Appointing Séamus [Updated]

at

Tanaiste Leo Varadkar and Minister for Justice Helen McEntee this afternoon

This evening

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has told the Dáil that she did take on board that Tánaiste Leo Varadkar had commented that Séamus Woulfe would “make a good judge”.

Via RTÉ

Paul Murphy of Solidarity-PBP asked if Taoiseach Micheál Martin was made aware that other names existed regarding an appointment to the Supreme Court.

Minister McEntee said that she had already made clear that she only recommended one name to Mr Martin.

She said she did take on board her party leader’s comment that Mr Justice Woulfe would make “a good judge”.

But it was her understanding that Mr Varadkar was not aware that there were other names put forward for the position.

McEntee tells Dáil she did ‘take on board’ Varadkar comment about Woulfe (RTÉ)

Earlier…

This afternoon.

Dáil at the Convention Centre.

Minister for Justice Helen McEntee is addressing the appointment of Séamus Woulfe as a Supreme Court justice.

She said that a draft memo was submitted to her office by the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board (JAAB) in July with expressions of interests from serving judges.

The minister said the practice in relation to appointments is that only one judge’s name is brought to Cabinet by the Minister for Justice and she said that this practice is important in relation to judicial appointments.

She said an open debate would amount to a “complete politicisation” of the judicial appointments process.

She said it was the duty of the Minister for Justice to propose to Cabinet the best person for the particular judicial vacancy, and the Government then decides and she said that this is what happened in this case.

Watch live here.

More when we get it.

Update:

From top: Martin Kenny, Sinn Féin TD

More as we get it.

Meanwhile…

Stop it, Brennan!

Sponsored Link

16 thoughts on “Appointing Séamus [Updated]

  1. Mick

    The fada in his name should be on the e, not the a. What you’ve written here (Seámus) is pronounced Shaw-miss, instead of Shay-miss (Séamus)

  2. Kate

    5 sitting judges express an interest in the Supreme Court.
    Worfie gets their applications.
    And gets the job himself.
    #How Ireland works.

  3. Daniel

    I listened to the live feed as much as i could. She stuck to the script well, which worked for some questions but completely failed for others. It’s not over by a long shot as there is plenty more loose threads to pulled and teased out of this tangled ball of lies. I wonder was the mention of the conversation with Varadkar payback for putting her in this position in the first place. a few of the TDs said that they had sympathy with her, that she was answering these questions and that other people (not there and not answering questions) were more responsible for/on this issue (or words to that effect). OR is there a cunning plan to move the focus of the questions to him as he is more seasoned and practiced at spoofing and bluffing his way through questions and she can go into hiding again.

  4. Liam Deliverance

    “She said it was the duty of the Minister for Justice to propose to Cabinet the best person for the particular judicial vacancy, and the Government then decides and she said that this is what happened in this case.” –

    Why has the Min for Justice anything to do with this process?
    Why does the governemnt get to propose a candidate?
    How can she/Gov say who is the “best” person?
    Why select 1 best person and discriminate the rest?

    Rotten to the core.

    1. Cian

      “Why has the Min for Justice anything to do with this process?”
      tradition (and possibly law)

      “Why does the governemnt get to propose a candidate?”
      see above

      “How can she/Gov say who is the “best” person?”
      The same way that anybody who has to hire somebody does.

      “Why select 1 best person and discriminate the rest?”
      because there is one job.

      1. GiggidyGoo

        Tradition? Cambridge dictionary definition “a belief, principle, or way of acting that people in a particular society or group have continued to follow for a long time, or all of these beliefs, etc. in a particular society or group“. Spot on there Cian. Government by tradition eh?

        She, just a few days in the job, gets to put forward a candidate that’s ‘best’? The better qualified were the other judges – as they were judges and not two bit FGers who has risen to where he is because of his FGness. Woulfes two fingers to us in his interviews showed his ‘best’ side obviously – again, a FG trait.

        Lame duck Justice Minister as well as a lame duck Tanaiste, and Taoiseach.

  5. Mr .T

    Cabinet cannot decide because that would make it political.

    But Minister for Justice did decide on 1 candidate to put forward, out of all those who applied??
    Something’s not right here

  6. goldenbrown

    this is such a pile of obvious obvious bs

    what’s getting exposed here is FG’s take on ze Tory Party’s jobs n rewards for the boys Honours List over yonder

    this appointment is completely political

    and FF being made look like the complaint subserviant tools they have become more and more everyday, still trapped in FG’s confidence n supply web LOL

  7. Dr.Fart

    this is minuscule compared to their other weekly scandals. which goes to show how often and severe they are. they simply know people will forget/accept. however, this and other scandals repeatedly show they have not and will not enact any “change”, of which people wanted last general election. they’re goners then. thats why varadkar spends most of his time denigrating SF. he knows they’ll wipe the floor with them.

  8. GiggidyGoo

    Setting up Varadkar nicely for another fall. Payback. There are more questions than answers (according to Johnny Nash)

Comments are closed.

Sponsored Link
Broadsheet.ie