The Irish Council for Civil Liberties (ICCL) has said that open and transparent recruitment procedures could end the ongoing row over Government nominations to well-paid public positions.
The rights watchdog’s comments came as controversy continued to dog the Minister of Justice’s nomination of a very-recently retired senior public servant as the new Chair of the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission (GSOC).
Speaking today (Friday, 13 February 2009), ICCL Director Mr Mark Kelly said:
“In Northern Ireland, appointments to senior positions of public trust, such as the Police Ombudsman, must be made through open and transparent recruitment. Under the “Nolan Principles”, public appointments must include prior scrutiny by a panel independent of the Government department filling the post.”
“Until similar principles of probity and fairness govern public appointments here, doubts will persist about the propriety of the Government directly nominating retired public servants to well-paid posts” he added.
“The Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission has the difficult task of holding agents of the State to account. Consequently, it must not only be, but be seen to be, fully independent and impartial. Open and transparent recruitment of members of the Ombudsman Commission, and of other similar public bodies, could end the controversy in which the Government’s most recent nomination has become mired” he concluded.