James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

Section 9 provides for the membership of the commission in line with the Government's programme that the commission would be chaired by the Chief Justice. It provides for an equal number of lay and judicial members, with four each. Judicial members comprise the Chief Justice, the President of the Court of Appeal and two nominees of the Judicial Council. Section 12 provides for a more detailed prescription for the nominees of the Judicial Council. All four lay members will be recommended by the Public Appointments Service nominated under section 13. The Attorney General is a non-voting member. Amendments Nos. 7 and 9 appear to have a collective objective of providing that one of the four lay members shall be nominated by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission. I considered carefully in the drafting of the Bill the most equitable approach to take to the appointment of lay members. The Senators will be aware that a draft provision had originally been made for one of the members to be nominated by IHREC. On consideration of the matter, it appeared to me that many organisations and bodies in our community and society might have a positive contribution to make in this respect. It did not appear to me to be the best option to designate one body above all others as the only nominating body in the selection of lay members. On balance, therefore, I decided that all nominations in this context should be made through PAS. I believe that it is critical that expertise and knowledge in the area of equality and human rights are brought to bear on the functions of the commission. I have included that requirement in section 13 as objectives PAS must bear in mind in the determination of selection criteria, that is, in the selection of all four lay members. I believe that the service is the most appropriate model to employ for this purpose.

A person associated with a body or organisation that may have an interest in this area can come forward, as, indeed, can any individual who has expertise and knowledge in the areas set out under section 13, including human rights and equality. The section provides for the selection and recommendation of lay members of the commission by PAS for appointment by the Minister and stipulates the categories of knowledge and experience to which the service shall have regard in selecting lay members. As I have indicated, amendment No. 26, in the names of Senators Currie and Ward, reflects what they seek to achieve in the earlier amendments.