Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)

The Taoiseach did not answer my question on whether he considers the unit to be an essential service of Government. Would he be satisfied to have it used as a benchmark for assessing whether particular services should be discontinued or downsized? For example, we often hear that the Government is contemplating the implementation of at least some of the McCarthy report recommendations and some downsizing or rationalising of the various services provided through Departments. Would the Taoiseach be satisfied to state that the communications unit is not included in the report, is an essential service of Government and should be the measure for all of those services identified by the McCarthy report as suitable for cutbacks?

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