Vol. 505 No. 6
214 Mr. P. Carey asked the Minister for Social, Community and Family Affairs if Trinity College, Dublin, has been engaged by his Department to carry out an evaluation of the free schemes; if so, the purpose of this evaluation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14397/99]
A review of the free schemes is being carried out by an official of the Department on secondment as a visiting research fellow at the Policy Institute, Trinity College, Dublin.
The terms of reference for the review are to: examine the rationale for benefit-in-kind schemes; establish the correct charging mechanism for the services provided; identify the objectives of the free schemes; evaluate the extent to which those objectives have been achieved and remain valid; comment on how effectively and efficiently the free schemes have achieved their objectives; evaluate the extent to which the objectives warrant the allocation of public resources and if so, whether the current allocation is appropriate; examine the scope for alternative policy arrangements; and specify suitable performance indicators which can be used to monitor and evaluate these schemes in the future.
The research conducted will be published in the "Trinity Studies in Public Policy" series. It is expected that the review will be published by the Policy Institute in October/November 1999.
