Willie O'Dea (Limerick East, Fianna Fail)

As I stated previously, the legislation provides for a period not exceeding seven years, with provision for a possible second and subsequent term of appointment. The proposed amendments would provide for a fixed-term appointment of seven years, with a possibility of one second term period of appointment only. The second term would presumably also be a fixed term of seven years, or 14 years in all over two terms. The proposed amendments would potentially allow an individual to serve for 14 consecutive years in total. Similar amendments were tabled on Committee and Report Stages in the Dáil. My predecessor carefully examined this issue during the Dáil deliberations on the Bill. Having considered the issue again following the Seanad debate, I cannot accept Senator Brian Hayes's amendment.

The provisions of the Bill as regards the term of appointment were drafted in order to provide flexibility in making an appointment, not least from the viewpoint of potential appointees. A suitable potential appointee might be interested in filling the position for a period of three years or five years but might not want to undertake the task for a full seven-year term. We need to retain some degree of flexibility in regard to the term of appointment. As a consequence, we also require flexibility as regards the possibility of any second and subsequent terms. In the context of the new Defence Forces ombudsman, it is important that artificial restrictions are not introduced into this primary legislation which could in practice serve to frustrate the filling of a post by a suitable candidate for a term of less than seven years. The Bill provides that the question of the fixing of the duration of the term of appointment should be left to the instrument of appointment, subject to the term not exceeding seven years. Having examined the situation again, I believe this is the best practical operational model for the new position.