asked the Minister for Fisheries and Forestry if any consideration has been given to the possibility of transferring responsibility for wildlife service from his Department to the Department of the Environment.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Transfer of Wildlife Service.
14.
The answer is "no". As the Deputy is aware, the general question of the structure, organisation and operation of the Forest and Wildlife Service of my Department is currently under examination by a review group established by me recently.
Would the Minister not consider that the work of the wildlife service is being choked and stultified in his Department which has no concept of the scope of work involved in this, particularly as only 5 per cent of our territory is under forests, and most of the work entailed is on the remaining 95 per cent? Does the Minister not think it would be better served by another Department with a wider viewpoint of what is the wildlife service?
I would not agree that the work has been stultified in any way. There is in the Forest and Wildlife Service a very active, able, expert section who deal with the wildlife aspect. We had both better await the report of this review group in order to ascertain what their recommendations may be because the Forest and Wildlife Service forms part of their overall remit.
What are the terms of reference of the review group, particularly with regard to the wildlife service?
In brief, it is to look into the structure, organisation and operation of the Forest and Wildlife Service.
The wildlife service separately?
No, the two go together as an integral part of forestry.