FINE GAEL in government would replace the membership of every State board within six months, the party’s enterprise spokesman Richard Bruton told the MacGill Summer School last night.
His proposal received strong support at the summer school from Labour leader Eamon Gilmore who also outlined his own party’s plan for a national economic council to advise the next administration.
Mr Bruton said that, under Fianna Fáil-led governments, “sectional interests and the self-serving action of insiders have prevailed over the interests of the citizen”.
The next administration would, “replace the membership of every State board in an orderly manner within six months of the formation of a new government, giving new members a clear letter of appointment setting out their duties, and requiring them to be approved by the Oireachtas”.
Mr Gilmore said he agreed with the proposal, “but I think what should not happen is that there is simply a switch from one tribe to the other; where the country is at now will require the very best people to be involved in the running of State agencies, State boards and so on”.
The Labour leader said he would not favour the making of such appointments by an independent commission: “No, I think government should appoint the State boards, that is one of the executive functions of government.”
The making of appointments on a “tribal” basis would be avoided “by exercising discipline, by exercising good judgment”. People would be appointed “on merit” and he added that, under Fianna Fáil “there has been a lot of political patronage”.
Labour in government proposed to set up a national economic council which would operate on an unpaid, pro bono basis and, “which would advise government on economic issues and bring together some of the best people in business, economics, public administration”.
The council’s membership would be broadly based but not intended to represent different sectors. “They wouldn’t be there in a representative capacity and they wouldn’t be there in a lobbying capacity or to get some kind of inside track.”
Having ruled out government with Fianna Fáil, Mr Gilmore was asked, what about Sinn Féin?
“The reality is that the most likely outcome of the next election is a combination of Fine Gael and Labour and what the election has to decide is, which party leads it and in what proportions we are represented: Sinn Féin doesn’t arise,” he told The Irish Times.
Minister of State for the Office of Public Works Dr Martin Mansergh warned that Fianna Fáil should not be “written off” in the next election.
Accusing the Opposition of “overconfidence”, he said: “There are a lot of electoral chickens being counted before they are hatched. It is not the first time that Fianna Fáil has been written off, obviously a triumph of hope over experience.
According to a prepared script, he said Fianna Fáil’s record over almost 80 years was what was astonishing, not “the possibility of a break in that record”.