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

The approach taken here is somewhat similar to the previous approach with regard to how far you cast out the net.Generally, when we talk about canvassing prohibition, it would normally apply to the person himself or herself who was seeking appointment, whatever role is being talked about. Whether it is through the Public Appointments Service or otherwise, it would generally apply to the applicant and that is the approach we are taking here - that you do not cast the net out so wide. There might be instances where people are canvassing without even the knowledge of the person, or they might say they are not canvassing but they say that, based on their knowledge, somebody might be good at what they are doing. It is important we are clear that the person who is seeking the appointment is the person who should not be canvassing. As I said, it is a question of how far the net goes. What we are trying to do here is make sure it focuses solely on the person who is seeking the appointment because that is generally how it applies in most scenarios.