31.— (1) The following sections are substituted for sections 292 and 293 of the Principal Act (as amended by Part I of the Fourth Schedule to the Act of 1980)—

“292.— In this Part—

‘authorised person’ means, except where the context otherwise requires, any person being—

(a) an officer of the Minister or other person appointed in writing by the Minister to be an authorised person for the purposes of this Part,

(b) an officer of Inland Fisheries Ireland or other person appointed in writing by Inland Fisheries Ireland to be an authorised person for the said purposes, or

(c) a private water keeper;

‘private water keeper’ means a water keeper appointed under section 294.

293.— (1) The powers conferred by this Part on a private water keeper shall be exercisable only for the protection of the fisheries specified in his or her instrument of appointment.

(2) (a) The powers conferred by this Part on a member of Inland Fisheries Ireland or an officer of Inland Fisheries Ireland or other person appointed under this Part by Inland Fisheries Ireland to be an authorised person for the purposes of this Part shall be exercised by him or her only for the protection of the fisheries in an area or areas as may be specified in their appointment or thereafter by Inland Fisheries Ireland and for the enforcement in such area or areas of the Inland Fisheries Acts 1959 to 2010.

(b) A document purporting to be an appointment under this Part and to be signed by the chief executive of Inland Fisheries Ireland shall be receivable as prima facie evidence in any legal proceedings without proof either of any signature on it or that person whose signature on it was the chief executive of Inland Fisheries Ireland.”.

(2) Every instrument of appointment by IFI of an officer or other person to be an authorised person for the purposes of Part XVIII of the Principal Act shall be—

(a) prepared and printed in the prescribed form, and

(b) sealed with the seal of IFI,

and every document purporting to be such an instrument and to be sealed with the seal of IFI shall be admissible in any legal proceedings as prima facie evidence of such appointment.