Eamon Ryan (Dublin Bay South, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I will be brief. I am concerned when places on boards are reserved for particular sectors or people. I accept the principle of Deputy Bríd Smith's proposal but if we are not careful we could up with a board that is representative of people from the labour pillar or the business pillar and such people representing their pillars rather than being free-thinking. Every person on the board of the Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland should have an expertise on climate. What we are talking about is the complete transformation of our energy system within three decades. For this reason, we do not want accountants, lawyers or sociologists, etc., on the board of the SEAI. We want all members of that board to have a profound understanding of and commitment to the issue of climate change because that is what shapes energy policy. I am simply flagging that it is important that all those appointed to the SEAI board are completely focused if we are to make this transition because the scale of it is beyond compare in terms of what we have to do.

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