Seanad debates

Wednesday, 11 December 2019

Judicial Appointments Commission Bill 2017: Report Stage (Resumed) and Final Stage

 

10:30 am

Photo of Michael McDowellMichael McDowell (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 22:

In page 9, to delete lines 32 to 34, and in page 10, to delete lines 1 to 8 and substitute the following: "(2) For the purposes of the section regard shall not be had to the characteristics of persons already appointed to hold judicial office, and the merit of a person shall be assessed wholly independently of those characteristics.

(3) A decision to recommend shall not discriminate against any person on the grounds of gender, race, sexual orientation or social background (including membership of the travelling community).

(4) A decision to recommend may to the extent considered necessary by the Commission have regard to the need that the judiciary should include persons with a proficiency in both of the State’s official languages.".

This amendment, which is my name and the names of other Senators, seeks to insert some clarity into the legislation in respect of what appointment on merit means. We want to emphasise that somebody being meritorious, or not being meritorious, does not depend on who has or has not been appointed before him or her. In other words, a person's merits should not be considered by reference to the characteristics of somebody else. If a person with a background in the Traveller community is seeking to be appointed, his or her merits should not be looked at in the context of somebody from a Traveller background already being on the Bench. This should be dealt with-----

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