Fergal Browne (Fine Gael)

I move amendment No. 5:

In page 27, lines 7 to 14, to delete subsection (7).

I am offended by the manner in which this section of the Bill lumps politicians in with convicts, fraudsters and bankrupts. I am sure such people are not too happy about being lumped in with politicians. While I do not suggest that politicians should have to be on boards of this nature, I do not think there should be a blanket ban on their membership. The Minister knows how difficult it is to get people to go into politics. We are trying to encourage people to participate in the democratic process. Provisions of this nature, which require people to choose whether to be involved in politics or in public bodies, deter people from going into, or staying in, politics. While there could be a conflict of interest in some cases, there would be no such conflict in many cases.

I am not sure whether the Minister was involved in the establishment of the Personal Injuries Assessment Board when she was Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment. That Senator O'Toole is doing an excellent job as the vice chairperson of the board will neither lead to his election nor cost him his seat in the next Seanad election. Not only is the Senator bringing great experience to the board, but he is also able to update the House on issues relating to the board's operations. Senator Feeney has been a member of the Medical Council and Senator Henry has a wealth of similar experience.

If we were to provide that nobody from the Bills Office, for example, could ever sit on public boards of this nature, we would be accused of discrimination and breaches of equality legislation. We are imposing such a prohibition on ourselves, however. We should remove section 17(7) so that people can be judged on their individual merits. It is unfortunate that convicts, fraudsters, bankrupts and politicians are being lumped in together. Senators can laugh, but public representatives are being put in the same category as those I have mentioned.