Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)

The communications unit works 18 hours per day. Six civil servants seconded from Departments monitor the headlines, including those on radio, of the day. Its data is available by FOI request, to which Deputy O'Dowd has already referred. The data is regularly sought under FOI in the House. A large number of Deputies put down FOI requests.

It is known precisely how these civil servants function. All senior Civil Service ranks get those sheets, tapes and transcripts every day. It is an apolitical job. I have outlined before in reply to Deputy Kenny how there were protocols and procedures during the general election that kept them outside the political system. To make an accusation and insinuate, as has been done, that they are monitoring or collecting data for any use about anybody is incorrect. They do not do that, not to mind for a political purpose. They do not cover every single headline in every single newspaper.

See this speech in context