The Warrenpoint Harbour Authority Order (Northern Ireland) 2002

Article 9

SCHEDULE 1 Warrenpoint Harbour Authority

Part I Constitution of Warrenpoint Harbour Authority

1.  The Authority shall be a body corporate with perpetual succession and shall, subject to the provisions of this Order, have all the rights, powers and privileges of a body corporate to which Section 19 of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954(1) applies.

2.—(1) The Authority shall consist of not less than 8 and not more than 12 persons who shall be appointed by the Department and any such appointment may take effect at any time after the coming into operation of this Order.

(2) The persons appointed under sub-paragraph (1) shall include the person for the time being appointed as Chief Executive Officer to the Authority under sub-paragraph (6) and may, on the advice of the Authority, include one other officer of the Authority.

(3) (a) A person appointed as a member of the Authority under sub-paragraph (1) other than a person referred to in sub-paragraph (2) or in paragraph 3 shall hold office for a period of 4 years or such lesser period as the Department may determine but shall be eligible for re-appointment.

(b) A person referred to in sub-paragraph (2) shall hold office as a member of the Authority so long as he holds the qualifying office by virtue of which he was appointed.

(4) (a) The Department shall designate a member of the Authority as Chairman of the Authority and may designate another member as Deputy Chairman.

(b) A person referred to in sub-paragraph (2) shall not hold the office of Chairman or Deputy Chairman.

(5) Section 18(2) of the Interpretation Act (Northern Ireland) 1954 shall apply to any appointment made by the Department under sub-paragraph (1).

(6) The Authority shall appoint a person to act as Chief Executive Officer to the Authority.

3  A maximum of three of the persons appointed under paragraph 2(1) shall be members of the Newry and Mourne District Council (in this Part referred to as “the Council”) appointed by the Department following consultation with the Council. Any member so appointed shall be eligible to serve as a member of the Authority for a period co-terminus with his membership of the Council.

4.  A person appointed under paragraph 3 who ceases to be a member of the Council shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Authority.

5.—(1) Subject to sub-paragraph (2) in the event of a casual vacancy occurring in the office of the Chairman the vacancy shall be filled by the Deputy Chairman until a new Chairman is appointed by the Department.

(2) If there is no Deputy Chairman, the Authority shall elect one of its number, other than a person referred to in paragraph 2(2), to fill any such vacancy as is mentioned in sub-paragraph (1) and the member of the Authority so elected shall hold office as Chairman until a new Chairman is appointed by the Department.

6.—(1) The Department in making appointments under paragraph 2(1) shall select persons who appear to it to have experience of, and to have capacity in, one or more of the matters mentioned in sub-paragraph (2) or to have in some other respect special knowledge or experience which would be of value to the Authority in the discharge of its functions, or to have any other skills and abilities considered from time to time by the Department to be revelant or useful to the Authority.

(2) The matters referred to in sub-paragraph (1) are the management of harbours, shipping, port usage, industrial, commercial or financial matters, administration, and the organisation of workers.

7.  The Department may appoint one of its officials to attend meetings of the Authority as an observer. Any observer so appointed shall not take part in any deliberation or decision of the Authority.

Part II Procedure, etc, of the Authority

8.  A meeting of the Authority shall be held not later than one month after the date on which the first appointment of members of the Authority under this Schedule takes effect and thereafter meetings shall be held on such dates and at such intervals as the Authority may determine.

9.  The quorum required for a meeting of the Authority shall be four.

10.—(1) A member of the Authority shall, if he is in any way directly or indirectly interested in any contract or other transaction entered into or proposed to be entered into by the Authority which involves or is likely to involve any payment by or on behalf of the Authority, disclose the nature of his interest at a meeting of the Authority as soon as possible after the relevant circumstances have come to his knowledge.

(2) Any disclosure under sub-paragraph (1) shall be recorded in the minutes of the meeting, and that member of the Authority shall withdraw from the meeting while that contract or transaction is being considered and shall not take part after the disclosure in any deliberation or decision of the Authority with respect to that contract or transaction.

(3) Where under sub-paragraph (2) a member of the Authority is prohibited from taking part in any deliberation or decision, that member of the Authority shall be disregarded for the purpose of constituting a quorum for that deliberation or decision.

11.  The proceedings of the Authority or any Committee appointed by the Authority shall not be invalidated by any vacancy in the membership thereof or by any defect in the appointment of or by the disqualification of any person acting as Chairman or Deputy Chairman or a member of the Authority.

12.  The seal of the Authority shall be authenticated by the signature of the Chairman of the Authority or some other member of the Authority authorised by the Authority to act in that behalf and of the Secretary to the Authority or some other person authorised by the Authority to act in that behalf.

(1)

1954 c. 33 N.I.