Helen McEntee (Meath East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

It is outside the scope of this Bill but this specific section is very much around canvassing and individuals taking it upon themselves to talk to somebody else or to canvass. What Senator McDowell is talking about is making a decision. I am not sure if the leader of a party or anybody else is going to make a statement that he or she is asking about an individual who may or may not be on a list. That is a process that is outside the scope of this Bill. I do not see that as canvassing. I see that as somebody making a decision.

Going back to the point about the interview process and more information, the process that has been set out here gives the information to those who are making the decisions to the Minister to put forward that name and give that information where it is currently not available, where a person might not know the individual and the name being proposed from Adam, and might not know anything about the person or his or her background. That is already the case now and the system we are putting in place means that there is more information on the individuals who are potentially being put forward for a recommendation. What Senator McDowell is talking about is not within the scope of this Bill. The canvassing is a separate issue. For a person to be asked for an opinion, he or she obviously has an ability to ask questions.