Section 37

1. The Ombudsman shall, at the request of the chairperson of the Council, designate a member of the staff of the Ombudsman to be secretary to the Council.

2. There may be paid to a member of the Council such fees and allowances for expenses (if any) as may be determined by the Minister in consultation with the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform.

3. A person ceases to be a member of the Council if the person—

(a) dies,

(b) completes a term of office and is not reappointed,

(c) resigns the office by notice in writing to the Minister in accordance with paragraph 11,

(d) has, without the permission of the other members, been absent from meetings of the Council for a consecutive period of 6 months,

(e) is, with the person’s consent, nominated as a candidate for election as a member of either House of the Oireachtas,

(f) is, with the person’s consent, nominated as a candidate for election as a member of the European Parliament or to fill a vacancy in the membership of that Parliament,

(g) is, with the person’s consent, nominated as a candidate for election as a member of a local authority,

(h) is adjudged bankrupt (either in the State or elsewhere) or enters into a composition with the person’s creditors,

(i) becomes physically or mentally incapable of performing the duties of a member,

(j) is convicted of an offence (either in the State or elsewhere) and sentenced to serve a term of imprisonment for the offence, or

(k) is removed from office by the Minister—

(i) for proven misconduct or incompetence, or

(ii) in order to enable the Council to function effectively.

4. If the office of a member becomes vacant, the Minister shall arrange for a suitably qualified person to be appointed to fill the vacancy in accordance with this Schedule as soon as possible after the date on which the vacancy occurred.

5. The Council may act notwithstanding one or more vacancies among its members.

6. At a meeting of the Council—

(a) the chairperson of the Council shall, if present, be the chairperson of the meeting, or

(b) if and so long as the chairperson of the Council is not present or if that office is vacant, the other members of the Council who are present shall choose one of their number to be chairperson of the meeting.

7. Every question at a meeting of the Council shall be determined by a majority of the votes of the members of the Council present and voting on the question and, in the case of an equal division of votes, the chairperson of the meeting shall have a second or casting vote.

8. The quorum for a meeting of the Council shall, unless the Minister otherwise directs, be 4.

9. The Council may, if it thinks fit, transact any of its business by the circulation of papers, electronically or otherwise, among all its members for the time being and in such cases a resolution approved in writing by a majority of those members shall be taken to be a decision of the Council.

10. The Council may hold or continue a meeting by the use of any means of communication by which all the participants can hear and be heard at the same time and such a meeting shall be referred to as an “electronic meeting”.

11. A member who participates in an electronic meeting is taken for all purposes to be present at the meeting.

12. A member of the Council may resign at any time his or her membership by a letter addressed to the Minister and the resignation shall take effect from the date specified in the letter (if any) or upon receipt by the Minister, whichever is the later.

13. Subject to this Schedule, the Council shall regulate its procedure by rules or otherwise.