Michael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

There are a number of aspects of section 15 which I dealt with on the previous occasion and I do not propose to repeat myself. Subsection (5) states: "The quorum for a meeting of the Commission shall, unless the Minister otherwise directs, be 9 members, 5 of whom shall be lay members." I am interested in hearing the Minister's response to my question. If the Minister gives a direction that there would be less than nine members, is his legal advice to the effect that he must always have a lay majority in a quorum or could he specify otherwise in certain circumstances? For example, could he direct that eight members shall be sufficient for a quorum and make no direction as to the lay membership of the quorum?