Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein)
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534. To ask the Minister for Rural and Community Development the State bodies or boards that fall under the remit of his Department; and the number of members of each State body or board who are not qualified within the field in which the board or body has oversight. [43420/17]

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Four state bodies fall under the remit of my Department, Pobal, Irish Water Safety, the Western Development Commission and the Charities Regulatory Authority.

The Public Appointments Service (PAS), established under statute in 2004, provides an independent shared service for recruitment, assessment and selection of suitable candidates to organisations across the civil and public service. On 30 September 2014, the Government agreed that the PAS should also be given responsibility for putting in place an open, accessible, rigorous and transparent system to support Ministers in making appointments to State boards. The dedicated website, www.stateboards.ie, is the channel through which the PAS advertises vacancies on State boards. It is also the means through which accomplished, experienced and qualified people, including people who might not previously have been identified as available for appointment, can apply to be considered for particular vacancies and can register to have suitable vacancies notified to them.

A rigorous process of selection was applied to all applicants for our boards and the final selection ensured a full complement of experience, qualifications and expertise. I am satisfied that the Board members are qualified within the field in which the board or body has oversight.