Terry Leyden (Fianna Fail)

Members of local authorities have now been deemed ineligible to be a member of this board for no reason other than they are prepared to serve the public and go before the electorate. No person is in a better position to serve on this board than someone who has the experience of serving the public in public life. In a Fianna Fáil parliamentary party meeting, I put my name to a motion to ensure this type of provision would not be included in Bills in the future. The motion was agreed unanimously and the Minister for Foreign Affairs replied to that debate and said that he would never include such a provision in a Bill that he brought before the Oireachtas. I ask the Minister of State to ensure an amendment in the name of those of us on this side of the House is tabled to remove this exemption from the Bill.

In page 55 of the Bill, it states that if a member of the board becomes a candidate or a member of a local authority, he must resign from the board. Looking at this logically, the only people excluded are prisoners and public representatives. Both are ineligible to be members of this board. I served on a local authority for 22 years and I take grave exception to this provision. I put forward my views to the members of my electorate and it would be remiss of me if I did not make this point today. As a member of the Fianna Fáil Party and the Fianna Fáil Senators' group, I will do my utmost to have an amendment tabled on this Bill.

I ask the Minister of State and the Minister to have this exemption removed from the Bill. If these representatives are not excluded, it does not necessarily mean that they will be included, which is a matter for the Minister and the particular authority. However, where somebody is suitably qualified, he or she could serve well on that board. The person could have his or her ear to the ground, so to speak, regarding the management of these homes in the region. The person could be a member of the new health consultative forum. I rest my case on that issue.

I welcome the amendment in this Bill to the Civil Registration Act 2004. It relates to marriages being conducted in a home or private dwelling for medical reasons when certified by a general practitioner. I am not sure if it applies to other institutions of the State such as prisons. Seeing that the amendment is in the Bill, it is an opportunity for the Minister to look at this from a civil rights point of view. A right to marry is something that is very special and someone in prison who wishes to marry might be able to avail of this.

This is a timely Bill. I commend the Minister of State and the Minister for Health and Children on bringing it before the House. It is very important we protect our elderly people. We have a duty and a responsibility to ensure they live in proper conditions with proper services, food and heating. This inspectorate certainly will ensure that, from now on, we will have a transparent approach to the management of private and public residential nursing homes.