Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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It has been agreed that the rapporteur's report will be taken as read. Are the proposed arrangements for business this week agreed to?

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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Not agreed. There is real concern about the manner in which the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications, Deputy Eamon Ryan, appointed two close colleagues to the Climate Change Advisory Council. There has clearly been no formal public appointments practice involved with those two appointments. We have been through the Katherine Zappone affair and the Oireachtas was scandalised by all of that for months.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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What does that have to do with the Order of Business?

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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We need the Taoiseach to tell us when the Minister, Deputy Eamon Ryan, will come before this Dáil and make a statement outlining the process that led to those two appointments. We need to know if he will come in at the earliest opportunity and if the Taoiseach will ask him to come in.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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My understanding is that the Deputy and the party opposite did not raise this issue at the Business Committee.

Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal, Sinn Fein)
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It only came to public attention over the weekend in newspaper reports.

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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I am enthused by the Deputy's concern on close colleagues being appointed to positions of authority. He might look within his own party, where many close colleagues were appointed to many positions on a whole lot of bodies in Northern Ireland.

I would say that it is wrong to impugn the two individuals concerned. They are people of considerable expertise in the field.

Michael McNamara (Clare, Independent)
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They just happen to be cronies, is it?

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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How were they appointed?

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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They are involved in the field. The Government made the appointment.

Seán Ó Fearghaíl (Kildare South, Ceann Comhairle)
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Is the business for the week agreed to?

Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein)
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Not agreed.