Results 16,721-16,740 of 19,162 for speaker:Alan Shatter

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: Government amendments Nos. 56 and 58 are again designed to remove any perception of ministerial influence or real ministerial influence over the authority with regard to the matters concerned and cite the joint committee, where appropriate. I am therefore opposing amendments Nos. 54, 55, 57 and 59. In subsection (2), the annual report will now be in such form and include information in...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: The legislation was framed in a certain manner as it was always intended that the authority would operate as an independent body. The Bill was prepared with extraordinary speed; Deputies will recall that the Government was formed on 9 March 2011 and operated under an agreement entered into by the previous Government with the troika. The legislation was supposed to be published by the end of...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: We will all stay away from that.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I was only joking. The Deputy should not look so serious.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 56: In page 23, subsection (2), line 16, to delete "or as the Minister may direct".

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 58: In page 23, to delete lines 19 and 20 and substitute the following: "(4) The Authority shall give to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality, or any Oireachtas Joint Committee that may replace that committee such other information it may require in respect of—".

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I thank the Deputies for tabling the amendment to give me an opportunity to discuss the issue. The adoption and taking on board of the Deputy’s amendment would result in the deletion of section 18 as it now stands. I cannot agree to the deletion of section 18 and its substitution with the proposed amendment, but I am certainly interested in revisiting this provision. I will return...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: There are issues around this and I do not wish to create any unnecessary disagreement. Let me put it this way: there are issues about the manner in which the amendment is framed and we want to give careful consideration to the matter. Careful consideration has been given to looking at this section, but the Parliamentary Counsel is not entirely happy with what has been submitted. While it...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I appreciate the drafting work that has been done on the amendment. It clearly provides for a consultative process and ultimately facilitates the legal services regulatory authority in prescribing a code of practice deemed appropriate based on the principles of the legislation but some other issues must be considered in the context of the section. It was always my intention and hope which I...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I do not think the Deputy is talking about the codes of practice; the issue he is raising is a matter of some concern and relates to the staff within the Law Society who deal with complaints and allegations of misconduct by solicitors and what their position will be. Ultimately, the legal service regulatory authority will deal with allegations of misconduct. As the Deputy will note from the...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I will complete this quickly. The staff concerned clearly have substantial expertise. It will be necessary to recruit individuals to the new body and it may be possible to put together a legal structure which will facilitate some of these individuals in becoming members of this body or working for it, but there are a number of issues involved. Would there be a suggestion that this would...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: We will come back to that matter later.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 60: In page 25, lines 5 to 22 to delete subsections (1) and (2) and substitute the following:“(1) There shall be a chief executive officer of the Authority who shall be appointed by the Authority and who shall be known, and is referred to in this Act, as the “chief executive”. (2) The chief executive shall hold office under a written contract of...

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: The legislation does not place a time constraint on the term, but that is an interesting issue. If the Deputy has a view on that issue, I am interested in hearing it.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: Yes.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: Yes. Ultimately, it will be a matter for the legal services regulatory authority to determine what the period of office should be and how to deal with that issue. The Bill leaves the authority with that discretion.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: That will be a matter for the authority in consultation with the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform. I may be able to provide the Deputy with further clarification on Report Stage.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 61: In page 25, subsection (7), lines 44 and 45, to delete all words from and including “and” in line 44 down to and including “Minister” in line 45.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 62: In page 26, subsection (12), line 21, to delete “, with the consent of the Minister,”.The proposed amendment to section 25, which is dealt with in amendments Nos. 62, 63 and 73 all of which part of the suite of amendments aimed at removing ministerial consents, is to provide for greater clarity in the workings of the legislation.

Select Committee on Justice, Defence and Equality: Legal Services Regulation Bill 2011: Committee Stage (Resumed) (15 Jan 2014)

Alan Shatter: I move amendment No. 63: In page 26, subsection (12)(i), lines 24 and 25, to delete all words from and including “an” in line 24 down to and including “subsection (2)” in line 25 and substitute the following:“a new chief executive is appointed in accordance with this section”.