Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)

Has the Taoiseach sought clarification or has he communicated these views to the Standards in Public Office Commission? He seems to indicate a level of dissent from the decision it made. Does he intend to involve colleagues on this side of the House in drawing up any views that he might put to it? Surely, he is not putting on the basis of equivalence civil servants briefing Ministers or Ministers of State on technical matters or on any matter with them briefing on a politically partisan basis.

I note the Taoiseach stated civil servants brief Members on this side of the House. Speaking for myself, it does not happen very much. Some Ministers invite a spokesperson from this side of the House to be briefed on a Bill. Some Ministers do not as they are concerned about an outbreak of knowledge on this side of the House. I do not see how there can be equivalence between that and briefing a parliamentary party meeting as the civil servant in this case was instructed to do. It was an instruction to a civil servant to address a parliamentary meeting that recently lead to the resignation of an official working for a previous Minister of State. I would have thought one strong point of the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, Deputy Martin, is his ability to communicate. I do not rate very highly his ability to read documents or to get into the detail, but he is good at briefing. I do not know why a civil servant would have to be sent in on a case like this.

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