Mary Harney
Question:25 Miss Harney asked the Minister for Finance the reason Opposition party leaders were not consulted in relation to the appointment of a new Ombudsman.
Written Answers. - Ombudsman Appointment.
As I indicated in reply to a previous question, there are no statutory requirements to consult leaders of Opposition parties prior to the nomination of a person for appointment as Ombudsman. Neither, so far as I am aware, are there any clearly established procedures to ensure that, where such a nomination is proposed by the Government, an opportunity is afforded to leaders of Opposition parties to indicate their preferences in relation to potential nominees. In the circumstances, the Government did not initiate consultations with the Opposition parties.
It was indicated in the course of the debate on the nomination which took place in this House on 1 June 1994 that members of Opposition parties favoured the introduction of some more formalised procedure for involving all parties in recommending a person for nomination to this office. I have already indicated that should consensus be reached on some such procedure for future appointments, it would have my support.