Mary Lou McDonald (Dublin Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I move amendment No. 38:

In page 9, between lines 13 and 14, to insert the following:“(f) senior public servants between the ranks of secretaries general and principal officer;

(g) regulators;

(h) management boards of public bodies;”.

I was surprised this amendment was not grouped with the previous batch. The position has been set out that in addition to overtly political people, we need what is often referred to as the permanent government to be subject to the provisions of this legislation also. My amendment is an attempt to achieve that.

While I know the Minister is minded to deal with the matter in a different way, I believe it is preferable to at least name certain categories. I appreciate it is not possible to have an exhaustive list in primary legislation, but, of course, the Minister has the other mechanism available to him to bolster that. The amendment would ensure that the upper echelons of public administration - the permanent government, if one likes - are also captured within the provisions of the Bill.

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