Even in the case of Fianna Fáil, although I know they occasionally acted on their own. The fact is that this particular section, as now drafted, obliges me to consult with others, or at least to take into account a person's attainments, interest and knowledge of the Arts or his competence to assist the council otherwise. There has to be a balanced representation as between the various branches.
Deputy Wilson will probably refresh the memories of Deputies Haughey and Faulkner about the earlier Acts. In 1961 the Industrial Research and Standards Act laid down:
There shall be a Board to be known as the Board of the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards (in this Act referred to as the Board) to carry out the general government of the Institute and the administration of its affairs.
.... The Board shall be composed of not more than nine members of whom one shall be the chairman and the others shall be ordinary members.
.... All the members of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister, and the Minister shall nominate a member of the Board to be the chairman thereof.
That was passed in 1961. It says that casual vacancies in the membership may be filled by the Minister. In that Act there was no obligation to consult anyone. All nine members were appointed by the Minister. The Minister also appointed the chairman. In the Act of 1958, relating to An Foras Talúntais, the chairman was appointed by the President. That is a distinction without a major difference. All these appointments can only be made on the advice of the Government. It went on to say that the ordinary members shall be persons nominated under subsection so-and-so and certain members were nominated from rural organisations and specific bodies. The Horse Industry Act, 1970, section 8, reads:
(1) The Members of the Board shall be appointed by the Minister from time to time as occasion requires but shall not exceed eleven in number.
(2) Before appointing a member of the Board, the Minister shall consult with such organisations (if any) as he thinks appropriate in relation to the appointment.
Again it was the Minister. Deputy Faulkner will remember the Higher Education Authority Act. It provided that:
An ordinary member of An tÚdarás shall be appointed by the Government on the recommenda-of the Minister and, before making a recommendation, the Minister shall consult thereon with the chairman of An tÚdarás.
The chairman is appointed by the Government also on the recommendation of the Minister and can be removed by the Government. The procedure that is being adopted here is almost identical, word for word with the procedure in all those Acts. It is absolutely identical with some of them. In the 1951 Act dealing with the Arts Council the Government make the appointments. This proposal is slightly more extensive in that it places the obligation on the Taoiseach, making the appointments, to take into account certain qualifications and also to endeavour to secure a balanced representation as between branches of the Arts. In addition, I understand that consultation is not required in the Articles of Association or the Act setting up An Foras Forbartha, the National Building Agency, the Institute for Industrial Research and Standards and the bodies I have already referred to.
Deputy Haughey made the point on Second Stage, and anyone who has been in office as a Minister has frequently made the same point, that there is no better way of getting broad representation than by ministerial or Governmental appointment. So far as this is concerned that is the procedure that is being followed.