Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)

I welcome the chance to contribute to this debate on Oireachtas committees. Political reform was one of the key themes of the general election and I know from canvassing in Dún Laoghaire that there is a real desire for change in the way the Oireachtas does its business. On Tuesday the Taoiseach outlined plans to clean up politics by reforming the funding of the political system and how the lobbying process works. I welcome plans to set up an oversight committee, which will scrutinise appointments to semi-State boards and agencies. By doing so these appointments will be open to public scrutiny as they will be on the Official Report of the Oireachtas.

In this spirit of transparency I also welcome plans to televise committee meetings. However, I am cognisant of the fact that if they were televised it could lead to politicians grandstanding and waffling, and thus wasting more time. This would defeat the whole purpose of televising parliamentary business. I appeal to politicians to be direct, clear and concise in their contributions and to stop playing to the gallery in committees and in this Chamber.

As well as making committees more transparent in these straitened times, the public wants to see a serious attempt to make the Oireachtas more efficient, in terms of time and cost. They want to see an increase in the effectiveness of their public representatives. The public does not have the patience for political intrigue and infantile political debate.

A comprehensive reform of the committee system is a good way to go about achieving these efficiencies. I recognise that many Deputies work very hard on committees. A survey of Oireachtas members conducted by the Joint Committee on the Constitution in February 2010 found that committee work accounted for a significant percentage of a Deputy's workload, at 26%. However, we have had too many committees in operation, something that was perceived to be part of the culture of waste in the Oireachtas. For example the Cabinet sub-committee on social inclusion, children and integration only met twice in 2009.

Under the programme for Government, committees will have to be given the power to introduce legislation, ensuring they play a real role in the legislative process. Another major proposal in the programme for Government is the plan to hold a referendum to reverse the effects of the Abbeylara judgment. This will enable Oireachtas committees to carry out intensive investigations with real teeth, which is crucial in terms of giving public representatives a real role in investigating matters of public concern.

We need an Oireachtas committee to investigate the behaviour of our banks. Such a committee will need real powers because we cannot afford another tribunal. Ministers should be compelled to attend and answer questions before committees. Recommendations from a committee should be followed up, adopted or an explanation given as to why they were rejected. This has not happened in the past. Too many reports are gathering dust on shelves in this building.

I am also very aware of the abuse of the committee system which has taken place in the past and I call for an end to it. Too many politicians have been happy to accept payment for membership of a committee but have been less than enthusiastic about their actual attendance at and contribution to it. This is entirely unacceptable and will not wash with a public demanding a change in the culture of politics.

I pledge that should I be fortunate enough to be appointed to an Oireachtas committee I will treat the appointment with the respect it deserves. I will commit myself to attendance at the relevant committee and pledge to make a significant contribution to the best of my ability.

See this speech in context