26.—(1) Where a member of the Agency is—

(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann,

(b) elected as a member of either House of the Oireachtas or as a representative in the European Parliament, or

(c) regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997 as having been elected to that Parliament to fill a vacancy,

he or she shall thereupon cease to be a member of the Agency.

(2) Where the person who is the chief executive or a member of the staff of the Agency is—

(a) nominated as a member of Seanad Éireann,

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

(c) regarded pursuant to Part XIII of the Second Schedule to the European Parliament Elections Act 1997 as having been elected to that Parliament to fill a vacancy,

he or she shall thereupon stand seconded from employment by the Agency and shall not be paid by, or be entitled to receive from, the Agency any remuneration or allowances in respect of the period commencing on such nomination or election, or when he or she is so regarded as having been elected as the case may be, and ending when such person ceases to be a member of either such House or a member of that Parliament.

(3) A person to whom subsection (2) refers may stand seconded for a period of no longer than 10 years.

(4) A person who is for the time being entitled under the Standing Orders of either House of the Oireachtas to sit therein or who is a member of the European Parliament, shall, while so entitled or such a member, be disqualified from becoming a member of the Agency or the chief executive or a member of staff of the Agency.

(5) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (2), that subsection shall be construed as prohibiting, inter alia, the reckoning of a period mentioned in that subsection as service with the Agency for the purposes of any superannuation benefits.