Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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186. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 717 and 718 of 26 March 2019, the person or body with which the obligations and responsibilities in the code of practice for the governance of State bodies rest in situations in which the chairman and the board have behaved inappropriately. [18176/19]

Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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187. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Questions Nos. 717 and 718 of 26 March 2019, the appropriate entity to deal with an allegation of wrongdoing by the chairperson of the board of a State body; and his role in such circumstances. [18177/19]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 186 and 187 together.

If the Deputy has questions in relation to the Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies these should be addressed to my colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform. 

The Deputy has included details which relate to the management of an employment law matter by the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland (NMBI). Responsibility for ensuring that the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland complies with its statutory and governance obligations, including those of employment law, rests with the Board. 

Where a person believes that wrongdoing has occurred, it would appear that an appropriate method for dealing with such issues is by way of the provisions set out in the Protected Disclosures Act 2014.  Section 21(1) of the Act requires that every public body shall establish and maintain procedures for the making of protected disclosures by their employees. Accordingly, if the person concerned wishes to make an internal report under Section 6 of the Act, they are advised to consult these procedures for information as to how to do so. As an employee of a public body, they can also make their disclosure to the Minister for Health under Section 8 of the Act. Furthermore, a public disclosure can be made under Section 10, if the conditions of that section of the Act are met.

Specifically in relation to the NMBI, the Nurses and Midwives Act, 2011 sets out the circumstances under which I may remove a member of the Board from office.

Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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188. To ask the Minister for Health further to Parliamentary Question No. 718 of 26 March 2019, if no action was taken by his Department following it being alerted to an email (details supplied); and if the allegation in regard to wrongdoing by the chairperson of the board contained therein was left to the chairperson and the board to address or not, internally. [18178/19]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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As I have previously advised the Deputy on a number of occasions, I have no role in the management of day to day staffing issues in the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland. Responsibility for ensuring that the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland complies with its statutory and governance obligations, including those of employment law, rests with the Board

The email referred to by the Deputy raises issues around the handling by the Board of the NMBI of an employment law matter. I am informed that this matter came before the Workplace Relations Commission and the Labour Court. I am further informed that the NMBI Board's position was based on clear legal advice. Both the Labour Court and the Workplace Relations Commission are independent, statutory bodies. Given their statutory independence, I have no role when the bodies exercise their quasi-judicial functions in relation to industrial relations disputes or employment law complaints.

Clare Daly (Dublin Fingal, Independent)
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189. To ask the Minister for Health the number of complaints, notifications and disclosures of wrongdoing in the Nursing and Midwifery Board of Ireland, NMBI, from current or former personnel since July 2014; the date of receipt of each by his Department or his predecessors and-or the NMBI; the nature of the wrongdoing complained of in each case; the action taken by the him and each former Minister, his Department and-or the NMBI; the duration and outcome of such action; and the cost of associated legal and consultancy costs of the NMBI and his Department. [18179/19]

Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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Any complaints or disclosures submitted internally in the NMBI are a matter for that organisation and I have asked the NMBI to reply directly to the Deputy on the matter.  

Insofar as the Deputy asks about the receipt of such matters by my Department, I take it that the Deputy is referring to the making of such complaints or disclosures under the provisions of the Protected Disclosures Act, 2014. All protected disclosures received by my Department are given due attention in keeping with the Departments policies and procedures in accordance the Act. Annual Reports detailing the number of disclosures received between 2015 and 2017 are available on the Departments website. The Report for 2018 will be published no later than 20th June 2019. Given that all such disclosures must be treated as confidential it would not be appropriate for me to comment further.