(1) A person having completed the vesting period and having been a member of either House of the Oireachtas shall, subject to section 52, be eligible to receive a pension and a lump sum as provided for by this section if he or she either -

(a) has attained normal pension age and is no longer a member of either such House, or

(b) after attaining normal pension age ceases, other than by death, to be a member of either such House,

and is not serving as President or as a member of the European Parliament or does not hold a pensionable public service position on the appointment or nomination of the Government or of a member of the Government.

(2) A person who is a Scheme member or former Scheme member to whom subsection (1) relates shall, upon application being made to the relevant authority, be eligible to receive -

(a) an annual pension equivalent to the sum of the referable amounts in respect of each calendar year or part of a calendar year as a member of either House of the Oireachtas, subject to a maximum equivalent to one-half of the annualised rate at that time of the pensionable remuneration that stands provided for the person concerned as a member of either such House, and