Jillian van Turnhout (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I fully endorse the Minister's decision not to take a prescriptive approach to the appointment of board members. Such an approach is not articulated in this Bill. I did not have a chance to make this point on Second Stage in the time available to me. It is important that the Minister has taken the right approach. I hope we can consider the seven principles of public life, which are often referred to as the Nolan principles, in this country at some stage. The principles in question, which office-holders should have, are selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. When we are creating agencies in future legislation, I hope we will provide for a system whereby a panel can be proposed to the Minister. I am not suggesting that this should be done in this Bill. An examination of how boards are appointed in Ireland is needed. There is a better way to decide on the membership of the boards of agencies of this nature. I support the Minister's decision not to take a such prescriptive approach in this instance. It would have been too easy to say there should be one member from a certain body and another member from another body, etc. As we all know, the essential governance skills that are needed by boards can be lost when efforts are made to fill places in such circumstances.