Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission Staff

Tuesday, 7 May 2013

Questions (282, 283)

Peadar Tóibín

Question:

282. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the legislation used in the appointment process to the recently announced Equality Board. [21104/13]

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283. Deputy Peadar Tóibín asked the Minister for Justice and Equality if the independent panel appointed to select commissioners and the chief commissioner has been stood down; and if this is the case the way he will ensure that the process to appoint the chief commissioner to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission, IHREC, will be independent, transparent and compliant with the UN Paris principles. [21105/13]

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Written answers

Minister for Justice and Equality

I propose to take Questions Nos. 282 and 283 together.

Legislation to set up the new Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) is expected to be published before the end of the summer term and, in the meantime, the members of the new Commission will take up their positions on the two existing bodies that are being merged, the Equality Authority and the Human Rights Commission. This will both fill the existing gap at 'board' level in the two organisations and ensure that the two organisations can begin operating as a cohesive whole. These appointments are being made on the basis of the existing legislation, which in the case of the Equality Authority is the Employment Equality Act 1998.

As I indicated when announcing the 14 persons recommended by the Selection Panel for appointment as members designate of the new IHREC, the Selection Panel has reported that it has not proved possible to recruit a Chief Commissioner at this time. The terms on which this post was advertised included a requirement that the person appointed should not have served on either the Equality Authority or the Human Rights Commission. The requirement was considered essential to ensure that the new Chief Commissioner would bring balance and neutrality to the position in a sensitive merger context. The Selection Panel suggests also that the full-time nature of the position and the length of the contract (5 years) may have been issues that militated against a successful recruitment. The position was designated as a full-time one in view of the Paris Principles preference for full-time Commissioners.

I consider this issue requires time for reflection and consultation and that the debate in the Houses of the Oireachtas on the Bill to establish IHREC will be an opportunity to explain the difficulty that has arisen and to invite suggestions. Therefore, I intend to reflect on how to progress recruitment of a Chief Commissioner in the light of the debate on this issue in the Houses of the Oireachtas. Once the Bill is enacted, I will bring my proposals to Government.

I am very grateful to the members of the Panel for their unstinting public service work on essentially a voluntary basis. I consider that the experience of the process requires a critical review of the selection process set out in the General Scheme of the Bill as published. The scale of the task as it unfolded required that the Panel engage back-office assistance from the Public Appointments Service (PAS). In the light of the experience gained, I consider that future selection of persons to serve as members of the IHREC should be vested in the PAS. The PAS has existed in its different forms since the foundation of the State, to ensure integrity and impartiality in the appointment of civil servants and other public servants and is independent in the discharge of its functions and would thus fully meet the Paris Principles' requirement for a selection process independent of Government. This is a change in the selection process as originally adopted in the General Scheme which I consider is now required in the light of experience. I note that use of the PAS was one of the other options considered by the Working Group set up to advise on practical arrangements for establishment of IHREC in its report.