Dermot Ahern (Louth, Fianna Fail)

I have been a Minister for a couple of years and I often wonder why people wish to go on boards. I am not being flippant, but there are times when it is difficult to fill board vacancies. It is often difficult to get people of calibre. However, that does not apply in this case. The most recent appointment to the board was the change of the chairperson. William Burgess has an excellent track record in this area. The other members of the board are Paul Kavanagh, Dan Flinter, Peter Cassells, Jackie Harrison, John Fitzgerald, Don Thornhill, Paul McGuinness and Sean Dorgan. While people might have some justification for questioning appointees to other boards, regardless of what Government is in office, no one could suggest that any of the appointees to this board are not deserving either because of their expertise or because they are members of a political party.