Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

It is happenstance that I am substituting for my colleague, Deputy Burton, but I am very interested in this matter. I support strongly the idea of devolving power away from the Executive regarding the affairs of the Oireachtas and handing the power over to the Oireachtas itself. However, the original Houses of the Oireachtas Commission Act 2003 is lacking in a number of areas and was not robust enough. The Department of Finance loosens its grip slowly and there are overlaps in authority between the Department and the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission when making positive decisions on staffing matters. It is quite outrageous that a relatively junior official in the Department of Finance, such as a principal officer, can second guess the decision of the Oireachtas Commission, including the Ceann Comhairle. That is not good and it should not remain that way. There should be an oversight on public spending, but once the spending envelope is voted by this House, there should be complete discretion given to the House on how staffing is organised. However, that is for another day.

Was there any discussion with the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission on these proposals? The powers to dismiss senior officials in the Houses of the Oireachtas are to be devolved to the Taoiseach. Why is this the case? The Government currently has the authority to do so. If the devolution of authority to the Houses of the Oireachtas is to be effected, then surely the person in authority in this regard should be the appropriate Chairman of each House. According to the amendment, the Taoiseach is to act on the recommendation of the Chairman. Is such a recommendation binding or is there a discretion conferred on the Taoiseach? If it is binding, why is the Taoiseach allowed to exercise the authority rather than the Chairman of each House, as appropriate, acting on the advice of the Houses of the Oireachtas Commission? We require clarity on these important issues before we proceed with the debate.

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