THE GOVERNMENT made 90 appointments to State boards during the Dáil Christmas recess.
Figures released following a parliamentary question from Fine Gael TD Leo Varadkar show that of the 90 appointments made between December 14th, 2010, and January 13th, 2011, 54 were new appointees and 36 were reappointments.
The appointments were made to bodies including the Pension Board, the Health and Safety Authority, Competition Authority and the Labour Relations Commission.
Mr Varadkar accused Fianna Fáil Ministers of “stuffing” State bodies with “political appointees” and said board members would be asked to resign within six months by his party if it formed part of the next government.
He singled out Minister for Enterprise Batt O’Keeffe for particular criticism, saying he had made 20 new appointments and four reappointments. However, a spokesman for Mr O’Keeffe accused Mr Varadkar of resorting to a “political charge”.
“For Leo Varadkar to come out with this statement is complete hypocrisy. We only fill vacancies as they arise, which was not the case for Fine Gael when they were in power. It’s a political charge that has no foundation in fact.”
According to the figures, Minister for Justice Dermot Ahern made 13 new appointments and Minister for Social Protection Éamon Ó Cuív made 12 appointments and five reappointments. Many of the 90 appointees will be paid, but some, mostly identified as civil and public servants, are not. Subsistence and travel expenses also apply to some posts.
Minister for Education Mary Coughlan reappointed 16 people, while Minister for Agriculture Brendan Smyth made two new appointments and re-appointed four people. Minister for Finance Brian Lenihan appointed one person and re-appointed another. Last month, The Irish Times reported that the Government was to make almost 300 appointments to State boards before it leaves office and revealed that 35 appointments and reappointments have been made since the Green Party announcement in November demanding an election.
The renewed programme for government, agreed between Fianna Fáil and the Green Party, contained a commitment to legislate for a new way of making appointments.
Mr Varadkar said there should be a moratorium on State appointments until a new government was elected.
“These and other positions are hugely important positions which should be subjected to considerable public scrutiny.
“Unfortunately, as this information shows, Fianna Fáil is using its remaining time in office to pack State bodies with political appointees.”
