Mauritius Cane Industry Authority (Amendment) Act 2014 (No. 5 of 2014)

Acts 2014 109 THE MAURITIUS CANE INDUSTRY AUTHORITY (AMENDMENT) ACT 2014 Act No. 5 of 2014 I assent M.A. OHSAN BELLEPEAU (Mrs) 1 August 2014 Acting President of the Republic ARRANGEMENT OF SECTIONS Section 1. Short title 2. Interpretation 3. Section 2 of principal Act amended 4. Section 5 of principal Act amended 5. Section 24 of principal Act amended 6. Section 26 of principal Act amended 7. Section 27 of principal Act amended 8. Section 31 of principal Act repealed 9. Section 33 of principal Act amended 10. Section 40 of principal Act amended 11. Section 52 of principal Act amended 12. Section 66 of principal Act amended 13. Consequential amendments 14. Commencement AnAct To amend the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority Act ENACTED by the Parliament of Mauritius, as follows – 1. Short title This Act may be cited as the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority (Amendment) Act 2014. 2. Interpretation In this Act – “principal Act” means the Mauritius Cane IndustryAuthority Act. 3. Section 2 of principal Act amended Section 2 of the principal Act is amended – (a) by deleting the definition of “crop year” and replacing it by the following definition – “crop year” means the period extending from 16 January in a year to 15 January in the following year; (b) by deleting the definitions of “middleman” and “middleman’s permit”. 4. Section 5 of principal Act amended Section 5 of the principal Act is amended, in subsection (1) – (a) by deleting the word “and” at the end of paragraph (q); (b) by adding the following new paragraph, the full stop at the end of paragraph (r)(iv) being deleted and replaced by the words “; and”– (s) undertake such other activities as the Minister may determine. Acts 2014110 5. Section 24 of principal Act amended Section 24 of the principal Act is amended, in subsection (3) – (a) by deleting the word “or” at the end of paragraph (a); (b) by inserting, after paragraph (a), the following new paragraphs – (aa) subject to the approval of the Minister, deliver canes to a person engaged in the production of cane juice for direct consumption; (ab) use canes grown by him for feeding livestock kept for research purposes; or 6. Section 26 of principal Act amended Section 26 of the principal Act is amended – (a) in subsection (1), by deleting the words “and every middleman”; (b) in subsection (3), by deleting the words “or middleman”. 7. Section 27 of principal Act amended Section 27 of the principal Act is amended – (a) in subsection (1), by deleting the words “or, if he consigns his canes to a middleman, with the middleman”; (b) by repealing subsection (2); (c) in subsection (4), by deleting the words “, middleman”. 8. Section 31 of principal Act repealed Section 31 of the principal Act is repealed. Acts 2014 111 9. Section 33 of principal Act amended Section 33 of the principal Act is amended, in subsection (2), by deleting the words “to the person holding the office of Senior Area Superintendant or”. 10. Section 40 of principal Act amended Section 40 of the principal Act is amended – (a) in subsection (1), by inserting, after the word “factory”, the words “or to a cane transit site”; (b) by adding the following new subsection – (4) In this section – “cane transit site” means a factory which has closed down but which contains fully operational infrastructure with regard to – (a) cane sampling; (b) cane storage facilities; (c) cane unloading facilities; and (d) weighing of canes. 11. Section 52 of principal Act amended Section 52 of the principal Act is amended by repealing subsection (1) and replacing it by the following subsection – (1) The Board shall, in accordance with the Statutory Bodies (Accounts and Audit) Act, prepare an annual report and submit it to the Minister, together with an audited statement of accounts on the operations of the Authority, in respect of every financial year. 12. Section 66 of principal Act amended Section 66 of the principal Act is amended, in subsection (4) – (a) in paragraph (a), by adding the following new definition, Acts 2014112 the full stop at the end of the definition of “SPMPC” being deleted and replaced by a semicolon – “Voluntary Retirement Scheme” means the Voluntary Retirement Scheme referred to in the Memorandum of Understanding signed on 27 March 2012 between the Ministry, the Authority and the trade unions relating to the transfer or otherwise of the staff of the 6 service providing institutions to the Authority. (b) by inserting, after paragraph (j), the following new paragraph – (ja) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b), (c), (d), (e), (f), (g) and (j), an employee of MSIRI who has not opted to be transferred to theAuthority and has retired pursuant to the Voluntary Retirement Scheme shall be eligible to an actuarially calculated contributory retirement pension in accordance with section 20(8A) of the National Pensions Act. (c) by inserting, after paragraph (l), the following new paragraph – (la) Any proceedings, whether judicial or extra-judicial, started by or against a former organisation and pending at the commencement of this Act shall be deemed to have been started by or against the Authority. 13. Consequential amendments (1) The National Pensions Act is amended – (a) in section 20 – (i) by inserting, after subsection (8), the following new subsection – (8A) (a) An employee of the Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute Acts 2014 113 who has not opted to be transferred to the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority and has retired pursuant to the Voluntary Retirement Scheme referred to in section 66(4) of the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority Act shall, where the employee is a – (i) female employee aged 50 years or more; or (ii) male employee aged 55 years or more, be entitled to an actuarially calculated contributory retirement pension as from the date of retirement or the date specified in paragraph (b), as the case may be. (b) Where, at the date of retirement – (i) a female employee has not reached the age of 50, she shall be entitled to the actuarially calculated contributory retirement pension as from the date she reaches the age of 50; or (ii) a male employee has not reached the age of 55, he shall be entitled to the actuarially calculated contributory retirement pension as from the date he reaches the age of 55. Acts 2014114 (c) The contributory retirement pension shall be paid – (i) in the case of a female employee – (A) who has not reached the age of 50 at the time of retirement, on or after the date on which she reaches the age of 50; or (B) who has reached the age of 50 or more at the time of retirement, on or after the date of her retirement; or (ii) in the case of a male employee – (A) who has not reached the age of 55 at the time of retirement, on or after the date on which he reaches the age of 55; or (B) who has reached the age of 55 or more at the time of retirement, on or after the date of his retirement. Acts 2014 115 (d) Notwithstanding theNational Pensions (Claims and Payments) Regulations 1977, where entitlement to an actuarially calculated contributory retirement pension under this section arises before 1 January 2014, any arrears for the period prior to 1 January 2014 shall be calculated in accordance with the Eighth Schedule. (e) In this subsection – “Mauritius Cane Industry Authority” means the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority established under the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority Act; “Mauritius Sugar Industry Research Institute” has the same meaning as “MSIRI” in section 66(4)(a) of the Mauritius Cane Industry Authority Act. (ii) in subsection (9), by deleting the words “or (6)” and replacing them by the words “, (6) or (8A)”. (b) in the Eighth Schedule – (i) in item 1, by deleting the words “and (6)” and replacing them by the words “, (6) and (8A); Acts 2014116 (ii) in item 4, in the heading, by deleting the words “and (6)” and replacing them by the words “, (6) and (8A)”. (2) The Sugar Insurance Fund Act is amended – (a) in section 2, by deleting the definition of “middleman”; (b) in section 28 – (i) in subsection (2), by deleting the words “, middleman,”; (ii) in subsection (3), by deleting the words “, middleman” wherever they appear; (c) in section 44(1), by deleting the words “or a middleman”; (d) in section 45 – (i) in subsection (1), by deleting the words “, cooperative society or middleman” and replacing them by the words “or cooperative society”; (ii) in subsection (2), by deleting the words “, middleman”. (3) The Mauritius Cane Industry Authority (Cane Contract) Regulations 2012 are amended – (a) in regulation 3(1), by revoking paragraphs (b) and (c); (b) by revoking the Second and Third Schedules. Acts 2014 117 14. Commencement (1) Subject to subsections (2) and (3), this Act shall come into operation on a date to be fixed by Proclamation. (2) Different dates may be fixed for the coming into operation of different sections of this Act. (3) Section 12(c) shall be deemed to have come into operation on 19 March 2012. Passed by the National Assembly on the twenty second day of July two thousand and fourteen. Bibi Safeena Lotun (Mrs) Clerk of the National Assembly Acts 2014118 BY AUTHORITY: GOVERNMENT PRINTING DEPARTMENT, LA TOUR KOENIG 70/08/2014 – 1300