26 (2) An administrator in the employment of the State and any assistant administrator shall be entitled to such reasonable remuneration for their services as may be fixed by the Minister from time to time. (3) In fixing the remuneration of an administrator or assistant administrator in terms of subsection (2), the Minister shall take into account the manner in which the administrator or assistant administrator has performed his or her functions and any recommendation by the members or creditors of the company under reconstruction relating to such remuneration. 31 Liabilities incurred by administrator and interim board to have preference over pre-reconstruction liabilities (1) All liabilities incurred or to be incurred by the administrator or interim board in the conduct of the company’s business shall be paid in preference to all other liabilities not already discharged, exclusive of the costs of the reconstruction, and thereupon all claims based upon such first-mentioned liabilities shall have preference in the order in which they were incurred over all unsecured claims against the company except claims arising out of the costs of the reconstruction. (2) If a reconstruction order is superseded by a winding-up order— (a) the preference conferred in terms of subsection (1) shall remain in force except in so far as claims arising out of costs of the winding up are concerned; and (b) all claims based on such liabilities incurred by the administrator or interim board shall be taken to have been proved, and section 220 of the Act shall not apply in respect thereof. 32 Period of reconstruction excluded in determining preference under mortgage bond The time during which any company, which is a debtor under a mortgage bond, is subject to a reconstruction order, shall be excluded from the calculation of any period for the purpose of determining whether the mortgage confers any preference in terms of section 111(3) of the Insolvency Act [Chapter 6:04] as applied to the winding up of companies by the Act. 33 Position of auditor during reconstruction Notwithstanding the publication of a reconstruction order in respect of any company and for so long as the order is in force, the provisions of the Act relating to the appointment and reappointment of an auditor and the rights and duties of an auditor shall continue to apply as if any reference in those provisions to the directors of the company were a reference to the administrator. 34 Reconstruction expenses (1) The expenses of the reconstruction of a company (hereinafter in this section referred to as “reconstruction expenses”), including in particular the remuneration of the administrator and any assistant administrator, shall be defrayed in the first instance by the company, but every culpable person shall, to the extent mentioned in subsection (2), be liable to repay the company for reconstruction expenses. (2) Every culpable person shall be liable for reconstruction expenses to the extent of fifty per centum of the amount of the debts and other liabilities of the company for which such