21.—(1) The Minister may, with the consent of the Minister for Finance, appoint such and so many persons to be members of the staff of the Ombudsman for Children as the Minister may determine.

(2) A member of the staff of the Ombudsman for Children shall be a civil servant in the Civil Service of the State.

(3) The Ombudsman for Children may delegate to any member of his or her staff any of his or her functions under this Act except those conferred by subsections (5) and (7) of section 13, section 18 or by this section.

(4) The Minister may delegate to the Ombudsman for Children the powers exercisable by him or her under the Civil Service Commissioners Act, 1956, and the Civil Service Regulation Acts, 1956 to 1996, as the appropriate authority in relation to members of the staff of the Ombudsman for Children, and, if he or she does so, then, so long as the delegation remains in force—

(a) those powers shall, in lieu of being exercisable by the Minister, be exercisable by the Ombudsman for Children, and

(b) the Ombudsman for Children shall, in lieu of the Minister, be, for the purposes of this Act, the appropriate authority in relation to members of the staff of the Ombudsman for Children.