Neale Richmond (Dublin Rathdown, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 3 proposed by Senator Ward seeks to allow the Minister to review fixed-term appointments to the Dublin district on an indefinite basis and without prescribed criteria for such renewals. The Minister's legal advice to date has counselled against the indefinite, successive renewal of coroner positions. Nevertheless, I emphasise that the requirement to retain high-calibre individuals in a highly specialised role is recognised and, with this in mind, the appropriate tenure provisions applicable for future coroner appointments will be further reviewed as part of the overarching reform of the Coroner Service. The appointment of fixed-term coroners for periods not exceeding five years, which may be renewed once, should provide the required level of stability immediately necessary for the Dublin District. Such measures are of an interim nature pending the more substantive reform of the Coroner Service which is under way. Part of the pathway to reform is the public consultation process which concluded on 19 January, and this underlines the Government's absolute commitment to reform the Coroner Service. For those reasons, I do not propose to accept amendment No. 3.