Seán Ó Fearghaíl
Ceist:13. Deputy Seán Ó Fearghaíl asked the Minister for Defence his plans to reform the Red Cross; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29387/13]
Amharc ar fhreagraTuesday, 18 June 2013
Ceisteanna (13)
Freagraí ó Béal (9 píosaí cainte)
Pursuant to the Red Cross Act of 1938, the Irish Red Cross Society was established by Government order in 1939 as an independent charitable body corporate with full power to manage and administer its own affairs. Since 1939, the relevant establishment order had undergone piecemeal changes only but, in April of last year, I received Government approval to make substantial changes to the 1939 order. These represented the most wide-ranging and fundamental set of changes to have occurred since the establishment of the society. One of the key changes made was a substantial reduction in the number of Government nominees to the society’s general assembly, from not less than one third of its composition to not more than 10%. The legislation was also amended to provide that the chairperson of the society is now elected by the society itself, in accordance with its own rules and constitution, rather than by the President. In tandem with the Government’s initiative in amending the legislation, the society itself made a number of very progressive changes to its constitution and rules. I believe the society now has in place a 21st century corporate governance framework that meets the rigorous standards set for good governance internationally by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, IFRC, and the International Committee of the Red Cross, ICRC.
There is clearly a strong impetus for change within the society itself, and while a lot of important initiatives have been taken place over the past two years, these have tended, necessarily, to be focused on governance reform, the overhaul of the society’s financial management systems and reporting processes, and a revision of its operating policies and procedures. I am pleased to note this work is substantially complete and the attention of the society has turned to addressing other strategic challenges such as the development of a resilient and reliable funding base, more dynamic management of resources and the development of organisational structures that will enable the society to deliver its services more effectively to its beneficiaries, at home and abroad.
I am satisfied this phase of the society’s reform is now gathering momentum and I understand the board of directors has recently set progress milestones for itself to ensure these reforms remain on course for completion by the middle of next year.
Finally, it is important that I also mention the commitment made in the programme for Government for the initiation of a detailed legal review of the basis, structures and governance of the Red Cross in Ireland to improve its functioning in the light of changing circumstances. I can confirm that my Department has commenced work on the review and I anticipate this will result in a Red Cross Act amendment Bill during the lifetime of this Government.
I thank the Minister for his response and wish to raise two issues. I am a little concerned that the legislation to reform the Red Cross is delayed until next year. I believe the Minister is talking about its publication in what effectively will be the fourth year of the Government's term in office. It has been leapt over by the Defence Forces (Second World War Amnesty and Immunity) Bill, which was not even mentioned in the programme for Government. Perhaps that indicates the Minister's own personal preferences. As for the governance issues, I am conscious when raising such matters that all Members are proud of the work the Irish Red Cross Society has done since its establishment in 1939. However, the issue of governance has been raised in this House frequently, including by my colleague, Deputy Finian McGrath, and it was raised many times with the Minister's predecessor. Can I put it to the Minister that the treasurer of the organisation, appointed only in May 2012, has recently resigned? There are some suggestions, which I hope the Minister can refute, that the treasurer resigned because he was not satisfied with the current governance arrangements.
I call the Minister and will come back to Deputy Ó Fearghaíl.
In the context of the treasurer, his resignation is a matter for the society itself. I understand the society hopes to be in a position to elect a new honorary treasurer at its forthcoming general assembly meeting, which is taking place on Saturday, 29 June next. In accordance with the society's rules and constitution, the election of the treasurer is a matter for the society's general assembly. The last occasion on which this body met was on 9 February last, too soon after the treasurer's resignation, which occurred on 5 February last. I have no hand or part of any description in anything to do with the resignation of the treasurer.
I do not suggest the Minister had anything to do with this. However, I suggest that if one does not know the reason the treasurer resigned and if it is the case that there is some continuing concern about the governance arrangements within the Red Cross, this should be of great concern to the Minister. The Chartered Accountants Regulatory Board was quite critical about the auditing of the Irish Red Cross Society and referred to breaches of procedure and failure to comply with international standards on auditing. I am sure the Minister is concerned about these matters and I would not brush aside, in the way he has, the resignation of the treasurer because it continues an undesirable situation in which the governance of the Red Cross continues to be questioned at a time when one wishes the public to have full and absolute confidence in the Red Cross organisation. I am sure the Minister would agree with me on that matter.
The Deputy of course would be aware the governance difficulties in the Red Cross occurred during the lengthy period in office not of my immediate predecessor, former Deputy Killeen, who was only briefly in the Department of Defence, but under the watch of Deputy O'Dea, who did not seem to do a whole heap about it. I had concerns about governance in the Red Cross and I addressed those within-----
I am talking about the resignation of the treasurer now and not about any other events.
The Minister, without interruption.
-----the early weeks of my period in office. I am not aware of any governance issues that gave rise to the resignation of the treasurer. People resign from positions of responsibility in voluntary organisations for all sorts of reasons and it would be most unfortunate were the Deputy, by a loose comment, to damage the reputation of the Red Cross by suggesting there is a difficulty of which I am unaware. If the Deputy is aware of some current governance difficulty, he is welcome to share it with me but I should draw to the Deputy's attention that the changes the society made to its rules and constitution during my period of office were approved unanimously by the joint statutes commission of the International Committee of the Red Cross, as well as the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent societies.
As a consequence of the changes made, the Head of Governance Support at the international federation wrote to the Irish Red Cross congratulating the society "for its continued efforts in revising its legal base" and confirmed that the changes the society had made are in conformity with the requirements of Geneva's Guidance for National Societies Statutes. It also confirmed "that the revised draft constitution has at this stage rightly addressed the areas that are important for a well-functioning national society". I draw to the Deputy's attention that those events occurred subsequent to my becoming Minister for Defence and following my meeting with members of the Irish Red Cross so as to ensure that governance difficulties were addressed.