Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Donegal North East, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I thank the Minister. Obviously I read from the wrong subsection. It is an important matter and I appreciate the Minister's response. Section 23(2) reads:

In giving evidence to the Committee under this section, the chief executive shall not question or express an opinion on the merits of any policy of the Government or a Minister of the Government or on the merits of the objectives of such a policy.

Section 24(2) reads, "In giving evidence to the Committee the chief executive shall not question...". That deals with the same point. Obviously, when a Secretary General of a Department appears before a committee, he or she will not question Government policy. However, this section undermines the independence of the authority. It is an important amendment and I appreciate that the Minister acknowledges this. Is he saying he will support such an amendment on Report Stage?