Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Chairman for this opportunity to address the Joint Committee on Health and Children to give the background to these resolutions, to advise members why they are necessary and to provide the committee with an update on the implementation of the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 to date. The Joint Committee on Health and Children is being asked to consider motions that both Houses of the Oireachtas approve the draft regulations to increase the membership of the Health and Social Care Professional Council. The purpose of these technical regulations is to increase the lay membership of the Health and Social Care Professional Council by two to restore the lay majority on the council. The background is that the professional membership of the council increased by two as a result of the designation of the two optical professions of optometrist and dispensing optician under the Health and Social Care Professionals Act 2005 on 31 December 2014. The designation of the two optical professions was one of the legislative measures to permit the transfer of the regulation of these professions from the Opticians Act 1956 to the 2005 Act on 31 October next. I subsequently established the Optical Registration Board and appointed two of its professional members to the council.

The Act provides for the appointment by the Minister for Health of council members comprising a non-registrant chairperson, a professional member for each of the designated professions, originally 12, and 12 others. It has been the policy and practice to appoint lay people to the 12 non-professional positions to ensure a lay majority of one on the formerly 25 member council, comprising one lay chairperson, 12 professional members and 12 lay members. The designation of the two optical professions increased the professional membership to 14 but the lay membership currently remains at 13, including the chairperson. To restore the original balance, I am proposing to make these regulations. Section 4(7) of the Act provides for the varying of council membership as the Minister considers necessary or expedient in view of the increase in the number of designated professions. The regulations will provide for an increase by two in the membership of the council by increasing the number to be appointed to represent the public interest from six to eight. I intend appointing lay people to these two new positions from a panel of candidates which has been provided by the Public Appointments Service.

The Act also provides that such regulations may be made only if a draft of the proposed regulations has been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and a resolution approving the draft has been passed by each House. The remainder of my written statement relates to the work of CORU in general and is not pertinent to this particular regulation but I will leave it on the record.