157.— (1) The Authority shall F312[continue to maintain] a fund which shall be known as the Broadcasting Fund and is referred to in this Part as the “Fund”.

(2) The Fund shall be managed and controlled by the Authority and shall consist of a current account (“current account”) and an investment account (“investment account”).

(3) There shall be paid into the current account all monies paid to the Authority under section 156 (2) and (3) and there shall be paid out of the current account all monies in respect of expenditure by the Authority for the purposes of grants under, and any administration of or reasonable expenses relating to, a scheme duly approved under section 154.

(4) Monies standing to the credit of the current account and not required to meet current liabilities shall be paid into the investment account of the Fund.

(5) Whenever the monies in the current account of the Fund are not sufficient to meet the current liabilities of that account, there shall be paid into that account from the investment account of the Fund such monies as are necessary to meet those liabilities.

(6) Monies in the investment account of the Fund that are not required to meet current and prospective liabilities of that account shall be invested and the investments shall be realised or varied from time to time as occasion requires and the proceeds of any such realisation, and any income received in respect of monies invested under this subsection, shall be paid into the investment account of the Fund or invested under this subsection.

(7) The costs of administration of the Fund incurred by the Authority shall be defrayed from the resources of the Fund.

(8) The Authority shall keep all proper and usual accounts of all monies paid into the Fund and of all disbursements from the Fund including an income and expenditure account, cash-flow statement and balance sheet.

(9) As soon as may be after the end of each financial year of the Authority, the Authority shall submit the accounts of the Fund to the Comptroller and Auditor General for audit and the Minister shall cause a copy of an abstract of the accounts as so audited together with a copy of the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General thereon to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.

(10) As soon as may be, but not later than 3 months, after the end of each financial year of the Authority, the Authority shall make a report, in such a manner as the Minister may direct, to the Minister with respect to the operation by it of the Fund during that financial year and the Minister shall cause copies of the report to be laid before each House of the Oireachtas.