Mary Henry (Independent)

I spoke on Committee Stage about the fact that a member of a local authority cannot be on the authority. People talk about the politicisation of these boards but there is political control over them already. When they are set up, the Minister does not let them go on as they wish. She can remove all the board members from office if she thinks they are not performing their functions in an effective manner. There is already political accountability within the system and the Minister can appoint an independent person to conduct a review of any matter that is causing concern. Given that political control, I do not see why members of local authorities are not allowed to be on this board.