A report on the office that gives TDs and Senators legal advice has recommended a substantial increase in capacity and budget to deliver reforms introduced by the current Dáil.
The report on the Office of the Parliamentary Legal Advisor to the Oireachtas said it faced a significant increase in its workload and would need an extra five staff members and an increase in budget of €500,000 a year.
According to the author, Aidan Dunning, a former secretary general in the Department of Communications, there has been a significant change in the Dáil, with the Government parties no longer shaping the order of business, or making the ultimate decision on legislation.
He has recommended a significant increase in staffing to accommodate this challenge.
In the 32nd Dáil, there was also a substantial increase in the number of private members’ legislation (Bills initiated by Opposition TDs and Senators, as well as Government backbenchers).
Drafting
A subcommittee on Dáil reform formed after the uncertain outcome of last year’s election had asked Mr Dunning to examine the capacity of the office to give advice to TDs and Senators who wished to draft and progress private members’ Bills. The office has had no direct experience in giving advice on drafting until now.
In the report, Mr Dunning states the “existing remit of the office fully absorbs the current resources of the office and it does not have the capacity to undertake the additional tasks required by the decisions of the sub-committee on Dáil reform”.
One of his main recommendations is for a dedicated unit within the office that would specifically provide drafting services for Private Members’ Bills.
New posts
That would involve the creation of three new senior posts, two legal advisory counsel and one specialist parliamentary draftsman. In addition, it is recommended that two further administrative posts be established to meet the growing demands.
At present there are 12 staff in the office, eight of whom are lawyers. The office does offer an outsourced service for drafting legislation, but because of a lack of knowledge about its existence, it has been underutilised. The report recommends a larger budget and greater use of this service with the new parliamentary draftsman overseeing the work to ensure quality control.
Mr Dunning said an alternative to this would be for the Office of the Attorney General to transfer staff on secondment to do this work.
“The strong view is, however, that it is preferable for the Oireachtas to build up its own capacity, with a view to developing a high calibre independent unit that is an integral part of the Oireachtas.”
The office was established in 2000 to provide an independent legal advisory service to the Oireachtas. Historically, it has not engaged in the provision of legal advice on policy matters, including draft legislation, the report has noted.
Since 2011 some 400 private members’ Bills have been introduced, of which only two have been enacted. Most were defeated at second state in the Dáil or lapsed.
Since 2011 the volume of legal advice given by the office has increased over two-fold from 200 to almost 500.
