Results 941-960 of 8,239 for speaker:Jennifer Carroll MacNeill

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Shared Island Unit: Department of the Taoiseach (Resumed) (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: I thank the witness. It is great to see the different points of life being included, whether they are social, environmental or education issues. How were those groups brought together? How were they selected?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on the Implementation of the Good Friday Agreement: Shared Island Unit: Department of the Taoiseach (Resumed) (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: What is behind what the witnesses said was a lower level of awareness and engagement of young people around the agreement, particularly in the South?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Apologies have been received from Senator Gallagher. Senator Horkan is attending in substitution for him. The Senator is very welcome. The purpose of the meeting is to have an engagement with a number of stakeholders who have made written submissions on the general scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020. All witnesses are appearing virtually before the committee this...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Thank you for your contribution, Mr. Cahill. I totally agree with you on the point about judicial references. It has been a bizarre oversight, both for legal professional independence and judicial independence. It has been very curious over time. On the procedural point, although, arguably, it could always have been done under the current arrangements, the Law Society has been totally...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Thank you, Ms McNally. On a technical point, the 2017 submission is not on file as such, the reason being that it was submitted to a previous committee, which has essentially died. However, we are aware of the submission, it is available and I have read it. I ask Dr. Patrick O'Brien from Oxford Brookes University to make his opening statement.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Thank you, Dr. O'Brien. There has always been provision for the Minister to notify the public through Iris Oifigiúilof any appointments off the list, as it were. I am delighted Dr. O'Brien could contribute because the research he did with Robert Hazell and Kate Malleson on the UK system provides a really important political counterpoint whereby politics was taken entirely out of that...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: I am curious about Dr. Cahillane’s point on the conflict of interest. We will start with members' contributions.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: To whom does Deputy Pringle wish to address his questions? Will we start with Dr. O'Brien?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: The point was that in 2011, the then Minister for Justice and Equality, Alan Shatter, and the then Attorney General, Máire Whelan, decided that a proportion of the appointments were going to be women and that was all there was to it. That was a political decision and it did not matter what names arose, women were going to be appointed and that was the end of that. Would Deputy Pringle...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: The Deputy is very welcome to come back if there are other issues he wishes to raise.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: It is a difficult issue. Deputy Smyth, is there anyone else you would like to answer?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: That is a very good point.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Absolutely. That is no difficulty. Given that Ms McNally has raised it a couple of times, I wish to follow up with a question about interviews. Who does she think is the appropriate person to interview a legal practitioner who is applying to be a judge of the High Court?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: It seems obvious, but to what extent does it cross over legal professional independence to put oneself in a position where one is being questioned like that? It might be something we could talk to Ms McNally about later because I am conscious that Senator McDowell is next on the list. We might come back to that and let Senator McDowell come in.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: It also means that by the time the judicial barrister or solicitor representative has been selected, he or she will potentially be so far removed from practice that this qualification will have become meaningless as it relates to his or her knowledge of the profession. I recall a president of the District Court telling me that, when he was on the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board, JAAB,...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Is that okay for Senator McDowell?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: I totally agree with Deputy Creed. May I ask him to turn on his camera if possible?

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: I will now take my opportunity to contribute. I have consistently disagreed with Dr. Hickey on that point, as he knows. I have also consistently disagreed on the issue of ranking. It is interesting that a tension between who decides and the level of political discretion is emerging in this conversation. Also in this conversation, there is a leaning towards pulling it away from politics...

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Perhaps Dr. Kenny can respond to the questions addressed to the academics.

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: General Scheme of the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2020: Discussion (18 May 2021)

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill: Thank you. Is that okay for Senator Martin?