Derek McDowell (Labour)

The issue of advisers occasioned some debate in the other House. The central question is why the section is in the Bill. Why is it necessary to exclude certain appointments temporarily from the ambit of the Act? I will not go over the Dáil debate as we all know the merits and otherwise of it. It would be a waste of the time of the House. Suffice to say most of us are satisfied with the way the appointment of special advisers currently operates. It is done in an adequately accountable fashion with the full glare of publicity and it is right that should be so. Most of us would agree that the post of special adviser needs to be separated from permanent jobs within the Civil Service. There was a suspicion which has been vocalised elsewhere that this section could be used in certain circumstances to facilitate gliding seamlessly from one to the other and it would be preferable for that not to happen.