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The principle can be summarised as indicating the existence of a contract of service where one party (the employer) has a wide measure of control over, and management of, the duties performed by the other party (the employee) and over the manner in which the employee discharges them. The distinction between a contract of service and a contract for services was always centred, in early case law, on the nature and degree of the control which an employer was able to exercise over the person employed (see, for instance, Short v J & W Henderson Ltd¹). However, modern working arrangements have lessened the importance of control as an arbiter of status. In the past it was often used as the single test of employed status. However, computer and other consultants often work for long periods at the premises of their clients, sometimes government departments. Despite apparent elements of control, there is no suggestion that the consultant is an employee of the client. The remarks of McCullough J in the case of Swan (Hellenic) Ltd v Secretary of