Commentary on Sections Section 1 – president and vice-presidents
8.Section 1 of the Act repeals any reference to the president within section 18 of the 1935 Order (which is concerned with the establishment of the council). It thus formally removes the president from the council and puts an end to the president’s status as a charity trustee so that the president has no liability as a charity trustee.
9.Section 1 of the Act also repeals any reference to the vice-presidents within section 18 (establishment of the council) and thereby similarly removes the status of charity trustee from the vice-presidents.
10.The repeals made in subsection (1) would result in the 1935 Order being silent on the status of the president and vice-presidents. Subsection (2) is, therefore, necessary in order to allow proper definition of the roles of president and vice-presidents (including their relationship with the council) once these office bearers have been removed from the council. A new section 18A is inserted into the 1935 Order to address this.
11.Section 18A(1), (2)(a), (3) and (4) mirror the existing provisions of the 1935 Order. However, the relevant provisions are repealed and then inserted anew as the existing provisions are contained within a section which is no longer appropriate and which is potentially misleading (section 18 - establishment of council). Inclusion of these provisions within the new section 18A allows the provisions relating to the president and vice-presidents to be consolidated in one place for clarity.
12.Section 18A(2)(b) and (c) are new provisions which supplement the repeals in section 1 and further implement recommendations 16 and 17 of the Reid review. They ensure that the president and vice-presidents are not members of the council and that a clear distinction is drawn between these different roles.
13.Section 18A(5) imposes an obligation upon the council to prescribe the duties and responsibilities of these office bearers to ensure that the roles of these office bearers are clearly defined.