Brian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)

There are regulations in place as to the number of staff Ministers are allowed and these must be complied with. Staff are provided on the basis of need and for the provision of whatever advice is required. Under the Public Service Management Act, that restriction does not apply in the Taoiseach's office, although as I have said, I do not contemplate increasing the number of advisers I have.

The Government has just made decisions which we are currently preparing to bring to public attention and as a result I cannot share them with the House at this moment. The question will be to deal with these matters in a practical and sensible way.

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