It’s still jobs for the boys

A couple of days ago, we had a discussion about whether a Fiscal Policy Council could work for Ireland.  There is one basic problem: as such a council would imply reduced power for Fianna Fail, they’d never go for it.  Anyway, move along to another power that FF governments will never surrender: appointments.  Today the Dept of Finance has confirmed recent rumours that Ireland’s appointee to the board of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development is Eoin Ryan.  The press release strains to provide any actual qualifications for the job other than the word “European” having been in one of his jobs, MEP for the Dublin region.  The job is a cushy number based in London.  In the USA, an equivalent appointment would have to be confirmed by the Senate.  And as the Deirdre de Burca imbroglio reveals, these jobs (and the associated staff positions) are still used as chips within the political elite.