48.—(1) In this section, the word “officer” means an officer of the Reserve Defence Force.

(2) The President may, for any prescribed reason, direct that an officer shall relinquish his commission and in any such case such officer shall relinquish his commission.

(3) The President may direct that an officer whose appointment as an officer is temporary shall relinquish his commission and in any such case such officer shall relinquish his commission.

(4) An officer of a prescribed description (which may be prescribed by reference to rank or appointment or both or such other matters as the Minister thinks proper) shall relinquish his commission on reaching the age prescribed as the age for the relinquishment of commissions by officers of that description.

(5) An officer whose appointment as an officer is for a specified period shall relinquish his commission on the expiration of that period.

F36[(6) An officer shall relinquish his or her commission if he or she—

(a) is elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or the European Parliament,

(b) is nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann, or

(c) is regarded under Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997 as having been elected to the European Parliament.]

(7) An officer who relinquishes his commission shall cease to be an officer.