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JUSTICE MINISTER HELEN McEntee has told Dáil that she had an “informal” conversation with the Tánaiste about the Supreme Court vacancy, stating that Leo Varadkar told her that he believed Seamus Woulfe “would make a good judge.”
The government acted “appropriately” throughout Woulfe’s appointment process, McEntee said.
The Supreme Court Justice attended the “golfgate” event in Clifden, Co Galway, in August, when members of the Oireachtas golf society gathered for a dinner organized against Covid-19 rules.
He refused to resign for handling the incident despite a call from Chief Justice Frank Clarke to resign.
Describing the series of events, the minister said that when she was appointed to the post, she was told there was a vacancy on the Supreme Court that needed to be filled.
“I learned that Seamus came through the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board (JAAB). I did have an informal conversation with my colleague, with the Tánaiste. He informed me himself that there was a vacancy and that Seamus Woulfe had passed that process. I informed him that I was already aware of that. He also informed me or I suppose he thought that he thought Seamus would make a good judge, ”he said.
The minister added: “He did not tell me this would be the case.”
McEntee said that when he had the informal conversation with Varadkar, he had not received the list of expressions of interest from five other judges who were also interested in the position.
When asked whether the tánaiste claiming that Woulfe would be a good judge “weighed heavily on his mind,” the minister said, “Of course I took it into account.”
“But after looking at the other names, I made a recommendation based on who I thought was the best person for the job,” he said.
In response, Social Democrat TD Catherine Murphy said: “The mere fact that there was an informal discussion is an intrusion into the process. It is rather to say, ‘I would very much like to see this person named.’
The name of the former attorney general, Mr. Justice Woulfe, was the only one she submitted to Green Party leader Taoiseach and Tanaiste for approval in the summer, just three weeks after she was appointed minister.
He was proposed to the minister by the independent JAAB, which evaluated him as suitable for the position, while the three acting judges registered their expressions of interest through the Attorney General’s Office.
McEntee told the Dail: “The practice in relation to appointments or nominations to positions made by the government is that the proposing minister only brings one name to the Cabinet.
“I believe that this practice is particularly important in relation to judicial appointments, since an open debate on the merits or not of the practicing judges, as well as others who have been appointed by the JAAB, would amount to a complete politicization of the appointments. judicial process, when one of the great strengths of the Irish judiciary has been its apolitical character and its independence, unlike what we see in many other countries.
It is the solemn duty of the Minister of Justice to propose to the Cabinet someone who, in the Minister’s opinion, is the best person for the particular judicial vacancy. Then the government decides. That is exactly what happened in this case. “
‘Done deal’
McEntee’s account was questioned by the entire opposition, with Labor’s Brendan Howlin TD saying that while the Justice Minister brings a name to the Cabinet, it is not his role to decide on a nomination alone.
He said that from his experience of having served in three coalition governments, there are always “detailed discussions” about judicial appointments.
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Chronology
“It is correct to say that the Minister of Justice proposes a name to the government for his appointment. It was never, never the sole or exclusive right of that minister to determine on his own who should be nominated, “he said.
“The names of all the suitable candidates were circulated and considered by the leaders of each party in government, detailed documents were presented to each leader and finally a consensus was reached. His position as minister is that this process was shelved.
“That you just made the decision and then presented that decision to the Taoiseach, Tánaiste and Minister Ryan as a done deal.”
– With reports from the Press Association
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