Alice-Mary Higgins (Independent) | Oireachtas source

While there are measures relating to spending on consultants and advisers, the concerns do not solely relate to financial transparency; the concerns relate to who the consultants and advisers are, who is giving advice and what factors are in play. It should be borne in mind that such consultants and advisers, while not being public employees in the full sense, may well be providing consultancy and advice to other actors. That is again why the transparency is around who the consultants and advisers are, not the fact that there are consultants and advisers. It is not an expenditure transparency; it is part of a wider web of requirement that we are transparent about which consultants and advisers are influencing or informing the decisions of public bodies or statutory bodies. I accept that the Minister of State cannot accept the amendment. Whether it is here or elsewhere, however, it is very important that an expectation be conveyed that anyone can access information as to which consultants and advisers have been hired. It is not simply a matter of the expenditure as mentioned in the report.