Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 22 Jan 1997

Vol. 473 No. 4

Written Answers. - State Boards.

Helen Keogh

Question:

601 Ms Keogh asked the Minister for the Marine the State and semi-State boards under the aegis of his Department; the appointments, if any, which have been made to these boards in the past year; the number of women who have been appointed; the percentage of women currently on each of these boards; and the end date of the current term of all of the boards. [1342/97]

Minister for the Marine (Mr. Barrett)

The State and semi-State boards under the aegis of my Department are Bord Iascaigh Mhara, the Marine Institute, the Central and the Regional Fisheries Boards, the Foyle Fisheries Commission, the Dún Laoghaire Harbour (Finance) Board and harbour authorities under the Harbours Acts, 1946 to 1976 and the new Harbours Act, 1996. The Minister for the Marine also appoints the chairman and two directors of Arramara Teoranta, and six board members of the Salmon Research Agency.

The appointments which I have made to the boards of these bodies in the past year are set out in the following table:

Body	Name of Appointee	Date Appointed/Re-Appointed
Bord lascaigh Mhara	Mr. Mark Fitzgerald
	Mr. Arthur Reynolds	June 1996
Marine Institute	Professor Emer Colleran
	Ms Mary Brophy
	Mr. Fergus Cahill	December 1996
Regional Fisheries Boards	Mr. Michael O'Riordan (South West RFB)
	Mr. Manus Brennan (North RFB)	January 1997
Sligo Harbour Commissioners	Mr. Jim McMorrow	November 1996
Dún Laoghaire Harbour (Finance) Board.	Mr. Michael Guilfoyle	January 1996
	Mr. Nicholas O'Murchu	August 1996
Salmon Research Agency	Mr. Kenneth Whitaker
	Ms Máire Mulcahy
	Dr. Patrick Fitzmaurice
	Mr. Niall Gibbons
	Mr. John O'Shea	December 1996

It will be seen that these appointments included three women.

The percentage of women on the boards of these bodies at present is as follows:

Board	% of Women Members
Bord Iascaigh Mhara	16.6
Marine Institute	44.4
Central Fisheries Board	7.7
Regional Fisheries Board	5.5
Foyle Fisheries Commission	0.0
Harbour Authorities	4
Dún Laoghaire Harbour (Finance) Board	0.0
Salmon Research Agency	11.1
Arramara Teoranta	20.0

The terms of office of the directors of Board Iascaigh Mhara will expire between September 1997 and June 1999. The board of the Marine Institute consists of a chairperson and eight members. The institute was established in 1992 and initial appointments to the board were for three, four and five years, but all appointments are now for five years. Consequently, the terms of office of three of the members of the board expire each year.

The terms of office of ministerial nominees to the central and regional fisheries boards are due to expire in December 1997. The terms of office of the members of the Foyle Fisheries Commission appointed by the Minister for the Marine run until March 1997.

The Dún Laoghaire Harbour (Finance) Board will cease to exist on the establishment of the new commercial port company for the harbour under the Harbours Act, 1996. Existing harbour authorities for eight other commercial seaports will also be replaced by new commercial port companies under that Act. The term of office of boards of harbour authorities which continue to operate under the Harbours Acts, 1946 to 1976 run until they are reconstituted by way of harbour elections to be held in the same year as the next local elections.

The directors of Arramara Teoranta are required, by company law, to retire after serving for three years, but may be reappointed. The terms of office of the ministerial appointees to the Salmon Research Agency run until December 1997.