Aisling Dolan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The chief executive will have control of a new body that will have many responsibilities and there will be a great deal of diligence around the role. We want to ensure the best person will come forward for the role and he or she will be appointed by the board. The onus is on all of us, but we hope that through this process, there will be a strong person to represent the body, who will look after the funding for these higher education institutes and be responsible to us as public representatives at our committee meetings here, not least those of the Committee of Public Accounts. Excluding groups without giving them the option of applying for a role, with all the processes that are in place, would be unfair.