I move that this Bill be now read a Second Time. It is a short Bill which regularises a position that has arisen in two towns, Trim and Ballyshannon, where elections arose but no nominations were made. Whenever a local authority is dissolved and its powers and duties transferred under Section 72 of the Local Government Act, 1925, the Minister for Local Government and Public Health is required to cause a new election of members to that authority to be held and on completion of that election the powers and duties are transferred back to the local authority. It has already happened that at an election to a dissolved local authority no candidates were nominated, and the continuance of the transfer had to be regularised by Acts passed by the Oireachtas applicable to the particular local authority concerned. Elections were directed to be held in Trim Urban District and in Ballyshannon Town in 1934, but here again no candidates were nominated, and the continuance of the transfer of the powers of these two local authorities requires to be regularised.
This Bill is intended to regularise the position in Trim and Ballyshannon and at the same time govern any similar case that may happen in the future. This is preferable to the alternative course of legislating for each local authority in which such a difficulty may arise. The Bill provides that if at an election to a dissolved local authority, the number of candidates nominated is less than the quorum for meetings of that local authority, the election will not be proceeded with, and the dissolution order will continue in force for a further period not exceeding three years, but without prejudice to the power of the Minister to order an election at any time during that period.
