Registrar’s oversight and staffing
Horgan asked about the Registrar’s control over building-society investments and the time and staff devoted to oversight. Burke outlined the registrar’s statutory investment powers and began explaining that he could not comment on the registrar’s detailed activities.
asked the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Tourism if he will outline the degree of control exercised over the investment policies of building societies by the Registrar of Friendly Societies.
35.
Comment on this
asked the Minister for Industry, Commerce and Tourism the amount of time devoted to overseeing the affairs of the building societies in an average week by the Registrar of Friendly Societies; the numbers of office staff, and the grades of each assigned to the registrar generally.
Comment on this
With the permission of the Ceann Comhairle I propose to take Questions Nos. 34 and 35 together.
The Registrar of Friendly Societies is independent in law in the discharge of his functions and I am not, therefore, in a position to comment on his detailed activities. In general terms the Building Societies Act, 1976 confers powers on the registrar, in his capacity as Registrar of Building Societies, in relation to limits on investments in specified classes of security after consultation with the Minister for the Environment, the Minister for Finance and the Central Bank.
The Minister for Finance, after consultation with the Minister for the Environment and the Central Bank, may prescribe the investments in which a society may invest funds surplus to those immediately required for the purpose of the society.
Because of his independence in law it is a matter for the registrar alone to determine what amount of time he should devote to any one of his varied activities.
The present staff of the registrar is one Assistant Principal (part time), four Higher Executive Officers, six Executive Officers, one Staff Officer, one Clerical Officer and five Clerical Assistants.