Ivana Bacik (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 21:

In page 9, between lines 26 and 27, to insert the following:

“Obligation to uphold judicial independence

7. (1) The Public Appointments Service and the Commission and their members—

(a) shall, in performing their functions under and in connection with this Act, uphold judicial independence,

(b) shall not, in connection with the performance of those functions, take advice or directions from any person otherwise than in accordance with this Act,

(c) shall not perform any of those functions with a view to influencing the interpretation of the law or the Constitution by the courts.

(2) Without prejudice to the generality of subsection (1)—

(a) a person shall not apply for appointment as a lay member of the Commission with a view to influencing the interpretation of the law or the Constitution by the courts,

(b) a person who applies for appointment as a lay member of the Commission—

(i) shall not provide in connection with that application any information relating to the person’s political opinions or religious or philosophical beliefs, and

(ii) shall not be asked, and if asked shall not be required to answer, any question relating to—

(I) the person’s political opinions or religious or philosophical beliefs, or

(II) the merits of any change in the interpretation of the law or the Constitution by the courts,

(c) a person who applies for appointment to a judicial office—

(i) shall not provide in connection with that application any information relating to the person’s political opinions or religious or philosophical beliefs, and

(ii) shall not be asked, and if asked shall not be required to answer, any question relating to—

(I) the person’s political opinions or religious or philosophical beliefs, or

(II) the merits of any change in the interpretation of the law or the Constitution by the courts.”.

Amendment No. 21 is my amendment. It is an important one although at this point it seems a rather pointless debate given what happened this morning. It is an important amendment concerning the insertion of a new section referring to an obligation to uphold judicial independence. It arose out of committee proceedings where we had a debate on this issue. In our rush to depoliticise the judicial appointments process, the Labour Party Senators along with Senator Norris put this amendment forward because we believe it is wrong that we are being asked to put a very significant part of the process into the hands of the same group who end up acting in other cases, in the Public Appointments Service and so on. We need to look at accountability, to ensure our judicial appointments process is subject to this obligation to uphold independence, and to remember in this legislation the important constitutional status of the Judiciary.

I will not read through the text of the proposed new section but it requires the Public Appointments Service and the commission and its members to adhere to this obligation to uphold judicial independence. It is a very particular overarching set of principles that we are asking would be adhered to by those who would now, under this legislation, be tasked with performing the judicial appointments service.