Derek McDowell (Labour)

I move amendment No. 25:

In page 11, line 13, to delete "a Department of State" and substitute "the Department of State concerned".

This amendment refers to section 13 which deals with the deliberative process. There is a process of certification by the Secretary General set out in this section, whereby the Secretary General can say that a deliberative process is ongoing. If he or she does this, there is no appeal mechanism and it is the end of the argument. This amendment would mean that the Secretary General of the Department concerned would have to issue the certificate relating to information contained within the Department and a Secretary General from another Department would not be entitled to make a certificate of this kind.