Departmental Agencies Data

Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 10 December 2019

Tuesday, 10 December 2019

Questions (260)

James Browne

Question:

260. Deputy James Browne asked the Minister for Justice and Equality the agencies or organisations under the remit of his Department; the number that have boards; the number of positions on each board; the number of vacant positions; and the agencies or organisations that have boards whose members have an obligation to appear before committees of the Houses of the Oireachtas. [51499/19]

Written answers

Minister for Justice and Equality

As the Deputy will be aware, my Department has responsibility for a large number of bodies, both statutory and non-statutory. Please find information provided in tabular format below to address the first three parts of the Deputy's question.

For the purposes of answering the Deputy's question, the definition of the 'board' is taken to encompass any entity where the positions of its governing authority are filled via the Public Appointments Service State Boards process.

Agency/State Body	Size of Board	Vacancies
An Garda Síochána	No Board	N/A
Censorship of Publications Board	5	1
Censorship of Publications Appeals Board*	5	5
Classification of Films Appeal Board	9	2
Coroner Service	No Board	N/A
The Courts Service of Ireland	18	0
Criminal Assets Bureau	No Board	N/A
Criminal Injuries Compensation Tribunal	No Board	N/A
Forensic Science Ireland	No Board	N/A
Garda Síochána Arbitration Board	3	0
Garda Síochána Inspectorate	No Board	N/A
Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission	3	0
Insolvency Service of Ireland	No Board	N/A
International Protection Appeals Tribunal	No Board	N/A
International Protection Office	No Board	N/A
Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission	12 to 15	8
Irish Prison Service	No Board	N/A
Judicial Appointments Advisory Board	11	1
Legal Aid Board	12	3
Legal Services Regulatory Authority	11	0
Mental Health (Criminal Law) Review Board	4	0
National Disability Authority	13	0
Office of the Data Protection Commissioner	No Board	N/A
Office of the Inspector of Prisons	No Board	N/A
Office of the State Pathologist	No Board	N/A
Parole Board	12 to 15	0
Policing Authority	9	0
Private Security Appeal Board	6	1
Private Security Authority	11	0
Probation Service	No Board	N/A
Property Services Appeal Board	5	1
Property Services Regulatory Authority	11	0

* The Censorship of Publications Appeals Board is not currently operational and therefore there are no members appointed to the Board at this time.

With respect to the obligations of board members to appear before the Oireachtas, under the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform’s Code of Practice for the Governance of State Bodies, the Chief Executive Officer/Accounting Officer (rather than the Chair or any other Board members) of each State body is accountable to the Public Accounts Committee and other Oireachtas Committees.

The Department of Public Expenditure and Reform’s Guidelines on Appointments to State Boards provides that persons being proposed by Ministers for appointment as Chairpersons of State bodies are required to make themselves available to the appropriate Oireachtas Select Committee to discuss the approach which they will take to their role as Chairperson and their views about the future contribution of the State body or Board in question.

It is important to note that while accountability to Oireachtas Committees is a vital part of the governance and oversight framework of agencies and bodies, the Code of Practice sets out a broad framework for the application of best practice based on principles of good governance, and incorporates provisions on board procedures and codes of conduct, business and financial reporting, audit and risk, remuneration and board self-assessment. It also provides for robust arrangements in terms of reporting to the parent Department.