Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

The House should be aware of section 53(4). It reads that in the preparation of the statements referred to in subsection (1), which is a statement setting out the selection procedures and a statement of requisite skills and attributes - this is pretty central to the functions - the procedures committee, which is to be established, shall avail, not "may avail", itself of the advice and expertise of any consultants or advisers appointed under section 11(7) by the commission to assist it in the performance of its functions.

This is serious stuff and it should be considered. The procedures commission is under a statutory duty to avail of the advice and expertise of any consultants or advisers appointed by it under section 11(7) by the commission and those are people who can only be appointed with ministerial consent. That is what is in the Bill. It does not say "may avail", it says "shall avail". That means that it is to be guided by these commissioners in setting out a statement, which we have been told is central to the operation of this commission, setting out the selection procedures and most alarming of all, setting out a statement of requisite skills and attributes. Who are these consultants who will decide and which of them is qualified to decide what the statement of requisite skills and attributes is? Are they to be guided as a matter of statutory duty by external consultants in setting out a statement of the selection procedures? That is what is in the Bill and it really is a dog's dinner of a Bill. We are now coming to the point that I speculated on earlier, that these consultants and advisers were going to have a central role in determining what happens with this commission. We now know for a certainty that the commission is duty bound by statute to be guided by them in setting up its procedures and in determining what requisite skills and attributes are among judges and in preparing a statement of same.This is really important stuff. I have not studied the debates from the Dáil committee, and I do not know whether or not this was considered at length, but it must be considered here. I reiterate that we must, therefore-----