:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/B4OD6XBN4CUO5DJODGUMO4UK5I.jpg)
Minister for Justice Frances Fitzgerald is to bring proposed legislation on reforming the judicial appointments process to Cabinet on Tuesday.
The legislation has been demanded by Independent Minister for Transport Shane Ross.
The long-awaited Judicial Appointments Commission Bill, 2017, is expected to be given approval by Ministers at their weekly meeting on Tuesday.
The Bill is to come before the Dáil in the coming weeks, although its passage through the House is in question because of Fianna Fáil’s reservations about its proposals.
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/SHC3PYXL5QVOV2KAAYMRQHAOFE.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/WRLFAWYMEWTZVJB63EAIXGBYG4.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/BGVWNQWZJRNDUNDBSZ5DEA4EMY.jpg)
:quality(70)/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/irishtimes/ENS46XI46HWW7L6SVG45FYNOPA.jpg)
Changes in the Bill being brought to Cabinet by Ms Fitzgerald include increasing the membership of the proposed judicial appointments commission, which would replace the Judicial Appointments Advisory Board, to 13 members.
The commission's membership would include the Chief Justice and the Presidents of the High Court and Court of Appeal, as well as the Attorney General, a Bar Council nominee and a nominee of the Law Society.
It would still have a lay majority, however, with six lay members and a lay chairperson recruited by the Public Appointments Service.
The remainder of the Bill is as previously flagged by Ms Fitzgerald.