Appointments system for State boards questioned by senator
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A senator has called for a rethink on how appointments to State boards are handled.
Gerard Craughwell made the remark after it emerged that there is no requirement to have a background in road safety or policing to secure one of the four open seats on the Road Safety Authority (RSA) board.
Instead, the position requires evidence of experience in risk management and compliance, financial control and auditing, corporate governance, and procurement or contract management, according to the job spec listed on stateboards.ie.
It is deemed “desirable” that potential candidates have experience in “strategic planning expertise”, in “internal audit compliance experience to director level”, financial and commercial acumen, or “procurement negotiation” and management. When roles were last advertised in 2019, “expertise in road traffic enforcement” was a key criteria.
Mr Craughwell said the suitability of board appointments should be examined by a relevant joint Oireachtas committee before they are appointed by ministers.
“I can understand why you would need some knowledge of corporate governance if you want to sit on a State board, or any board for that matter,” he told the .
"Surely, the primary criteria should be an interest or experience of or background in road safety, traffic management in relation to traffic on our roads."
Mr Craughwell is raising the issue of this specific ad with the RSA but said it also prompts wider questions about appointments to State boards.
“It should be the case that while a minister can nominate somebody, a relevant committee should then be able to quiz or interrogate that nominee to see if they are even remotely suitable,” he said.
According to the Road Safety Authority Act 2006, each board member is someone who “in the opinion of the minister” has experience relating to at least one or a number of areas of expertise and experience.
The Department of Transport was asked why a road safety background is not listed as ‘essential’ or ‘desirable’ for RSA board selection.
A spokesperson replied: “In the State Boards information booklet for the appointment to the board of the Road Safety Authority, under essential requirements, candidates’ attention is drawn to Section 14 [4] of the Road Safety Act 2006. [It] states — each member shall be a person who in the opinion of the minister has wide experience and competence in relation to roads, road safety, transport, driver education and examination, industrial and commercial matters, local government, the organisation of workers or administration.”