Attorney general called in to rule on hiring of special advisers

The government is seeking advice from the attorney general after concerns were raised about whether it has been illegally appointing special advisers retrospectively.

By law, the cabinet must sign off on orders, known as statutory instruments, to appoint special advisers to ministers.

This is usually done after they have started working in government for a salary of around €80,000 or more.

However, Sinn Féin finance spokesman Pearse Doherty has queried the legal basis ...