Finian McGrath (Dublin Bay North, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the introduction of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2017 to the House by the Minister for Justice and Equality, Deputy Flanagan. Radical reform of the current system of judicial appointments was a key demand of the Independent Alliance during last year's government formation negotiations. The programme for Government committed the Government to reforming that system to ensure that it is transparent, fair and credible and, with the introduction of this Bill, we are delivering on that promise. There has been a lot of debate, in this House and elsewhere, about the membership of the new judicial appointments commission proposed under this Bill. Should there be a lay chairperson or a judicial chairperson? Should there be a lay majority or a judicial majority? I support the proposals in the Bill that the commission should have both a lay chairperson and a lay majority.

I wish to focus, however, on the question of what kind of experience or expertise these lay members should have and, most importantly, what criteria they should apply when recommending individuals for appointment as judges. From some of the comments made in this House and elsewhere, one might think that the lay members of the commission will be a random selection of strangers pulled in off the street. The reality is very different. The Bill provides in section 15 that the lay members must have appropriate "experience, qualifications, training and expertise" in several areas. I welcome the fact that, among these areas, are "matters connected with... human rights, equality or issues concerning diversity amongst members of society". Lay members with these backgrounds will bring important real world experience to the table when decisions are being made on judicial appointments. I also welcome, most particularly, the criteria set out in section 7 of the Bill which will be applied by the members of the commission when making those decisions. The decision to recommend a person for appointment as a judge will now be based explicitly on merit and, subject to this overarching principle, regard shall also be had, first, to the objective that the membership of the Judiciary should comprise equal members of men and women and, second, and crucially, to the objective that the membership of the Judiciary should, to the extent feasible and practicable, reflect the diversity within the population as a whole. I endorse this provision wholeheartedly, reflecting as it does my own long-held commitment to diversity and to working to advance the rights of all members of society, including in particular the disabled community.

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