Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

In regard to this question, and given what the Taoiseach said earlier in terms of the Minister, Deputy Howlin's announcement today, I point out that we had a similar announcement three and a half years ago. The Labour Party manifesto in 2011 stated it would:

...end the system whereby appointments to State boards are used as a form of political patronage and for rewarding insiders. In future, appointment to boards must be based on a demonstrable capacity to do the job.

The Fine Gael manifesto stated something similar. All political parties since the foundation of the State have appointed either members of the party or associates of the party to State boards - that is a fact. I can go through the first ten years, having studied it myself, and we can see what went on. Even today in Northern Ireland, Sinn Féin does it quite regularly-----

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