Written Answers - Departmental Bodies.
David Stanton
Question:
226
Mr. Stanton
asked the
Minister for Finance
the title, role and composition of all task forces, review groups, advisory bodies and any other agencies operating under the aegis of his Department; the date of establishment of each body; and the reports, if any, published by each group in the past 12 months.
[24882/98]
The following is the information requested by the Deputy in relation to task forces, review groups, advisory bodies and agencies currently operating under the aegis of my Department.
Working Group on the Pre-funding of Social Welfare Pensions
Role: The working group was set up in the light of the Government decision that the Pensions Board proposals regarding the part pre-funding of future SW pension costs contained in the report "Securing Retirement Income" deserve further examination.
Composition:
Mr. J. Mooney (Chair), Department of Finance
Mr. M. Murphy, Department of Finance
Mr. T. Gallagher, Department of Finance
Mr. C. O'Mahony, Department of Finance
Mr. R. Watt, Department of Finance
Mr. R. Downes (Secretary), Department of Finance
Ms A. Vaughan, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Mr. D. Moynihan, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Mr. B. Friel, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Mr. P. Nolan, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Ms A. Maher, Pensions Board
Mr. I. Woods, Pensions Board
Date of establishment: 22 July 1998 (date of first meeting)
Reports published: No reports published to date.
Euro Changeover Board of Ireland
Role: The board has two basic tasks; to oversee the detailed implementation of the changeover to the euro, and to provide public and consumer information.
Composition:
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Central Bank
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John Kelly
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The Chambers of Commerce of Ireland
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Adrienne Harten
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Office of the Director of Consumer Affairs
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Paul McGarry
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Irish Bankers Federation
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Frank Sexton
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IBEC
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David Croughan
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CEES-MAAS Group
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Tom Hardiman
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Irish Congress of Trade Unions
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Patricia O'Donovan
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Irish Farmers Association
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Con Lucey
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Irish Insurance Federation
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Michael Kemp
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Irish Mortgage and Savings Association
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Des Byrne
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Irish Stock Exchange
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Tom Healy
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Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies
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Peter Kelly
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European Commission Representation in Dublin
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Paul Gormley
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European Parliament Office
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Jim O'Brien
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Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
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Peter Fisher
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Forfás
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Eoin Gahan
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National Lottery
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Ray Bates
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Revenue Commissioners
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Gerard Moran
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Department of Public Enterprise
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Tom Ferris
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Consumers' Association of Ireland
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Kieran Doherty
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National Women's Council of Ireland
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Angela Ramsbottom
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European Anti Poverty Network Ireland
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Mark Seed
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(representing the community and voluntary pillar of Partnership 2000)
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Philip Hamell, Principal and Annette Connolly, Assistant Principal, both from my Department, are respectively Chairperson of and Secretary to the ECBI, and its Secretariat is provided by my Department. The ECBI was involved in the preparation of the third edition ofEMU and the euro: Ireland's National Changeover Plan, which I launched on 18 November 1998.
Date of Establishment: 5 May 1998
Reports published: No reports published.
Commission on Public Service Pensions
Role: To examine and report on occupational pension arrangements of public servants having regard to the emerging costs of public service occupational pension schemes, the existing levels of pensions scheme benefits, and claims for improvement in those benefits.
Composition:
Professor Dermot McAleese (Chairperson), Whately Professor of Political Economy, Trinity College
Mr. Brian Aylward, Personnel Director with Irish Cement Ltd., and Past-Chairman of the Irish Association of Pension Funds
Mr. John Cullen, Assistant Secretary, Department of the Environment and Local Government
Mr. Brian Geoghegan, Director of Economic Affairs, Research and Information, IBEC
Ms Rosheen Callender, National Equality Secretary, SIPTU
Mr. Eamonn Heffernan, Director of Mercer Ltd., and Chairperson of The Pensions Board
Ms Anne Maher, Chief Executive of The Pensions Board
Mr. Joe McGovern, Assistant Secretary, Department of Finance
Mr. Dan Murphy; General Secretary, Public Service Executive Union
Senator Joe O'Toole, General Secretary, Irish National Teachers Organisation
Ms Anne Vaughan, Principal Officer, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs.
Date of Establishment: 11 February 1996
Reports published: The Commission published its Interim Report in November 1997.
Interdepartmental Year 2000 Monitoring Committee
Role: To oversee the achievement of Year 2000 compliance for IT systems and other office equipment in the Civil Service.
Composition:
Mr. Sean O'Connell, Department of Finance — Chairman.
Mr. P. J. Breen, Department of Education and Science.
Mr. John Clohessy, Office of the Revenue Commissioners
Mr. John Daly, Centre for Dispute Resolution Ltd.
Mr. Norman Ebbs, Bank of Ireland
Mr. Peter Fisher, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment.
Mr. Tony Furlong, retired M.D. of IBM (Ireland) Ltd.
Mr. Maurice Healy, M.D. of ITG Group.
Mr. Andy McGarrigle, Department of Agriculture and Food.
Mr. Eddie Mortimer, Department of Public Enterprise.
Dr. Richard Nolan, Department of Health and Children.
Mr. Colm O'Neill, Department Social, Community and Family Affairs.
Secretary, Mr. Tim Duggan, Department of Finance.
Date of Establishment: December 1997.
Reports published: None.
Group to Review Tax Forecasting Methodology
Role: To examine the existing methodology for forecasting taxes. To finalise the report before the 1999 budget.
Composition
Mr. David Doyle, Department of Finance.
Mr. Derek Moran, Department of Finance.
Mr. William Beausang, Department of Finance.
Mr. Paddy Molloy, Revenue Commissioners.
Mr. Sean Maher, Revenue Commissioners.
Mr. Robert Watt, (Secretary), Department of Finance.
Date of Establishment: 5 February 1998.
Reports published: The report of the group will be finalised shortly.
The Long Term Issues Group
Role: To assess the budgetary implications of demographic and other developments already in prospect over the longer-term period. To review these developments, to evaluate their impact on the Government's budget balance and to examine the extent to which Ireland's prospective future growth performance might be expected to generate the resources to meet the "net Longer-term costs involved".
Composition:
The membership of the group is variable but is comprised entirely of Department of Finance personnel.
Date of Establishment: There was no formal date of establishment although the current group first met in January this year.
Reports published: The report of the current group will be finalised shortly.
Interdepartmental Group — Public Private Partnership (PPP)
Role: To evaluate the potential contribution of Public Private Partnership (PPP) mechanisms to meeting public infrastructure needs.
Composition:
Mr. Phil Furlong, (Chairman), Department of Finance.
Mr. Don Bergin, Department of Finance.
Mr. Pat Ring, Department of Finance.
Mr. Kevin Ring, Environment and Local Government.
Mr. Michael McCarthy, Environment and Local Government.
Mr. Donagh Morgan, Department of An Taoiseach.
Mr. Pat Mangan, Department of Public Enterprise.
Ms Una Redmond, Office of Public Works.
Mr. Jim Farrell, National Treasury Management Agency.
Mr. Michael Tobin, National Roads Authority.
Mr. Noel O'Reilly, National Roads Authority.
Mr. Gerry Murray, Department of Education & Science.
Mr. Rody Molloy, Department of Trade & Employment.
Date of Establishment: May 1998
Reports published:
A consultancy study was commissioned to assist the Inter-departmental Group. The consultants' report has been laid before the Houses of the Oireachtas and has been made available to interested private sector bodies and the media etc. since August 1998.
Informal Advisory Group — Public Private Partnerships
Role: This group was established to broaden the area of expertise available.
Composition:
Mr. Phil Furlong, (Chairman) Department of Finance.
Mr. Don Bergin, Department of Finance.
Mr. Peter Brennan / Ms Karen Gannon, IBEC.
Mr. George Hennessy, CIF
Mr. Paul Sweeney, ICTU
Ms Marie Bourke / Mr. Eugene Reilly, Forfás.
Mr. Michael McCarthy, Department of Environment and Local Government
Mr. Donagh Morgan, Department of the Taoiseach.
Mr. Pat Mangan, Department of Public Enterprise.
Date of Establishment: May 1998
Reports published: None.
Review Body on Higher Remuneration in the Public Sector
Role: To act as a standing body whose primary function will be to advise the Government every four years on the general levels of remuneration appropriate to:
(1) Members of the Houses of the Oireachtas;
(2) Members of the Government, Ministers of State, Attorney General, Chairman and Deputy Chairman of Dáil Éireann and Seanad Éireann;
(3) Judicary;
(4) Civil servants, local authority officers and health board officers outside the scope of C&A schemes;
(5) the ranks of Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner, Assistant Commissioner and Surgeon in the Garda Síochána;
(6) Chief of Staff (Lieutenant-General), Major-General and Brigadier-General Commodore in the Defence Forces;
(7) the Comptroller and Auditor-General;
(8) the chief executives of state-sponsored bodies;
(9) the chief officers of Dublin Port and Docks Board and the Cork, Waterford and Limerick Harbour Commissioners.
Composition:
Mr. Michael Buckley, AIB Capital Markets, Chairperson.
Ms Vivienne Jupp, Anderson Consulting.
Mr. Peter Malone, Jury's Hotel Group Plc.
Mr. Cormac P. McHenry, Member of Labour Court.
Ms Helen O'Dowd, Food Development Specialists.
Date of Estabishment: The Review Body was set up in May 1969. The present membership was appointed in March 1995.
Reports: No reports have been published in the past 12 months.
Implementation Group for a Single Regulatory Authority for the Financial Services Sector.
Role: The Implementation Group is to advise the Government on:
(1) The role and functions of the single financial regulatory authority (e.g. prudential supervision, the maintenance of orderly markets, safeguarding of clients' funds, consumer protection, the development and regulation of conduct of business rules), including consideration of the issues arising from combining the functions of monetary policy and prudential regulations.
(2) The range of financial service providers to be oveseen by the authority (e.g. banks, building societies, Post Office Savings Bank, insurance companies and brokers, investment intermediaries (including lawers and accountants in as much as they handle clients funds), exchanges, credit unions, friendly societies, finance companies, moneylenders etc.) also taking account of the development of electronic commerce which may involve new types of service providers.
(3) The extent to which, if any, existing regulators (e.g., the Director of Consumer Affairs, Registrar of Friendly Societies, Central Bank and Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment) would continue to have functions in relation to the regulation of the financial services sector and the extent to which any alteration to thestatus quo would impinge on the non-regulatory functions of the Central Bank.
(4) The organisational structure for the authority including the manner of its public accountability.
(5) The funding, resourcing and staffing of the authority (and issues arising in a transition to a new structure, including staffing and industrial relations, and the extent to which the authority could be self-financing.
(6) The legislative changes necessary for the establishment of the authority.
(7) The time schedule (including, in so far as necessary, a phased implementation) for achieving the objective of a fully operational single financial regulator at the earliest date possible.
Composition:
Mr. Michael McDowell SC, Chairman.
Mr. Joe Moran, former Chief Executive of ESB.
Mr. Maurice Tempany, former President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants.
Ms Carmel Foley, Director of Consumer Affairs.
Mr. Liam Barron, Central Bank of Ireland.
Mr. Roger Kenny, Office of the Attorney General.
Mr. Dermot McCarthy, Department of the Taoiseach.
Mr. Tom Considine, Department of Finance.
Mr. John Corcoran, Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment.
Date of Establishment: 20 October 1998
Reports published: The group is to report jointly to the Tánaiste and the Minister for Finance by end-February, 1999.
The Money Laundering Steering Committee
Role: To facilitate the implementation of the money laundering provisions of the Criminal Justice Act, 1994 in the financial sector and related matters.
Composition:
Department of Finance.
Department of Justice, Equality & Law Reform.
Department of Enterprise, Trade & Employment.
Central Bank of Ireland.
Garda Síochána.
The Irish Bankers Federation.
The Irish Insurance Federation.
The Irish Mortgage and Savings Association.
An Post.
The Registrar of Friendly Societies.
The Irish Stock Exchange.
The Consultative Committee of Accountancy Bodies.
The Law Society of Ireland.
The Irish Finance Houses Association.
Bureau de Change Group.
Date of Establishment: 18 April 1994.
Reports published: None.
National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA)
Role: The National Treasury Management Agency Act, 1990, provided for the establishment of the NTMA "to borrow moneys for the Exchequer and to manage the National Debt on behalf of and subject to the control and general superintendence of the Minister for Finance and to perform certain related functions and to provide for connected matters".
Composition:
Dr. Michael Somers, Chief Executive
Mr. John Corrigan, Director
Ms Anne Counihan, Director
Mr. Jim Farrell, Director
Mr. Adrian Kearns, Director
Mr. Paul Sullivan, Director
Date of establishment: 3 December 1990.
Reports published:
Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 December 1997
Ireland — Redonomination of Central Government Debt and Related Matters
Ireland Memorandum
Guide to the Government Bond Market
National Treasury Management Agency Advisory Committee
The Advisory Committee was established under the National Treasury Management Agency Act, 1990 to advise the Minister for Finance on the remuneration of the Chief Executive and it also assists and advises the NTMA on such matters as are referred to it by the NTMA.
Composition:
Mr. Joe Moran, Chairman, Forum for the Construction Industry
Mr. Gerold Brandt, Bayerische Landesbank, Munich
Mr. Paul Carty, Deloitte & Touche
Mr. John Daly, Icl Computers (Ireland) Ltd.
Mr. Lewis Glucksman, Salomon Smith Barney, New York
Mr. Patrick Mullarkey, Department of Finance
Mr. Donald Roth, Emerging Markets Partnership, Washington D.C.
Date of Establishment: 3 December 1990
Reports published: No reports
Certification Advisory Committee (CAC)
Role: The CAC is an informal Committee, chaired by the Department of Finance, which acts as a forum to consider and advise on the approval and certification of international financial services projects for the IFSC.
Composition:
Mr. Donal Murtagh, Mr. John McNamara, Mr. Brendan Ellison and Mr. Des O'Leary, Department of Finance
Ms Marie Dempsey, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Ms Marie Mangan, Central Bank
IDA (Members vary)
Date of Establishment: 30 June 1987
Reports published: None
Steering Committee on Programme Evaluation
Role: To oversee the implementation of the comprehensive programme of expenditure reviews proposed in "Delivering Better Government" including the establishment of a framework and parameters for the conduct of the reviews; to report to the Minister for Finance and the Minister responsible for a particular review and where appropriate to develop proposals which may be put to Government for approval.
Composition:
Mr. Patrick Mullarkey, Department of Finance
Ms Margaret Hayes, Department of Tourism, Sport and Recreation
Mr. Tom Carroll, Department of the Marine and Natural Resources
Prof. Brendan Walsh, U.C.D.
Mr. R. J. Curran, Department of Finance
Mr. John O'Connell, Department of Finance
Date of establishment: 25 March 1997
Reports published: None
Working Group on strategic impact of taxation on environmental policy
Role: To examine the strategic impact of taxation on environmental policy.
Composition:
Ms Enice Fields, Revenue Commissioners
Ms Maureen Doyle, Department of the Environment and Local Government
Mr. Denis McDonald, Department of the Environment and Local Government
Mr. Peter O'Neill, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Eugene Coughlan, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Shay Fogarty, Department of Agriculture and Food
Mr. Liam Reamonn, Department of Finance
Mr. Seán O'Séaghdha, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Peter Fisher, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Mr. Michael Layde and John McDermott, Department of the Environment and Local Government
Ms Ruth Cosgrave, Department of Agriculture
Mr. John Brown, Niall O'Donnchu, and Denis Murphy, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Eddie Joyce, Department of Finance
Mr. Eugene Dillon, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Maurice Coughlan, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Liam Daly and John Fearon, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Jerry Barnes and Marian Wilson, Dublin Transportation Office
Ms Jean Kennedy, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Martin Diskin, Department of Public Enterprise
Mr. Richard Marin, Terry Leonand and Sean McCourt of the Irish Liquid Gas Association.
Date of establishment: After the 1996 budget Reports published: None
P2000 Working Group on Standard Rating and Tax Credits
Role: To examine the complex policy issues surrounding standard rating and tax credits within the income tax system.
Composition:
Mr. Brian Geogheghan, Irish Business Employers Confederation
Mr. Aebhric McGibney, Irish Business Employers Confederation
Mr. Donal de Buitleir, Irish Business Employers Confederation
Mr. Paddy Keating, IMPACT
Mr. Paul Sweeney, SIPTU
Mr. Jim Devlin, The Irish Farmers Association
Mr. John Fitzimmons, The Irish Farmers Association
Mr. Ciaran Dolan, Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association
Ms Mary Murphy, Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed
Mr. Mike Allen, Irish National Organisation of the Unemployed
Mr. Liam O'Dwyer, Society of St. Vincent de Paul
Mr. John Shaw, Department of the Taoiseach
Mr. Eoin Ó Séaghdha, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Mr. Peter Fisher, Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment
Mr. Marcel Jacques, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Bob Dowdall, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Liam Gallagher, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Paddy Molloy, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Paul Neenan, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Donal McNally, Department of Finance
Mr. Barra O'Murchadha, Department of Finance
Mr. Feargal Ó Brolcháin, Department of Finance
Mr. John Burke, Department of Finance
Date of establishment: July 1997
Reports published: The group produced an initial report in January 1998 which although not formally published was distributed widely amongst the social partners.
Group examining Finance and Revenue issues arising from the Pensions Board Report on Securing Retirement Income
Role: To examine issues arising from the Pensions Board Report on Securing Retirement Income.
Composition:
Mr. Liam Murphy, (Chairman) Department of Finance
Mr. Joe Mooney, Department of Finance
Mr. Barra Ó Murchadha, Department of Finance
Mr. John Fanning, Department of Finance
Ms Sinéad Boyle (Secretary), Department of Finance
Mr. Marcel Jacques, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Michael Brennan, Revenue Commissioners
Mr. Clive Slattery, Revenue Commissioners
Ms Anne Maher, Pensions Board
Mr. Ian Woods, Pensions Board
Ms Anne Vaughan, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Mr. Liam Walsh, Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs
Date of establishment: June 1998
Reports published: None
