Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Thursday, 15 February 2018

Select Committee on Justice and Equality

Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2017: Committee Stage (Resumed)

2:00 pm

Photo of Donnchadh Ó LaoghaireDonnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

The point was made that it would be interfering with the unfettered discretion of the Government. The entire Bill is about putting fetters, to some extent, on the discretion of the Government. That is the purpose of the legislation. If the Government wanted unfettered discretion in appointing people to the Judiciary, then we would not have processes of this kind. It is perfectly reasonable to provide an explanation and justification.

It is the case that this has not happened often. I hope it would be the case that it would not happen often. However, if there was a Government that was minded to appoint multiple judges outside the standard process on several occasions, this measure would act as a disincentive. That is the purpose of the legislation. It is a constraint, not an unreasonable constraint.

Comments

No comments

Log in or join to post a public comment.