Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

We are getting carried away with unrealistic things. I believe strongly that it is reasonable to ask a person seeking appointment to a permanent job, lasting for the rest of his or her life, to demonstrate that he or she is suitable on health grounds to be given that job.It is not the case that the person must be in the peak of health or enjoy brilliant health or that he or she does not suffer from diminished sight or something like that, but it does mean that some people who are intellectually capable of being a judge are unsuitable on health grounds to be appointed. I make this point precisely to deal with Senator Ruane's point. If one were relying on using sign language only to communicate, and I have full sympathy for people who are in that position, it would be a big mistake to appoint the person a judge. The process of interacting with counsel, lay people and all the rest would be immensely complicated if one were in that category. Let us not be unrealistic about this. Let us not suggest it would be illegal under the general data protection regulation, GDPR, to ask somebody to prove that he or she is suitable on health grounds to be appointed to a job which requires one to be in a reasonably healthy state before one carries it out. Let us not put ourselves in the position. The person with multiple sclerosis, MS, whom I spoke about, is one thing, but if one were suffering from motor neurone disease on the day one applied for the position of judge, surely the commission is entitled to ask the person about that because they know that within a relatively short period, as science stands, that person will be able to occupy the position only for a short period and that his or her capacity to discharge it will deteriorate over time. I ask people to be realistic and I think the present phraseology of the Bill is fine.