Noel Treacy (Galway East, Fianna Fail)

The arrangements for the composition of and appointments to the boards of State bodies is usually set out in legislation establishing the bodies. Normally these appointments are made by the Minister with responsibility for the body, subject to the consent of the Minister for Finance. Ministers must consider the merits of the appointees and ensure they have appropriate skills and experience for the position. Ministers are answerable to this House for such appointments. They need flexibility to choose members of State boards. The range of skills and experience needed for the board of a major commercial State company is significantly different from that of a small regulatory body, of which there are many under the aegis of the Department of Health and Children. There is nothing wrong with the current system and the success of our commercial State bodies supports the view that the boards appointed in the past worked exceedingly well.

Deputy Boyle's Bill does not have due regard to the nature of State bodies. Such bodies report to the Minister who has sectoral responsibility for them. The joint committees of these Houses have the authority to call in the chairman and top management of each State body. In most cases such bodies were established by legislation that sets out functions and responsibilities of the Minister and Department. These include the functions performed by the body, the submission of annual reports and accounts, borrowing, pay and pension matters, recruitment of staff, increases in fees or prices as well as other matters. Ministers also set out the policy to be followed. I doubt such people would wish to reply to advertisements and compete for positions. Such an approach is appropriate for employing people within organisations but not as directors or chairpersons of State bodies, which is fundamentally different from full-time employment. Tapping the experience of business people has been useful to the public sector, particularly for State companies and advisory groups. Such groups have advised Governments on policies and strategies.

Once a prospective board member accepts the offer of a position, he is subject to a range of legislative guidelines, notably the Ethics Act and the code of practice for the governance of State bodies. In October 2001 the Minister for Finance published the code of practice for the governance of State bodies, which was formally approved by the Government as binding on all State bodies. The code stresses the code of conduct for directors and employees. These should be in written form and a template in the code acts as a guide. All State bodies must also have an internal audit function or engage external expertise. The code also refers to procurement and disposal of assets and sets out a framework for best practice, corporate governance of State bodies and principles of quality customer service.

Membership of the board of a State body is a demanding role. The stringent requirements imposed by the Government bring significant responsibilities for all directors and a high degree of accountability. The Ethics Act, the Ethics in Public Office Act and the Standards in Public Office Act also have implications for directors. The Ethics Act requires directors of prescribed public bodies to make a declaration of interest to a nominated officer of the body such as the chairperson of the board or a company secretary.

The proposed Bill is heavy-handed and bureaucratic. It would make it difficult to recruit appropriate people to State bodies and advisory groups. The Bill includes all executive bodies, advisory bodies and task forces. Up to 600 bodies must be considered by the Oireachtas committee for the purposes of deciding who comes within the remit of the Bill, a considerable task.

The role proposed by the Bill for the committee, to review all the procedures in place for the appointment of chairpersons and board members of existing public bodies and to establish a listing of those appointments which should henceforth come under the new procedures set out under the Bill within one year, would impose a complex administrative task on any Oireachtas committee. No criteria are provided in the Bill to select the bodies that must come within the remit of this Bill. How will the committee make the decision? What is an appropriate body to which this Bill should apply?

The procedures set out in Deputy Boyle's Bill would involve the establishment of a public appointments unit in the office of the Commission for Public Service Appointments, the advertising of all public appointments and the holding of public recruitment competitions for all positions. In addition, the appointments would be ratified by a joint Oireachtas committee. These procedures are disproportionate and unwieldy and likely to deter rather than attract suitable persons. Sections 17 and 18 deal with the dismissal of a chairman or board member. Provisions dealing with dismissal suggest a lack of understanding of the public service ethos on which we rely when filling the positions on boards of public bodies.

The current arrangements for appointments to State bodies are workable, practicable and help recruit people from whom the entire public service benefits. There is no reason to discourage energetic, dedicated people with a proven track record from being appointed to State bodies by the Government of the day.

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