18.—The following provisions shall have effect in relation to every public inquiry held by the F113[appropriate Minister] under this Act, that is to say:—

(a) such inquiry shall be held by such person and at such time and place as the F114[appropriate Minister] shall appoint;

(b) the F115[appropriate Minister] shall cause notice of the holding of such inquiry to be given in such manner as he thinks proper to the public and to such particular persons as he thinks proper;

(c) the person holding such inquiry shall have power to take evidence on oath and for that purpose to administer oaths;

(d) all expenses incurred by the F116[appropriate Minister] in holding a public inquiry on the question whether a lease, licence, order, or other document for which a particular person has applied should or should not be made or granted shall, F117[unless that Minister] with the sanction of the Minister for Finance otherwise directs, be paid by the said person who has so applied, and the amount of such expenses shall be fixed by the Minister for Finance, and when so fixed shall be F118[recoverable by the appropriate Minister] from the said person as a civil debt in any Court of competent jurisdiction;

(e) whenever the expenses or any part of the expenses incurred by the F119[appropriate Minister] in holding a public inquiry are not payable by a particular person under the next preceding paragraph of this section, such expenses or such part of such expenses shall be defrayed out of moneys provided by the Oireachtas;

(f) the person holding a public inquiry under this section may, if he thinks proper so to do, order the costs and expenses incurred by any person of appearing or being represented and adducing evidence at such inquiry to be paid by any other person who appeared or was represented at such inquiry;

(g) whenever the person holding a public inquiry under this section orders the costs and expenses incurred by one person to be paid by another person, such costs and expenses shall be taxed and ascertained by a taxing-master of the High Court on the requisition of either the person to whom or the person by whom such costs and expenses were so ordered to be paid, and the amount of such costs and expenses when so taxed and ascertained shall be recoverable as a simple contract debt in any Court of competent jurisdiction by the person to whom and from the person by whom such costs and expenses were so ordered to be paid.