Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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4. To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will provide a legislative basis for the future appointment of members to the boards of State bodies, including commercial and non-commercial semi-State organisations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42278/14]

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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On 30 September the Minister issued a press release announcing a revised model for ministerial appointments to State boards. If he is sincere about this, will he provide a legislative basis for the appointments of members to State boards, including commercial and non-commercial semi-State organisations, and not do this merely by way of a press release?

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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As the Deputy will be aware, the Government recently announced a revised model for ministerial appointments to State boards. In future all appointments to State boards will be advertised openly on the State boards portal, www.stateboards.ie, which, as the Deputy is aware, is operated by the Public Appointments Service, PAS. Officials are preparing overarching guidelines for appointments for approval by the Government, including issues related to diversity. As part of this process, all Departments have been contacted to seek comprehensive details of all State boards under their aegis.

The new arrangements also provide that the www.stateboards.iewebsite, as well as being the sole portal for the receipt of applications for appointments to State boards, also will contain definitive and current information on statutory boards, vacancies that will arise and so on. This material will be published in the near future. It is being gathered and structured across all Departments. A review of these arrangements will be carried out and completed within 18 months to make sure that once it is up and running, it will be effective. It is not envisaged that legislation will be required. However, if the review of the new arrangements, say in 18 months time, determines that it must be put on a statutory basis for any reason, I do not have a closed mind on that option.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Minister. I note that he commenced his reply by talking about guidelines, but at its conclusion, he stated he had an open mind on whether it required legislation. He will have this opportunity shortly, as I intend to publish legislation to put his press release and the matters about which he spoke on a guideline basis on a statutory footing. Consequently, I hope he will support the legislation as it goes through the House. One issue I seek to have governed by way of legislation rather than guidelines concerns the prospective chairperson appearing before an Oireachtas committee. This should cover other bodies such as regulators and various people with the title of ombudsman or ombudsperson. I note that later on the same day the Minister and I were last here a few weeks ago, he appointed Mrs. Judith Eve as the new chairperson of the Public Appointments Service. Such persons who will have such a central role in monitoring these appointments should have been brought before an Oireachtas committee in order that the people would know who was the chairperson of the body that would vet every other person. That was a slip-up, as although the Minister may not have been required to do this by legislation, he could have done it as a measure of good faith and demonstrate what he was talking about. He also appointed Mr. Liam Sloyan as lottery regulator on the same day. While I am sure both individuals are excellent and outstanding, they should have been brought before an Oireachtas committee.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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On the two appointments mentioned by Deputy, the post of lottery regulator was publicly advertised. I had no hand, act or part in determining it as it was the subject of a public appointments decision in the normal way. The post was advertised, applications were received, applicants were interviewed and so on and the best candidate was nominated. In respect of the chairperson of the PAS, I wanted to appoint somebody with experience in the PAS and, as the Deputy is aware, the person I nominated had broad experience, particularly in Northern Ireland, and served in highly distinguished roles. Anybody familiar with the North will know the name and the work involved. However, the objective in broad terms of the entire review system is to have an open system to get the best people and encourage them. I believe and hope the Deputy will be impressed by the guidelines. They will be mandatory for all State boards and there will be no question of not applying them. The idea will be to reach out to people and encourage them. For example, the issue of gender balance must be addressed and there may be panels of people being encouraged to apply, perhaps for more than one State board. Such persons may outline what their skill sets are and may be considered for a number of State boards. The intention is to have much more openness and much greater transparency in how people are appointed. However, it will be necessary to head-hunt some people for specific jobs. Such persons will need to be encouraged, as the Deputy will be aware from his past experience, to apply for critical positions on State boards.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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On the new lottery regulator whom the Minister appointed on the eve of the by-election which was a day on which much publicity would not have been generated, I understand up to that date and pending this appointment, the Minister was the regulator.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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Yes.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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As regulator, the Minister handed over to the new man and issued a press release. I totally accept that the Minister was not involved in the selection process, but he did have a role in announcing the appointment.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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No, only to state the post had been filled. The role is set out in law under the National Lottery Act 2013.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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That is right. Members debated that legislation when the Minister was privatising the lottery licence.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The Deputy was agin the appointment of the regulator, too.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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There is another point which I will ask the Minister to consider in his guidelines.

When the Minister issued his statement, he was specific that where there are legislative proposals for separate methods of appointment for different bodies they will not be covered by this. I ask him to take out all of those separate proposals because there is no point in coming in here, a year after they are up and running and appointing to a big board, stating that legislation contained a specific provision on the appointment of a chairperson. We must trawl through that legislation to take those measures out.

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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I am not prepared to do that because there are specific cases where a bespoke skillset is required by law. The National Treasury Management Agency (Amendment) Act 2014 sets out such criteria in relation to the NewERA companies.

Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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Will NTMA be exempt from all of this?

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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No. In the semi-State companies, for example, NewERA is given a role in the appointment because it must devise the skillset to ensure that the best commercial persons operate on commercial semi-State boards. Where the Oireachtas, having debated it, has set a legislative framework for the appointment of individuals, I will not set that aside but this is an overarching structure that will apply to 99.9% of appointments.