I propose to take Questions Nos. 594 to 596, inclusive, together.
The Army Pensions Board is the only State Board under the aegis of my Department.
The Army Pensions Board is an independent statutory body established under the Army Pensions Act, 1927. The Act specifies that the Board shall consist of a chairman and two ordinary members. The two ordinary members must be qualified medical practitioners. The Army Pensions Act 1927 specifies that one of the ordinary members must be an officer of the Army Medical Corps. The chairman and the non-military ordinary member are appointed by the Minister for Defence with the concurrence of the Minister for Finance. The Army Medical Corps ordinary member is appointed by the Minister for Defence on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces.
The position of Army Medical Corps ordinary member became vacant due to retirement in 2011, and I appointed Commandant Adam Lagun to the Board on the recommendation of the Chief of Staff. Details of Commandant Lagun's appointment to the Army Pensions Board were published in the Iris Oifigiúil on 13 January 2012.
The Civil Defence Board was identified in the Public Service Reform Plan as a body to be abolished. I appointed an interim Board as a temporary measure from 2011 and in this context none of the positions were advertised. Legislation was passed by the Oireachtas in December 2012 for the dissolution of the Board and the transfer of its functions back to the Department of Defence.
Membership of the interim Board appointed in 2011 is set out in the following table:
Name
|
Nominating Bodies
|
Civil Defence Board Chairperson
|
|
Mr. Brian Spain
Director, Department of Defence
|
Nominated by Minister for Defence
|
Civil Defence Board Members
|
|
Mr. Cathal Duffy
Principal Officer, Department of Defence
|
Nominated by the Minister for Defence
|
Ms. Clare Tiernan
Principal Officer, Department of Defence
|
Nominated by the Minister for Defence
|
Mr. Robert Mooney
Principal Officer, Department of Defence
|
Nominated by the Minister for Defence
|
Mr. Bill Smith
Director General, Civil Defence Board
|
Appointed as Director General, Civil Defence Board
|
Mr. Ned Gleeson
County Manager, Limerick City Council
|
Nominated by City & County Managers Association
|
Mr. Keith Leonard
Assistant Fire Advisor
|
Nominated by the Minister for Environment, Community and Local Government
|
Dr. Barbara Rafferty
|
Nominated by Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland
|
Ms. Becci Cantrell
|
Nominated by the Environmental Protection Agency
|
Ms. Veronica Forde
Assistant Civil Defence Officer
|
Nominated by the Civil Defence Officers Association
|
Lt. Col. Tony Kelly
SSO, Defence Forces
|
Nominated by the Chief of Staff of the Defence Forces
|
Chief Superintendent Orla Mc Partlin
An Garda Síochána
|
Nominated by the Commissioner of An Garda Síochána
|
Mr. Fergal Conroy
|
Elected volunteer member of Civil Defence
|
Ms. Eileen Joyce
|
Elected staff member of the Civil Defence Board
|