Dear Members,
In Advance of the upcoming IPA AGM which is being brought forward from the originally proposed date in November to proposed dateAugust 13th which is the earliest possible date considering Article 10 of the Constitution. Whilst this is still seen by a large number of members as being to far away, it does allow all Counties within the Association ample time to hold AGMs within there own local associations and further gives pool players across Ireland the opportunity to discuss the issues that they see as relevant and thereafter a pipeline to have views discussed at national level by their County Representatives in the form of either discussions points or proposals. I will discuss these further under the following headings to keep all points as simple and clear as possible.
Interim Committee
As may or may not be known amongst the greater community, members of the sitting committee resigned in advance of the next AGM and As Chairman I sought to supplement these positions with interim personnel who have agreed to fill the gap up until the next AGM. This action was enacted under Article 16.4 of the Constitution and was created to ensure that the association is not left vulnerable due to deaths or resignations in exercising its obligations to the pool community. I would like to extend my thanks to all who have agreed to step in at short notice to support the IPA and bring us to the next AGM where a permanent and duly elected committee may then assume control.
Notification of AGM
Article 10.1 of the constitution instructs that six week’s written notification is required outlining the time, date, and place of the AGM and furthermore this will be updated to the IPA Website for the benefit of all members. This six week is important as now I would expect all county boards to kick into overdrive and hold Local AGMs and allow Pool players at every level of the game have an input into where the game will develop over the next term/terms of office and this democratic approach will ensure that County Representatives coming to the AGM will have the clear mandate from their counties over voting rights and will thereafter be voting in accordance with the wishes of the County and not individual agendas.
Subsequent Sections of Article 10 additionally covers the release of the agenda which is always an exciting time because this is where submissions from all counties are also itemised in the agenda, previous minutes are again released for perusal (if not done so) and the final date for the release of the agenda is a minimum two-weeks prior to the AGM which in this case will be 31st July 2022. In the case of late submissions, Article 10 allows for the AGM to decide on these at the AGM, however, best practice in AGMs regarding late submissions is that they considered as submissions which have missed the 31st July deadline by a few days and not submissions that have been deliberately or covertly held back for last minute presentation. To this end I would accept submissions up until 07th August and then in accordance with Article 10.4 these late submissions can be presented to the AGM for consideration.
Election of Committee for 2022-2023
All places on the Committee are up for re-election at the AGM in August 2022 and I as Chairman will be seeking re-election at the AGM. Article 16 of the Constitution outlines the process for holding the election and all County Boards must submit nominations for personnel who are being forwarded for election, by the Deadline 2359hrs on 31st July 2022 to be included on the Ballot sheet. Nominations after that date can only be accepted at the AGM where a position has been left vacant and requires an officer be selected.
Chairmans Comments
As I have stated, I am seeking election based on my performance as Chairman over the past number of years. Under my stewardship, The IPA has grown and survived unprecedented challenges which were never envisagedpreviously and coming out of Covid we have enjoyed multiple tournaments under difficult conditions and even hosted the European Championships, overseen the successful running of the festival of pool and winning the bid to host the world championships, late nights are gone and tables have never been better. Regarding the financial position of the IPA, I can say with great confidence that the association is in a very healthy state. At the time of writing, we hold a profit more than €21,000+ in the bank account and this has been grown through my stewardship from the original figure which was in the low hundred’s when I took over. I will give a comprehensive report at the AGM and outline where revenues have been spent, however, where the IPA Constitution is lacking is that there does not exist a guidance document on the administration of finances other than Article 24. This would be a key area where If I am re-elected, I would look to add both transparency and guidance for future Chairmen/women.
In my experience, suspicion comes as part of the course, however, the character of any officer elected to the IPA committee should be protected from those that would spread rumours and in today’s environment of mental health awareness its incumbent on us all protect both the association and its officers in this regard. Based on my experience as Chairman, I would look to introduce some agenda points over the next few weeks that will be included in the final Agenda and these are concerning administration, working instructions and guidance documents which will be discussed at the AGM and if adopted can offer support to the Committee for the 2022-2023 Season.
It is with a particular sense of pride I have seen the Ladies game develop in Ireland and we havean abundance of absolute talent in that regard. The levels of professionalism which are observed at every competition and the IPA through the committee must continue to develop and support the game in that regard. The Constitution of the IPA does not have any articles which focuses on inclusion or diversity and in this we are behind the times. I would look to address this in the next term if selected and introduce amendments for consideration.
In closing, I wish to thank the outgoing committee, the interim committee, the County Reps and every player who has participated at every level of Pool in Ireland over the last number of years.
Place and time will be sent in due course.
All nominations and proposals to be sent to the IPA secretary, Suzanne Randle.
Yours Sincerely
David McQuillan
Chairperson,
Irish Pool Association.