Dr. Helen Kehoe:

We have concerns about head 34 in particular and the director general being so restricted on what he or she can say before Oireachtas committees. Certainly, this is not something that we can see in evidence with other similar independent public bodies like the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission or the Ombudsman for Children.

The latter are limited in what they can say before the Committee of Public Accounts but not Oireachtas committees generally. It is not entirely clear why they would be so limited in their comments on policy, and it is something we would urge the committee to look at again.

Also on the notes for the scheme in particular, there is talk about this being modelled on section 72 of the Policing, Security and Community Safety Bill 2023. We would have concerns in that regard because that is untested legislation that is still in draft form. It is a little nebulous as to why that Bill is being relied upon so heavily in this particular circumstance.