Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 26 July 2017
70. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation her plans to make appointments of members of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, in view of the fact the current membership of only three is the statutory minimum membership and the workload of the CCPC requires a membership of four or five. [35369/17]
Amharc ar fhreagra71. Deputy Alan Kelly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation if her attention has been drawn to the fact that there is currently no qualified lawyer on the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission, CCPC, following recent retirements; and if she will prioritise the appointment of a qualified lawyer as a member of the CCPC, as is the norm in all such equivalent competition enforcement agencies in the European Union. [35370/17]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 70 and 71 together.
Section 12 of the Competition and Consumer Protection Act 2014 provides for the membership of the Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC).
Section 12 (3) provides that the membership must consist of a chairperson and such number of other whole-time members, not being less than 2 nor more than 6, as the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation determines and appoints. The CCPC currently has one Chairperson and 2 members. The appointment of another whole-time member will be announced shortly.
Section 12 (8) provides that the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation must appoint a member who in their opinion must possess sufficient expertise in, or experience of, one or more of the following areas, namely law, economics, public administration, consumer affairs or business generally. It is not a statutory requirement that one member must be a qualified lawyer.
As part of its staffing complement, the CCPC currently has 4 Legal Advisors, all qualified lawyers with post qualification experience as a requirement of the position. In addition, there are 7 other staff who are qualified lawyers working across its Divisions.
