Jillian van Turnhout (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 14:

In page 39, line 39, after “of” where it firstly occurs to insert “the Board and”.

This amendment relates to consultants and to advisers in particular. I have a concern about the appointment of advisers. This may be another area where the Minister will say that the agency means the board. My difficulty is that the definitions in the preamble to the Bill state the definitions of "agency" and "board". I am worried about how people will interpret this Bill. My difficulty is this triangle, as I kept imagining it, of the board, the agency and the Minister or Department. It is a case of where the different responsibilities fall.

I was seeking to ensure that we would not cut out the board where it plays an important role. For example, advisers should not be appointed to the new agency without consulting the board. I appreciate that the Ministers for Public Expenditure and Reform and Children and Youth Affairs need to be consulted. Who tables the proposal? Having read the Bill, I believed the chief executive would do so on behalf of the agency. Would the board be clearly informed of what was happening? This relates to my point on gifts. The Minister stated that this provision meant the board, but it actually mentions the agency, not the board.