Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom is not recognised in United Kingdom law, so any post-holder must be given an additional title in order to have legal status and to be paid a salary additional to the parliamentary one. The last Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg, was appointed Lord President of the Council, a minister who presides over meetings of Her Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council and has few other formal responsibilities, for this reason. On some occasions the post of First Secretary of State has been used; when John Prescott lost his departmental responsibilities in a reshuffle in 2005, he was given the office to
Public service of the Republic of Ireland of the Government and the Civil Service of the State. Whilst these two components are largely theoretical they do have some fundamental operational differences. The Civil Service of the Government advises and carries out the work of the Government, through the various Departments of State, of which there are fifteen; one for each Minister of the Government. Each department is led by a senior civil servant known as the Secretary General (often referred to as "departmental head" in the media), a title equivalent to that of Permanent Secretary in the British Civil Service. The most senior civil servant and head