Ruth Coppinger (Dublin West, Solidarity)
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93. To ask the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the criteria and standards that have to be met for Ireland to vote for a state to be on a United Nations body in view of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia being elected to the United Nations women's rights commission; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25659/17]

Charles Flanagan (Laois, Fine Gael)
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There are numerous elections across a range of bodies at the UN on an ongoing basis. Membership of these bodies is an important aspect of Member State engagement at the UN and many view participation in these bodies as part of their responsibilities as UN members.

UN bodies have differing rules of procedure governing elections, and it is necessary for Member States to follow these rules. In certain circumstances voting is limited to members of particular bodies. For example, only members of the Economic and Social Council are eligible to vote in elections to its subsidiary bodies, including the Commission on the Status of Women.

Many of the 193 Member States of the UN present candidatures for election from time to time. In some instances it is the State itself which stands for election, for example in seeking to join the Human Rights Council. In other cases, Member States nominate individuals for UN positions. An example of this would be for membership of UN human rights treaty bodies.

Many factors are considered by my Department when reaching decisions regarding elections to UN bodies. Where candidatures are for the appointment of individuals to a UN body, a candidate’s relevant professional experience and academic qualifications; ensuring equitable geographic representation of the body in question; and gender balance are among the criteria given consideration in advance of an election.

In relation to the election of Member States to UN bodies, the need to ensure equitable geographic representation is also of importance. However, in many cases this element may be regulated by the rules of procedure of the relevant body, with a particular number of seats allocated to each regional group in advance. Other factors of importance which are considered in advance of such elections include Ireland’s bilateral relationship with the Member State in question, as well as their track record at the UN and their record of achievement or progress on issues relevant to the body to which membership is being sought.

In addition, Ireland attaches significant weight to the principle of rotation. It is essential to securing representation from a cross-section of the membership over time that a wide range of States have the opportunity to secure positions to allow for the airing of the broadest possible range of views, something which is important for the legitimacy and proper functioning of the UN. This can affect most acutely small countries, such as Ireland, or those with fewer resources.

The candidature of a Member State or State representative cannot be assessed in isolation. It is important, therefore, to assess the merits of candidatures relative to each other in deciding how Ireland’s vote is to be cast.