James Bannon (Fine Gael)

The largest number of political appointments by a member of the Government has been made by the Minister for Health and Children in Senator Minihan's constituency. The Minister has 54 agencies under his Department's remit. This is followed by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform whose numerous appointments have been primarily to prison visiting committees. I have concrete evidence that a prominent Fianna Fáil county councillor made representations to the Taoiseach on behalf of his wife with regard to her re-appointment to a visiting committee of a Dublin training unit. Another prominent politician, a Member of this House, having lost her seat in the last general election appointed new members to the boards of major semi-State bodies——