 1963, and

(c) which was granted in respect of service which ended before the specified date,

shall be so increased that payments thereof in respect of any period beginning on or after the 1st day of November, 1963, are on the like basis as if on the date of the retirement the person to or in respect of whom the pension is payable was in receipt of the remuneration of which he would have been in receipt if the rates of salary or weekly pay which first commenced to be paid on the specified date had first become payable on the date of the retirement.

(2) An increase under this section shall, in the case of a pension increased under section 6 of this Act, not be less than the increase under that section.

18. —(1) This section applies to a pension—

(a) which was calculated in whole or in part by reference to the average annual amount of salary or weekly pay received over a period which commenced before the specified date, and

(b) which is a pension to be increased under section 17 of this Act or which would be increased under that section if the service in respect of which it was granted had ended before the specified date.

(2) A pension to which this section applies shall be so increased that payments thereof in respect of any period beginning on or after the 1st day of November, 1963, are on the like basis as if the pension were calculated by reference to an average annual amount of salary or weekly pay computed in accordance with the next subsection.

(3) The average annual amount of salary by reference to which a pension to which this section applies is to be recalculated shall be determined by reference to such rates of salary or weekly pay as the Minister considers appropriate, but not exceeding the rates which first commenced to be paid on the specified date, except that a higher rate may be allowed in respect of any part of the period referred to in paragraph (a) of subsection (1) of this section which falls after the specified date if such higher rate in respect of that part was reckoned in computing the pension to be increased.

(4) An increase under this section shall, in the case of a pension increased under section 6 of this Act, not be less than the increase under that section.

19. —(1) Where emoluments other than salary or weekly pay have been reckoned for a pension which—

(a) is to be increased under section 17 or section 18 of this Act, or

(b) is a pension granted in respect of service which ended within the period of three years commencing on the specified date which would have been increased under section 17 of this Act if the service in respect of which it was granted had ended before the specified date,

the Minister, if he so thinks fit, may determine a revised amount of emoluments in relation to the pension, subject to a maximum of the amount produced if the emoluments were valued by reference to the rates appropriate to the emoluments on the specified date, and, if the Minister so determines, the pension shall be recalculated by reference to the revised amount of the emoluments.

(2) Where a person has surrendered part of a pension referred to in section 17 or section 18 of this Act to provide a pension for a wife or dependant, any pension actually payable to him or to the wife or dependant shall be increased by a percentage equivalent to the percentage by which the pension before the surrender would have been increased if it had been in course of payment on the 1st day of November, 1963, and had been increased as from that date under section 17 , section 18 or section 19 (as may be appropriate) of this Act.

20. —For the purposes of sections 17 , 18 , and 19 of this Act, the specified date is—

(i) in case the pension is specified in paragraph (a) or (b) of Part I of the Schedule to this Act, the 1st day of January, 1960,

(ii) in case the pension is specified in paragraph (c) of that Part, the 1st day of February, 1960,

(iii) in case the pension is specified in paragraph (d), (e) or (f) of that Part, the 1st day of March, 1960,

(iv) in case the pension is specified in paragraph (g), (h), (i), (o), (p) or (q) of that Part, the 15th day of December, 1959,

(v) in case the pension is specified in paragraph (j) or (k) of that Part, the 1st day of January, 1959.

21. —(1) A pension specified in paragraph (e), (f) or (g) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act which is payable to any person on or after the 1st day of November, 1963, shall be so increased that payments thereof in respect of any period beginning on or after the 1st day of November, 1963, are equivalent to the amount determined as provided for by subsection (2), (3) or (4) (as may be appropriate) of this section if that amount is greater than the amount of the pension that would be payable if this section had not been enacted.

(2) In the case of a pension specified in paragraph (e) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act, the amount determined referred to in subsection (1) of this section is the amount of pension that would be payable if the Oireachtas (Allowances to Members) and Ministerial and Parliamentary Offices (Amendment) Act, 1960 , had not been passed and increases under the Acts of 1950, 1956 and 1959 and Part II of this Act were disregarded, subject to an increase of that amount by 64% thereof if the pension is a ministerial pension and 66⅔% thereof if it is a secretarial pension.

(3) In the case of a pension specified in paragraph (f) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act, the amount determined referred to in subsection (1) of this section is half the amount of the pensioner's husband's pension as determined under subsection (2) of this section (whether or not he was paid such a pension).

(4) In the case of a pension specified in paragraph (g) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act, the amount determined referred to in subsection (1) of this section is an amount of £100, subject to an increase of that amount by 66⅔% thereof.

22. —(1) In this section—

“widow's (Scale I) pension” means a pension specified in subparagraph (i) of paragraph (a) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act;

“widow's (Scale II) pension” means a pension specified in subparagraph (ii) of paragraph (a) of that Part.

(2) A widow's (Scale I) pension or a widow's (Scale II) pension shall be increased to whichever of the following is the greatest;

(a) the amount of the widow's (Scale I) pension which, immediately before the passing of this Act, would have been payable under the provisions then in force if no widow's (Scale II) pension were payable in the case, subject to an increase of that amount by 26% thereof;

(b) in case the pension (whether a widow's (Scale I) pension or a widow's (Scale II) pension) was granted in respect of service which ended before the 1st day of November, 1955—the amount of the widow's (Scale II) pension that would be payable if the pensioner's husband was, on the date of retirement, in receipt of the remuneration of which he would have been in receipt if the rates of salary or weekly pay which first commenced to be paid on the 1st day of March, 1960, had first become payable on the day of retirement;

(c) in any case—£111 per annum.

(3) A child's allowance referred to in paragraph (c) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act shall be increased to the greater of the following:

(a) the amount of the allowance which, immediately before the passing of this Act, would have been payable under the provisions then in force, subject to an increase of that amount by 26% thereof;

(b) £34 per annum or, if the percentage increase referred to in Rule 10 of Part II of the First Schedule to the Dublin Metropolitan Police Pensions Order, 1922, as amended by Article 7 of the Garda Síochána Pensions Order, 1955, or in subparagraph 2 of paragraph C in Part II of the First Schedule to the Garda Síochána Pensions Order, 1925, as amended by Article 10 of the Garda Síochána Pensions Order, 1955, is applicable, £65 per annum.

(4) A child's allowance specified in paragraph (d) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act which was granted in respect of service which ended before the 1st day of March, 1960, shall be increased to the amount of such allowance as would be payable if the child's father was, on the date of retirement, in receipt of the remuneration of which he would have been in receipt if the rates of salary or weekly pay which first commenced to be paid on the 1st day of March, 1960, had first become payable on the date of retirement.

(5) Where a pension or allowance payable to a widow or child of a member of the Garda Síochána or of the Dublin Metropolitan Police was calculated as a proportion of the average annual pay received by the member during a period which commenced before the 1st day of March, 1960, the pension or allowance shall be increased by recalculating it by reference to a revised average annual salary computed by reference to such rates of annual pay as the Minister determines, but not exceeding the rates which first commenced to be paid on the 1st day of March, 1960, except in so far as a higher rate or rates of annual pay was or were reckoned in respect of any period of the member's service after that day in computing the pension to be increased.

(6) A pension specified in paragraph (b) of Part II of the Schedule to this Act shall be increased to—

(a) an amount of £111, or

(b) the amount which, immediately before the passing of this Act, would have been payable under the provisions then in force, subject to an increase of that amount by 26% thereof,

whichever is the greater.

23. —(1) The local authority who granted a scheduled (Part III) pension, being a pension which was in course of payment in whole or in part on a date not earlier than the 1st day of November, 1963, determined by them, may grant one increase (and no more) of the pension, and the increase shall be an increase to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Local Government, or is in accordance with an approval which is applicable to the pension and which has been given by that Minister in respect of a class of such pensions.

(2) Where a person is aggrieved by a refusal or failure during the period of twelve months after the passing of this Act to grant an increase under subsection (1) of this section, he may, in the case of a refusal, not later than six months after the refusal, or, in the case of a failure, not later than six months after the expiration of the said twelve months, appeal to the Minister for Local Government against the refusal or failure.

(3) Where a person is aggrieved by an increase granted under subsection (1) of this section, he may, not later than six months after the grant of the increase, appeal against it to the Minister for Local Government.

(4) On an appeal under this section, the Minister for Local Government may either refuse the appeal or make such provisions as should in his opinion, have been made by the local authority concerned, and any provisions so made by that Minister shall have effect as if made by that authority.

(5) The pension payable under section 4 of the Vocational Education (Amendment) Act, 1947 , shall, for the purposes of the foregoing subsections of this section and of Part III of the Schedule to this Act, be deemed to be a pension granted by the paying authority referred to in that section.

24. —(1) The harbour authority who granted a scheduled (Part IV) pension, being a pension which was in course of payment in whole or in part on the 1st day of November, 1963, may grant one increase (and no more) of the pension, and the increase shall be an increase to such extent as may be sanctioned by the Minister for Transport and Power, or is in accordance with an approval which is applicable to the pension and which has been given by that Minister in respect of a class of such pensions.

(2) In giving a sanction or approval under this section the Minister for Transport and Power shall have regard to the provisions of the other sections of this Act with respect to increase of pensions.

25. —The board or other body who granted a scheduled (Part V) pension, being a pension which was in course of payment on a date not earlier than the 1st day of November, 1963, determined by them, may grant one increase (and no more) of the pension, and the increase shall be an increase to such extent (if any) as may be sanctioned by the Minister or is in accordance with an approval which is applicable to the pension and which has been given by the Minister in respect of a class of such pensions.

26. —An increase under this Part of this Act shall, save as otherwise provided by this Part of this Act, have effect from (and inclusive of)—

(a) in the case of a scheduled (Part III) pension—the date of the commencement of the pension or the date determined pursuant to subsection (1) of section 23 of this Act, whichever is the later,

(b) in the case of a scheduled (Part V) pension—the date of the commencement of the pension or the date determined pursuant to section 25 of this Act, whichever is the later,

(c) in any other case—the date of the commencement of the pension or the 1st day of November, 1963, whichever is the later.