Gerry Adams (Louth, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

That is hard to accept. The decision was not made in the middle of the night. The Government had clearly set out a different way of doing business. It had particularly talked about giving a new status in terms of authority and importance to the committees and because of public concern about the level of patronage in doling out these positions in the past made it clear that there would be transparency and a proper way of making appointments. This is not my complaint. The person who was Chairman of the environment committee is making it an issue that it should have been consulted. That is also my opinion.

Another issue identified in the IDI survey is the belief that insufficient consideration is given to the skills needed. I wonder if the procedure used in appointing the folks to these positions took skills into account. Is there a skills audit carried out across State boards? If not, could this be done in order that the Government would be able to see where the gaps are?

Paid positions need to be advertised, certainly on the website of the Public Appointments Service or the relevant Department. If that is not the case, will the Taoiseach make a commitment that such will be the case?

See this speech in context