Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

They all talk about petty political criteria for putting people on the bench. The quality of judicial appointments has, unfortunately, declined in recent times due to a number of economic factors.If we allow the quality of the Judiciary to decline, we will suffer economically and internationally in the long run as far as our reputation is concerned. I ask the Leader to arrange for the Tánaiste whom I know has plenty of other pressure points to come to the House to deal with the fundamental question of how we keep excellence in judicial appointments as the first criterion for appointment.