This Bill is designed to give wider powers of investment of Government funds and moneys and to make some minor changes in the law relating to moneys in court and trust funds. Up to the present, the powers of investment of Government moneys have been confined to Irish and British Government securities issued directly or guaranteed by Parliament. It happens that, in practice, for the investment of the greater part of funds under the control of one or other members of the Executive Council it has virtually confined their powers of investment to British Government securities issued either directly by the Government or to securities guaranteed by the British Parliament. The disadvantage of these restricted powers was probably best illustrated in the case of the Dublin Corporation issue, made in the latter part of 1932, which, although a trustee security under the Trustee Act of 1893, was not available for the investment of any of the moneys under the control of the Minister for Finance. As a result, particularly, of the situation which was brought to light then, and of a further examination of the problem since, it has been considered desirable that the Minister's powers of investment should be widened and that, as well, a similar enlargement of power should be given to other Ministers who may have funds under their control.
The Bill which has been introduced is mainly intended to give effect to that decision, and it might be asked why we have not thought it advisable to go further and to deal with the whole of the position in regard to trustee securities as it exists in the State to-day. As a matter of fact, that question has been under consideration for a very long time, not merely by ourselves but by our predecessors. It is a matter which would require a great deal of investigation and a great deal of consideration, and would possibly result in a very cumbersome Bill. On the other hand, as against that, it is felt that an enlargement of the powers of the Ministers to make investments is urgently necessary. It has been decided to introduce this measure of somewhat limited scope and not to wait until such time as more comprehensive proposals for dealing with the whole question of trustee investments may be brought before the House. In that connection I should like to point out also that advantage has been taken in Section 12 to withdraw the trustee status at present afforded to securities approved for court investment. However, I should like to emphasise also that that withdrawal will not have any retrospective effect, so that any investment made up to the passing of this Act under the Rules of Court and hitherto regarded as trustee investments under the Act of 1893, will still continue to retain, for the purpose of the funds invested in them, the status of trustee securities. As to the reason why it has been felt necessary that some withdrawal of the general power of the Rule-making Authority to determine what securities are suitable investments for trustees generally should be made—I do not want to go into the details of the accounts which are presented from year to year in respect of funds in courts—but if they are consulted by any Deputy he will see there a most extraordinary list of securities which have been approved of from time to time for investment by the court, mainly, I should say, before the establishment of Saorstát Eireann. He will see, for instance, that the Carlow Golf Club, because it has been approved of for the purpose of court investment, would seem, under the Trustee Act of 1893, to have secured the status of a trustee investment because paragraph (o) of Section 1 of the Trustee Act of 1893 states that "any of the stocks, funds, or securities for the time being authorised for the investment of cash under the control or subject to the order of the High Court" may be properly regarded as a trustee investment.
