Written Answers.

Community Employment Schemes.

Cecilia Keaveney

Question:

110 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will consider altering the current community employment scheme or social economy programme to provide opportunities for communities to employ youth officers to co-ordinate events in local areas for young persons in view of the rise in anti-social behaviour and the significant investment that is occurring in capital rather than social infrastructure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30551/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The main purpose of the community employment programme operated by FÁS is to provide work experience and training for the long term unemployed and disadvantaged groups and thereby enable participants to advance successfully to employment in the open labour market.

Following a review of FÁS employment schemes — community employment, job initiative and social economy programmes — on 10 November 2004 I announced that the three year cap for participants on community employment was raised to six years for those over 55 to ensure the maintenance of essential community services, particularly in rural areas where it had been found that difficulties existed in finding replacement participants. I have no plans to make any further changes of this type to the community employment scheme.

A review of the social economy programme, SEP, highlighted the valuable role it plays in the delivery of community services throughout the country. In light of this, discussions are taking place between my Department and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs about the transfer to that Department.

There is nothing to prevent projects of the type to which the Deputy refers being funded under the community employment or social economy programme. I would point out, however, that to be eligible for funding under the SEP, enterprises are required to be established as legal entities.

Question No. 111 answered with QuestionNo. 109.

County Enterprise Boards.

Denis Naughten

Question:

112 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if additional funding will be provided to efficient county enterprise boards; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31342/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

In determining the allocations for individual city and county enterprise boards, CEBs, in 2005, my Department adopted a systematic approach to ensure the maximum degree of objectivity and equity of treatment. This approach involved the provision of funding calculated on the basis of a standard allocation to each board as well as an additional allocation that was determined mainly by population but which also took account of issues such as unemployment, capacity to spend, existing commitments and regional spread.

My Department is at present engaged in reallocating additional funding to individual boards that have identified a capacity to utilise such additional funds in the current year in accordance with normal practice. This additional funding has been made available from boards that have indicated that they are not in a position to spend their full original 2005 allocation.

In addition, my Department, in conjunction with the CEBs, monitors on an ongoing basis the level of service provided by the boards to their client base. There is both a formal procedures manual and operating agreement in place between the Department and the boards which aim to provide a standardised delivery of services by CEBs across the country.

EU Funding.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

113 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures he has taken to meet the €15 million reduction from the European Social Fund; and the steps he has taken to redress the departmental irregularities that led to the decrease. [31597/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

As a consequence of a Commission audit decision in the year 2000, €15.6 million of European Social Fund moneys were withheld from Ireland. The sum involved represents less than 1% of the amount allocated to the three operational programmes for the period 1994-99. The Commission decision was contested by my Department and this resulted in a hearing before the European Court of Justice this year. On 15 September 2005 the European Court of Justice agreed with the European Commission's opinion that Ireland had over-claimed the contribution due from the ESF. This was due to a technical issue in the manner in which Ireland presented ESF claims.

It should be noted that the Commission accepts that all expenditure incurred under the programmes in question was eligible and that no allegation of fraud was made.

Of the €15.6 million withheld after the Commission decision in 2000, €7.2 million was withheld from the funding allocated to my Department and the following Departments — Education and Science, Health and Children, Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs and Justice, Equality and Law Reform. The remaining €8.4 million of funding was paid from Exchequer resources to what was then the National Training Development Institute, which was a non-governmental organisation. The action required to be taken in respect of these funds is under consideration, in consultation with the relevant Departments.

Irregularities of the type that have caused this clawback are very unlikely to recur in relation to the current operational programmes period because of the additional management and financial controls implemented within the funding cascade structure as a result of the expertise gained from the previous period of funding, 1994-99.

Health and Safety Regulations.

Ciarán Cuffe

Question:

114 Mr. Cuffe asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures he intends to take in response to the 27% increase in workplace fatalities in 2005, the disproportionate representation of non-nationals therein; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31591/05]

Pat Rabbitte

Question:

120 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures he intends to take to reduce the high and rising incidence of workplace fatalities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31623/05]

Richard Bruton

Question:

162 Mr. Bruton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he intends to take on foot of the rise in workplace fatalities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31628/05]

Brian O'Shea

Question:

169 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of deaths and injuries reported arising from industrial accidents in each year from 2000 to 2004 and to date in 2005; the further steps he intends to take to reduce the level of such accidents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31610/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 114, 120, 162 and 169 together.

I would first like to extend my sympathy to the families of those involved and affected by the workplace fatalities so far this year. The Government's commitment to ensuring high standards of safety, health and welfare in Irish workplaces is illustrated in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, which came into force on 1 September last. The Act updates, repeals and replaces the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 1989 and provides a modern legal framework to guarantee best international practice in regard to safety, health and welfare in Irish workplaces.

The Act aims at striking an appropriate balance between imposing duties, encouraging better consultation at workplace level on occupational safety and health matters, providing for an improved focus on better prevention systems and practices and the possible application of increased fines and penalties, where warranted.

Overall trends in absences from work due to workplace accidents are best described by reference to the data from the occupational injury benefit claims published by the Department of Social and Family Affairs. Although the statistics show an increase in the number of claims in recent years, this has to be read in the context of the expansion of activities and the number in employment over the period. The number of occupational injury benefit claims per 100,000 employees has shown a steady decline in Ireland. In fact, these rates have declined from one in 885 in 2000 to one in 638 in 2004, as the following tables show.

The number of fatalities at work has also declined from a total of 70 in 2000 to 49 last year. Nonetheless, the rate of deaths and injuries in Irish workplaces is unacceptable.

I am very concerned at the total of 61 workplace deaths that have occurred so far this year. The Health and Safety Authority has also expressed concern over the number of workplace deaths, particularly of non-nationals. Provisional figures indicate that ten non-nationals have died this year in work-related accidents. The Health and Safety Authority has called on all employers to ensure that they are adequately communicating the risks and providing appropriate safety training for all employees, including those who are non-English speaking.

Of the ten fatalities involving non-nationals at the workplace this year, four have occurred in construction, three in manufacturing, one in agriculture and two in the wholesale and retail trade. The Health and Safety Authority has been working on a programme of information resources aimed at non-English speakers and specific provisions relating to such workers are now included in the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005.

That authority has also recognised the new challenges that the growth of non-English speaking people within the workforce brings. Earlier this year the authority launched a new initiative, entitled the safe system of work plan, which is aimed at reducing injuries and deaths on construction sites. This initiative relies heavily on pictograms to explain and clarify hazards and controls, thereby creating a wordless document where safety can be communicated to all workers regardless of literacy or language skills. The plan aims to focus on those who are most at risk and empowering them to ensure that all necessary safety controls are in place prior to the commencement of work.

In addition, the authority has work under way to produce the safe system of work plan in a number of different languages. The plan has been translated into Turkish and Polish and shortly a seven-language training DVD will be available. I would also like to say that the authority's safe system of work plan, SSWP, for construction was recently awarded the innovation prize for good prevention practices in the construction industry by the International Social Security Association, ISSA, during the recent World Congress on Safety.

In 2004, the authority, in conjunction with Bord Glas, recognised the multicultural nature of the horticultural workforce, with the launch of the essential health and safety guide for horticulture, which aims to promote health and safety awareness and accident prevention in this sector. As a labour intensive industry, horticulture is an established employer of migrant workers and 30% of these originate from the recent accession states to the EU. The guide is available in four different foreign languages, that is, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish and Russian.

There are huge responsibilities on all parties in the workplace and the issue of safety can only be corrected by dedicated efforts by all those involved in day to day operations.

Health and Safety Authority evidence is that up to one half of the small employers in this country do little or certainly not enough to ensure a safe workplace and that the most common causes of accidents are slips, trips and falls at work and bad lifting habits resulting in injury.

I appeal to all parties to do more work to promote awareness of the need for a safe work environment which has benefits for workers, employers and society generally and which will engender a safety culture.

Occupational Injury Benefit Claims (OIB) for years 2000 to 2005
	Number of OIB claims accepted	Number of Employees	Rate per 100,000 employees
2000	11,995	1,355,600	885
2001	12,050	1,406,400	857
2002	12,280	1,440,000	852
2003	11,096	1,502,800	738
2004	11,705	1,835,900	638
2005	Figures unavailable as yet

Workplace Fatalities 2000 to 2005
Year	Number of Fatalities
2000	70
2001	64
2002	61
2003	67
2004	49
2005	61
(to 26 October)

National Consumer Strategy.

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

115 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, arising from the report of the Consumer Strategy Group, it is intended to implement the recommendation that consumer considerations should be incorporated into all regulatory analysis procedures and the consumer proofing of all relevant Government decisions, which the group indicated was specifically the responsibility of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31584/05]

Joan Burton

Question:

146 Ms Burton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, arising from the report of the Consumer Strategy Group, it is intended to implement the recommendation to introduce standardised statutory codes of practice across all public sector bodies, which the group indicated was the responsibility of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31585/05]

Thomas P. Broughan

Question:

174 Mr. Broughan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, arising from the report of the Consumer Strategy Group, it is intended to implement the recommendation to expand social partnership to include consumer representatives on both the Government and voluntary sides, which the group indicated was the responsibility of his Department. [31583/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 115, 146 and 174 together.

The Consumer Strategy Group was established in March 2004 to advise and make recommendations on the development of a national consumer strategy. The group's final report, Make Consumers Count, was published in May this year. The report contains over 30 separate recommendations, including the recommendations mentioned in the Deputies' questions, covering a variety of different Departments and agencies whose activities directly impact upon the interests of consumers.

The scope and breadth of the group's recommendations required a co-ordinated response. For that reason a high level interdepartmental committee was established to examine the CSG's recommendations and to report back to Government with a detailed implementation plan.

It is expected that the committee's report in relation to the implementation of the CSG's recommendations, including the recommendations referred to in the Deputies' questions, will be submitted to Government shortly. The implementation of all the CSG's recommendations will then be considered by Government in the light of the high level committee's report.

Industrial Relations.

John Gormley

Question:

116 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, in view of the ongoing Irish Ferries dispute, the practice of disemploying existing workers to replace them with lower paid, agency-employed workers qualifies the workers for statutory redundancy payments. [31595/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

Statutory redundancy payments are the responsibility of the employer in the first instance, and should be paid in accordance with the relevant legislation.

The Redundancy Payments Act 1967, as amended by the 1971 Act, contains the definition of redundancy in section 7(2). This definition has withstood the test of time. The redundancy payments scheme was examined by the redundancy review group in 2002. The review group consisted of representatives of the social partners and Government Departments. The review group agreed several changes to the redundancy payments scheme which were implemented in the Redundancy Payments Act 2003. However, the group saw no reason to change the statutory definition of redundancy.

As my Department has not received any communication from Irish Ferries regarding the proposed redundancies, which were announced to the media on 19 September 2005, it is not in a position to give a definitive opinion on whether or not redundancies at this company, should they occur, fall within the provisions of the Redundancy Payments Acts 1967 to 2003. Based on media reportage of the proposed redundancies I sought and obtained preliminary advice from the Attorney General's office which is to the effect that redundancies as proposed by the company may not fall within the definition of the legislation. However, clarity can only be established if and when the company makes a formal application to the Department for a statutory redundancy rebate. The company and the unions are involved with the State's industrial relations machinery in attempts to seek a solution to the issues involved.

Employment Support Services.

Dan Boyle

Question:

117 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on the failure of the employment services policy unit to address the problem of long-term unemployment over the past number of years, which is at the same level now as it was in 2000, and represents over one third of the overall unemployment rate. [31589/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Since 1997 over 450,000 new jobs have been created. There has also been a significant fall in unemployment from 10.4% to 4.2% at present.

Long-term unemployment fell from 5.5% in 1997 to 1.6% in 2000 and this very low level has been maintained; it is now at 1.4%. This long-term unemployment rate compares very favourably with the EU average of 4% and ranks fourth lowest among the 25 EU member states. However, we are not complacent about this level of long-term unemployment and in order to reduce it a range of new initiatives has been introduced.

In addition to the FÁS and local employment services and the community employment, social economy and job initiative programmes, the most significant measure has been the national employment action plan referral process. This involves early intervention by FÁS with unemployed people. It seeks to help the unemployed to reintegrate into the labour market as quickly as possible by providing them with the necessary skills and supports to improve their employability.

Under this process, since 2003 anyone who has been on the live register for six months, and all persons were not previously referred and who were more than six months on the live register, were referred to FÁS for interview. The majority of such referrals were long-term unemployed. Since June 2003, approximately 27,000 long term unemployed clients were referred to FÁS. Since the introduction of the NEAP in September 1998, a total of 247,000 clients have been referred to FÁS for assistance. An external evaluation of the NEAP preventive strategy, which is due to be released shortly, concludes "that the NEAP process has been a success".

Other innovative responses developed by my Department and FÁS to assist unemployed persons have included: the Pathways programme, which identifies the most appropriate development pathway to assist clients to obtain employment; the high supports process, which assists clients on a multi-agency basis to address personal barriers to employment; and the customised training fund to flexibly meet training needs of the unemployed. We are therefore continuing to engage with those in long-term unemployment through a wide range of labour market measures and activities to help them return to the labour market.

Pension Provisions.

Joe Sherlock

Question:

118 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he is satisfied with the level of compliance by employers in relation to payment of contributions to the CIF sick pay and pensions fund on behalf of construction workers; his views on whether independent monitoring of employer compliance may be necessary; his proposals regarding same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31617/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

A registered employment agreement provides for the establishment of the construction federation operatives pension scheme, generally referred to as CFOPS.

A registered employment agreement is an agreement that is negotiated between two parties, for example, a body representative of employers and a similar group representative of employees, who are all engaged in the same sector of activity in the economy. The agreement, once finalised between the contracting parties, is then registered with the Labour Court. Having completed that process the terms of the agreement are binding nationally for all employers and all workers covered by the categories of work included in the agreement.

A board of trustees comprising an independent chair together with five members, each nominated by the CIF and the union side respectively, administers CFOPS. Broadly speaking, monitoring of compliance with the CFOPS is a matter for signatories to the agreement. To assist them in this task they established the Construction Industry Monitoring Agency, known as CIMA, for that purpose. CIMA is independent of the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment. In processing a case of non-compliance CIMA ultimately refers matters to the Labour Court, which will hold a hearing and, if satisfied as to non-compliance, issues an order against the employer concerned. The court may ask the labour inspectorate for assistance in checking records.

There are also provisions in legislation whereby a trade union, an association of employers or an individual employer may complain to the Labour Court that a particular employer is not complying with a registered employment agreement. If, after investigating a complaint, the court is satisfied that the employer is in breach it may by order direct compliance with the agreement. Failure to comply with such an order is an offence punishable by a fine.

Compliance with CFOPS has been an issue of concern for some while and it prompted the Pensions Board to engage Mercer Consultants to carry out a review. Mercer's report was recently published and it sets out a range of proposals that focus on a range of issues including compliance. The proposals in the Mercer report are being considered by the parties to the registered employment agreement.

Those recommendations of the Mercer report that may impinge on the activities of the labour inspectorate will be considered by the Department, together with the social partners, in the context of ongoing work concerning the mandate and resourcing of the labour inspectorate.

Departmental Inquiries.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

119 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the costs incurred by the State, at the latest date for which figures are available, arising from the various inquiries instigated by or on behalf of his Department; the element of these costs which have been recovered from any of the other parties involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31609/05]

Breeda Moynihan-Cronin

Question:

149 Ms B. Moynihan-Cronin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the position regarding each of the inquiries being carried out by or on behalf of his Department; the projected date for the conclusion of each such investigation; the inquiries in respect of which reports have been referred to the DPP; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31608/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 119 and 149 together.

Sixteen investigations into company law matters were initiated by my predecessor in the period since 1997. In three cases, the High Court appointed, on an application by the Minister, inspectors under section 8 of the Companies Act 1990. The inspectors appointed to Ansbacher (Cayman) Limited presented their report to the High Court on 10 June 2002. The report was subsequently published and referred to the DPP.

The inspectors appointed to National Irish Bank Limited and National Irish Bank Financial Services Limited presented their report to the High Court on 12 July 2004. The report was subsequently published. The court ordered that a copy of the report be referred to several relevant authorities, including the DPP. Earlier this year, the Director of Corporate Enforcement initiated proceedings in the High Court under section 160(2) of the Companies Act 1990, as amended, seeking the disqualification of nine persons against whom adverse comment was made by the inspectors. I welcomed the director's action in this case. I note that last week the High Court granted a disqualification order against one of the nine persons. The proceedings against the other eight remain before the court.

One investigation under section 14 of the Companies Act 1990 was completed in 1998. The report on this was referred to the DPP. One investigation was undertaken under section 59 of the Insurance Act 1989. The report on this was referred to the DPP as well as to the inspectors who undertook the section 8 investigation into that company.

Eleven investigations were initiated by the Minister under section 19 of the Companies Act 1990. Six of these have been concluded. Of the six investigations completed, two of the reports were referred to the DPP. A number of summary prosecutions have since been successfully concluded in one case. One report provided an input into the successful application to the High Court for the appointment of inspectors under section 8 while the fourth report was passed to the relevant High Court inspectors. One report was completed in September 2002 and a further report was completed in March 2003. Both reports have been referred to the Director of Corporate Enforcement.

Two of the eleven section 19 investigations were held up in legal appeals. These inquiries are now the responsibility of the Director of Corporate Enforcement.

In relation to the three remaining section 19 investigations, the current position is that following the completion of the review to which I referred in response to a previous question on 31 May 2005, I directed the authorised officer to place at the disposal of relevant public authorities, including tribunals, whatever information arising from his investigative work was required for the purpose of the performance by those authorities of their statutory functions. This process is progressing and I hope that it will be completed shortly. My objective in giving this direction is to achieve the earliest possible pursuit by the appropriate authorities of any matter which may require action by them.

The costs incurred since 1997 on company investigations initiated by or on behalf of my Department amount to approximately €10.9 million. This amount does not include the salary costs of Civil Service staff working on a number of these investigations or the legal costs which are primarily being borne by the Vote of the Chief State Solicitor. Of the €10.9 million expended, €1.6 million relates to section 19 investigations by authorised officers and the remaining €9.3 million was incurred by High Court inspectors appointed under section 8 —€5.8 million in the case of National Irish Bank Limited-National Irish Bank Financial Services Limited and €3.5 million in the case of Ansbacher (Cayman) Limited.

The question of recovering costs from the section 8 investigations does not arise until such time as the inspectors complete their investigations. In the case of the Ansbacher inquiry, the High Court proceedings taken by the State to recover the costs of the inquiry were settled out of court for the sum of €1.25 million in favour of the State.

In the case of National Irish Bank Limited-National Irish Bank Financial Services Limited, the court ordered that National Irish Bank pay the full costs of the investigation. I understand that the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform, which had borne the costs of the investigation, has received payment of those costs from National Irish Bank.

Section 19 as originally enacted did not provide for the recoupment of costs. This has now changed with the enactment of the Company Law Enforcement Act 2001.

Question No. 120 answered with QuestionNo. 114.

Regulatory Amalgamation.

Enda Kenny

Question:

121 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on the need for a new regulatory framework here with the creation of a single regulator under the auspices of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31630/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The enterprise strategy group recommended that the existing regulators for networked sectors, for example, electricity, gas, telecommunications and broadcasting, should be replaced by a new regulatory body covering all networked sectors.

The Government considered this recommendation and decided not to implement it. In looking at international experience the Government remains to be convinced that regulatory amalgamation on the scale proposed would be an efficient model. Indeed, there is a danger that a single regulator could give rise to slower decision making and less focus on smaller sectors compared with more dominant ones. Any further action in this area is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources whose remit covers these networked sectors.

Public Safety Regulation.

Tony Gregory

Question:

122 Mr. Gregory asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the reason the Government has not acted on the main recommendation of the report, A Review of Public Safety in Ireland, which was commissioned by the Tánaiste and published in 2000, namely, the establishment of a statutory body, called the office of public safety regulation; his views on whether such an overall statutory authority, which would monitor and assess the lack, appropriateness and adequacy of regulations, Acts and guidelines to protect the public, is long overdue in view of the failure of any public authority to take responsibility for public safety, with resulting human consequences in the meantime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31574/05]

Jerry Cowley

Question:

351 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the reason the Government has not acted on the main recommendation of the report, A Review of Public Safety in Ireland, which was commissioned by the Tánaiste and published in 2000, namely the establishment of a statutory body called the office of public safety regulation; his views on whether such an overall statutory authority, which would monitor and assess the lack, appropriateness and adequacy of regulations, Acts and guidelines to protect the public is long overdue, in view of the failure of any public authority to take responsibility for public safety, with resulting human consequences in the meantime; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31720/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 122 and 351 together.

The review group on public safety was established in November 1999. The group comprised representatives from Departments, various agencies and bodies. Its report entitled A Review of Public Safety in Ireland was published in 2000.

One of the recommendations of the review group was that an office of public safety regulation should be considered, which would not itself be responsible for public safety issues but would have some form of overseeing role of all the agencies and bodies involved. The review group also proposed that the functioning, appropriateness and continuing need for such an office should be reviewed within a five-year period.

The group was not in full agreement on its proposal due to issues relating to duplication of existing services and additional cost. Some members of the group expressed reservations about the need for such an office and the extra burden on State finances. In my view, this in itself questions the need for such an office of public safety regulation in the first instance and the establishment of yet another State agency, whose function is merely to oversee public safety matters, is not the right way forward.

The review group's recommendation was quite clearly inconclusive and a clear-cut case has not been made for the establishment of a new agency. Another State agency, whose function is merely to oversee other agencies on public safety matters, is not the right way forward. As outlined previously, it is not intended to act on the recommendation.

Small Business Forum.

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

The labour inspectorate of my Department carried out two inspections of the records of Irish Ferries. The first inspection was carried out in 2000. This was a routine inspection which was carried out during the course of a major campaign to ensure compliance with the then recently enacted National Minimum Wage Act.

The second inspection of the company's records was carried out in April this year, following media reports regarding rates of pay of employees of the company.

The labour inspectorate does not carry out inspections onboard shipping vessels. Surveyors from the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources may inspect ships docked at Irish ports to ensure that foreign registered vessels are maintained and operated in compliance with international safety standards and to ensure that the living and working standards are in compliance with the relevant standards.

Kathleen Lynch

Question:

127 Ms Lynch asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of inspections carried out by the labour inspectorate of his Department to ensure payment of the national minimum wage in 2004 and to date in 2005; if his attention has been drawn to concerns expressed by labour inspectors that they do not have adequate resources to police the national minimum wage; if his attention has been drawn to calls by trade unions for additional resources to enable the labour inspectorate to deal with exploitation of non-national workers, particularly in the construction industry; the steps he is taking to address this situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31604/05]

Róisín Shortall

Question:

131 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether the current complement of labour inspectors will be sufficient to ensure compliance with the legal duty on employers prescribed in the new Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, in addition to the range of duties already undertaken by the labour inspectorate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31620/05]

Emmet Stagg

Question:

153 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that trade union officials representing workers in the construction industry are of the view that there is at present no effective deterrent to the exploitation of non-nationals in relation to rates of pay and conditions of employment; if his attention has further been drawn to reports that the exploitation of foreign construction workers here is rampant; the way in which he proposes to deal with this specific issue in terms of effective deterrents; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31621/05]

Liz McManus

Question:

161 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, in regard to his announcement of the recruitment of an additional 11 labour inspectors, the number that have been appointed to date in 2005; when he expects the full number to be appointed; if they will be concentrated on any particular area of work; the current ratio between the number of labour inspectors and the total numbers in the workforce; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31606/05]

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Question:

164 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether the labour inspectorate has the number of inspectors necessary to carry out their duties in respect of the increased workforce and to inspect the treatment of the growing number of migrant workers here. [31454/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 127, 131, 153, 161 and 164 together.

In January 2005 the complement of labour inspectors was 17 officers. When all sanctioned posts are filled there will be 31 officers assigned to labour inspector posts.

A selection interview process was undertaken following the announcement of additional labour inspectorate posts earlier this year. Arising from that process four officers were appointed. A second round of interviews to identify suitable personnel to fill the remaining vacancies has now been completed. The interviewing process commenced at the earliest opportunity following the summer annual leave cycle and was completed during the past month and a panel of officers has been established. It is intended that these assignments will be completed during November this year.

The Government is aware of the concern being expressed by public representatives, trade unions representing employees and others close to the issues with regard to the abuse of vulnerable workers by a small minority of unscrupulous employers. To enhance the efforts of the labour inspectorate in discharging its remit to enforce employment legislation, increases in staffing levels this year mean that, when all posts are filled, the complement of inspectors will have almost doubled.

The strengthened inspectorate will be concentrating on those sectors of the economy where workers tend to be more vulnerable to suffering the effects of non-compliance with employment legislation. It is these sectors also that appear to have high concentrations of non-national workers.

In addition to the labour inspectorate, it should be noted that there is a wide corpus of employment rights legislation administered by various State organisations and services. These include the Employment Appeals Tribunal, the redundancy and insolvency sections of this Department, the rights commissioner services provided by the Labour Relations Commission and the services provided by the Labour Court. The labour inspectorate is itself a unit within the employment rights compliance section, which also includes the employment rights information unit and a further separate unit that administers the referral of cases for prosecution and legal enforcement of orders. Between them, these various services have a complement of staff in excess of 140 people.

Work has also been progressing with regard to the discussion document prepared in connection with the mandate and resourcing of the labour inspectorate. The social partners, together with representatives from the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Finance, are members of the employment rights compliance group, ERCG, that is considering the discussion document. Among the issues being examined is the simplification and streamlining of employment rights compliance monitoring and the redress system. Those recommendations of the Mercer report that impinge on the activities of the labour inspectorate will be considered by the ERCG.

In 2004, labour inspectors of my Department undertook 462 inspections under the National Minimum Wage Act 2000. So far this year the inspectorate has undertaken 384 inspections under the legislation. Inspectors operate on the basis of achieving compliance. Where an inspection occurs leading to a detection of infringements the employer is required to rectify the infringements detected. Failure to do so to the satisfaction of the labour inspectorate within a specified period results in the initiation of legal proceedings.

In many sectors, including the construction industry, the pay and conditions of employment are governed by employment regulation orders and registered employment agreements. The orders and agreements regulate statutory minimum rates of pay and conditions of employment for workers employed in the various sectors where these apply. Ensuring compliance with the minimum pay amounts, terms and conditions forms a major element of the work of the inspectorate.

The Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005 is separate legislation dealing with occupational safety, health and welfare. The labour inspectorate has no role in relation to this Act. The Health and Safety Authority is the State body charged with overall responsibility for the administration, enforcement and promotion of workplace safety and health and therefore for the implementation of this legislation.

The authority has 100 staff specifically involved in inspection, investigation and enforcement of health and safety legislation and it has an ambitious work programme for 2005, which includes an increase in the level of inspections to be undertaken and the related enforcement. In the context of the overall allocation of resources I am confident the authority can achieve the objectives which are set out in its work programme for 2005.

Economic Competitiveness.

Bernard Allen

Question:

128 Mr. Allen asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the recommendations contained in the Enterprise Strategy Group’s Ahead of the Curve report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31639/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Earlier this year the Government considered and endorsed the report of the high level committee that was asked to look at the most appropriate implementation arrangements for the enterprise strategy group's, ESG, recommendations. The Government is broadly supportive of the policy directions recommended by the ESG as underlined by its intention to implement, either in full or with some modifications, most of the its recommendations. The Government's response to the ESG report can be found on my Department's website.

The most important overall theme to emerge from the ESG's analysis and policy recommendations is that we are broadly on the right track as regards the right mix and focus of enterprise support policies. These will also improve the competitiveness of the economy and sustain growth.

The central theme of the ESG recommendations concerns a strategic evolution to a more competitive, innovative and knowledge centred economy. To help create quality and sustainable employment we have to make sure Ireland continues to be an attractive place in which to invest and from which to undertake increasingly profitable business. The ESG's report makes a valuable contribution to embedding strategies appropriate to the new realities and challenges facing the Irish economy. The ESG policy prescriptions are particularly relevant to my Department and the enterprise support agencies that report to me.

Question:

148 Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether freelance workers including actors, musicians, film crews and freelance journalists should be entitled to be collectively represented. [31449/05]

Seán Crowe

Question:

159 Mr. Crowe asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that competition law is being mischievously used to attack the rights of certain workers, especially actors, musicians, film crews and freelance journalists, to be collectively represented; and his views on whether, when this legislation was discussed in Dáil Éireann, it was stated by the Government that the laws being introduced could not be used against freelance workers in this way. [31447/05]

Arthur Morgan

Question:

163 Mr. Morgan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the actions he will take to address the fact that competition law is being mischievously used to attack the rights of certain workers, especially actors, musicians, film crews and freelance journalists, to be collectively represented. [31445/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 132, 148, 159 and 163 together.

I take it that these questions relate to a view expressed by the Competition Authority in a recent investigation into alleged price fixing involving the Equity trade union and the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland.

The aim of the Competition Act is to prohibit anti-competitive practices by "undertakings" such as price fixing and-or the abuse of a dominant position. The Act applies to all sectors of the economy in the State.

An "undertaking" is defined as "a person being an individual, a body corporate or an unincorporated body of persons engaged for gain in the production, supply, or distribution of goods or the provision of a service". This definition has been in use in Irish competition law for some time and is supported by EU case law.

I understand that the view expressed by the authority in its investigation was in respect of that particular case only and the parties to that investigation do not appear to have taken issue with the authority's view as they entered into undertakings with the authority in settlement of the case, thereby avoiding the necessity of going to court. It is only the courts that can interpret the law.

The authority's decision, which describes how it came to its view in the matter, is published on its website, tca.ie. It states, however, that while it is perfectly legal for a trade union to represent employees in collective bargaining with their employers, its trade union mantle cannot exempt its conduct when it acts as a trade association for self-employed contractors.

In considering the question of whether a legislative exemption should be provided for actors, musicians and freelance journalists, therefore, we need to bear in mind that a similar argument could be made for almost any group of self-employed contractors such as barristers, farmers, publicans, doctors, pharmacists etc, who, by coming together, adding union to their name and getting a negotiating licence, could circumvent the protections afforded to consumers by the Oireachtas in the Competition Act. Accordingly, I have no plans to amend current legislation in relation to this matter.

Question No. 133 answered with QuestionNo. 107.

Job Creation.

Jim O'Keeffe

Question:

134 Mr. J. O’Keeffe asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he intends to take to bring employment to Youghal following job losses there; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31637/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I am concerned about the recent job losses in the Youghal area, particularly the loss of 38 jobs in Seafield Technical Textiles Limited that has ceased operations due to adverse trading conditions. However, I am also aware that the relevant development agencies in my Department, namely, IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland, FÁS and the county enterprise board, are responding to such job losses in the area in a co-ordinated way in order to attract new investment, grow existing business and employment and provide training and assistance to those seeking employment. While I may give general policy directives to the agencies I am precluded under the Industrial Development Acts from giving directives regarding individual undertakings or from giving preference to one area over others.

IDA Ireland has assured me it is actively marketing and promoting Youghal for new overseas investment and every effort is being made to secure further advanced knowledge-based industry for the east Cork area. Over recent years, in terms of new foreign investment in east Cork, pharmaceuticals, medical technologies and internationally traded services are among the area's strongest performers. Direct employment in IDA supported companies in Cork city and county has grown from 10,345 in 1993 to 18,500 in 2004.

Enterprise Ireland is working closely with community groups in the towns of east Cork, including Youghal and Midleton, to foster further embryonic enterprise and to encourage young graduates to set up businesses in their own localities. The agency supported the setting up of the Knockgriffin Community Enterprise Centre in Midleton which is full and supports 24 full-time jobs in six companies as well as approving feasibility study funding to explore the possibility of a centre in Youghal under its CEC 2002 programme.

FÁS is running a number of training initiatives in Youghal at present. The programmes on offer are Pathways to Employment, which commenced on 24 October, and Return to Work and Care of the Elderly, Midleton. In March of this year, FÁS commenced a free daily bus service from Youghal to the FÁS training centre in Bishopstown, Cork. The full range of FÁS services are also available to all companies in the Youghal area. The South Cork County Enterprise Board is also available to develop indigenous enterprise potential and to stimulate economic activity throughout the area.

Under the Government's decentralisation programme 200 jobs will be relocated to Youghal. It is intended that the Civil Service Commission will relocate 100 jobs and the Valuation Office will relocate 100 jobs to the town.

I am confident that the strategies and policies being pursued by the development agencies, together with the ongoing commitment of Government to regional development, will bear fruit in terms of additional sustainable investment and jobs for the people of the east Cork, including Youghal.

Employment Support Services.

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

135 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures he intends to take to create a more inclusive labour market with particular reference to areas of disadvantage where unemployment levels are up to three times the national average; if he has specific proposals for upskilling and training where redundancies and vulnerability of jobs in the manufacturing sector have decimated employment levels in certain areas; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31614/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

In pursuit of the objectives of the national spatial strategy, the efforts of IDA Ireland, Enterprise Ireland and the city-county enterprise boards are directed towards the promotion of employment and investment in all areas of the country.

As regards helping those who are unemployed to enter the labour market, under the national employment action plan, FÁS engages intensively those who have been unemployed for six months. They are referred automatically by the Department of Social and Family Affairs to FÁS for advice and assistance.

Particular emphasis is placed on the identification of training needs and on the provision of tailored responses. There is also a customised training fund to enable unemployed persons access training that is not readily available through FÁS or other State providers.

The local employment service, LES, which is funded by the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment through FÁS, also provides an intensive guidance and placement service to persons who are most distant from the labour market.

The National and Economic Social Forum, NESF, on which FÁS and DETE are represented, has completed a final report, Creating a More Inclusive Labour Market, which will be presented to Government. Its conclusions and recommendations should make a significant contribution towards influencing and informing future policy in this area.

In relation to redundancies, FÁS has a policy of early intervention whereby they offer a range of customised services to companies which are facing closure or to employees who have been notified of impending redundancy. Responses range from the establishment and co-ordination of multi-agency teams to specifically address the needs of the employees affected and the provision on site of the full range of FÁS employment services. FÁS makes contact with the companies concerned as soon as they are notified of proposed redundancies. This pro-active approach has been very successful to date. As part of the new FÁS strategy, a review of the FÁS response to company closures is under way. The outcome of this review will inform future developments in this area.

Employment Rights.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

136 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the recent findings of an EU survey published by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions which found that Irish workers had among the lowest number of days of annual leave and public holidays; his plans to provide for additional holiday entitlements or to create an additional public holiday; if these issues are likely to be addressed in any discussions on a new national agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31611/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

The Organisation of Working Time Act 1997, which implemented EU Council Directive 93/104/EC of 23 November 1993 concerning certain aspects of the organisation of working time, provides for an annual leave entitlement of four working weeks for full-time employees and pro-rata entitlements for part-time employees. The Act also provides for an entitlement to nine public holidays per annum.

Notwithstanding these provisions, it is possible for employers and employees to negotiate a longer annual leave entitlement between themselves if they so wish. The average public holiday entitlement in the EU at present is approximately 11 days per annum.

I have no proposals at the moment to increase either annual leave or public holiday entitlements. However, should these issues arise in the context of discussions on a new social partnership agreement, they will be considered at that stage.

Ministerial Appointments.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

137 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the criteria by which a person (details supplied) was appointed to the board of the new National Consumer Agency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31545/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The person concerned was appointed to the interim board of the National Consumer Agency on the basis of considerable experience both in the public sector in terms of work experience and in the private sector in terms of establishing and operating a business. I am satisfied that the person is well qualified for the task and will make an important contribution to the work of the interim board.

Community Employment Schemes.

Dan Boyle

Question:

138 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if women who are claiming deserted wife’s benefit are disqualified from participating in a community employment scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30971/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The main purpose of the community employment programme administered by FÁS is to provide work experience and training for the long-term unemployed and disadvantaged groups and thereby enable participants to advance successfully to employment in the open labour market.

I am informed by FÁS that with effect from 5 October 2000 persons aged 25 or over and in receipt of deserted wife's benefit for 12 months or more are eligible to participate in community employment. There are 234 participants in this category on community employment.

Employment Permits.

Olivia Mitchell

Question:

139 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on the possibility of a two-tier system of immigration, with wealthier employment visa holders awarded greater rights than poorer employment permit holders; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31629/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Economic migration policy is formulated within a context where the focus on meeting our skills needs is: first, on upskilling our resident workforce; second, on maximising the potential of EEA nationals to fill our skills deficits; and third, with a new green card and revised work permit system, to meet those skill needs which cannot otherwise be addressed.

I announced my proposals for employment permits policy on 12 October 2005. The new employment permits system will have three pillars: pillar one is the establishment for the first time in Ireland of a green card for occupations where there are skills shortages, which will be for a restricted list of occupations in the annual salary range from €30,000 to €60,000 and for a more extensive list of occupations in the annual salary range above €60,000; pillar two is a re-established intra-company transfer scheme for temporary trans-national management transfers, and pillar three is a work permit scheme for a very restricted list of occupations up to €30,000. These new arrangements will be implemented next year.

The Employment Permits Bill 2005, which is being considered by the Dáil, will put in place a statutory framework to allow the implementation of an active, managed economic migration policy. These proposals are fair and reasonable and will support our economic development into the future.

Employment Rights.

Joe Sherlock

Question:

140 Mr. Sherlock asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that abuses in the construction industry have been referred to in a recent report by the Comptroller and Auditor General and in remarks by the Pensions Ombudsman; his proposals to deal with these concerns; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31618/05]

Pat Rabbitte

Question:

143 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the proportion of the 230,000 strong construction industry workforce which is covered under the CIF pensions registered agreement; if he intends to take measures to ensure that employers fulfil their legal obligation to register and make pension contributions for all employees; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31624/05]

Seán Ryan

Question:

171 Mr. S. Ryan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to reports that some employers in the construction industry are withholding employees’ subscriptions to the CIF sick pay and pensions fund; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that such practices jeopardise the entitlements of construction workers; the steps he proposes to take to remedy this situation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31626/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I propose take Questions Nos. 140, 143 and 171 together.

The construction federation operatives pension scheme, generally referred to as CFOPS, has been established on foot of a registered employment agreement for the construction industry. A separate registered employment agreement in the construction sector provides for the establishment of statutory rates of pay and related working conditions of employment. The terms of both agreements apply to a range of categories of workers in the industry.

Compliance with CFOPS has been an issue of concern for some while and it prompted the Pensions Board to engage Mercer Consultants to carry out a review. The terms of reference for the consultants were formulated by a steering committee that included representatives of the social partners.

The report was recently published and it sets out a range of recommendations that focus on the issues highlighted above. The recommendations have policy and operational implications for various Departments that are being examined at present.

In the meantime work has also been progressing with regard to the discussion document prepared in connection with the mandate and resourcing the labour inspectorate. The social partners, together with representatives from the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Finance, are members of the Employment Rights Compliance Group, ERCG, that is considering the discussion document. Among the issues being examined is the simplification and streamlining of employment rights compliance monitoring and the redress system. Those recommendations of the Mercer report that impinge on the activities of the labour inspectorate will be considered by the ERCG.

A board of trustees comprising an independent chair together with five members, each nominated by the CIF and the union side respectively, administers CFOPS. Broadly speaking, responsibility for compliance with the registered employment agreement rests with the signatories to the agreement and to assist them in this task they established the Construction Industry Monitoring Agency, known as CIMA, to monitor compliance on their behalf. In processing a case of non-compliance CIMA ultimately refers matters to the Labour Court which will hold a hearing and, if satisfied as to non-compliance, issues an order against the employer concerned. The court may ask the labour inspectorate for assistance in checking records.

There are also provisions in legislation whereby a trade union, an association of employers or an individual employer may complain to the Labour Court that a particular employer is not complying with a registered employment agreement. If, after investigating a complaint, the court is satisfied that the employer is in breach it may by order direct compliance with the agreement. Failure to comply with such an order is an offence punishable by a fine.

Economic Competitiveness.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

141 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans to counteract job leakage to lower wage economies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31543/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Ireland no longer operates as a low cost location for investment; our strengths and competitive advantages have inexorably changed. High output and productivity together with high returns to labour in the form of wages, salaries and better living standards now typify Ireland's economy. The low technology production that characterised our economic output in the past is being replaced by higher technology and services enterprises. A more attractive cost environment abroad will inevitably entice some firms that are unable to generate their required return from the modern enterprise economy into which we are transforming ourselves. A continuing structural evolution of our economy is both unavoidable and necessary to maintain present levels of growth and low unemployment. Part of this evolution entails some inevitable plant transfers and other adjustments, but where relocation has occurred to date, it has largely been limited to relatively low-technology, labour-intensive activities.

We have become a more sophisticated and developed economy where the application of technology and intellectual endeavour is becoming more important than simple cost competitiveness as the foundation for growth and prosperity. We now have one of the most open economies in the world where trends in world trade, global business investment and consumer decisions directly influence the pattern of economic growth, company development and job prospects in Ireland more so than probably in other developed economies. Pro-enterprise policies have helped propel economic growth and employment expansion and these have encouraged deeper and stronger links to both the enlarging EU markets and internationally. The consequent ability of entrepreneurs to operate more profitably in and from Ireland has seen both Irish enterprise and Irish society grow prosperous.

To circumvent the competitive threat from lower cost competitor economies, our policy is to encourage a move to higher levels of competitiveness and value added products and services. Our focus is on the creation of sustainable employment. Such employment will be driven by companies with higher profitability that are more technologically advanced and prove a better fit with the competitive characteristics of our economy and that are consequently less likely to move on the basis of simple cost influences. We are continuing to develop those infrastructures, both physical and intellectual, to create and maintain an attractive environment for investment and expansion in Ireland. Such investment will be sourced by a combination of developing existing clients and new investors in existing or new activities or sectors. Given the critical mass of FDI in Ireland and its linkages with indigenous companies, one of the greatest potential contributions will come from developing companies already operating here. The enterprise development agencies are continuing to encourage companies into more sophisticated activities, reducing the likelihood of our competitive advantage being eroded by cost based competition.

Labour Inspectorate.

Michael D. Higgins

Question:

142 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made to date in 2005 with regard to consideration of the discussion document covering the operation of the labour inspectorate; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31602/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

Work has been progressing with regard to the discussion document prepared in connection with the mandate and resourcing of the labour inspectorate. The social partners, together with representatives from the Department of the Taoiseach and the Department of Finance, are members of the Employment Rights Compliance Group, ERCG, that is considering the discussion document.

The group first met on 12 September this year and has met four times since. Arising from the discussion document, and additional social partner inputs, the group commenced its work with an agenda that exceeded 40 topics embracing a range of issues including the implementation of a campaign of employment rights information dissemination that will be delivered in a very focused and strategic fashion. The discussions are now well advanced. Possible future models of employment rights enforcement are next to be considered. It is anticipated that ERCG's deliberations will be concluded within the next three weeks.

Question No. 143 answered with QuestionNo. 140.

Employment Rights.

Emmet Stagg

Question:

144 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to reports that some non-national workers were paid less than Irish workers on at least two projects being funded by the Government; that underpaid workers were afraid to query lower pay rates for fear of losing their jobs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31622/05

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

In the absence of specific information in respect of the employments concerned I am not in a position to comment on the detail. However, if it is the case that non-national workers were paid less than Irish workers for comparable work and there are no other relevant differentiating features it may be appropriate to refer the matter to the Equality Authority for consideration under equality legislation.

Furthermore, in the event that there is information provided to the effect that the workers concerned were not in receipt of the statutory minimum rates of pay set out in legislation, for the particular economic sector in which they were employed, the labour inspectorate will investigate the matter, in confidence.

Economic Competitiveness.

Willie Penrose

Question:

145 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will make a statement on the recently published annual competitiveness report; the steps he intends to take to address the issues raised in the report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31613/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The National Competitiveness Council's, NCC, annual competitiveness report 2005 was published on 7 September. This report benchmarks Ireland's competitiveness relative to our 15 main trading partners and competitors using a compendium of 170 indicators. The indicators contained in the report are published by a wide variety of international sources.

The NCC expects to publish its annual competitiveness challenge later in the autumn. That document, which will draw on the findings of the annual competitiveness report, will highlight the main issues facing the Irish economy and will identify policy options to address them.

The NCC provides a valuable input to the formation of Government policies through its work on competitiveness benchmarking as it highlights where the economy is strong in competitiveness terms but also warns us emerging or potential challenges. Upon publication of the competitiveness challenge the Government will give careful consideration to the policy options identified by the council.

Question No. 146 answered with QuestionNo. 115.

Employment Rights.

Kathleen Lynch

Question:

147 Ms Lynch asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the position regarding the investigation by the labour inspectorate into allegations of very serious irregularities in regard to the treatment of employees of a Turkish company, Gama, which has been operating here; if all the workers have been given access to money held in accounts in a bank in Holland; his views on requesting the Garda to conduct an investigation into allegations that money had been diverted into accounts to which the workers previously had no access; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31603/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

Allegations of non-compliance with labour legislation in respect of a major construction firm were raised in the House on 8 February last by Deputy Joe Higgins. Those allegations were that certain non-national construction workers were required to work excessive hours and that such workers were in receipt of pay of between €2 and €3 per hour in contravention of the statutory minimums applicable.

The labour inspectorate of my Department undertook an investigation of these allegations. That investigation was completed within six weeks and required the exclusive attention of three labour inspectors under the direction of two senior members of staff. A report on the investigation was prepared and circulated to relevant parties, including the construction firm involved.

Subsequently, the Department was informed that the firm proposed seeking a judicial review with regard to the investigation and inspector's report. At an interlocutory hearing a judgement was given whereby the Department was restrained from publication of the inspector's report but permitted to forward the document to relevant prosecutorial bodies. On foot of this outcome a copy of the inspector's report was sent to the Department of Social and Family Affairs, the Revenue Commissioners, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions, the Competition Authority, the Office of the Director of Corporate Enforcement and the Garda Commissioner.

The inspector's report was quashed in the judgement that followed the full High Court hearing of the case. That decision is being appealed to the Supreme Court. Accordingly, I am unable to elaborate any further on the content of the inspector's report or offer any observations on the actions that the prosecutorial bodies, mentioned above, may be considering.

I was concerned that all Turkish workers would have access to the money that had been transferred to their bank accounts in Finansbank in Amsterdam. To that end, I and my officials met with senior management from Gama Turkey and Gama Ireland, the legal advisers to Gama Turkey, and a human resources consultant, retained by Gama. At that meeting, I was assured by these senior managers, their legal adviser and the human resources consultant that all Gama workers in Ireland, past and present, would have full access to the money that had been transferred to their bank accounts in Finansbank.

I contacted the president of Finansbank. He assured me that, provided the consent of the workers was forthcoming, his bank would co-operate in ensuring that my officials would have sight of relevant bank records in his bank so that they could be satisfied that all workers would have access to the money in their bank accounts. Officials from my Department travelled to Finansbank on 14 April last.

Following these meetings and contacts which my officials had with SIPTU and Deputy Higgins, I am satisfied that a substantial number of Turkish workers, who were in Ireland around last April, received value for the funds that had been transferred to their personal bank accounts in Finansbank.

My Department wrote to Gama Turkey's legal advisers on 29 April seeking certain details on each current and former Gama employee, including the money transferred to Finansbank and the money transferred from Finansbank to their personal bank account in Isbank in Turkey. Despite reminders to Gama Turkey's legal advisers, and engagement with a PR company engaged by Gama, this information has not been supplied to date. Accordingly, I cannot assure the Deputy that all Gama workers in Ireland, both past and present, have received value for the amounts that were transferred into their personal accounts in Finansbank.

In the meantime, there were ongoing contacts between officials of my Department and the company. Matters were brought before the Labour Relations Commission and then the Labour Court. Arising from these actions substantial transfers of money were secured for workers in lieu of overtime worked.

In addition, certain professional Gama workers, in respect of whom transfers were not made into Dutch bank accounts, were also awarded sums of money by the Labour Court. Many of these Turkish workers have now returned home.

Question No. 148 answered with QuestionNo. 132.

Question No. 149 answered with QuestionNo. 119.

Industrial Development.

Jimmy Deenihan

Question:

150 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his plans to break up a company (details supplied) and the future role that the company will have in the mid-west region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31615/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I have no plans to break up Shannon Development. On 28 July last, following detailed consultations with the board of the company, other stakeholders and regional interests, I announced a decision on a future mandate for Shannon Development. This new mandate envisages an active, focused role for the company, complementary to that of the national agencies, in the best interests of the economic development of the mid-west region.

As I have indicated in response to previous similar Dáil questions, there have been a number of recent developments that impact on the future role of Shannon Development, the most significant of which are: the proposed relocation of the headquarters of Enterprise Ireland to Shannon as part of the decentralisation programme; the Enterprise Strategy Group recommendation that Shannon Development should disengage from industrial development functions; and the establishment of an independent Shannon Airport Authority.

Discussions commenced with Shannon Development early last year and, in March 2005, the company submitted proposals for a revised strategy for the company. These proposals provided that the company would exit certain tourism and enterprise support activities and they would focus on strategic value added activities that would contribute to the economic development of the region. Following an examination of these proposals and after consultation with the company and other stakeholders, I decided on the revised mandate for the company. The main features of the new mandate are: the company will place an increased focus on the regional development aspects of its mandate and special emphasis will be placed on addressing the needs of the less-developed parts of the mid-west region; the company will retain ownership of industrial property in the Shannon region and responsibility for managing the Shannon free zone and will have responsibility for providing appropriate property solutions for both indigenous and overseas enterprises; the support functions in relation to indigenous enterprises in the Shannon region that are carried out by Shannon Development on behalf of EI will revert to EI; the IDA will assume responsibility for promoting investment in, and supporting, FDI companies in the Shannon free zone; and the company will produce a new three year corporate plan to reflect the new mandate and this will be reviewed annually.

All of the interested parties in the region agree that Shannon Airport is vital to its economic well-being and that Shannon Development is ideally placed to support the new Airport Authority and to complement its activities. How this should be done will, however, have to await consideration by the Minister for Transport of the authority's business plan. Similarly, any changes to Shannon Development's tourism remit will be decided by the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism in consultation with the company.

The Enterprise Strategy Group recommendation, which is now Government policy, that the company disengage from industrial development activities, which should be left to the national agencies, Enterprise Ireland and IDA Ireland, was central to my consideration of this issue. Shannon Development supported this recommendation and other regional interests also favoured the streamlining of industrial development functions in the region.

I recently met members of the board and I believe there is both support for the new mandate and energy present to implement it. Discussions between departmental officials and the executive have also commenced in this regard. I am also facilitating clarification of specific elements of the new mandate between my departmental officials and the main trade union, SIPTU.

Question No. 151 answered with QuestionNo. 109.

Company Liquidation.

Olwyn Enright

Question:

152 Ms Enright asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the status of the liquidation of IFI; when its creditors will be paid; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31634/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The determination of any payments due to creditors of IFI is a matter solely for the liquidator. The position of unsecured creditors can only be determined by the liquidator when all the assets of the company have been realised and all liabilities established. In this regard, I understand the liquidator has made considerable progress in realising the assets of the company and establishing the full extent of its liabilities.

At this stage, the main production sites at Arklow and Cork remain the principal assets yet to be realised. Contracts have been signed for the sale of both these sites and I understand that it is hoped to close the sales in the near future. The main liability to be established at this stage relates to a claim made by the trustees of the Richardsons superannuation scheme, covering the employees in Belfast. The liquidator has accepted, in principle, that there is an admissible claim on the liquidation but the quantum of that claim remains to be established. The liquidator is engaged in discussions with the trustees of the scheme with a view to agreeing the quantum of the claim and hopes to do so in the near future.

While it may take some more time to finalise all outstanding matters, I understand the liquidator hopes to be in a position to make at least an interim payment to creditors before the end of the year.

Question No. 153 answered with QuestionNo. 127.

Employment Rights.

Joan Burton

Question:

154 Ms Burton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made to date with regard to his consultations regarding the possible establishment of a joint labour committee to protect the interests of domestic workers, especially in view of evidence of exploitation of domestic workers from abroad; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31586/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

Legislation provides that an application for the establishment of a joint labour committee can be made to the Labour Court by me, as Minister, a trade union or any organisation or group of persons claiming to be representative of such workers or of such employers. In consultation with the Labour Court and the Labour Relations Commission my Department is considering the practicalities of establishing a new JLC for domestic workers.

The Labour Relations Commission commissioned the University of Limerick to carry out a review of the JLC system in 2005. My Department has held bilateral discussions with relevant stakeholders regarding implementation of the recommendations in the review. The issue of a JLC for domestic workers is being considered in this context also.

Job Losses.

Denis Naughten

Question:

155 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment, further to Parliamentary Question No. 301 of 15 February 2005, if he will review this policy; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31341/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The reduction of 5,000 in staffing levels as announced by the Government in 2002 applies to all sectors of the public service. The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and its agencies, including FÁS, are expected to contribute to this reduction. In the case of FÁS a reduction of 150 from a staffing level of almost 2,400 over several years is considered appropriate and I do not propose to review the situation.

Employment Rights.

Róisín Shortall

Question:

156 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he has taken and the proposals he has formulated to address concerns in relation to the protection of workers’ jobs, pay and conditions of employment from displacement in favour of cheap labour involving the exploitation of non-national workers in view of trade union reluctance to enter talks on a new social partnership agreement. [31619/05]

Paul Kehoe

Question:

167 Mr. Kehoe asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he intends to take on employment standards arising from the decision by Irish Ferries to outsource its workforce; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31633/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 156 and 167 together.

There is already a comprehensive body of employment rights legislation which has as its objective the protection of employees against arbitrary behaviour by employers, provision for the safety and health of workers and to foster labour market harmony by promoting policies that minimise conflict and maximise fairness.

While recognising the exceptional situation that has arisen in the maritime sector, it is important to remember that the full panoply of Irish employment law and social protection still applies to persons employed in Ireland regardless of nationality. This body of law is, and will continue to be, enforced by my Department.

Following the announcement on 12 April last there are now 31 inspector posts sanctioned for the labour inspectorate. This represents almost a doubling of the complement of inspectors in the past 12 months and is indicative of my determination to ensure compliance with employment rights legislation.

Apart from the strengthening of staff resources, other initiatives are under way also. Arising from a commitment in Sustaining Progress, and to assist in the preparation of proposals for consideration by Government, a discussion document was prepared by the labour inspectorate in relation to its mandate and resourcing. The discussion document covered the full dimension of issues that impact on the operation of the labour inspectorate ranging from the legislative framework right through to the operational aspects and staff development. The discussion document has been well received among the social partners and the parties are well advanced in their consideration of the proposals that exceed 40. The objective is to formulate a set of recommendations for Government. It is intended that this process would feed into and complement any future partnership discussions.

On 24 May last, I announced a programme of action in response to the report and recommendations of the review group on the role and functions of the employment rights bodies and following consultations with the various interested parties. This included the establishment of an employment rights group, ERG, comprising representatives of my Department, the employment rights bodies and the social partners. The ERG is to consider how best to simplify and streamline the complaint, appeal and enforcement procedures and documentation across all the various employment rights bodies. The ERG will also examine the extent to which common procedures and a simplified approach to the conduct of hearings-investigations can be adopted across all the bodies, leading to procedural simplification and improved customer service. Its work should be completed by the end of next year.

The concerns in relation to the protection of workers' jobs, pay and conditions of employment to which the Deputies refer raise complex legal and policy issues. The Government is committed, however, to taking whatever steps are feasible, through legislation or otherwise, to develop in partnership with congress and employers, a meaningful package in the area of enhanced employment standards generally. These issues can best be advanced through dialogue in the context of the partnership process.

Labour Court.

Seán Ryan

Question:

157 Mr. S. Ryan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the proportion of the Labour Court’s increased case load in 2004 which consisted of complaints concerning the construction industry pension and sick pay schemes; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31625/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

The Labour Court is an independent statutory body that acts independently in carrying out its functions. The Deputy's question relates to an issue concerning the day-to-day operation of the court, and is one in which I have no direct function.

There are two employment agreements relating to the construction sector registered with the Labour Court: (1) pensions assurance and sick pay; and (2) wages and conditions. Alleged breaches of registered employment agreements are considered by the Labour Court under procedures provided for under section 32 of the Industrial Relations Act 1946.

According to the Labour Court Annual Report for 2004, the increase in referrals to the court in 2004 was mainly attributable to an increase of more than 75% in the number of complaints alleging non-compliance with the registered employment agreements for the construction industry on pension, assurance and sick pay. This has resulted from increased monitoring of the level of adherence to the agreement by both union and employer bodies in that industry.

Proposed Legislation.

Brendan Howlin

Question:

158 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if it is his intention to introduce legislation to provide for the creation of a new offence of corporate manslaughter as suggested by the Law Reform Commission in October 2003 and recommended by the commission in its recent report to which a draft Bill is appended; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31582/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The issue of whether legislation to provide for the creation of a new offence of corporate manslaughter as suggested by the Law Reform Commission in its recent report is not a matter for me as Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment.

The main thrust of the recommendations are at a much wider area of responsibility than that covered by my Department and consequently I do not have a primary function in the matter.

I launched the report at the request of the Law Reform Commission and at the time I made it clear that consideration of the report will now take place primarily at Government level by the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform in the context of his main responsibilities for the criminal law system.

Question No. 159 answered with QuestionNo. 132.

Economic Competitiveness.

Pat Breen

Question:

160 Mr. P. Breen asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on whether the level of investment in research and development here is compatible with economic goals and the goals set out in the Lisbon Agenda; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31641/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The process of comprehensively addressing the research and development agenda was commenced by this Government under the current National Development Plan, NDP, 2000-2006. Within the current NDP, STI has become a major plank of this Government's policy, underpinned by very significant resources. The importance of ensuring greater coherence in the development of the overall national system of innovation and the value of a whole of Government approach has also been recognised by this Government. A cabinet sub-committee for STI, serviced by an interdepartmental committee, is fully operational and active.

Achievements have been made. Ireland is now in a period of catching up. Real annual average growth in gross expenditure on research and development, GERD, for Ireland was 4.5% for 2001-03 rising to 4.8% for 2003-05. In GNP terms the ratio for GERD to GNP has risen from 1.3% in 2001 to 1.45% in 2005.

However, this is not yet commensurate with our ambitions to develop as a knowledge-based economy. The publication of Building Ireland’s Knowledge Economy last year set out the challenges. The response to that document is being prepared by my Department, in association with other relevant Departments in the interdepartmental committee on STI, and I will shortly be bringing forward a strategy on STI to 2013, which will drive this agenda forward.

As the Deputy will be aware, the Lisbon Agenda is aimed at making Europe more competitive and innovative on the world stage. There are very significant challenges ahead. Science, technology and innovation in Ireland is still under developed by comparison with our key global competitors and challenges are increasing from locations such as China, Singapore and South Korea. Recent work by the EU Commission has provided a timely review of progress towards achieving the Lisbon objectives and provides a sobering reminder of the challenge that faces us all in our efforts to drive investment in research and development and innovation.

We need to make the next quantum leap forward. Making that vision a reality requires strategic investment. We will continue to work to ensure that, within the next decade, Ireland becomes internationally renowned for our research, generating and using new knowledge for economic and social progress to the benefit of all.

Question No. 161 answered with QuestionNo. 127.

Question No. 162 answered with QuestionNo. 114.

Question No. 163 answered with QuestionNo. 132.

Question No. 164 answered with QuestionNo. 127.

National Consumer Agency.

Michael D. Higgins

Question:

165 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made to date with regard to the establishment of the new National Consumer Agency; if the membership of the board of the agency has been finalised; the number of meetings held by the board to date in 2005; the number of full-time staff the agency will have and the numbers appointed to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31601/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

As I advised the House in my reply to a previous question, the core recommendation of the Consumer Strategy Group is that a new statutory body, the national consumer agency, be established to be an advocate on behalf of consumers. The Government fully approved this recommendation and has agreed to establish the new agency as soon as practicable.

The establishment of the NCA will require primary legislation. My Department has already commenced the necessary preliminary legislative and organisational work to ensure that the NCA is established as soon as possible. I am conscious, however, that establishing the new agency may take some time. For that reason, with the approval of the Government, I recently appointed a board to the national consumer agency to act in an interim capacity until such time as the agency is established on a statutory footing. The board, which is comprised of a chairperson and 12 other members, has held three meetings to date.

Given its non-statutory status, the interim board does not have any staff itself. It does, however, have the assistance of Forfás in carrying out its activities. Forfás has assigned 4.5 staff to assist the interim board in this regard. This number will increase considerably in 2006 to cater for the significant increase in activities which the interim board intends to undertake in the course of next year.

With regard to the numbers of staff that the NCA might have when formally established, it is not possible to give a precise estimate of that number at this stage. It is the case, however, that one of the interim board's priority tasks is to prepare a detailed estimate of staffing, resource and budget requirements of a fully operational and statutory based national consumer agency.

I very much welcome the Government's decision to approve the establishment of a national consumer agency. I am certain the agency will have a key role in advocating the consumer case and in the development of future consumer policy. I am also of the view that the appointment of an interim board until the NCA is formally established is most important. The interim board will ensure that the momentum of the Consumer Strategy Group's report is maintained, that the consumer's voice will be heard and that the construction of a fully operational NCA can begin.

Job Losses.

Enda Kenny

Question:

166 Mr. Kenny asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the action he intends to take to reverse the continuing trend of job losses in the manufacturing sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31627/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Job losses in the manufacturing sector are of ongoing concern and the Government is doing all in its power to create structures through its enterprise development and training agencies, which will facilitate those who have lost jobs to gain new ones, particularly ones that offer more opportunity both in terms of skills and permanence.

Ireland has a predominantly modern manufacturing base which competes in a range of growth sectors. However, as with most other European countries, there are areas of activity in which Ireland's competitiveness is seriously challenged. In the main, these are in areas where the availability of lower cost locations is making cost the primary driver behind business decision making. It is inevitable that the investment decisions of some companies will be influenced by the competitive attractions of alternative geographic locations. Our focus is firmly concentrated on managing the current transition with the best possible blend of policies to strengthen both national and firm level competitiveness.

Manufacturing has been a key driver of prosperity across the economy for many years and enterprise policies will continue to emphasise the strategic importance of the sector to future economic growth. The Enterprise Strategy Group, ESG, recognised the importance of the sector in providing a foundation of skills and technologies on which to build a high performance, high value added and technologically orientated manufacturing sector into the future.

My objective and that of the Government is to ensure that our economy remains a globally competitive, profitable and secure location for business. We can best help enterprise, including the manufacturing sector, by continuing to implement policies that are pro business and by implementing the right balance of enterprise supports and at the right time to help business. When provided with the best supporting and competitive environment, business and industry will develop to capitalise on investment and growth opportunities. It is the Government's intention to enable enterprise growth by policies tailored to address the competitive pressures transforming the global economy.

A key element of the Government's strategy to help enterprise is to encourage increased levels of investment in research, business related technological development and innovation across all enterprise sectors. These increased levels will assist firms to produce improved products and services with added value. In the longer term, this approach will provide both more sustainable and higher quality jobs.

While there has been a decrease in the number of jobs in manufacturing in recent times, there is consistent growth in job numbers in other areas. The most recent quarterly national household survey published by the Central Statistics Office on 14 September 2005 shows that there were 2,014,800 persons in the labour force, which represents an annual increase of 94,500 or 4.9%. This is the highest year on year increase since the survey began.

Question No. 167 answered with QuestionNo. 156.

Job Creation.

Eamon Ryan

Question:

168 Mr. Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment his views on the fact that the additional 93,000 jobs created this year have not led to a pro-rata increase in the expected tax take; if this is further indicative of increased casualisation of the Irish workforce; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31587/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

The growth in employment by 93,000 in the year to the second quarter of 2005 is the highest annual growth rate recorded in five years. Full-time employment increased by 72,500 — males, 39,200 and females, 33,300. Part-time employment increased by 20,600 — males, 5,800 and females, 14,800 — compared with 6,000 in the same period last year. Overall, since 1997, full-time employment has increased from 1,215,000 to 1,597,500 while part-time employment has increased from 252,700 to 331,700.

The construction and financial-business services sectors accounted for more than 50% of the employment growth. Across all sectors, practically every occupational category experienced an increase in employment with the largest increases in the craft, clerical and secretarial occupations.

The latest quarterly economic commentary from the ESRI has indicated that the growth rates in employment, as well as sustained economic growth, have had a significant positive impact on incomes. The reporting of tax receipts is the responsibility of the Minister for Finance.

Question No. 169 answered with QuestionNo. 114.

Job Losses.

Jimmy Deenihan

Question:

170 Mr. Deenihan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will arrange a visit to County Kerry in the near future to discuss the job losses in IDA supported industries over the past five years with the local chambers of commerce, SIPTU and other organisations; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31616/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I visited Kerry on 21 July 2005 with officials from my Department and the State development agencies. During the course of this visit I met the Kenmare Chamber of Commerce, and representative organisations and businesses in Caherciveen, Killorglin and Killarney. Wide-ranging discussions were held concerning economic development in the region.

IDA's strategy for Kerry is to win high value investments in the international services, engineering and ICT sectors. IDA Ireland is pursuing this strategy within the NSS, which has designated Tralee and Killarney as linked hubs. While I may give general policy directives to the agency under the Industrial Development Acts, I am precluded from giving directives regarding individual undertakings or from giving preference to one area over others.

However, I am informed that IDA Ireland is actively marketing the region. At the end of 2004, there were 2,022 people in permanent employment in 21 IDA supported companies in the county. The agency has now completed site development works on its business and technology park at Tiernaboul in Killarney. The site area totals 4.66 hectares and the work involved significant landscaping, access development and site clearance. This work has cost in the region of €1 million. A local group of business people have completed a new building of 14,716 sq.ft. on a site acquired from IDA on the this park. IDA is also actively marketing the Kerry technology park adjacent to the institute of technology in Tralee and the Listowel development centre.

In addition to targeting potential new projects, the agency is also working with its existing portfolio of companies in the region, with a view to supporting such companies with potential expansions and diversification of activities.

It is my intention to visit the Tralee and north Kerry area as soon as my departmental and parliamentary commitments permit and I look forward to discussion with the local chambers of commerce and other interested groups about employment prospects specifically and economic development generally in the region.

Question No. 171 answered with QuestionNo. 140.

Ministerial Appointments.

Joe Costello

Question:

172 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made regarding his examination of the issues that have arisen in relation to the academic qualifications of the person recently appointed as chief science adviser; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31599/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I am continuing to examine the issues raised in the House and in the media in relation to the academic qualifications of the chief science adviser. I have raised the specific issues identified in the previous questions and representations from members of the House with the chief science adviser and have sought his response. I have met the chief science adviser to discuss the issues in question and following that meeting I have asked the chief science adviser to submit additional information. The issues raised are significant and it is vital that a full and diligent examination and consideration of them is undertaken and that a determination is made only when all of the issues are fully considered.

Labour Inspectorate.

Liz McManus

Question:

173 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of inspections carried out by the labour inspectorate and the number of prosecutions initiated by the inspectorate in respect of the years 2002, 2003, 2004 and to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31605/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

The number of workplace inspections-visits undertaken by the labour inspectorate, during and after normal business hours, and prosecutions initiated in respect of the years 2002, 2003, 2004 and to date is set out in the following tabular statement.

The primary function of the labour inspectorate is to seek compliance and rectification of any breaches identified, including payment of any arrears due to employees. Inspectors pursue allegations of worker mistreatment and seek redress for the individual/s concerned and, if appropriate, a prosecution is initiated. Successful prosecution can be dependent on adequate support from witnesses.

Year	Inspections/Visits	Prosecutions Initiated
2002	8,323	25
2003	7,168	20
2004	5,160	14
2005	3,811	24

Question No. 174 answered with QuestionNo. 115.

Work-Days Lost.

Michael Lowry

Question:

175 Mr. Lowry asked the Taoiseach the number of work-days lost to the economy as a result of medical appointments in each year since 2002; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31934/05]

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach (Mr. Kitt)

The exact information requested by the Deputy is not available. The only information of this nature compiled is statistics on working days lost due to work-related accidents and work-related illnesses.

Statistics on days lost from work due to work-related accidents and illnesses are available for 2002 to 2004 from the quarterly national household survey and are set out in the following table:

Persons who suffered work-related injury or work-related illness and total number of days lost1
	000s
	Q2 1998	Q1 2002	Q1 2003*	Q1 2004*
Injury
Total persons suffering work-related injury	43.1	51.8	43.1	54.4
Rate per hundred	2.9	3.0	2.4	3.0
Days lost	769,200	857,300	610,400	782,909
Illness
Total persons suffering work-related illness	26.1	33.0	38.1	46.3
Rate per hundred	1.7	1.9	2.2	2.5
Days lost	397,300	583,700	675,700	591,904
Total Incidence	69.2	84.8	81.2	100.7
Total days lost	1,166,500	1,441,000	1,286,100	1,374,813

*Figure relates to most recent injury only.

1Days lost data should be interpreted with care as respondents may have included ‘potential' days lost.

Note: Data may be subject to sampling or other survey errors, which are greater in respect of smaller values or estimates of change.

EU Directives.

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

176 Mr. Quinn asked the Taoiseach the number of EU directives within his Department’s competency which have not been transposed into law; the number of warning letters received by his Department from the Commission or other EU bodies relating to non-transposed directives in each of the years from 1997 and to date; the legislation in each case; if that legislation has since been transposed into Irish law or if it is still outstanding; if still outstanding, the date by which it was meant to have been transposed; the title of the directive which has been waiting transposition for the longest period in his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31334/05]

The Taoiseach

There are no EU directives which come within my Department's area of competency which have not yet been transposed into law.

Dan Boyle

Question:

177 Mr. Boyle asked the Taoiseach the costs involved to the office of the Attorney General in having to defend actions against the Government in relation to the non-compliance or non-application of European Union directives (details supplied). [30023/05]

The Taoiseach

The information set out as follows shows the fees paid to counsel in regard to each case. No other fees were paid out by the office of the Chief State Solicitor which carries out this function under the aegis of the office of the Attorney General.

Case	Amount
	€
C-67/99	19,538.96
C-117/00	5,400.00
C-316/00	No fees paid*
C- 67/02	No fees paid*
C-494/01	30,120.90
C-257/03	1,261.17
C-120/01	No fees paid*

Case	Amount
C-282/02	5,808.00
C-392/96	No fees paid*
C-410/02	5,000.00
C-330/02	No fees paid*
C-418/04	10,648.00
C-406/03	1,573.00
C-256/03	No fees paid*
C-396/01	4,294.29
C-413/03	5,000.00
C-461/99	No fees paid*
C-354/99	No fees paid*

* Where it states "no fees paid" this means that either no external counsel was used or no demand for fees has been received as of yet.

Private Rented Accommodation.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

178 Mr. Sargent asked the Taoiseach the number of private rental properties and landlords in the county of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown, the four Dublin counties, in the State in the figures available from Central Statistics Office from the most recent period for which figures are available. [31411/05]

Ciarán Cuffe

Question:

179 Mr. Cuffe asked the Taoiseach the number of private rental properties and landlords in the areas of Dun Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, Dublin City Council and in the State in the last census from which figures are available. [31412/05]

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach (Mr. Kitt)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 178 and 179 together.

The most recent information is in respect of the 2002 census and the relevant information is contained in the following table:

Private dwellings in permanent housing units in Dublin counties and the State, 2002
Occupancy Type	Private rented unfurnished	Private rented furnished or part furnished	Total private rented
Dublin City and County	8,301	46,530	54,831
of which
Dublin City	5,335	32,528	57,863
Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown	1,449	5,763	7,212
Fingal	768	4,173	4,941
South Dublin	749	4,066	4,815
State	25,883	115,576	141,459

Northern Ireland Issues.

Joe Costello

Question:

180 Mr. Costello asked the Taoiseach when he received the third report by Judge Barron into the murder of Mr. Seamus Ludlow; the reason for the continued delay in referring the report to the Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women’s Rights; when he proposes to make the report available for publication; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31467/05]

The Taoiseach

Judge Barron's third report relates specifically to the murder of Seamus Ludlow and it was presented to the Government in October 2004. The Government wishes to see the report published in the form that it was received from Judge Barron.

In that context, certain aspects of the report have required careful consideration and were the subject of legal advice, including on the protection of the rights of persons named in the report. The Government has now concluded its consideration of this matter. The report will be brought before the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Justice, Equality, Defence and Women's Rights this week.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

181 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Taoiseach the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31743/05]

The Taoiseach

No contracts have been awarded by my Department in respect of public relations in the period December 2004 to October 2005.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

182 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Taoiseach the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31758/05]

The Taoiseach

The number of civil servants and other staff employed in the Taoiseach's constituency office, their grade and remuneration is set out in the following table.

Grade	Remuneration
	€
Personal Assistant	46,691
Personal Assistant	47,921
Personal Secretary	33,270
Executive Officer	26,618
Staff Officer (Work-sharing)	18,098
Clerical Officer	26,203
Clerical Officer	21,245
Clerical Officer	21,245

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

183 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Taoiseach the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31773/05]

The Taoiseach

The number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by my Department in each of the last five years is given in Table 1. Details of the contracts and the current status are shown in table 2.

Table 1.
Year	Number of Contracts	Total Value of Contracts
		€
2001	12	1,113,547
2002	5	143,065
2003	10	281,707
2004	20	430,886
2005	6	108,588

Table 2.
Department of the Taoiseach
Year of Contract	Supplier	Purpose	Total Expenditure	Current Status
			€
2001	Hay Management Consultants	Design and development of effective systems of feedback within the Performance Management and Development System (PMDS)2	45,774	Completed
2001	Dr. Jane Pillinger	Research Report on Equality Diversity and Quality Customer Service2	38,700	Completed
2001	Arthur Andersen	Management Information Framework	93,440	Completed
2001	Dr. Tom McCarthy, NUI Maynooth	Research for Consultation Document: Towards Better Regulation2	6,692	Completed
2001-2002	Sureskills	Windows 2000 Implementation	147,908	Completed
2001-2002	Mr. Alex Matheson, OECD	Participation on Steering Group for the Evaluation of the Strategic Management Initiative2	14,014	Completed
2001	PA Consulting Group	Evaluation of the Strategic Management Initiative2	491,992	Completed
2001	Institute of Public Administration	Preparation of HR Strategy Guidelines document2	18,284	Completed
2001-2002	Oracle	Management Information Framework	229,623	Completed
2001	Deloitte & Touche	Value for Money Audit of Mobile Phone services	7,618	Completed
2001	IBEC	Review of Health & Safety	4,889	Completed
2001	Hosca Management Consultants	Consultancy services for carrying out an Employee Opinion Survey	14,613	Completed
2002	Octagon	IT Strategic Review	8,400	Completed
2002	Dr. Patrick Butler	Evaluation of Customer Action Plans2	32,000	Completed
2002	Professor Philip Lane	Commentary on Better Regulation Submissions2	4,500	Completed
2002	Peter White	Consultancy regarding communications for the Civil Service modernisation programme	850	Completed
2002	KPMG Consulting (Bearing Point)	Implementation of Human Resource Management System	97,315	Completed
2003	Watson Wyatt	Consultancy services for carrying out an Employee Opinion Survey	25,410	Completed
2003	Watson Wyatt	Consultancy services for carrying out an Employee Opinion Survey — further reports	14,520	Completed
2003	Grayling Gilmore PR Consultants*	EU Presidency Logo Launch & Public Relations Compaign	60,000	Completed
2003	Jacobs & Associates	Consultancy on regulatory reform policy2	12,947	Completed
2003	Professor Martin Cave, Warwick Business School	Consultancy on regulatory reform policy2	575	Completed
2003	Fujitsu Services	ECabinet Security Policy	15,730	Completed
2003	Lansdowne Market Research	Irish Civil Service — Customer Satisfaction Survey report2	36,000	Completed
2003	NGM Market Research	Communicating Change and Modernisation in the Civil Service report2	15,000	Completed
2003	Enterprise LSE	London School of Economics to provide training course for Irish Officials in relation to regulation2	38,879	Completed
2003	Carr Communications	Development and delivery of Phase II of the Department of the Taoiseach’s Career Development Programme	62,646	Completed
2004	Eurokom	Security Review	7,650	Completed
2004	Red Dog Design	EU Presidency Awareness Campaign	65,740	Completed
2004	Carr Communications	Disability Bill	12,147	Completed
2004	Good Practice Ltd	Tailoring of on-line toolkit for Department Intranet	33,350	Completed
2004	McCann Fitzgerald Solicitors	Research and preparation of report — Redress for Civil Service Customers2	76,894	Ongoing
2004	Watson Wyatt	Employee Opinion Survey	27,947	Completed
2004	The Design Consultancy	Step by Step Guide to the PMDS System	4,719	Completed
2004	Grayling Gilmore	PR re EU Presidency	21,023	Completed
2004	Red Dog Design	EU Presidency Posters	2,060	Completed
2004	David Donaghy	Day of Welcomes production	28,900	Completed
2004	Academic Conferences Ltd	ECEG Conference Management	36,300	Completed
2004	Jacobs & Associates	Preparation of report for EU Conference on Better Regulation2	18,876	Completed
2004	Dr. Patrick Paul Walsh, Trinity College Dublin	Preparation of report for EU Conference on Better Regulation2	5,250	Completed
2004	HCM International	Research on the integration of the Performance Management and Development System (PMDS) with HR policies and processes2	Nil (ongoing)	Ongoing
2004	Zerflow	ECabinet Security Assessment	5,929	Completed
2004-2005	Goodbody Economic Consultants	Economic assistance to Departments/Offices piloting regulatory Impact Analysis2	21,054 ongoing	Ongoing
2004	RTE	EU Presidency Consultancy Services	35,256	Completed
2004	Elucidate	eCabinet Design Summary Screen	8,546	Completed
2004-2005	Mercer Human Resource Consulting	Review of the Performance Management and Development System (PMDS) Evaluation results for technical and professional staff2	15,125	Completed
2004 & 2005	Des Geraghty	Promotion of the Affordable Housing Initiative	4,120	Completed
2005	IQ Content	Usability & Accessibility Review of websites	19,239	Ongoing
2005	Tansey, Webster & Co	Affordable Housing Proposal	9,680	Completed
2005	Pan Research Ltd	Customer Service Evaluation Report	6,313	Completed
2005	Enterprise LSE	London School of Economics to provide a training course for Irish Officials on regulation2	41,443	Completed
2005	Fitzpatrick Associates	Research Project on the Special Initiatives under Sustaining Progress	18,603	Ongoing
2005	Institute of Public Administration	Research in relation to mapping of regulatory framework2	13,310 to date	Ongoing

* Met from funds provided by Department of Foreign Affairs

1Costs met from Information Society Fund, administered by the Department of Finance

2Costs met from Change Management Fund, administered by the Department of Finance

Note: Department of Finance guidelines for engagement of consultants in the Civil Service state that “in relation to Information and Communications Technologies (ICT), expenditure on software development, from analysis through to implementation and post-implementation, should not be classified as consultancy, irrespective of whether this expenditure is with individuals or with the consultancy houses”. Therefore expenditure in relation to such IT development projects have not been included in the data supplied.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

184 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Taoiseach the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31788/05]

The Taoiseach

The number of civil servants and other staff employed in the Government press office, their grade and remuneration is set out in the following table.

Grade	Remuneration
	€
Government Press Secretary	120,117
Press Officer-Assistant Principal	65,701
Press Officer-Higher Executive Officer	47,921
Press Officer-Higher Executive Officer	45,457
Press Officer-Higher Executive Officer	47,921
Clerical Officer	25,209
Clerical Officer	13,101

Each press officer is normally required to be on call one week in four, for which they receive an on-call allowance equivalent to five hours overtime at double time rates per week.

District Electoral Divisions.

Paul McGrath

Question:

185 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Taoiseach the population of each parish and district electoral division in counties Longford and Westmeath in each of the past 20 years. [31814/05]

Minister of State at the Department of the Taoiseach (Mr. Kitt)

The information requested by the Deputy is contained in the following table which is based on the results of censuses of population from 1981 to 2002. Electoral divisions are the smallest geographical area for which information is published from the census.

Population of each electoral division in counties Longford and Westmeath, censuses 1981-2002
County-Electoral Division	1981	1986	1991	1996	2002
Longford County	31,140	31,496	30,296	30,166	31,068
1. Longford No. 1 Urban	3,295	2,982	2,887	2,989	2,841
2. Longford No. 2 Urban	703	666	649	709	711
3. Agharra	382	360	322	358	331
4. Ballymahon	1,637	1,689	1,617	1,559	1,548
5. Cashel East	377	386	400	372	324
6. Cashel West	633	630	572	565	538
7. Doory	325	346	331	345	358
8. Forgney	418	421	383	380	393
9. Foxhall	409	394	352	373	431
10. Kilcommock	602	625	591	598	581
11. Kilglass	656	580	549	555	588
12. Ledwithstown	307	325	295	269	258
13. Abbeylara	279	274	285	280	245
14. Ballinalee	391	404	360	357	376
15. Ballymuigh	260	272	257	256	255
16. Bunlahy	177	172	148	166	167
17. Columbkille	673	682	645	596	596
18. Coolamber	296	276	261	261	263
19. Creevy	382	347	349	313	289
20. Crosagstown	205	205	219	208	226
21. Currygrane	127	101	116	109	126
22. Dalystown	186	174	185	175	170
23. Drummeel	138	135	108	111	127
24. Firry	137	117	129	149	172
25. Gelshagh	367	341	298	284	322
26. Granard Rural	294	300	264	261	256
27. Granard Urban	1,285	1,338	1,221	1,173	1,013
28. Knockanbaun	152	153	136	124	132
29. Lislea	171	166	158	163	142
30. Meathas Truim	1,016	1,146	1,130	1,046	1,098
31. Milltown	335	343	329	329	323
32. Moatfarrell	152	167	131	124	158
33. Moyne	390	382	341	319	321
34. Mullanalaghta	309	304	287	301	292
35. Newgrove	62	56	59	50	37
36. Sonnagh	341	324	306	281	281
37. Aghaboy	535	509	488	492	509
38. Ardagh East	586	614	575	529	529
39. Ardagh West	372	340	333	343	397
40. Ballinamuck East	549	577	539	485	464
41. Ballinamuck West	503	479	460	453	459
42. Breanrisk	643	656	601	604	642
43. Caldragh	721	857	917	1,127	1,269
44. Cloondara	578	571	560	552	549
45. Cloonee	562	566	565	599	618
46. Corboy	347	355	350	361	395
47. Drumgort	539	511	447	430	416
48. Drumlish	765	773	771	799	828
49. Killashee	254	249	239	235	234
50. Killoe	378	334	323	306	284
51. Longford Rural	3,280	3,676	3,685	3,576	4,317
52. Mountdavis	194	208	195	185	197
53. Moydow	510	538	549	566	557
54. Newtown Forbes	645	728	723	768	847
55. Rathcline	1,310	1,372	1,306	1,248	1,268
1. Athlone East Urban	5,126	5,068	4,765	4,517	4,092
2. Athlone West Urban	4,318	3,747	3,405	3,174	3,262
3. Athlone East Rural	4,171	5,145	5,506	5,728	6,433
4. Auburn	436	474	468	486	534
5. Ballybroder	198	188	202	205	250
6. Bellanalack	267	292	335	358	431
7. Carn	475	488	499	580	706
8. Castledaly	583	616	606	607	658
9. Glassan	555	665	700	745	816
10. Kilcumreragh	313	334	333	361	396
11. Killinure	244	263	313	324	337
12. Moate	2,254	2,088	1,938	1,849	1,941
13. Mount Temple	398	433	418	438	507
14. Moydrum	1,444	1,749	1,845	1,986	2,136
15. Muckanagh	161	161	164	153	158
16. Tubbrit	511	568	549	569	635
17. Umma	260	268	261	282	267
18. Ardnagragh	346	373	388	384	400
19. Ballymore	462	447	440	413	458
20. Doonis	203	209	215	192	199
21. Drumraney	193	193	184	191	232
22. Noughaval	241	265	271	289	323
23. Piercetown	117	122	109	114	98
24. Templepatrick	244	255	245	234	222
25. Winetown	143	141	137	118	129
26. Boherquill	138	135	99	92	107
27. Coole	251	260	229	235	209
28. Coolure	299	286	276	280	276
29. Finnea	264	269	259	256	260
30. Glore	196	137	113	106	169
31. Knockarrow	129	115	96	86	91
32. Rathowen	289	280	284	301	325
33. Street	303	297	273	300	289
34. Ballinlough	165	156	140	130	136
35. Ballyhealy	182	176	170	176	249
36. Ballynaskeagh	246	214	189	203	215
37. Bracklin	185	186	183	180	217
38. Clonarney	320	355	354	343	380
39. Collinstown	292	300	313	319	326
40. Copperalley	248	219	191	187	225
41. Delvin	501	509	500	524	558
42. Faughalstown	198	237	220	209	225
43. Fore East	278	279	283	301	344
44. Fore West	318	285	253	281	289
45. Hilltown	260	270	240	209	205
46. Kilcumny	206	175	154	155	159
47. Killua	557	573	534	519	708
48. Killulagh	306	295	275	292	342
49. Kilpatrick	149	146	143	153	196
50. Kinturk	1,111	1,108	1,030	1,070	1,107
51. Riverdale	290	273	243	242	259
52. Rosmead	321	319	297	287	333
53. Ardnaglew	166	186	185	178	255
54. Ballinalack	435	504	444	453	490
55. Ballykilmore	520	520	520	496	623
56. Ballymorin	245	253	253	238	249
57. Ballynagore	435	464	472	500	497
58. Belvidere	491	506	582	673	835
59. Carrick	234	274	245	254	301
60. Castle	511	545	550	555	662
61. Castlelost	889	976	892	920	1,594
62. Castletown	627	644	587	590	671
63. Churchtown	228	230	229	228	214
64. Cloghan	223	253	228	246	260
65. Clonfad	429	403	422	482	540
66. Clonlost	384	395	385	414	427
67. Derrymore	227	227	198	202	228
68. Dysart	229	223	235	231	230
69. Emper	243	232	206	192	203
70. Enniscoffey	298	292	297	298	337
71. Gaybrook	234	245	232	274	370
72. Glenlough	219	212	195	193	193
73. Greenpark	274	248	216	209	241
74. Griffinstown	359	359	370	436	493
75. Heathstown	481	523	495	534	642
76. Hopestown	348	378	437	468	531
77. Huntingdon	278	278	261	256	305
78. Jamestown	133	133	122	120	128
79. Kilbeggan	1,056	990	949	972	997
80. Kilbixy	541	546	544	535	586
81. Killare	346	350	317	300	355
82. Killucan	725	777	793	827	1,028
83. Kinnegad	556	549	542	652	1,429
84. Knockdrim	454	432	425	420	478
85. Lackan	63	57	50	60	58
86. Lauree	197	176	176	171	181
87. Middleton	232	227	222	218	280
88. Milltown	268	246	260	282	315
89. Mullingar Rural	4,104	4,413	4,157	4,747	7,012
90. Mullingar North Urban	3,935	4,352	4,243	4,274	5,366
91. Mullingar South Urban	3,919	3,725	3,760	3,766	3,458
92. Multyfarnham	484	470	409	448	439
93. Newtown	211	232	225	208	203
94. Owel	399	471	403	451	494
95. Portloman	225	272	283	288	297
96. Raharney	325	416	436	422	488
97. Rahugh	317	312	303	290	300
98. Rathconrath	253	285	285	295	294
99. Russellstown	312	319	342	381	436
100. Skeagh	199	204	211	214	189
101. Sonna	325	253	246	244	257
102. Stonehall	184	184	172	167	188
103. Streamstown	297	318	324	330	338
104. Taghmon	292	292	271	292	354
105. Tullaghan	232	291	315	361	389
106. Woodland	267	311	322	326	311

Domestic Violence.

Martin Ferris

Question:

186 Mr. Ferris asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if she will ensure that voluntary sector groups working in the area of domestic and sexual violence are adequately provided for in the upcoming estimates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31502/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. S. Power)

My Department does not directly fund or co-ordinate health and personal social services to victims of abuse. Moneys are made available each year, formerly through the health boards, and now through the Health Service Executive, for the provision of services to women victims of violence. In recent years there has been a substantial increase in funding so that now more than €12 million is provided annually for the provision of such services. The distribution of this funding is a matter for the Health Service Executive.

The determination as to whether services should be provided by Health Service Executive employees or by the voluntary sector is also a matter for the Health Service Executive.

My Department has requested that the parliamentary affairs division of Health Service Executive reply directly to the Deputy on the matters raised in his question.

Health Services.

Martin Ferris

Question:

187 Mr. Ferris asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if she will ensure that a centre (details supplied) in County Kerry is adequately provided for in the upcoming estimates; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31503/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. S. Power)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Paul McGrath

Question:

188 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children her views on the charging of student nurses by certain Dublin hospitals for vaccinations which are obligatory for that profession. [31318/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

When the negotiations regarding the transfer of undergraduate nursing education to the third level sector were concluded it was agreed that health screening and vaccinations were issues for local health service agencies and should be dealt with accordingly.

The Deputy's question therefore, relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act, 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Finian McGrath

Question:

192 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the reason there is no occupational therapy service available for a person (details supplied) in Dublin 9; and if she will work with the Health Service Executive on this matter. [31323/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. T. O’Malley)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Medical Cards.

Cancer Screening Programme.

Sean Fleming

Question:

196 Mr. Fleming asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children when a nationwide cervical cancer screening programme will be in operation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31359/05]

Cecilia Keaveney

Question:

197 Cecilia Keaveney asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the efforts being made to roll out a nationwide cervical cancer screening service on a systematic call or recall programme; the timescale involved; and if she will make a statement on the concept of early detection being better than surgery. [31363/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 196 and 197 together.

National population based screening programmes for cancer are only considered where clear evidence exists of the benefit to the whole population to be screened. Population based screening programmes for cervical screening have demonstrated their efficacy internationally. A pilot cervical screening programme commenced in October 2000 and is available to eligible women resident in the HSE mid-western region. Under the programme, cervical screening is being offered, free of charge, to approximately 74,000 women in these three counties in the 25 to 60 age group, at five year intervals. I am committed to the national roll out of the cervical screening programme in line with international best practice.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 198 to 204, inclusive, and 208 and 209 together.

It is the intention of the Department to put in place a more robust regulatory system as quickly as possible to protect vulnerable older people and to provide for the highest possible standards of care for older people in long-stay facilities.

It is intended that the Health Bill 2005 will establish both the HIQA and the SSI on a statutory basis and will contain provisions to underpin a more robust inspectorial system. The Nursing Homes (Care and Welfare) Regulations 1993, made under the Health (Nursing Homes) Act 1990, set out the standards to which private nursing homes must adhere. The Health Service Executive carries out inspections in private nursing homes. In the context of the Health Bill 2005, the process has begun to review the current system with a view to strengthening the powers available to those involved in inspecting facilities and to extend a strengthened inspection system to public facilities.

It is also intended that the Bill will provide for the setting and monitoring of standards for residential facilities for older people. To this end, the Department has commenced a review of the Nursing Homes (Care and Welfare) Regulations 1993, and will be working in conjunction with the HSE, the SSI and other relevant bodies, with the intention of developing a new set of standards that would apply to all residential services for older people.

The Department is also working on primary legislation to expand the policies and principles of the subvention scheme to facilitate implementation of the scheme by the HSE throughout the country, and it is the intention to bring this legislation before the Oireachtas in the near future. It is also intended to increase the thresholds contained in the Nursing Homes (Subvention) Regulations 1993. These thresholds have not been updated since being set in 1993 and increasing them will render an increased number of people eligible for subvention.

Health Services.

Michael Ring

Question:

205 Mr. Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the resources which are available to help persons, especially elderly persons, in rural areas with the provision of transport to hospital for outpatient appointments or admissions especially those who have no means of transport, insufficient resources to hire transport and cannot avail of the public transport system due to a lack of service in their areas; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31404/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. S. Power)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, the Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Mental Health Services.

Liz McManus

Question:

206 Ms McManus asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children what plans she has under way to develop specialist mental health services, especially for eating disorders at a community and primary care level for young persons here; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31405/05]

Liz McManus

Question:

207 Ms McManus asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if, in view of the fact that eating disorders are disabling conditions which have a higher mortality rate than any other psychiatric illness; her views on whether an eating disorder will be covered under the Disability Bill 2004 (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31406/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. T. O’Malley)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 206 and 207 together.

Responsibility for the management and treatment of a person with an eating disorder rests with the individual patient's clinician. However, persons presenting with eating disorders are generally treated through the local psychiatric services. Outpatient psychiatric services are provided from a network of hospitals, health centres, day hospitals and day centres.

Under the new Disability Act, the definition of disability is based on the degree of disability and not on the type of illness. This means that all severe and enduring, or chronic, mental illnesses would be covered. It is most likely therefore that the severity of the eating disorder and the patient's prognosis would determine eligibility for services under the Act.

An expert group on mental health policy is preparing a new national framework for the further modernisation of the mental health services, updating the 1984 policy document Planning for the Future. The expert group has a number of sub-groups looking at specialist issues in mental health services, including the development of services and facilities for the treatment of eating disorders. The report of the expert group is expected to be published early in 2006.

Questions Nos. 208 and 209 answered with Question No. 198.

Health Services.

Liz McManus

Question:

210 Ms McManus asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if, in view of the fact that efforts are being made to encourage former nurses to return to the profession and some of these nurses may be required to participate in refresher courses and that in some instances there is limited availability of places on the courses, the number of courses available nationwide; the number of places available each year; the take-up and the numbers waiting to participate in such courses; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31414/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have the matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Hospital Waiting Lists.

Pat Breen

Question:

211 Mr. P. Breen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will receive an ear and throat appointment; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31417/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this case investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Health Services.

David Stanton

Question:

212 Mr. Stanton asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if the Health Service Executive will pay for special footwear for children who are prescribed same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31420/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Irish Blood Transfusion Service.

Kathleen Lynch

Question:

213 Ms Lynch asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the position regarding the promised blood transfusion centre for the Munster area; if the design team has been appointed; if the capital funding is in place; the start date for the project; when the project will be completed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31424/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

In 2004 the Irish Blood Transfusion Service invested more than €3 million in the refurbishment of its Cork centre to ensure compliance with good manufacturing practice standards. As the House was informed last April, there is provision in the Capital Investment Framework 2005 — 2009 for the appointment of a design team and commencement of the planning process for a new Cork centre. This project is the subject of ongoing consultations between the IBTS and my Department.

Psychological Service.

Paudge Connolly

Question:

214 Mr. Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the fact that her Department’s minimum requirements for the practise of psychology as set out in her 2002 declaration and as recommended by the Psychological Society of Ireland are seriously undermined by the current Health and Social Care Professionals Bill 2004, which stipulates that a recognised university degree or diploma obtained with first or second class honours in which psychology was taken as a major subject, and honours obtained in that subject is sufficient to be included on the register of psychologists with no reference to a postgraduate qualification in psychology; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31425/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Health and Social Care Professionals Bill 2004 provides for the establishment of a system of statutory registration for certain health and social care professionals, including psychologists, whether they are employed in the public service, the private health sector or are self employed. Under section 38, responsibility for the approval of qualifications attesting to the standard of proficiency required for registration will rest with the psychologists' registration board to be established under the Bill.

The qualifications referred to by the Deputy are those listed for existing practitioners as part of the transitional arrangements set out in the Bill for their registration. These arrangements will apply for a period of two years from the establishment of a register and include the provision that practitioners who hold a stated qualification and who have been in practice at any time during a period of five years before the establishment of a register shall be granted registration. A practitioner must also satisfy the registration board that he or she is a fit and proper person to engage in the practice of that profession.

The stated qualification for psychologists under the transitional arrangements for the registration of existing practitioners is a recognised university degree or diploma obtained with first or second class honours in which psychology was taken as a major subject and honours obtained in that subject. As indicated by the Deputy, this does not reflect the current qualifications required of persons recruited as psychologists within the public health service as, since 2002, psychologists recruited to the public health service have been required to hold a post graduate qualification.

The qualification set out in the Bill for psychologists under the transitional arrangements is instead designed to take proper account of those practitioners previously recruited to the public health service and also those who are practising elsewhere who may not hold a post graduate qualification.

The current provisions in the Bill for the registration of practising psychologists are appropriate in the context of a transitional period and having regard to arrangements in the public health service prior to 2002. I am conscious that any registrant — whether registered under the transitional provisions or otherwise — who does not meet the standard of proficiency and competence expected of registered professionals will be subject to the complaints, inquiries and disciplinary procedures set out in the Bill. The Bill represents a significant step forward in the protection of the public.

Health Services.

Paudge Connolly

Question:

215 Mr. Connolly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the locations of facilities for the fitting of prostheses for patients who have undergone mastectomy surgery; her proposals to provide such facilities in the Health Service Executive north east region; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31426/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to reply directly to the Deputy.

General Medical Services Scheme.

Jack Wall

Question:

216 Mr. Wall asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the reason a person (details supplied) in County Kildare in receipt of a medical card has to pay for a doctor to complete an application form for a driver’s licence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31466/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

Under the terms of the general medical services scheme contract, participating general practitioners undertake to provide a range of treatments and general practitioner services for the patients on their GMS panel. Their GMS contract obliges them to provide the first and last certificates to explain work absence for their patients. All other requested certificates in respect of requirements for driving licences or life or assurance policies may incur charges.

Health Services.

Joe Higgins

Question:

217 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the fact that Beaumont Hospital has discontinued enhanced external counter pulsation treatment. [31479/05]

Joe Higgins

Question:

218 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the reason enhanced external counter pulsation treatment has been discontinued at Beaumont Hospital. [31480/05]

Joe Higgins

Question:

219 Mr. J. Higgins asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the location at which angina sufferers can avail of enhanced external counter pulsation treatment due to the fact that this service has been discontinued at Beaumont Hospital. [31481/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

My Department is advised by the Health Service Executive that a reply to Question No. 79 of 29 September 2005, concerning Monaghan General Hospital, was issued to the Deputy on 28 October 2005.

Nursing Home Charges.

Seán Haughey

Question:

225 Mr. Haughey asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the reason 10 December 1998 was selected as the cut off point for claims for refunds arising out of illegal charges collected from nursing home residents; if she will review this date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31520/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

237 Mr. Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be called for physiotherapy in Ballina. [31642/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, the Department of Health and Children has asked the parliamentary affairs division of the HSE to arrange to have the matter investigated and for a reply to issue directly to the Deputy.

Michael Ring

Question:

238 Mr. Ring asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children when a person (details supplied) in County Mayo will be called for an urgent MRI scan. [31643/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, the Department of Health and Children has asked the parliamentary affairs division of the HSE to arrange to have the matter investigated and for a reply to issue directly to the Deputy.

Health Service Staff.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

239 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children her plans to progress the appointment of a neurologist and associated resources for the mid-west region; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31644/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

Under the Health Act 2004, which established the Health Service Executive on 1 January 2005, the HSE is responsible for managing and delivering, or arranging to be delivered on its behalf, health and personal social services. Therefore, it is responsible for the provision of neurology services.

The Comhairle report on neurology and neurophysiology, which was published in April 2003, recommended significant enhancement of such services, including the appointment of consultants in Limerick. Following the publication of the report, my predecessor, Deputy Martin, endorsed the report's recommendations and wrote to the health boards to urge them to progress the recommendations as the funding available permitted. Additional revenue funding was made available in 2005 to support the development of neurology and neurophysiology services in a number of regions, including the mid-west, having regard to agreed priorities. As the continuing development of such services is a matter for the HSE, having regard to available funding, accordingly, the Department of Health and Children will ask the parliamentary affairs division of the HSE to arrange to have the matter investigated and for a reply to issue directly to the Deputy.

Hospital Waiting Lists.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

240 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if she will publish details including demographic profiles of all those waiting for orthodontic treatment in Limerick city and county; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31645/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, the Department of Health and Children has asked the parliamentary affairs division of the HSE to arrange to have the matter investigated and for a reply to issue directly to the Deputy.

Health Services.

The HSE has informed the Department of Health and Children that an outside company with experience in handling mass claims will be engaged by the end of the month to provide an independent input into the design and administration of the scheme. I intend to bring legislation before the Oireachtas in the next parliamentary session. Repayments should commence shortly after the Bill is approved and signed into law.

Hospital Accommodation.

Paul Kehoe

Ambulance Service.

John Gormley

Question:

260 Mr. Gormley asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the fact that ambulance drivers in the Dublin area must fill out a patient care report; her views on whether the information required on this report is too comprehensive and imposes a huge burden on ambulance drivers; and if she will raise this matter with the Health Service Executive or other relevant bodies; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31869/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Department of Health and Children has been advised that following wide consultation, and with support from the chief ambulance officers of the former health boards, the patient report form that is in use by the ambulance sector in the Dublin area was produced by the chief fire officer of Dublin Fire Brigade, SIPTU, ATGWU and the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council, which is the association of ambulance personnel. The council's principal remit is the development of standards in pre-hospital emergency care and the accreditation of institutions which provide training to ambulance personnel.

The purpose of the form is to provide accurate, robust and timely data on the continuum of care to the patient between the pre-hospital emergency care provider and the receiving health care professionals in hospitals. The Department has been advised by the council that the information collected is similar to that collected by other pre-hospital emergency care services around the world, including those in the UK, USA and Australia. The Department has referred the Deputy's question to the Pre-Hospital Emergency Care Council for a more detailed reply.

Hospital Services.

Liz McManus

Question:

261 Ms McManus asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the status of the sub-committee to deliver transport solutions to ensure equal access to cancer treatment for patients nationwide; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31870/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

Pat Breen

Question:

270 Mr. P. Breen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children further to Parliamentary Question No. 342 of 28 September 2005, when a person (details supplied) in County Clare will be facilitated with a special chair; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31952/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Health and Children (Mr. S. Power)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, the Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Question No. 271 answered with QuestionNo. 257.

Medical Cards.

Enda Kenny

Question:

The Deputy's question relates to human resource management issues within the Health Service Executive. As this is a matter for the executive under the Health Act 2004, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to arrange to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

276 Ms C. Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the number of speech therapists, occupational therapists and physiotherapists employed by the Health Service Executive and the areas in which they are located. [32011/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The information requested by the Deputy is set out in the following table. The table reflects the numbers employed at end-June 2005 and figures are expressed as wholetime equivalents. The Deputy may wish to note, however, that these grades are also employed by other agencies in the public health service. Information on the numbers employed by these agencies is also shown.

Physiotherapists (all grades).
Health Service Executive Area	Health Service Executive (direct employees)	Intellectual Disability Services	Voluntary Hospitals	Total
Eastern	169	80	356	605
Midland	95	1		96
Mid-Western	84	5	3	92
North-Eastern	100	1		100
North-Western	83	2		85
South-Eastern	119	2		122
Southern	140	20	17	177
Western	101	14		115
Total	892	124	376	1,392

Occupational Therapists (all grades)
Health Service Executive Area	Health Service Executive (direct employees)	Intellectual Disability Services	Voluntary Hospitals	Total
Eastern	155	56	142	353
Midland	54			54
Mid-Western	27	7		34
North-Eastern	56			56
North-Western	60			60
South-Eastern	46			46
Southern	62	14	4	80
Western	58	6		64
Total	518	83	145	747

Speech & Language Therapists (all grades)
Health Service Executive Area	Health Service Executive (direct employees)	Intellectual Disability Services	Voluntary Hospitals	Total
Eastern	90	40	67	198
Midland	45	1		45
Mid-Western	27	3		30
North-Eastern	38			38
North-Western	28	2		30
South-Eastern	50	1		51
Southern	48	25	4	77
Western	38	11		49
Total	364	83	71	519

I propose to take Questions Nos. 278 to 280, inclusive, together.

The vaccine is available free of charge from general practitioners to medical cardholders who are deemed to be at risk of serious illness as a result of contracting the disease. Persons in the at risk group who do not have a medical card can obtain the vaccine free of charge but the fee for administering the vaccine in such cases is a matter between the general practitioner and the patient. The at risk groups include persons aged 65 years or older, those with specific chronic illness such as chronic heart, lung or kidney disease, and those with a suppressed immune system. For persons in the at risk groups, complications arising from influenza such as pneumonia are common and can be fatal particularly in the elderly.

Private patients who request flu vaccine and are not in the at risk group receive a prescription from their general practitioner and purchase the vaccine from a pharmacy for administration by the general practitioner. All flu vaccinations should be given either by a general practitioner or under their supervision. It is the decision of the general practitioner to determine what administration fee will be charged when a person does not have a medical card. I expect the new GP visit cards to benefit, among others, older people on modest incomes who have not yet reached 70, at which age they are automatically entitled to a medical card. People in the 65 to 69 year age bracket, and who are therefore at risk from influenza, and holding a medical card or a GP visit card, will in future be able to receive the influenza vaccine free of charge from general practitioners who hold a contract under the general medical services scheme.

Health Services.

Dinny McGinley

Question:

281 Mr. McGinley asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children if her attention has been drawn to the medical condition known as lymph oedema; the estimated number of patients here who are suffering from that condition; if there are trained personnel to treat patients with the condition; the benefits that are available to these patients; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32051/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

The Deputy's question relates to the management and delivery of health and personal social services, which are the responsibility of the Health Service Executive under the Health Act 2004. Accordingly, my Department has requested the parliamentary affairs division of the executive to have this matter investigated and to have a reply issued directly to the Deputy.

Garda Vetting Procedures.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

282 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children the categories of persons working in a paid or voluntary capacity under the aegis of her Department or for agencies or organisations funded by her Department who are subject to Garda vetting to protect against possible child abuse; the timeframe to introduce vetting for all such persons who work with children and are currently not vetted; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32063/05]

Tánaiste and Minister for Health and Children (Ms Harney)

Garda vetting services are available in respect of public health service employees with substantial unsupervised access to children and vulnerable adults, including employees of agencies funded by the Health Service Executive. In line with the recommendations of the working group on Garda vetting, it is planned that all organisations that recruit and select persons who would have substantial unsupervised access to children should avail — and should be entitled to avail — of the vetting services of the Garda central vetting unit. To this end, the number of staff employed in the central vetting unit run by the Garda Síochána is being doubled to ensure that they can handle a greater volume of requests from employers. The further expansion of the service will allow the vetting of volunteers. The unit will commence the augmentation of its existing vetting arrangements upon its decentralisation which is targeted from mid-November this year.

Ensuring the protection, health and welfare of children and other vulnerable people is a key concern for the Government and I think it is important in that context to make one further point. While criminal record checking of people with substantial unsupervised access to children is a vital component of a well developed child protection system, there are other elements. Good recruitment and employment practices and the checking of references are also an integral part of such a system.

State Property.

Joan Burton

Question:

283 Ms Burton asked the Minister for Finance the situation in relation to the acquisition by his Department of the old Allied Irish Bank on Main Street, Blanchardstown; if the premises has been sold by his Department; if so, the value realised or are the premises to be used for some other purpose, if so, the purpose of same; and the cost of the acquisition of the premises including all legal fees and any security maintenance or other charges involved in holding the premises. [31368/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

I can confirm that the former Allied Irish Bank, Main Street, Blanchardstown was acquired by the Office of Public Works on behalf of the Probation and Welfare Service on 15 April 2002. The total cost of the purchase was €1.5 million, including VAT. The premises has not been sold and is being considered for alternative Government use. There are no charges involved in holding the premises, however since the purchase, minimal works have been carried out to ensure the maintenance and security of the premises while it is unoccupied.

Decentralisation Programme.

Paul McGrath

Question:

284 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the developments which have been made on the decentralisation programme with specific reference to Mullingar; if planning permission has been applied for in this case; the costs of accommodation for his Department which have been agreed; and the projected timeframe for the transfer of the civil servants to Mullingar. [31741/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

The Office of Public Works has identified a suitable site in Mullingar town centre and negotiations to acquire it are under way. Planning permission will be applied for when a site has been formally acquired. A firm estimate of the cost of constructing the decentralised office for the Department of Education and Science will only become available when the construction tendering process has been completed. At this point in time, the latest decentralisation implementation group report of June 2005 specifies an indicative timeframe of building completion to be second quarter 2008.

Garda Stations.

Paul McGrath

Question:

285 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance if a site has been procured for a Garda station in Athlone; if so, the location of this site; the details of the design; the timeframe for the completion of this project; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31822/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

The Commissioners of Public Works will acquire a suitable site for a new Garda Station in Athlone in accordance with the priority list supplied by the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and taking into consideration the particular requirements of the Garda Síochána at this location.

Paul McGrath

Question:

286 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the number of car parking spaces that are on site at Mullingar Garda station; the number following the proposed expansion of the Garda station; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31824/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

The Commissioners of Public Works can confirm that there are 37 official car spaces at Mullingar Garda station. On completion of the proposed extension the official number of car spaces will be 34 of which one will be designated for disabled persons.

Stamping Services.

John Gormley

Question:

287 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Finance his views on whether delays for solicitors and others who have had a deed stamped in Dublin Castle are becoming intolerable; his plans to deal with this problem; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31872/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that three stamping services are provided in the stamp office in Dublin Castle — two dealing with personal callers and the third a postal service. Instruments presented by personal callers for over-the-counter stamping are, subject to the documentation being correct, processed immediately at the time of presentation. For those personal callers who do not require immediate processing, a drop-in service is provided with a five day turnaround. A postal stamping service is also available to deal with instruments originating within the geographic areas for which the Dublin stamping district has responsibility. I am also informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the operation of the Dublin Castle stamping service is constantly monitored and reviewed by the Dublin stamping district management at regular periods throughout each day. This is an extremely busy and highly pressurised office as staff deal with increasing volumes of often very complex legal instruments. For example, the volume of such instruments processed by this office in the first nine months of 2005 was up by 27% over the equivalent period last year.

Every attempt is made to provide an efficient service to solicitors, their agents and the public, having regard to the number of available stamping machines and staff resources, and delays are kept to an absolute minimum. However, delays can sometimes occur, particularly when a large number of personal callers attend the office — all seeking to have their instruments stamped over the counter. In such instances, callers are encouraged to use the five day drop-in service in order to avoid waiting, but many choose to wait for same day stamping. I am assured that the Revenue Commissioners will continue to monitor their Dublin stamp office customer service performance to ensure it consistently achieves its service standards.

Garda Stations.

Róisín Shortall

Question:

288 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Finance if he will intervene in the case of the long delay in accessing temporary accommodation for the Ballymun Garda station; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that this delay is jeopardising the complete redevelopment of the Ballymun shopping centre because the existing station is on the site of the proposed redevelopment; if his attention has further been drawn to the availability of a suitable premises for a temporary station while a new station is being built; and if he will provide the necessary approvals for these premises. [31885/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Finance (Mr. Parlon)

The Deputy may wish to note that my Department has been informed by the financial regulator that the financial regulator has conducted a survey of the endowment mortgage market with a view to ascertaining the likely number of policies that may experience a shortfall on maturity. It is understood that the main findings of the survey will be made available to my Department and the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Finance and the Public Service shortly.

As the Deputy is aware, the financial regulator's consumer director has encouraged people to come forward if they are concerned about the possibility of having been mis-sold an endowment mortgage. The financial regulator has emphasised the importance of bringing complaints, in the first instance, to the financial institution from which the policy was purchased to seek to resolve the matter.

As I stated in my reply to the Deputy on 28 September last, there are no plans at present to amend the Central Bank and Financial Services Authority of Ireland Act 2004, with regard to the time limit for making complaints to the Financial Services Ombudsman. The retrospection limit of six years was put in place following careful examination in the context of the consideration of the 2004 Act. It is consistent with best practice standards, including the approach adopted for the Pensions Ombudsman Scheme.

Freedom of Information.

Michael D. Higgins

Question:

296 Mr. M. Higgins asked the Minister for Finance if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the Information Commissioner, in her annual report 2004 published on 9 June 2005, called for a review of the fees introduced by the Government regarding the Freedom of Information Act 1997; if he has instituted such a review; when this review will be completed; and if he has not instituted such a review, his reasons for refusing same. [31386/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am aware of the views expressed by the Information Commissioner in relation to charges that apply under the Freedom of Information Acts.

I am satisfied that the charges in operation strike the correct balance between the burden and cost to the taxpayer of administering the FOI Act, and the need to allow people to continue to have access to information. I have no plans to initiate a general review of these charges.

National Lottery.

A suite of four new standard forms of construction contract and new conditions for the engagement of construction consultants have been drafted with input from the Government contracts committee for construction and technical support from legal drafters and external technical expertise. A process of consultation with the construction industry on the draft contracts and related material is in train and, following final completion of this process, my intention is to have the new contracts available for use in early 2006.

Tax Code.

Róisín Shortall

Question:

300 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Finance his views on the suggestion from child seat retailers (details supplied) that a reduction in VAT would allow parents from poorer backgrounds to purchase new seats instead of buying them second hand; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29063/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

The position is that the VAT rating of goods and services is subject to the requirements of EU VAT law with which Irish VAT law must comply. Under the sixth VAT directive, member states may retain the zero rates on goods and services which were in place on 1 January 1991, but cannot extend the zero rate to new goods and services. As children's car seats were not subject to the zero rate on 1 January 1991 it is not possible to apply the zero rate to the supply of such products. However, member states are permitted to apply a reduced rate to those goods and services, which are set out in annex H of the EU sixth VAT directive. Children's car seats are listed under category 4 in annex H. It would therefore be possible to apply a reduced rate of VAT to children's car seats. Ireland operates a single reduced rate of 13.5%.

In relation to the benefit of a VAT reduction being passed on to the consumer which is normally the main reason given for VAT reductions or refunds, experience shows that there is no guarantee that moving products to the reduced rate would necessarily be reflected in the retail price of products. In addition, a reduction along the lines suggested would only bring about a reduction of approximately €6 for every €100 spent on a child car seat. Therefore such a reduction, even if passed on, would not necessarily bring about an increase in the sales of new car seats.

Finally, it is not customary for me to comment on any possible changes to the VAT rate applied to such products which may, or may not, arise in the context of the forthcoming budget.

Tax Collection.

Billy Timmins

Question:

301 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Finance if a P21 will be issued to a person (details supplied) in County Wicklow. [31517/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that a P21 in respect of the year 2004 issued to the named person on 6 September 2005. A duplicate copy was issued on 26 October 2005.

Public Appointments.

Seán Haughey

Question:

302 Mr. Haughey asked the Minister for Finance the procedures in place for the recruitment of all types of staff to the Civil Service on a temporary or permanent basis; the provisions in relation to canvassing by public representatives; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31522/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

Recruitment to the Civil Service is governed by the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 which applies to the recruitment of non-industrial civil servants to established and unestablished posts.

Recruitment of State industrial employees is carried out by individual Departments by way of competitive interview depending on specific needs and the nature of the employment position on offer. Applications are received from individuals, and on behalf of individuals from, for instance, FÁS and public representatives.

In respect of the recruitment of civil servants to established and unestablished posts, the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 provides for the establishment of the Commission for Public Service Appointments, CPSA, and of the Public Appointments Service, PAS.

Among its functions, the CPSA establishes the standards of probity, equity, fairness, selection on the basis of merit, protection of the public interest, implementation of best practice and good governance and other principles as it considers appropriate, to be followed, in the selection and recruitment of persons for positions in the Civil Service and other public bodies. The standards are set out in codes of practice to be followed in recruitment to positions in the Civil Service. The CPSA also has responsibility for the issuing of recruitment licences to the Secretaries General of Departments of State and to other designated officers in the public service.

The PAS provides a centralised recruitment, assessment and selection body for the Civil Service and provides a similar service, where requested, to the local authorities and health boards, the Garda Síochána and any other public service body.

Recruitment competitions run by the PAS are advertised in one or more of the national papers and on its website at www.publicjobs.ie. Application forms, together with all relevant details, are only available when competitions are announced. Potential candidates can register their interest in a position on the PAS website and will be notified by e-mail when the competition is announced. Anyone can apply for a position in the Civil Service but candidates must fulfil the eligibility requirements and criteria of the grade or post being filled.

Under the Act, recruitment to the Civil Service is to established posts, unestablished posts and to posts covered by Schedule 1 of the Act. Recruitment to established posts is carried out under licence as set out above. All temporary posts in the Civil Service are filled on an unestablished basis. Recruitment to unestablished posts takes place under licence but may also be the subject of an excluding order. The Act provides for the issuing to Departments by the CPSA of an excluding order for a limited period, for the filling of certain positions on a temporary basis, on conditions other than those set out in the codes of practice.

Schedule 1 of the Act — Scheduled Occupations — covers appointments to posts such as services officer, services attendant, night-watchman, cleaner or analogous employment in the Civil Service. The Schedule also covers employment outside the State in a clerical or ancillary capacity in offices of the Department of Foreign Affairs. Recruitment under Schedule 1 is carried out by individual Departments by way of competitive process. Applications may be made directly by individuals, through registration with FÁS or as result of communications from public representatives.

As regards provisions in relation to canvassing, section 34(2) of the Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 stipulates that the Public Appointments Service is independent in the exercise of its functions. The Act also provides that, inter alia, canvassing is an offence attracting penalties including fines of up to €10,000 and-or imprisonment for up to two years. Anti-canvassing provisions are also expressly set out in section 4 of the CPSA code of practice on external recruitment for appointment to positions in the Civil Service.

Child Care Funding.

Dan Boyle

Question:

303 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Finance the cost to the Exchequer of introducing a refundable child care tax credit of €150 per month for parents of children up to three years and €100 per month for those aged four to 12, who are in the 20% tax band. [31537/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

Year	€m
1997	187.6
1998	238.7
1999	161.2
2000	386.0*
2001	228.0
2002	206.0
2003	153.0
2004	144.0

* The figure quoted for 2000 includes €215.7 million which was a result of the DIRT look-back audits.

The amount of DIRT due to be paid each year is dependent on the amount of moneys on deposit and the rates of interest applying to such deposits rather than on the number of accounts involved. I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the statutory return of DIRT filed by the financial institutions requires details only of the relevant amount of interest paid in the year and the appropriate tax in relation to the payment of that interest. Such DIRT returns are subject to audit by the Revenue Commissioners.

Richard Bruton

Question:

307 Mr. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the number of cases in which refunds of DIRT have been claimed; and the aggregate amount of refunds made. [31555/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the most recent relevant information available is that the total amount of DIRT repaid in 2004 was €2.1 million and the number of such repayments was 1,003.

Richard Bruton

Question:

308 Mr. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the number of persons claiming the age exemption limit in their tax returns. [31556/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I advised by the Revenue Commissioners that some 36,000 income earners are estimated to qualify for the age exemption or the associated marginal relief in 2005. This figure is provisional and likely to be revised. A married couple who has elected or has been deemed to have elected for joint assessment is counted as one tax unit.

Tax Code.

Richard Bruton

Question:

309 Mr. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance the effective tax rate paid by taxpayers in each decile by range of total income in 1997, 1998, 2001, 2002 and in the most recent years for which an estimate is available; and the aggregate tax paid by each decile in the respective years. [31557/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the most recent data available on incomes and tax by income decile are in respect of the income tax year 2002.

The information requested is set out in the following tables for the income tax years 1997-98, 1998-99, 2001 "short" year and 2002.

The 2001 short income tax year was a short transitional tax "year" running from 6 April to 31 December 2001 which preceded the first full calendar tax year 1 January 2002 to 31 December 2002. It should be noted that as PAYE taxpayers were charged to tax on their earnings in the period from 6 April to 31 December 2001 and self-employed taxpayers were assessed to tax for the short "year" on 74% of the profits earned in a 12 month accounting period, the income figures will not be directly comparable with those of earlier or later years.

To assemble the figures by decile the total number of income earners on the income tax record for each year was broken down into ten equal groups and distributed over ten income ranges in ascending order of gross income. The figures for effective tax rate and aggregate tax liability were then established for each decile group as appropriate. As both the income levels and the numbers of income earners changed each year the income tranches representing the different deciles also vary from year to year. It should be noted that the tax liability in any of the income deciles shown also includes a liability to DIRT. In the lower deciles, this is likely to be the only tax liability arising.

The income ranges referred to in this examination relate to gross income. Gross income is income which: is prior to deductions for capital allowances, interest paid, losses, allowable expenses, retirement annuities etc; is after deduction of superannuation contributions by employees but not by the self-employed; includes income of individuals whose total income falls below the exemption limits; does not include certain other income which is not income for tax purposes or is exempt from tax such as profits or gains from stallion fees, profits from commercial forestry and certain income from patent royalties, certain investment income arising from personal injuries, child benefit, maternity benefit and unemployment assistance paid by the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs, certain earnings of writers, composers and artists, bonus or interest paid under instalment savings schemes operated by An Post, interest on certain Government securities, certain foreign pensions which are exempt from tax in the foreign paying country, portion of certain lump sums received by employees on cessation of their employment, statutory redundancy payments and certain military pensions; and does not include or not fully include other income sources such as interest income that does not need to be declared or is not recorded, but from which tax has been deducted, unemployment benefit and disability benefit, non-recording of non-taxable amounts and of amounts taxed by restriction of repayments or indirectly through employers in the PAYE system, and the incomes of certain self-employed persons, including some farmers, as well as some individuals in receipt of pensions, who are not processed annually on tax records because their incomes are below the income tax thresholds. The information on incomes is based on income returns on Revenue records at the time the data were compiled for analytical purposes, representing 90% or more of all returns expected.

A married couple who has elected or has been deemed to have elected for joint assessment is counted as one tax unit.

Income Tax (including DIRT) — distribution of effective tax rate and tax liability by income decile.
	1997-1998	1998-1999	2001	2002
Income Decile Group *	Effective Tax Rate	Tax	Effective Tax Rate	Tax	Effective Tax Rate	Tax	Effective Tax Rate	Tax
	%	€m	%	€m	%	€m	%	€m
1	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.3	0.1	0.5
2	0.5	2.8	0.5	3.0	0.1	1.0	0.1	1.4
3	5.7	58.7	5.1	57.7	1.6	22.3	0.7	13.0
4	8.8	129.5	8.1	132.4	4.4	83.1	3.3	89.9
5	12.0	227.6	11.1	233.7	6.6	159.1	5.7	196.7
6	14.6	345.4	13.6	358.2	8.3	245.9	7.6	321.6
7	17.7	520.2	16.9	551.9	10.7	388.1	9.6	504.1
8	20.5	767.8	19.5	812.5	13.8	626.1	13.0	856.0
9	22.1	1,099.9	21.2	1,175.3	16.2	979.5	16.2	1,409.1
10	29.0	2,850.7	28.7	3,315.5	24.6	3,156.0	23.6	4,415.2
		6,002.9		6,640.3		5,661.4		7,807.4

* The lowest incomes are represented by group number 1. Higher group numbers reflect higher income levels.

Denis Naughten

Question:

310 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Finance the amount of moneys taken in since 2002 by his Department from capital gains tax and stamp duty from transfers of farm property; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31703/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the precise information requested by the Deputy is not available.

Public Appointments.

Liz McManus

Question:

311 Ms McManus asked the Minister for Finance if, in view of the waste of public money and the problems some Departments have had with regard to contracting in information communication technology consultants from the private sector, it is still the policy of the Civil Service Commission not to recruit staff who have qualifications and expertise to do this work at the appropriate grade with recognition of their qualifications, as are other professions in the Civil Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31737/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

The Public Appointments Service, PAS, acts as the centralised recruitment, assessment and selection body for the Civil Service, acting at the behest of individual Departments and offices.

Civil servants assigned to ICT work in the Civil Service are in general service grades. Staff in these grades can be directly assigned to ICT work or as a result of specially organised competitions, at either departmental or interdepartmental level. Such competitions are held at clerical officer, executive officer and higher executive officer levels respectively. Subsequent to an assignment, whether direct or by competition, specialised training is provided.

Other than recruitment of a small number of administrative officers for ICT work a number of years ago, it has not been the practice to specifically recruit ICT staff from outside the Civil Service. However, officers recruited from open competitions have regularly been assigned by Departments or offices to ICT work as a result of their having significant prior experience in ICT or an ICT qualification.

The Sustaining Progress agreement includes a provision to directly recruit staff where it is identified that certain skills and expertise are in short supply. Departments or offices were surveyed and skills shortages were identified for a number of posts in the ICT area. The posts in question were at the levels of executive officer, higher executive officer and assistant principal officer.

The implementation of this provision was subject to consultation and agreement was reached with all Civil Service unions on recruitment, by open competition, to a number of ICT posts at executive officer level in various Departments. These posts will be filled from a Public Appointments Service competition advertised in mid-October 2005.

Agreement was not reached on number of other posts identified in the survey, at the levels of higher executive officer and assistant principal officer. These posts were the subject of an arbitration finding, as result of which further discussions are required to identify the best method of progressing recruitment to these posts as provided for under the Sustaining Progress provisions.

Constituency Office — Tullamore
Grade / Title	Number	Salary Range
		€
Personal Secretary	1	20,187-38,948
Personal Assistant	1	40,543-51,463

Press Office
Grade / Title	Number	Salary Range
		€
Press Officer (Assistant Principal)	1	63,293-79,143(in receipt of allowance equivalent to 10% of salary)
Higher Executive Officer	1	43,000-53,191
Executive Officer	1	26,618-42,238
Clerical Officer	1	21,245-34,448

In addition to the above there are four clerical officers, salary range €21,245-€34,448, who provide typing and administrative support services to my private office, the constituency office and to the Department of Finance press office. Two of these clerical officers work-share.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

314 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31775/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I would refer the Deputy to replies to two previous parliamentary questions about this topic, copies of which are being forwarded to him. These are of 17 February 2004 and 28 June 2005, and together they give details of the purpose and recipient of my Departments consultancies in the years he mentions, along with the payments made in each year. As the Deputy will appreciate, given the amount of information they contain it has not been possible, in the time available for answering the present question, to compile the information in the format sought by him, that is, showing the cost by contract rather than by year and showing also which contracts have reached fruition. However, my Department is compiling the information in that format and it will be forwarded to the Deputy shortly.

Question No. 315 answered with QuestionNo. 313.

Tax Collection.

Paul McGrath

Question:

316 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Finance his views on allegations that the road haulage sector generally is operating in the black economy; the number of haulage companies registered with the Revenue Commissioners; the number of these that are tax compliant; the amount of arrears of tax and PRSI contributions outstanding in the sector; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31815/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that there are approximately 5,000 road hauliers registered with them — this figure includes both companies and individuals.

Revenue have advised me that it is not possible, in the time available, to get detailed information on the amount of arrears of tax and PRSI contributions outstanding from cases in this sector. However, I am informed that during 2004, 198 Revenue audits were carried out on road hauliers resulting in additional tax, interest and penalties of €1.36 million being recovered from 73 of those cases, 125 audits were non-yielding. Also in 2004, Revenue detected 250 hauliers using marked gas oil and 26 hauliers using "laundered" diesel.

The Deputy will be aware that where a haulier is carrying goods for hire or reward, a road freight carrier's licence is required from the Department of Transport. In order to obtain or renew such a licence, evidence of compliance in the form of a tax clearance certificate must be produced to the Department of Transport. This tax clearance requirement helps considerably in improving compliance in this sector.

While the haulage sector poses some special tax compliance risks — as already indicated, these include the illegal use by some operators of laundered or marked diesel — I am advised that Revenue are vigorously pursuing non-compliance in this sector and remain alert to the emergence of any increasing risks.

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

317 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Finance the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31971/05]

Minister for Finance (Mr. Cowen)

Risk analysis and ameliorating measures are addressed in my Department's decentralisation implementation plan and I have arranged for a copy to be forwarded to the Deputy.

In relation to non-property aspects of the decentralisation programme, a report was prepared at the request of the decentralisation implementation group and is available on my Department's decentralisation website at www.decentralisation.gov.ie. This report provided a model for identifying non-property costs and savings that might arise both during the relocation phase and in the context of a post-decentralised Civil Service. While my Department is making arrangements to identify costs in accordance with this model, expenditure to date has been limited. The costs associated with the provision of accommodation in Tullamore and Kildare will be met from the Office of Public Works Vote.

Mobile Phone Masts.

Finian McGrath

Question:

318 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the position regarding health implications for residential areas and schools near mobile phone antennas; if schools are excluded from the schedule of public buildings on which mobile phone masts may be installed; and to make a statement on this public safety issue. [31485/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

My Department's involvement in matters concerning the health effects of non-ionising radiation, which includes radio frequency emissions from mobile phone base stations is guided by advice from national and international health authorities which include the World Health Organisation of the United Nations. I am advised that there is to date, no scientific evidence which shows a direct causal link between non-ionising radiation and ill health.

The erection of masts on Government property is a matter for the Minister for Finance together with the public sector organisation which is the direct owner of the property concerned.

Offshore Exploration.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

319 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if, in view of the example of the Norwegian Government, he will consider establishing an oil and gas exploration company here; if his attention has been drawn to the benefit this would have on the economy and the effect it could have on other Departments; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31731/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

This question is almost identical to one I answered from the Deputy recently, No. 541 of 28 September. I would draw the Deputy's attention to the reply I gave to that question and would add that the facts and conclusions given in that reply remain unchanged.

Fishing Industry Development.

John Perry

Question:

320 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources when a decision will be made on whether the findings of the report on the three-year experiment into monofilament nets in Cork Harbour will be taken on board for the 2006 season (details supplied); when a final decision will be issued; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31349/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. Gallagher)

I have recently received a report from the South Western Regional Fisheries Board on the final year of a three-year experiment carried out since 2003 to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of alternative methods of draft net fishing, in particular the use of monofilament netting, for wild salmon in Cork Harbour. In forwarding this report to me the chief executive officer advised that the South Western Regional Fisheries Board has, by majority decision, decided to endorse the findings in the report and to recommend that monofilament and other operational changes be legalised for draft net fishing within the harbour.

I am examining the report submitted to me and assure the Deputy that I will make a decision, having considered all relevant issues involved and bearing in mind that any legislative changes which may be required will need to be put in place in good time before the commencement of the next draft net fishing season in Cork Harbour in May 2006.

Harbours and Piers.

Paddy McHugh

Question:

321 Mr. McHugh asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if funding will be made available for a project (details supplied) in County Galway; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31409/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. Gallagher)

Parkmore Pier, Kinvara, is owned by Galway County Council and responsibility for its maintenance and development is a matter for the owner in the first instance. The county council forwarded proposals in December 2001 and again in 2003 to the Department for Exchequer funding under the national fishery harbour development programme for improvement works to the pier, estimated to cost €88,300. No funding was available for these works. The question of providing funding for works at Parkmore Pier will depend on the amount of Exchequer funding available for works at fishery harbours generally and overall national priorities. The Department has not received a proposal from Galway County Council regarding the construction of a breakwater at Parkmore Pier.

Decentralisation Programme.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

322 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the position regarding efforts to decentralise his Department to Cavan town; if a site has been purchased to provide office accommodation; the number of persons who have applied to move to Cavan; when staff will be in place and operational; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31475/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

In this instance my Department was endeavouring to advise the inquirer of the rights available under the Freedom of Information Acts which might be of assistance. This advice is not attributable to any particular individual within my Department.

Coastal Erosion.

Eamon Gilmore

Question:

326 Mr. Gilmore asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the assessment which has been made of erosion of the coastline between Killiney and Woodbrook, County Dublin; the plans that exist for coastal protection works along this stretch of coastline; the funding which has been or is being made available to the local authority for coastal protection works; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31516/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. Gallagher)

Funding was made available to Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council for the commissioning of consultancy studies of coastal erosion on the stretch of coast at Killiney, County Dublin, in the years 1995 to 1996 amounting to a total of €219,030. Arising from these studies, coast protection works were funded in the years 1999 to 2004 amounting to a total of €321,763. In the current year an amount of €303,750 has been offered to Dún Laoghaire Rathdown County Council for coastal protection works in the Killiney area.

The stretch of coast between Killiney, County Dublin, and Carnsore Point, County Wexford, is the subject of a detailed pilot study as part of the national coastal protection strategy study. Vulnerability of the coastline to erosion is one of the matters being examined. It is expected the results of the pilot study will be available in 2006. The question of funding coast protection works in the Killiney area in 2006 will depend on the amount of Exchequer funding available for coast protection works and overall national priorities.

Fishing Vessel Licences.

Martin Ferris

Question:

327 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if he proposes to introduce changes to the licensing regime covering mussel dredging vessels; if so, if such changes will distinguish between sea-going vessels and inshore vessels; the expected impact of such changes in terms of the number of vessels affected; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31536/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. Gallagher)

There are no proposals to make any changes to the licensing regime covering mussel dredging vessels in so far as it relates to the mussel seed resource.

John Perry

Question:

328 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the reason stark distinctions were allowed to be made between the treatment of a vessel (details supplied) and other Irish vessels, which had to provide full replacement capacity; the reason this vessel is allowed to fish in EU waters; if, at the time this vessel was seeking a licence, there was an overhang in Ireland’s pelagic replacement capacity and kilowatts became an issue between Ireland and the EU; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31700/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. Gallagher)

The licensing and registration of the vessel referred to was facilitated by a decision of the European Commission in January 2002 to grant additional capacity of 14,055 gross tonnes and 14,400 kilowatts in respect of the Irish pelagic fleet segment to take account of fishing opportunities in Mauritanian and other west African waters. The European Commission's decision followed negotiations with the Commission on a legitimate application by the company which owns the vessel, under EU legislation in place at that time, which provided for the introduction of additional capacity into the fleet where additional fishing opportunities were identified. The capacity allocated by the European Commission was additional capacity over and above the existing EU capacity limits for the Irish fleet.

As part of the overall agreement, the company which owns the vessel has permanently withdrawn its other vessel from the Irish-EU fishing fleet. The package agreed allowed the company to retain the annual quota and fishing entitlements in EU waters of the withdrawn vessel. It should be noted that the vessel is only allowed to fish in EU waters to the same degree, in terms of catch limits and fishing effort, as the withdrawn vessel was allowed. The withdrawal of this vessel also enabled Ireland to resolve long-standing engine power over-capacity in the pelagic segment.

Communications Masts.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

329 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if he intends to locate the Loran C mast on Loop Head or any other Irish location; the cost of purchasing the mast; the legal costs associated with the project; the cost of purchasing and leasing land at Loop Head; the amount of land involved; the costs of storage of the mast, giving a breakdown of the storage costs over the past five years as well as its location; and if there is any proposal to dispose of the mast. [31701/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

The Loran C mast will not be erected on Loop Head or any other Irish location. Ireland, along with Norway, the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany, has denounced the North West Europe and North Atlantic Loran C System — NELS — Agreement. Denunciation takes legal effect from 31 December 2005.

The mast, consisting of the antenna and transmitter, cost €1.9 million and was purchased by France and the Netherlands as per the international agreement. The legal costs associated with the project amounted to €561,000, which includes legal fees for the planning appeal. The land at Loop Head, totalling 137 acres, was purchased for €479,000. Lease of the land for grazing rights has generated €13,530 in revenue over the past three years. Cost of storage for the mast amounted to €326,000. The mast was stored at Pacy-Sur-Eure, near Paris, France. A breakdown of the storage costs over the past five years is as follows:

Year	Amount
	€
2001	59,909
2002	47,108
2004	47,476
2005	27,829

Ownership of the mast was transferred to France in April this year, with the agreement of the Netherlands. Ownership of the site remains with Ireland.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

330 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31746/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

My Department has not awarded any contracts for public relations projects since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

331 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31761/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

The number of civil servants and other staff employed in my constituency office and information on the grade and remuneration of these staff is set out in the following table.

Title	Number	Grade/ Grade Equivalent	Remuneration
Personal Assistant	1	Higher Executive Officer	HEO salary scale €40,543 (min) to €51,463 (2nd long service increment)
Personal Secretary	1	Secretarial Assistant	Secretarial Assistant salary scale €20,187 (min) to €38,948 p.a. (2nd long service increment)
Executive Officer	1	Executive Officer	EO salary scale (full PRSI) €28,021(min) to €44,458 (2nd long service increment)
Clerical Officer	1	Clerical Officer	CO salary scale (full PRSI) €21,245 (min) to €34,448 (2nd long service increment)

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

332 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31776/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

In the time available, it has not been possible to identify and assemble the information requested. My Department is compiling the data sought by the Deputy in this regard and I shall forward it to him as soon as possible.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

333 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31791/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

The number of civil servants and other staff employed in the press office, which covers the Minister, Minister for State and Department generally, and information on the grade and remuneration of these staff is set out in the following table.

Title	Number	Grade/Grade Equivalent	Remuneration
Press Adviser	1	Principal Officer	PO salary scale €75,036 (min) to €92,813 (2nd long service increment)
Administrative Officer	1	Administrative Officer	AO salary scale (full PRSI) €30,593 (min) to €54,173 p.a. (2nd long service increment)
Executive Officer	1	Executive Officer	EO salary scale (full PRSI) €28,021 (min) to €44,458 (2nd long service increment)
Clerical Officer	1	Clerical Officer	CO salary scale (full PRSI) €21,245 (min) to €34,448 (2nd long service increment)

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

334 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31972/05]

Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources (Mr. N. Dempsey)

The risks identified and strategies to mitigate their impact are set out in my Department's decentralisation implementation plan. These risks cover the major areas of business and service continuity, particularly significant staff turnover, financial management and control, customer service and the logistics of relocation. Plans for managing and mitigating the impacts of the process on the Department's business and staff encompass a comprehensive knowledge management initiative, human resource strategies and training and development plans, ICT strategies aimed at enhancing the quality and benefits of automated systems and maintenance of mission critical business areas and service levels.

On the costs of implementing strategies to address the issues, the knowledge management initiative, ICT strategy and training and development strategies pre-date the decentralisation programme. These initiatives have been synchronised with the decentralisation programme as major planks of our risk mitigation plans and have not to date resulted in material additional expenditure over and above that already planned for these initiatives. The Department has carried out a preliminary assessment of the possible costs associated with decentralisation in terms of both once off costs over the period of relocation and ongoing annual costs post relocation. Further comprehensive analysis is under way to underpin fully quantified estimates of these costs.

The major capital costs related to the decentralisation of my Department to Cavan, Clonakilty and Drogheda relate to the acquisition of sites and building of facilities. These costs are being borne centrally and my Department is liaising closely with the Office of Public Works to ensure quality facilities are delivered commensurate with the value for money imperative.

Passports for Investment Scheme.

Joe Costello

Question:

335 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if his attention has been drawn to reports emerging from a court case in the Bahamas that a person (details supplied) who received an Irish passport under the passports for investment scheme has six Irish passports; the date on which the original passport was issued; the date on which each subsequent passport was issued; the location from which it was issued; the circumstances in which it was issued; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31501/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

It is important to state that the person in question holds only one valid Irish passport. His first passport was issued in 1995 following the granting of citizenship through naturalisation to him by the then Minister for Justice, Deputy Nora Owen. His passport history is set out as follows:

	Place of Issue	Date of Issue	Status
Passport 1	Dublin	26/04/1995	Cancelled
Passport 2	Dublin	18/01/1996	Cancelled
Passport 3	Dublin	06/02/1997	Cancelled
Passport 4	Dublin	08/04/1998	Lost
Passport 5	Dublin	09/11/1999	Cancelled
Passport 6	Dublin	26/07/2000	Valid

The first three passports were each returned for cancellation and new passports issued in their place. The fourth passport was reported as lost and, as a result, a limited validity passport was issued in its place. This latter passport was returned in due course for cancellation and a replacement passport to full validity was issued.

Northern Ireland Issues.

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

336 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs his response to the A Shared Future document published by the Office of the First Minister and Deputy First Minister in Northern Ireland; if the document has the potential to provide the basis for a new policy and strategic framework for good relations between all communities in Northern Ireland; the Government’s view on the document; if he will act on its recommendations; if he has raised the document with the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31344/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

The importance of building trust and improving community relations, tackling sectarianism and addressing segregation in Northern Ireland was specifically acknowledged in the rights, identity and community section of the joint declaration published by the two Governments in 2003. Accordingly, the British Government was mandated to review good community relations and bring forward a strategic and integrated good relations policy.

The shared future document referred to by the Deputy, A Shared Future — Policy and Strategic Framework for Good Relations in Northern Ireland, was published by the then Minister of State for Northern Ireland, Mr. John Spellar, on 21 March 2005. It sets out practical steps and actions aimed at achieving a shared and inclusive society. The new policy was informed by an earlier report on community relations policy by Dr. Jeremy Harbison and drew on responses generated by a consultation document launched in January 2003. It includes such policy objectives as the elimination of sectarianism and racism, the reduction of tension at interface areas, integrated education, mixed housing, the promotion of cultural diversity, shared workplaces and community development and tackling disadvantage.

The document lays out a comprehensive approach to the promotion of good relations between all communities in Northern Ireland. The implementation of the strategy on the ground will be key in terms of ensuring this work is ultimately successful. In that context we understand that, arising from a comprehensive consultation process, the British Government is due to publish a triennial action plan associated with the shared future document in the coming months. This will further develop the aims and objectives set out in the document and specify detailed actions to be taken by public authorities in Northern Ireland to achieve them.

The new shared future document contains much that is welcome and timely. At the general level, we welcome the new policy's recognition of the centrality of equality in creating the basis for good relations. At the more specific level, we also welcome, for example, the commitment in the document to tackling the visible manifestations of sectarianism and racism, in particular inappropriate and aggressive displays of flags and emblems. I had a useful discussion on this issue with Secretary of State Peter Hain at the most recent meeting of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference on 19 October last. We are hopeful the new policy, as elaborated in the forthcoming action plan, could facilitate effective handling of this issue.

The recommendations contained in the document relate to actions to be taken by Departments, agencies and public authorities in Northern Ireland. They are, therefore, not directed at the Government. We continue, however, to monitor progress in implementing commitments arising from the joint declaration in the area of improving community relations. We keep in touch with the position at community level through engagement with local representatives on the ground, members of the NGO and academic community and representatives of the relevant official bodies. During my own frequent visits to Northern Ireland, I make a point of meeting individuals and community representatives from both traditions to hear their concerns.

We will also maintain our dialogue with the British Government on improving community relations, including issues arising from the document, A Shared Future, and the forthcoming action plan within the framework of the British-Irish Intergovernmental Conference and at official level.

Ministerial Representations.

John Gormley

Question:

337 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs if, in view of the recent appeal against the prison sentence of a person (details supplied) in Denmark regarding the leaking of confidential threat assessments regarding Iraq to a Danish newspaper, he has had talks with his counterpart in Denmark regarding same; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31382/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

I understand the person concerned was found guilty by a Danish court in November 2004 of the unauthorised disclosure of confidential official information. He was sentenced to six months imprisonment, under the Danish penal code. On appeal to the High Court in Denmark in September this year, the sentence was reduced to four months. This is a matter for the Danish legal system, and I have not discussed it with the Foreign Minister of Denmark.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

338 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31747/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

No public relations contracts have been awarded by my Department since December 2004. In the interest of completion, I mention that in November 2004, following an open tender process, Development Co-operation Ireland employed the Cork based company, Real Event Solutions, to design, organise and manage a primary school competition around the theme of international development and the UN millennium development goals. The competition had a public relations aspect aimed at encouraging school participation, both at a regional and national level, and cost €17,204, including VAT.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

339 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31762/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

The following table sets out the number of personnel in my constituency office, their positions and salary scales:

Grade/Position	Number	Salary scale
Personal Assistant (non-established)	1	Higher Executive Officer scale €40,543-€51,463
Executive Officer	1	Executive Officer scale €28,021-€44,458
Clerical Officer	2	Clerical Officer scale €21,245-€34,448
Clerical Officer	1	Clerical Officer scale €20,181- €32,728
Total	5

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

340 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31777/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

The Department of Foreign Affairs is responsible for two Votes — Vote 28, foreign affairs, and Vote 29, international co-operation. The Department commissions consultancies where specialised knowledge and-or skills are not available within the Department and, particularly in the case of the Development Co-operation Ireland, DCI, programme, where an independent evaluation of programmes and projects is required. The awarding of the contracts referred to below is done at official level and I have had no personal involvement in the process.

The information requested by the Deputy for Vote 28 is set out in Table A. The majority of expenditure on consultancies during the period in question relates to the upgrading of the Department's information technology infrastructure at headquarters and in our missions abroad and to the development of an automated passport production system, APS. The upgrading of the Department's information technology infrastructure commenced in 2002 and covered a broad range of technologies which required specialised expertise in a number of areas. No fixed contract was agreed with a single supplier or contractor. Instead, rates were agreed for specialised expertise with several contractors and these were utilised on a draw-down basis, as and when required.

The information relating to Vote 29, development co-operation, is set out in Table B. The vast majority of these consultancies have been completed. Those with an asterisk (*) beside them represent ongoing assignments. Consultancies undertaken by Development Co-operation Ireland cover a wide range of sectors, including HIV-AIDS, education, health and rural development. A high proportion of these concern the monitoring, review and evaluation of development programmes and projects commissioned at headquarters to ensure quality and value for money. These consultancies are almost always based on a daily rate of payment with a maximum number of days stipulated in the contract.

Table A Vote 28 Consultancies — 2000
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
Padraig White	To advise the Garvaghy Roads Residents Coalition on broad issues of strategy with particular reference to economic development.	15,240.00	Ongoing
Prof. Gerard Quinn	Compulsory State Report required for the submission under the Council of Europe Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities	6,348.00	Completed
ECA International	Review of Foreign Services Allowances	775.00	Completed
Raphael Siev	Legal Consultancy Services	495.20	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	24,685.70	Completed
Noel Dorr	Intergovernmental Conference Representative	3,809.21	Completed in 2002

Vote 28 Consultancies — 2001
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
RITS	Review of firewall design	3,750.00	Completed
PricewaterhouseCoopers	Report on the viability of the Irish Centre at Digbeth, Birmingham	St£19,387.50	Completed
Padraig White	To advise the Garvaghy Roads Residents Coalition on broad issues of strategy with particular reference to economic issues	17,526.00	Ongoing
Farrell, Grant Sparks	Procurement and Tendering advice regarding the proposed Automated Passport Production System (APS)	42,250.00	Completed in 2002
Dr. Tom Hardiman	Ireland’s Representative on the Board of Governors of the Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF)	18,812.00	Ongoing
Mazaars Consulting Ltd.	Implementation of a new payroll system	148,498.41	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	50,494.41	Completed
Noel Dorr	Intergovernmental Conference Representative	40,227.77	Completed in 2002
Fiach MacChongail	Programme Manager, Irish Cultural Centre Paris	39,519.35	Completed in 2003

Vote 28 Consultancies — 2002
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
Cap Gemini Ernst & Young	Consultancy in respect of the development of the Department’s ICT Strategy	155,101.26	Completed in 2003
Cara	Review of Global Network Services	27,553.71	Completed
Crannog	Technical services to assist upgrade of e-mail system	20,534.75	Completed in 2004
DSS	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure and provision of resources for ICT Helpdesk services	147,818.64	Ongoing
Octogon	EU Scrutiny Website development	9,876.63	Completed
RITS	ICT Security services to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	15,395.00	Ongoing
Padraig White	To advise the Garvaghy Roads Residents Coalition on broad issues of strategy with particular reference to economic development	7,683.50	Ongoing
PricewaterhouseCoopers	Cross-Border mobility study	47,870.00	Completed
Indecon	Review of “Encounter” organisation	31,097.00	Completed
Farrell, Grant Sparks	Procurement and Tendering advice regarding the proposed Automated Passport Production System (APS)	44,130.00	Completed
Clifford Associates	Project Management Advice — APS	14,240.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Bearingpoint	Main Contractor in the development of the delivery of the APS	4,390,760.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Mason Hayes and Curran	Contract and Legal Advice — APS	268,600.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Dr. Tom Hardiman	Ireland’s Representative on the Board of Governors of the Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF)	43,464.79	Ongoing
Declan Ryan Consultancy	Consultation on beverage provisions (including procuring, discounts and stocking)	4,000.00	Completed
William Schabas	Representation of Ireland at meetings of the Council of Europe’s Special Committee on the Legal Status of NGOs	1,370.00	Completed
Anglia Polytechnic	Study of the existing sources of information/analysis about Irish emigrants and Irish communities abroad.	58,041.53	Completed
McCann Fitzgerald	Review of the Department of Foreign Affairs’ practices in the payments of Foreign Service allowances and entitlements to staff serving abroad in the context of existing equality and employment legislation.	15,427.50	Completed
Drury Communications	Advice on a comprehensive communications strategy aimed at improving the transmission of information about the EU to the Irish public.	62,999.86	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	33,478.64	Completed
Fiach MacChongail	Programme Manager, Irish Cultural Centre Paris	52,306.87	Completed in 2003
Geraldine Skinner	Legal Consultancy Services	3,990.58	Completed
Noel Dorr	Intergovernmental Conference Representative	5,079.97	Completed

Vote 28 Consultancies — 2003
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
Cap Gemini Ernst & Young	Consultancy in respect of the development of the Department’s ICT Strategy	22,732.88	Completed
Cara	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure	333,773.98	Ongoing
Crannog	Technical services to assist upgrade of e-mail system	41,143.70	Completed in 2004
DSS	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure and provision of resources for ICT Helpdesk services	643,470.32	Ongoing
Hewlett Packard	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure	45,980.74	Completed in 2004
Microsoft	Technical design of ICT Infrastructure	30,461.75	Completed in 2004
RITS	ICT Security services to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	300,359.26	Ongoing
Centre for Cross-Border Studies	Cross-Border mobility study	19,440.00	Completed
Cornwell (formerly Clifford Associates)	(1) Project Management Advice — APS	(1) 106,000.00	(1) Due for completion in early 2006
	(2) Technical advice on the technical architecture for APS	(2) 137,764.64	(2) Completed 2004
Bearingpoint	Main Contractor in the development of the delivery of the APS	14,936,500.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Mason Hayes and Curran	Contract and Legal Advice — APS	9,500.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Dr. Tom Hardiman	Ireland’s Representative on the Board of Governors of the Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF)	39,687.86	Ongoing
Front Line	Study on possible EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders	25,000.00	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	20,470.42	Completed
Fiach MacChongail	Programme Manager, Irish Cultural Centre Paris	103.40	Completed
Michael Barsanti	Text for international Joyce exhibition	1,000.00	Completed
Labyrinth	Design of Ireland’s EU Presidency Website	257,889.49	Completed in 2004
Amas	Design of Youth section of Presidency website and search engine optimisation	53,280.51	Completed in 2004
Red Dog Design	Design of the EU Presidency logo, the branding of the Presidency and other project management costs for campaigns to promote regional awareness of the Presidency and to promote the Presidency website. Also includes ancillary production charges relating to costs incurred on technical issues such as printing, display units and backdrops etc.	49,419.12	Completed in 2004

Vote 28 Consultancies — 2004
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
Cara	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure and provision of resources for ICT Helpdesk services from October 2004	827,394.84	Ongoing
Crannog	Technical services to assist upgrade of e-mail system	53,542.50	Completed
DSS	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure and provision of resources for ICT Helpdesk services up to October 2004	1,234,630.47	Ongoing
Hewlett Packard	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure	39,023.41	Completed
Microsoft	Technical design of ICT Infrastructure	9,044.99	Completed
RITS	ICT Security services to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	321,164.31	Ongoing
Will Taylor	Technical services to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	190,904.59	Completed
Cornwell (formerly Clifford Associates)	(1) Project Management Advice — APS	(1) 314,000.00	(1) Due for completion in early 2006
	(2) Technical advice on the technical architecture for APS	(2) 229,546.68	(2) Completed
Bearingpoint	Main Contractor in the development of the delivery of the APS	14,358,000	Due for completion in early 2006
Mason Hayes and Curran	Contract and Legal Advice — APS	9,971.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Dr. Tom Hardiman	Ireland’s Representative on the Board of Governors of the Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF)	31,694.40	Ongoing
Declan Ryan Consultancy	Consultation on beverage provisions for EU Presidency	2,500.00	Completed
Deirdre Donohue	Organisation of December 2004 DFA/NGO Human Rights Forum	1,292.46	Completed
Labyrinth	Design of Ireland’s EU Presidency Website	245,829.31	Completed
Amas	Design of Youth section of Presidency website and search engine optimisation	81,340.18	Completed
Fusio	Upgrade of Departmental Website	11,188.30	Completed
Red Dog Design	Design of the EU Presidency logo, the branding of the Presidency and other project management costs for campaigns to promote regional awareness of the Presidency and to promote the Presidency website. Also includes ancillary production charges relating to costs incurred on technical issues such as printing, display units and backdrops etc.	251,363.15	Completed
Balcombe Helicopters	Provision of technical advice regarding helicopter transport for the EU Enlargement Day events in Dublin, 1 May, 2004	4,235.00	Completed
Melt design	Design and type setting of publication entitled “Growth, Jobs and Social Cohesion: What Europe is Doing for You”	1,940.84	Completed
A&L Goodbody	Expenditure Review Report on the Department’s EU Accession Training Programmes	4,878.42	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	24,126.33	Completed
Dr. Renata Dwan	Research in relation to the link between civilian crisis management and development assistance	15,000.00	Completed
Declan Kiberd	Editorial Advice on international Joyce exhibition and Beckett-related project work	900.00	Completed
Laura Weldon	Beckett-related project work	1,750.00	Completed

Vote 28 Consultancies — 2005 (to date)
Company	Service Provided	Actual Cost	Status
		€
Cara	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure and provision of resources for ICT Helpdesk services	1,466,897.97	Ongoing
DSS	Technical resources to assist upgrade of ICT infrastructure	725,237.60	Ongoing
RITS	ICT Security services to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	258,021.02	Ongoing
Version1	Technical resources to assist delivery of ICT Programmes	288,807.90	Ongoing
Cornwell (formerly Clifford Associates)	(1) Project Manager and Acceptance Testing — APS	(1) 87,060.00	(1) Due for completion in early 2006
	(2) Technical advice on the preparation of request for tenders for a new Automated Visa System	(2) 45,323.58	(2) Completed
	(3) Performance review of APS	(3) 43,763.28	(3) Completed
Bearingpoint	Main Contractor in the development of the delivery of the APS	497,300.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Mason Hayes and Curran	Contract and Legal Advice — APS	20,780.00	Due for completion in early 2006
Dr. Tom Hardiman	Ireland’s Representative on the Board of Governors of the Asia Europe Foundation (ASEF)	40,698.47	Ongoing
Ronan Daly Jermyn, Solicitors	Legal Advice in connection with contracts	3,025.00	Completed
Declan O’Neill	Evaluation of e-payments solution for the Department	4,000.00	Completed
ECA International	Examination of the structure of foreign service allowances and other entitlements available to officers serving overseas	3,418.00	Completed
Eugene Downes	Cultural Programme Co-ordinator	25,029.12	Ongoing
Declan Kiberd	Editorial Advice on international Joyce exhibition and Beckett-related project work	1,250.00	Completed
Ronan McDonald	Beckett-related project work	2,000.00	Completed
Padraig White	To advise the Garvaghy Roads Residents Coalition on broad issues of strategy with particular reference to economic development	22,282.15	Ongoing

Table B — Development Co-operation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2000
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
Centre for Adult and Community Education Fellowship Policy	Fellowship Policy guidelines & Application / Selection Criteria	2,475.99
Timothy O’Dempsey	Participation in Roll Back Malaria Meeting, WHO Geneva	2,350.5
John Kevany	Appraisal of International AIDS Vaccine Initiative (IAVI) Proposal	10,221.39
Desiree Dietvorst	Presentation at Like-minded meeting on SWAPs Dublin	3,573.09
The Economic & Social Research Institute	DAC Capacity Network meeting Dublin April 2000	3,313.18
Moss McCormack	Programme Document for Ireland Aid Assistance to Health Sector, Lesotho	3,739.7
Robert Smith	Appraisal of Ireland Aid Support to Jimma University, Ethiopia	8,033.61
Vivienne Forsythe	Appraisal of Ireland Aid Support to Jimma University, Ethiopia	11,265.04
Mary Jennings	Review of Save the Children Micro Credit Project, Palestine, March 2000	6,162.85
John Grindle	Attendance at Expert Group Meeting on Economic Vulnerability, Paris	1,168.12
Jim Kinsella	Bethel Evaluation, Lesotho, March 2000	6,911.12
Educational Research Centre	Assessing Quality of Teaching in Primary Schools, Kibale District, Uganda, March 2000	6,012.59
Centre for Adult and Community Education	Report on meeting of like minded Donors on SWAPS — March 2000	3,174.35
Ruairi Brugha	Joint Ministry of Health/ Partners Review of Health Plan of Action, Tanzania March 2000	7,445.78
Ann Bourke Garcia	Preparation of Programme of support in Health Sector for Ireland Aid Tanzania	12,804.9
Cathy Gaynor	Preparation of Report for the World Conference on Education for All, Dakar, Finalisation of Education Guidelines, Attendance at Regional Advisers’ Workshop on Education March-September 2000	15,236.86
Monica Gorman	Seminar on A Environmental Best Practice in Development Programmes @ Report, 23 March 2000	571.38
Deloitte & Touche	Review of Ireland Aid Procurement Procedures, March- June 2000	57,083.09
IAAC/ Prof. John Jackson	Attendance at the United Nations Commission on Population and Development	5,743.41
Dr. Timothy O’Dempsey	Participation in Operational Research Workshop, Ethiopia, Phase 1, March 2000	2,539.22
Peit Jan Zijlstra/ CDP Consultants	Evaluation of Area-Based Programmes, Dublin March April 2000	60,176.48
Orlaith McCaul	Evaluation of Area Based Programmes, Dublin March-April 2000	5,889.93
Swithun Goodbody	Attendance at IFPRI Workshop in Malawi — March-April 2000	4,646.8
Andrew O’Connell	Strategy and Guidelines for Ireland Aid support to Health Component in the District Development Programmes-April 2000	5,715.46
Nick Chisholm	Preparation of Ireland Aid Policy & Guidelines on Agriculture	12,597.59
Peadar Cremin	Curriculum Development and Implementation for Palestinian Ministry of Education: April 2000	5,401.44
David O’Grady	Curriculum Development and Implementation for Palestinian Ministry of Education: April 2000	5,291.99
Eamonn Brehony	Feasibility Study on the proposed Mungwi Council Sugar Cane Out-Growers Scheme, Zambia, April-May 2000.	4,826.12
Nick Chisholm	Attendance at the Preliminary Appraisal Committee and the pre-Project Appraisal and Evaluation Group Meetings April 2000-March 2001	4,441.07
Noel Whelan	Attendance at the Preliminary Appraisal Committee and the pre-Project Appraisal and Evaluation Group Meetings April 2000-March 2001	6,148.22
Mike FitzGibbon	Desk Study re Accounting Database in District Development Programmes, Tanzania	1,976.26
David McKevitt	Programme Aid Seminar May 2000	1,100.01
Bannock Consulting	Programme Aid Seminar May 2000	1,100.81
Vivienne Forsythe	Strategy and Sector Guidelines in Emergency Humanitarian Assistance, Emergency Preparedness and Post Emergency Rehabilitation	3,656.85
Conor Ward	Support to the Bethlehem 2000 Palestinian Heritage Centre at Bethlehem University — May 2000	3,669.85
Nils Boesen, AS Denmark	Review of NGO Block Grant Muiti-annual Funding — May-June 2000	27,297.43
Swithun Goodbody	Evaluation of Ireland Aid support to IFAD and CGIAR — May-June 2000	18,143.38
Colin O’Sullivan	Member of CSC Interview Board for IT Specialist, Development Co-operation Division	1,269.74
Terence George Baker	Development of the Curriculum for a Diploma course in Medlab Science	13,764.94
John Kevany	Attendance at EU HIV/AIDS Vaccine Task Team Meeting: Brussels May 2000	1,608.24
Andrew Burke	Review of Education Support to Northern Province, South Africa	8,063.1
REPIM Ltd	Programme Aid Seminar May 2000	2,296.74
Cathal Higgins	Review of Education Support to Northern Province, South Africa	8,122.53
Tom Dolan, ODT Development Consultancy	Reviewing Plans and Programme to Reform the Justice Cluster in South Africa	6,557.52
John Grindle	Background Paper on Political and Economic Developments, SA in preparation for Country Strategy Review — June 2000	4,357.7
Lars P Christensen	Evaluation of Ireland Aid Contributions to UNDP,UNICEF & UNFPA June-Sept 2000	11,500.3
Nedworc Foundation	Evaluation of Ireland Aid Contributions to UNDP,UNICEF & UNFPA June-Sept 2000	2,765.59
Piet Jan Zijlstra / CDP Consultants	Evaluation of Area-based Programmes, Ethiopia/Tanzania/Mozambique/Tanzania: Phase 11 — June/July & Sept 2000	10,602.85
Orlaith McCaul/ Development Studies Centre	Evaluation of Area-Based Programmes-Phase 2 — Tanzania/ Amsterdam/Tanzania	23,365.61
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine	Mid-term Review of the Reproductive Health Services Project, Northern Province, Zambia June 2000	14,972.15
Brenda Corcoran	Review of the National Tuberculosis Programme, Tanzania June 2000	9,208.14
Matthew Jowett	Attendance at WHO meeting on partnership in Health and Poverty, Geneva 12-14 June 2000	2,353.45
Thomas Kellaghan	Issues Paper for Attendance at International Working Group on Education — Florence, June 2000	2,623.37
Nick Chisholm	DAC Environmental Meeting June 2000	1,091.59
Mike Scott	Member of Civil Service Commission Interview Board for D C D Accountant, June 2000	1,269.4
David Lovegrove	Foreign Investment Advisory Mission to Laos	8,610.78
John Kevany	EU Health Aids Population Experts Meeting Brussels	1,404.75
Sean Courtney	Increase Management Capacity of the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania, July-October 2000	15,236.86
Bernard Mc Loughlin	Appraisal of Inception Report on the Establishment of an ED-SDP Pooled Fund, Tanzania	444.41
Seamus McGuinness	Mid-term Review/ Evaluation of the Whole School Development in Tanzania July/August 2000	3,300.05
Bernadette Crawford	Participation In Ireland Aid Education Seminar Aug 2000	2,631.16
Iain Atack	Review of 3-year Programme 1998-2000 on Human Rights, Democratisation and Good Governance — August 2000	2,365.84
Mary Jennings	Participation in Regional HIV/AIDS Workshop, Uganda, Sept 00	5,845.73
Vivienne Forsythe	Review of CHAL-RHDP Project Lesotho Sept 00	7,552.73
Mike Ratcliffe (HRDC)	Evaluation of Trócaire Block Grant Projects in Central America Aug 00	19,141.92
Grant Thornton	Review of DCO Administration Budgets and Budgeting Procedures — Aug-Oct 2000	23,568.74
Centre for Arid Zone Studies, University of Wales	Review of Agriculture Programme in Ethiopia, Aug-Sept00	19,166.29
UCD (Dept. of Agribusiness Extension & RD)	Sokoine Extension Programme Tanzania, Sept 00	8,226.84
John Grindle	Evaluation of Tanga Coastal Zone Programme — Phase II	12,315.25
Bernadette Crawford	Strategic Approach to Health and Education SWAps in the Priority Countries — Sept-Nov 00	2,285.53
Moss McCormack	Attendance at WHO Seminar on Quality Improvement Strategies for Middle & Low Income Countries September 2000	963.67
Nick Chisholm	DAC Environmental Conference-Amsterdam	2,130.51
John Kevany	Inter Agency Group Meeting on SWAPs Geneva	2,478.35
John Kevany	Ireland Aid Health Policy/ Programme Development: September-December 2000	13,558.01
Sean Courtney	Increase Management Capacity of the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania	16,760.54
Iain Atack	To attend SIDA Workshop A Promoting a Human Rights Approach in Development Co-operation @ Stockholm October 2000	2,632.76
Nick Chisholm	To attend CGIAR Annual Centres Week Washington, October 2000	3,330.76
Therese Dooley	Review of Primary Schools Construction & Bursary Project for Participation of Education Sector Support Programme for Lesotho October Nov 2000	6,610.88
Roger Avenstrup	Review of Primary Schools Construction & Bursary Project for Preparation of Education Sector Support programme for Lesotho Nov-Dec 2000 & Jan 01	15,505.05
Roger Avenstrup	Ethiopia ESDP Mid-term Review 10 February-4 March 2001	18,658.66
Dr. Shane Allwright	Appraise the desirability of Ireland Aid support for the Mwanza Intervention Trial, Tanzania	3,718.39
Moss McCormack	Health Sector Review Lesotho November 2000	3,889
Bernadette Crawford	Health Sector Consultation November 2000	406.91
Vivienne Forsythe	Health Sector Consultation November 2000	540.38
Dr. Maura Connolly	Health Sector Consultation November 2000	903.98
Dr. Bert Schreuder	Health Sector Consultation November 2000	1,223.19
Philip Ryan / Precept consulting	Management Review, Maputo	15,465.52
Kim Forss /Andante Consultants AB	Participation in Health SWAP Meeting Amsterdam, November 2000	4,295.12
Diarmuid McClean	Technical Support to UNICEF, Ghana, re Ireland Aid supported HIV/Aids programme: Nov-Dec 2000	5,947.77
Moss McCormack	Mid term Review of Medlabs Project Zambia December 2000	(paid in 2002)
Edward O’Loughlin	Production of an Ireland Aid Administrative procedures and Operations manual(s) December-June 2001	14,220.17
Deloitte & Touche	Quality Review of the Evaluation and Audit Unit. Dec 2000-Feb 01	40,966.58
COWI	Evaluation of Ireland Aid Contributions to the UN	45,858.94

Development Co-operation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2001
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
Aidan Pender/PA Consulting Group	Facilitator to the Ireland Aid Review Committee	31,452.35
Andrew Burke	Co-ordination of study visit to Ireland by Education officials from Uganda, Ethiopia, Zambia Mozambique and S A (Nov 2001)	9,885.68
Bernard McLoughlin	Sidama Area Based Programme Evaluation: Ethiopia (March 2001)	12,914.90
Bernard McLoughlin	Review of Financial Control Capacities and Elaboration of Programme Expansion Proposals (June, 2001)	13,093.88
Brian Barr	Roads Consultancy for Ireland Aid — Ethiopia Programme	11,381.32
Cathal Higgins	Participation in ongoing monitoring and review of Ireland Aid Education Programmes (Jan-Dec 2001)	46,659.36
CDP Consultants	Participation of Mr. Taco Kooistra in the evaluation of NGO Block Grant Scheme: Bangladesh and India (Feb & Mar 2001)	22,431.20
CDP Consultants	Participation in Sidama Area-based Programme Evaluation — Ethiopia (Feb -Apr 2001)	24,966.46
CDP Consultants	Souther Nations, Nationalities and Peoples Regional State (SNNPRS) Needs Assessment- Ethiopia (Nov 2001)	5,249.76
Centre for Arid Zone Studies (CAZS)	Support to Review of IFSP and Preparation of Position Paper — Ethiopia (Sep 2001)	14,525.14
CHL Consulting Group	Ex-Post Evaluation of Hotel and Tourism Training — Zambia (Oct-Nov 2001)	13,123.09
COWI	Evaluation of Ireland Aid Contributions to UNHCR and OHCHR (Sep-Nov 2001)	7,488.00
Deloitte & Touche	Study to Develop a Risk Management Process in Ireland Aid.	33,492.16
Development Studies Centre	Participation of Ms Orlaith McCaul in the Sidama Area-based Programme Evaluation — Ethiopia (Feb-Apr 2001)	16,297.33
Diarmuid McClean	Participation in ongoing support to Ireland Aid in the Health Sector (Feb-Jul 2001)	4,072.93
Diarmuid McClean	Health — Programme Support and Development (Oct 01-Mar 02)	2,886.63
Dr. Albert de Groot/ Netherlands Economic Institute	Macro-economic Support to Mozambique (Mar-Apr 01)	13,717.13
Dr. Ian Robinson — Centre for Arid Zone Studies, University of Wales, Bangor	Participate in workshop in Dublin re. developing an Ireland Aid Policy and Guidelines for Agriculture	1,851.88
Dr. Jim Phelan	Attendance at Agriculture Workshop — Tanzania (May 2001)	2,744.86
Dr. Timothy O’Dempsey	Participation in Operational Research Workshop (Ethiopia); March 2001	939.06
Edward O’Loughlin	Production of an Ireland Aid Administrative procedures and Operations manual(s) December — June 2001	20,320.00
Eric Woods	Review of Teacher Education in the Context of the Education Sector Development Programme — Ethiopia, November 2001	3,657.60
Gavin Olney	Assessment of Microfinance Sector in Kibale, Kiboga, and Kumi — Uganda	10,203.51
HELM Corporation Ltd	Review of Current Practice in Lesson Learning from Evaluations at Country Level. October -November 2001	24,126.76
Horwath Bastow Charlton	Review of Financial Management Systems of NGOs	40,327.97
IG Harmond Associates	Review of Ireland Aid Support to the Rural Access Sector — Lesotho (Aug-Sep 2001)	12,617.28
John Grindle	Participation in workshop on developing an Ireland Aid Policy and Guidelines for Agriculture: Agriculture Conference, Dublin (10-11 January 2001)	6,200.14
John Grindle	Assistance to the Czech and Lithuanian Foreign Ministries (April-June 2001)	9,106.70
John Grindle	On-going review of Ireland Aid’s policy on debt (May 2001-April 2002)	17,207.23
John Grindle	Review of the Ireland Aid Country Programme-Lesotho (Oct-Nov 2001)	2,000.25
John McKinnon	Seminar on proposal to provide General Budget Support to Uganda — Dublin (4 April 2001)	689.71
John Telford / EMMA Ltd.	Review of NGO activities in Gujarat, India (April-June 2001)	7,297.51
Kevin Carroll	Support to IA’s Health Advisers (Sep 01-Aug 02)	8,336.57
Kevin Carroll	Preparation of Discussion Paper on Governance/ Civil Society for Programme Officers Meeting (Nov. 2001)	1,905.00
Kevin Carroll	Workshop on Sector Wide Approaches (SWAPs)-Lesotho (Oct 2001)	4,493.95
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine	Participation of Ms Monica Burns in Mid-term Review of the HSDP — Ethiopia (February-March 2001)	30,081.70
Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine	Participation of Mr Peter Petit in Mid-term Review of the HSDP Ethiopia (February-March 2001)	21,836.14
London School of Hygeine and Tropical Medicine	Participation of Dr. Ruairi Brugha in Joint Ministry of Health/Partners Review of Health Plan of Action — Tanzania (March 2001)	15,580.01
Mary Oduka	Member of Ireland Aid Interview Board for Programme Officer (October 2001)	1,270.00
Michael Kelly	Participation in facilitation of workshop on HIV/AIDS and presentation of paper on HIV/AIDS (February-March 2001)	2,698.98
Michael Scott	Assessment of the operations of AMSCO (April-June 2001)	5,043.63
Monica Burns, LATH	Annual Review Meeting of HSDP — Ethiopia (June 2001)	12,265.60
NEDWORC	Participation of Mr Henk Mutsaers at the Agriculture Conference Workshop on Developing an Ireland Aid Policy and Guidelines for Agriculture: Dublin (11-12 January 2001)	3,140.20
Niall McDermott , Barry International Consulting Engineers	Mozambique Road Sector Analysis (June 2001)	20,550.60
Nick Chisholm	Attendance at the Preliminary Appraisal Committee and the pre-Project Appraisal and Evaluation Group Meetings ( April 2000-March 2001)	6,020.69
Nick Chisholm	Participation in workshop on developing an Ireland Aid Policy and Guidelines for Agriculture: Agriculture Conference, Dublin (10-11 January 2001)	977.09
Nick Chisholm	Ongoing Attendance at Meetings of DAC Working Party on Environment (March 2001 to March 2002)	3,993.39
Nick Chisholm	Seminar on proposal to provide General Budget Support to Uganda — Dublin (4 April 2001)	563.25
Nick Chisholm	Agriculture Position Paper in preparation for the Country Strategy Paper, Ethiopia ( August 2001)	9,096.92
Noel Molony	Review of Current Support to Rwanda -Phase 1 (December 2001)	1,143.00
Olga McDonagh	Administrative arrangements between Ireland Aid and ICOS (March-April 2001)	4,445.00
Overseas Development Institute, London	Participation of Mr. Mick Foster in Joint Donor Budget Support Mission (PRSC) — Uganda (January 2001)	21,689.77
Philip Ryan	Member of Ireland Aid Interview Board for Human Resources and Outsourcing Manager (October 2001)	2,743.20
Philip Ryan / Precept Consulting	Consultancy report to DCD for the Ireland Aid Review April (July 2001)	13,716.00
Prof. John Kevany	Health — Intermittent Specialist Support (October 2001-March 2002)	4,014.56
Prof. John Kevany	Participation in ongoing monitoring on draw-down basis of Ireland Aid support to the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative — IAVI (2001-2002)	8,840.69
Prof. John Kevany	Global Health Initiatives Stockholm	2,123.94
Pyramid Consulting Ltd.	Information & Communication Technology (ICT) and Development (1-16/2/2001)	5,715.00
Seamus O hUllachain	Facilitator for Study Visit to Ireland (Nov 2001)	3,810.00
Sean Courtney	Increase management capacity of the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania (17 January-16 March 2001)	11,582.40
Sean Courtney	Support to the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania (April-July 2001)	16,154.40
Sean Courtney	Support to the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania (Aug-Oct 2001)	15,240.00
Sean Courtney	Support to the Ireland Aid Country Programme, Tanzania (01 November 2001-31 January 2002)	4,572.00
Sorcha Corcoran	Production of the Ireland Aid Annual Report	8,628.38
Susan Bragdon CGIAR/IPGRI	Speak at a workshop on Genetic Resources for Agriculture Dublin (8-9 Jan 2001)	833.63
Swithin Goodbody	Participation in Agriculture Conference Workshop on developing an Ireland Aid Policy and Guidelines for Agriculture (Dublin); 11&12/1/2001 (classified as an extension of contract for Evaluation of Ireland Aid support to IFAD and CGIAR (May-June 2000)	1,263.56
T & B Consult	Review of Ireland Aid’s support to the Development Studies Centre, Kimmage Manor (Sep-Nov 2001)	6,229.35
Therese Dooley	Participation in the Facilitation of workshop on Monitoring and Evaluation (February-March 2001)	1,524.00
Therese Dooley	EU Water Experts Meeting Stockholm (23-24 April 2001)	2,325.19
Therese Dooley	Water & Sanitation sector, SA & Zambia (June-July 2001)	16,360.08
Therese Dooley	Global Health Fund Meeting Geneva (Jun 01). Global Fund for AIDS & Health Brussels (Jul 01)	4,103.50
Therese Dooley	Preparation for Formulation of CSP-Ethiopia, Water Sector (Sep-Oct 2001)	11,986.73

Development Co-operation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2002
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
Avenstrup, Roger	Review of IA support to Education Sector — Lesotho (Dec 2001)	8,956.05
McGuinness, Seamus	Mid-term review/evaluation of Whole School Development — Tanzania (Jul-Aug 2000)	10,681.75
Courtney, Sean	Support to the IA Country Programme — Tanzania (Nov 01 to Jan 02)	10,668.00
Sugrue, Ciaran	Joint External Appraisal of MoE Strat Plan — Zambia (Jul-02)	5,522.71
Long, Jean	Evaluation of the Copperbelt Maternity Clinics & the Northern Province Reproductive Health Projects — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	9,776.42
Crawford, Bernie	Development of a Sector Strategy Paper for Urban Development (POCMUS) — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	8,740.96
McDowell, Moore	Preparation in the GoZ /WB workshop on “Deepening Economic Diversification in Zambia”— Zambia (Jun-02)	9,710.38
McCormack, Moss	Mid-term review of the Medlabs Project — Zambia (Jul-02)	6,800.00
Riverine Consulting	Good Governance Northern Province Needs Assessment — Zambia (Jul-Aug 02)	3,291.00
Mtonga, V	Review of the Cooperbelt Reproductive Health — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	1,524.00
Milimo, J	Water Northern Province KAP Survey — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	5,515.00
RuralNet HIV/AIDS	Capacity Needs Assessment OVC Programme Copperbelt — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	4,010.00
Sikwibele, A	Northern Province Education BTL Review — Zambia (Jul-Aug-02)	4,995.00
Burke, Andrew	Review of IA support to Primary Education Reform Programme — Uganda (Jul-Aug-02)	15,031.98
Dolan, Tom	Justice Law & Order Sector Review — Uganda (April-May 01)	13,205.54
Dolan, Tom	Preparation of PAEG Documents (2001)	2,795.82
Dolan, Tom	Justice Law & Order Sector & Anti Corruption — Uganda (May-Jun 01)	33,023.43
Dolan, Tom	Visit of Uganda CRC to Ireland, Preparatory Work (Jan-02)	1,766.84
Dolan, Tom	Justice Law & Order Sector Review- Uganda (Nov 01)	12,457.06
O’Sullivan, Margo	Review of IA support to Primary Education Reform Programme — Uganda (Jul-Aug-02)	10,059.00
Avenstrup, Roger	Review Teacher Education — Ethiopia (Nov-01)	15,658.8
Avenstrup, Roger	ESDP Annual Review — Ethiopia (April-02)	8,379.2
CDP Consultants	SNNPRS Needs Assessment — Ethiopia (Feb-Apr)	15,108.45
CDP Consultants	SNNPRS Needs Assessment Phase II — Ethiopia (May-02)	11,808.87
Higgins, Cathal	Assessment of Teacher Education — Ethiopia (2001)	5,731.00
Phelan, Jim	Technical Needs Assessment for ORCB Project — Ethiopia (Sep-02)	7,465.07
Woods, Eric	Provision of Technical support to Joint Task Force on teacher Education — Ethiopia (Jan-Jun-02)	22,914.78
Woods, Eric	Review of Teacher Education in the context of ESDP (Nov-2001)	9,694.21
Gaynor, Cathy	Training Assignment — Ethiopia (October-02)	11,094.11
CDP Consultants	SNNP Regional Integrated Plan — Ethiopia (September 02)	31,005.68
Dolan, Tom	Appraisal of E-justice Programme — South Africa (Oct-2001)	13,535.48
Dolan, Tom	IA support to Good Governance, Democracy & Human Rights — South Africa (Jul-Sep-02)	7,854.00
Gordon, Adele	Bursary Support Evaluation — South Africa	1,553.18
Corbett Development Service	Technical Assistance to oversee Water Project’s Implementation — South Africa	8,516.88
Khulisa Man. Serv.	Id current & future funding in Education Sector in Limpopo Prov. — South Africa	28,588.30
Int. Org. Develop.	Support for NGOs working in HIV/AIDS — South Africa	10,335.86
Int. Org. Develop.	Assistance in Organisational restructuring of DoE, Limpopo Province (Phase 1) — South Africa	3,924.08
Chisholm, Nick	PAC & Pre-PAEG Meeting Jan/Mar/April 02	4,079.45
Chisholm, Nick	Ongoing Attendance at DAC Working Party on the Envir. Meetings	2,380.48
Chisholm, Nick	PAC & Pre-PAEG Meetings (May-Dec 02)	4,183.90
Core Financial Systems	Annual Support/Maintenance/Product Licence for Sunsystems for seven missions	22,149.64
Core Financial Systems	Various on-site consultancies	6,897.20
Core Financial Systems	On-site Development of Sun to reflect changes to Subheads in 7 Embassies (Mar-Apr-02)	23,958.00
Grant Thornton	Preparation of Financial Statements Refugee Agency (2001-02)	4,800.00
Jackson, John	Member of the IA Interview Board for Principal & Senior Development Specialists, Dublin (Sep-Oct-02)	6,215.68
Ainscow, Robert	Member of the IA Interview Board for Principal & Senior Development Specialists, Dublin (Sep-Oct-02)	14,018.56
Fell, Art	Member of the IA Interview Board for Principal & Senior Development Specialists, Dublin (Sep-Oct-02)	7,748.34
Ryan, Philip	IA Review of IAAC & NCDE (2001)	6,856.58
Saville & Holdsworth Ltd	Interviewing for IO & Edu. Specialist (Nov & Dec-2001)	7,867.93
S&H Ltd	Feedback to M. O’Connor & T.Dignan	772.2
S&H Ltd	Compentencies & Application Form Design (Mar-02)	2,395.8
Sheils, John	External support in compilation of Job Descriptions for IA	5,793.6
T&B Consult	Review of IA’s support to the DSC Kimmage (2001)	16,877.82
Whelan, Noel	Pre-PAEG Meetings Jan 01-Jan-02	11,084.31
Whelan, Noel	Pre-PAEG Meetings Feb-Dec 02	6,750.78
Grindle, John	Debt: Ongoing Review of IA’s policy on Debt (01-02)	7,554.97
Grindle, John	Debt: Ongoing Review of IA’s policy on Debt (May 02-Apr 03)	7,178.39
Grindle, John	Multi-annual Programme Scheme (MAPS) — (Apr-Dec-02)	13,000.00
Jennings, Mary	Multi-annual Programme Scheme (MAPS) — (Apr-Dec-02)	14,346.00
Gaynor, Cathy	Multi-annual Programme Scheme (MAPS) — (Apr-Dec-02)	13,580.00
Grindle, John	Assessment & expert input to Eastern Europe Aid Committee (Feb-Dec-02)	8,500.00
Carroll, Kevin	Evaluation of in-country micro-projects, Phase I	15,881.49
Carroll, Kevin	Eval micro-projects (Phase II) Nigeria	10,487.67
Carroll, Justin	Evaluation of in-country micro-projects, Phase I	27,566.00
Carroll, Justin	Eval micro-projects (Phase II)	10,503.00
CDP Consultants	Evaluation of NGO Block Grant Scheme in Kenya, Uganda & Malawi (Jun-2001)	12,162.24
COWI	Evaluation of IA contributions to UNHCR & OHCHR (Sep-Nov 2001)	33,469.52
Deloitte & Touche	Study to develop a Risk Management Process for IA (2Sep-Nov 2001)	5,762.02
Deloitte & Touche	Risk Management Pilot Phase — Zambia (Jun-02)	40,999.22
Grindle, John	Review — Ethiopia (Aug-Sep-02)	10,484.82
HELM Corporation Ltd	Review of current practice in Lesson Learning from evaluations at country level (expenses 2001)	737.00
Horwath Bastow Charleton	Review of Financial Management Systems of 5 NGOs (Sep-Dec 2001)	9,680.00
Molony, Noel	Review of current support to Rwanda Phase 2 (Jan-02)	7,357.59
Molony, Noel	Review of current support to Rwanda Phase 1 (Dec-2001)	2,987.24
Mullan, Mark	Review of current support to Rwanda Phase 1(Dec-2001)	2,987.24
Mullan, Mark	Review of current support to Rwanda Phase 2 (Jan-02)	6,350.00
Shannon Development	Review of FIAS (Apr-May-02)	11,313.50
Deloitte & Touche	Role out of Risk Management to 6 Missions (Oct 02 — Jan 03)	65,200.81
Scott, Mike	Support to EAU (Feb-May-02)	14,685.00
Carr, Bronagh	Assessment of Proposals under EHAF/EPPR Scheme — (Apr-Dec 02)	11,324.40
Molony, Noel	Assessment of Proposals under EHAF/EPPR Scheme — (Apr-Dec 02)	7,260.00
Telford, John	Assessment of Proposals under EHAF/EPPR Scheme — (Apr-Dec 02)	15,000.00
Michelson Institute	Review of IA’s Human Rights & Democratisation Scheme — (May-Aug 02)	79,356.70
Carr, Bronagh	Develop new instruments for channelling of funds to Irish NGOs for HIV/AIDS Programme- (Jan-Mar-02)	15,240.00
Carr, Bronagh	Assist IA in managing NGO-HAPS — (Apr-Dec 02)	13,831.50
McClean, Diarmuid	Ongoing support HIV/AIDS: SA & Mozambique (2001)	7,046.91
McClean, Diarmuid	Health Prog Support & Development: HIV Strategy — Tanzania	14,305.00
Crawford, Bernie	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS (Apr-Dec 02)	5,488.90
Hogan, Mark	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS (Apr-Dec 02)	6,135.00
Manchester, Joanne	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS (Apr-Dec 02)	4,050.00
McMullan, Pat	Ongoing support to IA funding of IFAD (Jan-Dec-02)	29,827.10
Lee, Carol	Photographic assignments — Advance on fees (2001-02)	11,062.85
Red Dog Graphics	Publications: Design IA Annual Report 01	10,000.00
Bourke-Garcia, Ann	Attendance at the XIV AIDS Conference — Barcelona (July-02)	4,909.79
Carroll, Kevin	Programming Support to IA Edu. & Health Advisers — (Sep-01 to Aug 02)	10,596.61
Carroll, Kevin	Programming Support to Health & Edu Advisers — (Mar-Jul 02)	6,480.97
Cremin, Peter	Co-ordination of study visit to Ireland by Education Officials from Uganda (Nov-2001)	6,497.18
Dooley, Teresa	Intermittant Specialist Support to Water & Sanitation Sector (2001-02)	23,496.15
Grindle, John	Review of IA Country Programme — Lesotho (Oc-Nov 2001)	6,067.73
Kevany, John	On-going monitoring of IA support to IAVI (01-02)	9,113.94
Kevany, John	Intermittent Specialist Support to the Health Sector — (Oct-01 to Mar-02)	13,227.99
Kevany, John	Intermittent Specialist Support to the Health Sector — (Jun to Dec 02)	12,655.55
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine	Attendance at Dep. For Intern’ Medical Research Council Meeting London — (Feb-02)	1,300.00
McClean, Diarmuid	Ongoing support: SA April 01& Ethiopia Jul-01	15,066.57
McClean, Diarmuid	Health Programme Support & Development (Mar-Aug-02)	23,841.51
Ní Duibhir, Denise	Preparation of Edu Fact Sheets & Guidelines Desk Study (2001-02)	2,785.73
O’Donovan, Diarmuid	Technical Consultant to the Board of the European Malaria Vaccine Initiative	8,233.19
St. Patrick's Educational Centre	Technical Support to Ugandan National Examinations Board (UNEB) for their National Conference (Feb-Mar-02)	5,852.14
Dundalk Institute of Technology	On-going participation in the Intern’ Working Group & Formulation on policy & incentives for the ASEM Initiative on Lifelong Learning (Nov 2001- Sep 02)	62,296.35
IMCL	Country Financial Accountability Assessment, Ethiopia (Sep-Oct 02)	44,840.53
LSHTM	Tracking Study for Global Fund for AIDS, TB & Malaria (end 02- mid 04)	55,570.08
Heneveld, Ward	Facilitator for Seminar on Monitoring Education Quality, Dublin Oct 02	5,207.23
Gaynor, Cathy	Monitoring and Evaluation Consultancy, Ethiopia Oct-Nov 02	11,094.11
Kelly, Michael J.	Facilitator for Seminar on Monitoring Education Quality, Dublin	2,981.36
Carroll, Kevin	Facilitate the Development of an interim CSP for East Timor, Nov 02	7,044.56
Fraser, Susan	Identify the most appropriate funding strategies that could be considered by IA for Palestine in 2003, Oct 02	5,053.86
Cremin, Peadar	Assessment of Ministry of Education Proposal for Technical Assistance to Teacher Training Curriculum Reform, Ethiopia, Oct-Nov 02	7,006.25
Crawford, Bernie	Strategic Approach to Health & Education SWAps in the Priority Programmes, Sep-Nov 02	7,618.42
Scott, Mike	Participation in the Risk Management Process, Uganda Nov 02	3,582.13

Development Co-operation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2003
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
ECORYS	Teacher Education Unit Costings Study, Jan-Feb 03	24,063.54
T&B Consult	Public Expenditure Review — Mozambique Jan-Feb 03	27,365.01
Carroll, Kevin	HIV/AIDS Review Tanzania -Review of the Mema Kwa Vijana Project, Feb-Mar 03	16,640.26
T&B Consult	Review of Ireland Aid support to Gender Equality, Jan-Apr 03	77,902.02
Wirak, Anders	2002 Joint Review Mission ESDP, Ethiopia, Feb-Mar 03	23,378.68
Arekibo	Website Redesign and Build, Jan — Apr 03	60,633.00
McClean, Diarmuid	HIV/AIDS Review Tanzania -Review of the Mema Kwa Vijana Project	16,808.90
O’Donovan, Diarmuid	Technical Consultant to the Board of the European Malaria Vaccine Initiative, Jan-Dec 03	8,793.97
Carroll, Kevin	Assistance in Programming Support to the Education and Health/HIV/AIDS Advisers, Jan-Dec 03	30,644.56
Carr, Bronagh	Support to the Emergency and Rehabilitation Unit, Mar-Dec 03	22,797.30
CATZ (University of Wales, Bangor)	Technical Assistance for a Programme of Operational Research and Capacity Building for Food Security & Sustainable Livelihoods (Ethiopia), Apr 03-04	366,158.71
Sugrue, Ciaran	Finalise the Teacher Development and Management Plan (TDMP) Phase II, Uganda	22,862.19
Grindle, John	Attendance at the United Nations Commission on Population and Development, New York, Mar-Apr 03	6,595.64
Grindle, John	Assessment of Proposals submitted under the Eastern European Fund, Mar-Dec 03	8,366.92
Carr, Bronagh	Provision of Technical Support to Ireland Aid in the management of the HIV/AIDS Partnership Scheme for NGOs, March to December 2003	11,033.79
Chisholm, Nick	Participation in the PAEG Meetings, Mar-Dec 03	6,030.80
Whelan, Noel	Participation in the PAEG Meetings, Mar -Dec 03	6,130.00
Leen, Maura	Participation in the PAEG Meetings, Mar-Dec 03	3,600.00
CDP Consultants	Review of the Government of Ireland-Government of South Africa Development Co-operation, Mar-May 03	40,864.25
IMCL	Re-Modeling of Area-Based Programmes, Ethiopia Apr-May 03	32,947.22
CDP	Review District Development Programmes (2000-03), Tanzania	42,624.96
Grindle, John	Tanga Coastal Zone Conservation & Development Programme, Tanzania	4,000.00
Mulkeen, Aidan	ICT in Education Study in Uganda	11,760.34
Hurley, John	Feasibility Study and Project Formulation for Hospice Uganda Pilot Project	8,650.00
O’Sullivan, Margo	TDMS — Evaluation of CCT Performance, Uganda	17,585.77
Heneveld, Ward	Education Quality Review, Uganda	34,244.49
Cremin, Peader	Assessment of MoE Proposal for TA to Teacher Training Curriculum Reform, Ethiopia (undertaken in 2002)	7,006.25
CDP	SNNPRS Needs Assessment — Phase III/IV, Ethiopia	18,307.66
DECO — Wirak, Anders	2002 Joint Review Mission ESDP, Ethiopia	23,378.68
Woods, Eric	Technical Support to Steering Committee of Task Force for Teacher Development, Ethiopia (Oct 02-Sep 03)	30,380.22
DECO — Wirak, Anders	Education Joint Review Mission (JRM) 2003, Ethiopia	21,625.69
Durkan, Joseph	Preparation of a paper examining the most appropriate means to encourage and support an enterprise culture within the Ireland Aid Programme in South Africa, May 2003	16,096.37
Moore, Kevin	Briefing for the Office of the President on promoting Private Sector Development in Timor-Leste	10,241.15
Chisholm, Nick	Attendance at DAC Meetings (2002-04)	5,151.72
PAI	Management Needs Analysis	92,757.70
Crawford, Bernie	Appraisal of Fellowships	945.00
Jackson, John	Interview Board Member	2,712.05
O’Donnell, B	Interview Board Member	1,085.00
Uwakwe, Pamela	Review and Update of Financial Policies, Guidelines and Procedures	26,620.00
Carroll, Kevin	Evaluation of In-country Microprojects Scheme (expenses)	919.60
McClean, Diarmuid	Mid-term Review of IA Support to HIV/AIDS Activities in Zimbabwe & Zambia, (Oct-Nov 02)	9,178.44
Deloitte & Touche	Roll-out of Risk Management System to Ethiopia, Mozambique, Uganda, Tanzania, Lesotho and South Africa Programmes, and Production of a Risk Management Booklet (2002-03)	15,914.94
Boyle, Richard	ERI — Quality Review of IA Reports	2,420.00
Annesley Resource Partnership	ERI — Quality Review of IA Reports	1,815.00
Carr, Bronagh	Malawi — Evaluate Emergency Response (2002-03)	21,457.76
Hall, Nick	Review the Financial Procedures in NGO Partners during the 2002 to 2003 Emergency Response in Malawi, November 2000	9256.50
Salephera Consulting Ltd.	Team Member to Evaluate the 2002 to 2003 Emergency Response in Malawi, November 2003	6,000.00
BDO Simpson Xavier	Financial Management Systems Review of GOAL under MAPS Funding, Dublin — November 2003	18,634.00
Mokoro	Evaluation of the Uganda Country Programme 2000-2003	95,339.26
Grindle, John	Evaluation of DCI (Balkans & CIS) Desk Top Study 2003-04	10,000.00
Ni Duibhir, Denise	Preparation of Edu Fact Sheets & Guidelines Desk Study Advance (2001-2002)	6,573.41
Dooley, Teresa	Intermittent Specialist Support to Water & Sanitation Sector (2001-2002)	23,496.15
McClean, Diarmuid	Health Programme Support & Development (March-Dec 02)	7,158.27
Carroll, Kevin	Support to IA Health/Education Advisers (2002)	5,398.25
Regan, Colm (80:20)	Civic Education Zambia (2002)	12,875.34
Kevany, John	Intermittent Specialist Support to the Health Sector — Jan-Dec 03	7,985.63
McClean, Diarmuid	Provision of Technical Support in Health to the Technical Support Unit, Dublin — April 03 to March 2004	60,143.59
O’Donovan, Diarmuid	Technical Consultant to the Board of the European Malaria Vaccine Initiative, Jan-Dec 03	8,793.97
Phelan, Jim	Uganda Field visit (Membership of the Taskforce on Private Sector & Agriculture)	2,890.22
ODI	Prep. Strategy on ICT & Development	24,980.12
Cremin, Peader	Attendance at Europe-wide Global Education Conference (Nov 02)	2,232.04
Brugha, Ruairí (LSHTM)	Attendance at ‘A Confidential Briefing on the Results of the MKV Project’ Meeting	1,573.00
Peberdy, Max	Facilitator for a three day Workshop on the Technical Section’s Strategic Plan — Dublin	3,834.49
Kinsella, Jim (UDC)	Attendance at DAC PovNet Meeting, Florence, Oct 03	3,568.94
O’Dwyer, Jerry	Support to Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB & Malaria, Oct-Dec 03	8,589.72
Crawford, Bernie	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS	2,296.00
Hogan, Mark	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS	4,070.00
Manchester, Joanne	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS	1,089.00
Gaynor, Cathy	Provision of Advice on the Development of a Monitoring Framework for Civil Society Section	1,350.00
Jennings, Mary	Multi-Annual Programme Scheme (MAPS) (2002)	758.00
Grindle, John	Multi-Annual Programme Scheme (MAPS) (2002)	2,500.00
Jennings, Mary	Goal Strategy Planning/MAPS Development	750.00
Grindle, John	Evaluation of Bóthar Projects (2003-04)	7,000.00
Carr, Bronagh	Provision of Technical Support to Ireland Aid in the management of the HIV/AIDS Partnership Scheme for NGOs, March to December (2002)	3,800.00
LSHTM	Tracking Study for Global Fund for AIDS, TB & Malaria	55,570.08
Honan, Annette	DEVED Grants Committee Member
Mollaghan, Mary	Production of a Guide to Teaching Resources for DevED	2,970.00
Grindle, John	Assessment of Proposals submitted under the Eastern European Fund (2003-04)	8,000.00
Hayes, Mahon	Constitutional Expert for the Palestinian Authority	5,876.29
Scott, Mike	Ireland Aid-AMSCO Partnership Review	9,147.39
McMullan, Pat	Support to IA funding of IFAD (2002)	4,145.52
McMullan, Pat	Support to IA funding of IFAD (2003-04)	15,893.76
Carr, Bronagh	Identify most appropriate funding strategies for Ethiopia (Nov-Dec 2002)	5,152.03
Telford, John	Support to the Emergency and Rehabilitation Unit	13,794.00
Smillie, Ian	Background Paper on and Mission to Sierra Leone	23,882.52
Grindle, John	Ongoing Review & Analysis of IA’s Policy on Debt, 2002-03	10,366.92

Development Co-operation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2004
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
Gaynor, Cathy	Facilitation of Strategic Planning CSP 2005-07	8,450.53
Jennings, Mary	Facilitation of Strategic Planning CSP 2005-07	8,481.43
Grindle, John	Tanga Coastal Zone Conservation & Development Programme	6,372.33
McClean, Diarmuid	Development of Stat Plan on HIV/AIDS 04-06	15,672.56
Phelan, Jim	Task Force No 3 on Agricultural Services Agricultural Sector Development Programme — Preparation Mission, Tanzania — February 2004	10,159.07
Ockelford, Jeremy	Evaluation of Northern Province Rural Water Supply and Sanitation Programme 2000-2002, Zambia — March to April 2004	23,975.99
LATH	Review of the Northern Province Reproductive Health Programme and Ex Post Evaluation	65,382.96
Hurley, John	Feasibility Study and Project Formulation for Hospice Uganda Pilot Project	9,689.50
Heneveld, Ward	Education Quality Review	15,215.04
Heneveld, Ward	Education Quality Review Phase II	20,950.19
HSLP	Finalise a Strategic Framework for Uganda AIDS Commission Secretariat (UACS), Uganda	65,442.86
Roedde, Gretchen	Mid-term review of the National Primary Health Care Programme, Uganda — September to October 2004	18,475.57
Mulkeen, Aidan	Development of Operational Plan for the integration of ICT in Teacher Education Pilot Project in Rwenzori, Uganda (July to December 2004)	9,467.07
Mulkeen, Aidan	ICT & EDU Follow-up visit	4,403.14
Cronin, Patricia	Uganda Law Reform Commission Consultancy	7,000.00
Gaynor, Cathy	Strengthening mainstreaming HIV/AIDS	9,938.29
Jennings, Mary	Strengthening mainstreaming HIV/AIDS	9,971.44
CATZ, Bangor	Technical Assistance for a Programme of Operational Research and Capacity Building for Food Security & Sustainable Liveelihoods (Ethiopia)	235,669.32
Hockley, Tom	Relief to Development in Ethiopia, March-April 2004	17,686.34
Polhemus, James	Review of the Centre for Study of Violence and Reconciliation, South Africa — November to December 2004	14,520.00
PAI	Management Needs Analysis	50,057.70
Whelan, Noel	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	1,021.54
Uwakwe, Pamela	Review and Update of Financial Policies, Guidelines and Procedures	20,916.27
Chisholm, Nick	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	2,718.50
Leen, Maura	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	1,900.00
Whelan, Noel	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	2,120.00
Fell, Arthur	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	8,884.26
McKeown, Mary	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	5,770.81
Leen, Maura	Participation in the PAEG Meetings	4,250.00
Crawford, Bernie	External Member of Fellowships Selection Committee, May-June 2004	2,582.95
O’Regan, Johnny	Evaluation of Internal Financial Controls, September to December 2004	12,100.00
Hall, Nick	Review the Financial Procedures in NGO Partners during the 2002 to 2003 Emergency Response in Malawi, November 2003	12,132.82
Salephera Consulting Ltd.	Team Member to Evaluate the 2002 to 2003 Emergency Response in Malawi, November 2003	13,812.15
Grindle, John	Evaluation of DCI (Balkans & CIS) Desk Top Study	5,000.00
Cosgrave, J	PER — Support to Afghanistan	24,154.62
Deloitte & Touche	Facilitation of Risk Management Workshops	12,826.00
O’Regan, Johnny	Audit Support to the E&A Unit (March-May)	28,283.02
O’Regan, Johnny	Audit Support to the E&A Unit (June-August)	38,478.00
ECORYS-NEI	Evaluation of Phase 3 of the Debt Sustainability Capacity Building Programme for HIPCs	245,523.85
Woods, Eric	Desk Study for Development Co-operation Ireland of Support to the Education Sector in Zambia and Uganda 2000-2003, April to June 2004	23,398.29
Agulhas	An Assessment of the Lesotho Country Programme 199-2004, May — July 2004	60,527.82
Uwakwe, Pamela	Provision of Audit Management Support to Evaluation and Audit Unit, June to August 2004	16,940.00
ETC East Africa	Evaluation of the Kilosa District Programme and a Community Level Evaluation of the Kilosa District Programme, Tanzania	64,255.84
CDP	Evaluation of the Area Based Programme in Niassa Province, Mozambique — June to July 2004	44,154.96
Bannock Consulting	Value for Money Study and Transaction Audit, August — November 2004	65,395.99
Petrus Consulting	Expenditure Review Initiative — Quality Review of Development Co-operation Ireland Report (Review of DCI Support to Afghanistan), November 2004	3,176.26
Mokoro	Evaluation of the ETH Country Strategy Paper	71,889.15
McLoughlin, Bernard	Financial Capacity Assessment for Programme Support — Lesotho, October 2004	9,191.68
BDO Simpson Xavier	Goal Assignment	1,089.00
McCormack, Moss	Mid-term review of the Medlabs Project, Zambia	6,863.30
O’Donovan, Diarmuid	Technical Consultant to the Board of the European Malaria Vaccine Initiative	8,369.66
T&B Consult	Review of IA Support to Gender Equality	54,749.17
Kinsella, Jim (UDC)	Attendance at DAC PovNet Meeting, Florence, Oct 03	1,416.00
O’Dwyer, Jerry	Support to Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB & Malaria, Oct-Dec 03	4,277.50
O’Dwyer, Jerry	Support to Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB & Malaria, Oct-Dec 03	30,542.45
Shine, Tara	Support on Climate Change	39,738.56
McClean, Diarmuid	Support to Technical Section — Health	5,667.87
Moore, Kevin	Review of Ugandan Investment Authority (UIA)	5,036.21
Brugha, Ruairi	Attendance at Confidential Briefing on Results of MKV Project	1,573.00
Chisholm, Nick	Attendance at DAC Meetings (Working Party on Environment)	4,450.68
Cremin, Peadar		541.84
Gaynor, Cathy	Report Writing for EFA Global Report Launch 2/4/04	369.00
Jennings, Mary	Report Writing for EFA Global Report Launch 2/4/04	401.55
O’Brien, William	The Private Sector and Agriculture Study, Dublin — February 2004	6,665.75
Kinsella, Jim (UDC)	Technical Support for follow-up of PovNet Working Group on Agriculture, March to December 2004	5,085.17
Brugha, Ruairi (LSHTM)	Attendance at ‘Combating Diseases associated with Poverty: Financing Strategies for Product Development and the Potential Role of Public-Private Partnerships’, London — 15 to 16 April 2004	3,932.50
McClean, Diarmuid	Participation in Consultative Meeting on Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS in Montreux, Switzerland, 3-4 May 2004	6,432.50
Shine, Tara	Development of an Environment Policy for Development Co-operation Ireland — July to November 2004	25,751.49
Fitzgerald, Margaret	Attendance at Meeting ‘Programme Co-ordination Board Meeting of the United Nations Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)', Geneva — June 2004	2,637.96
Leen, Maura	Provision of technical Support in Trade Policy and Capacity Building, July-October 2004	8,750.00
Gaynor, Cathy	Support for the Development of Education Policy Revision Process, September to December 2004	14,000.00
John Snow	Review of DCI’s Regional HIV/AIDS Programme	28,000.92
Scott, Mike	Assistance with the work of the Private Sector Forum, Sept to Dec ’04	12,776.11
McClean, Diarmuid	Provision of Technical Support in Health and HIV/AIDS to the Technical Support Unit, September to December 2004	15,087.62
Cremin, Peadar	Engagement with Educational Institutions in Ireland regarding Education for All (EFA) including Representation of DCI at a UNESCO Conference in Paris, November — December 2004	5,000.00
Wirak, Anders (DECO)	Background paper on DCI engagement with UNESCO, November 2004	5,505.50
Manchester, Joanne	Member of the Approvals Committee of the NGO-HAPS	4,356.00
Grindle, John	Evaluation of Bóthar Projects	5,804.47
Santos Marinho, G	Participation in Evaluation of ADRA Projects	5,967.07
Alves Maia, Maria L	Participation in Evaluation of ADRA Projects	5,950.09
Jennings, Mary	Team leader for the Evaluation of ADRA Projects	10,705.80
Anderson, Ian	Evaluation of Refugee Trust Projects	12,105.58
Jennings, Mary	MAPS monitoring visit by DCI to GOAL’s programme in Angola, September 2004; and an Assessment of GOAL's performance in relation to agreed benchmarks, September to December 2004	17,805.63
Smith, Marie	Appraisal and Monitoring Support for Civil Society and Assistant Desk Officers, August to December 2004	8,147.45
Costigan, Aine	Assist DCI in appraising and approving proposals under the HAPS Supplementary Grant, September 2004	2,000.00
Crawford, Bernie	Assist DCI in appraising and approving proposals under the HAPS Supplementary Grant, September 2004	3,000.00
Farrell, Deirdre	Member of the Development Education Grants Committee, March to September 2004	5,000.00
Grindle, John	External Evaluator for Development Cooperation Ireland Project Proposals for the Balkans and CIS, January to December 2004	2,000.00
Grindle, John	External Evaluator for Development Cooperation Ireland Project Proposals for the Balkans and CIS, January to December 2004	12,500.00
Annesley Resource Partnership	Real-time Evaluation of IPA Training Programme	10,890.00
Whelan, Noel	Member of Eastern European Aid Committee Feb-Dec 2002	5,005.23
Grindle, John	Evaluation of DC in the Balkans & CIS — Desk Top Study	8,000.00
Brunel University	Policy Study on Good Practice in Child Care in Eastern Europe and the Russian Federation	31,629.95
Scott, Mike	Ireland Aid-AMSCO Partnership Review	2,910.82
McMullan, Pat	Support to IA funding of IFAD	20,000.00
Enterplan	Limited Review of Projects Supported by AMSCO/Stichting, April-July 2004	30,925.20
Scott, Mike	Private Sector Resource Specialist, April to December 2004	21,260.31
OPM (Anne Thomson)	Review of DCI Support to IFAD	21,711.43
Goodbody, Swithun	Review of DCI Support to CGIAR	10,000.00
Godden, Kate	Independent Consultants for the EHAF-EPPR Funding Committee	1,210.00
Mokoro	Preparation of Country Strategy for Palestine 2004-2007, November 2003 to January 04	50,628.14
Telford, John	Support to Emergency Section	10,373.15
ODI	External Facilitator at the HAC Meeting, Dublin March 2004	23,021.10
Ngunyi, Mutahi	Monitoring of DCI Recovery Programme, Kenya Mar-Dec 04	10,648.00
Conroy, Anne	Monitoring of DCI Recovery Programme, Malawi Mar-Dec 04	10,648.00
Cosgrave, John	Independent Consultants for the EHAF-EPPR Funding Committee	302.50
Blewitt, Richard	External Facilitator at the HAC Meeting, Dublin March 2004	2,324.37
Telford, John	External Facilitator at the HAC Meeting, Dublin March 2004	7,289.75
Telford, John	Independent Consultants for the EHAF-EPPR Funding Committee	8,388.93
ODI	Good Humanitarian Donorship and the European Union — A study on good practice and recent initiatives, June to October 2004	36,126.97
Corbett, Mary	Independent Consultants for the EHAF/EPPR Funding Committee, June 2004 — December 2005	740.00
Madsen, Camilla	Independent Consultants for the EHAF/EPPR Funding Committee, June 2004 — December 2005	1,270.50
Willitts-King, Barnaby	Support on Development of DCI Humanitarian Policy, October 2004 — early January 2005	13,132.86
Grindle, John	Attendance at Global Bio-Technology Forum	9,317.57
Jackson, John	10 Year Review of ICDP, New York	4,551.31
Grindle, John	Attendance at Crime Commission & IDB Meetings	10,823.11
Meenan, Nahor	Attendance at the UNCTAD International Policy Dialogue in Konigswinter, Germany, 25-26 February 2004	3,387.30
Hayes, Mahon	Attendance at United Nations Relief Works Agency (UNRWA) Conference on Palestine, Geneva — June 7-8 2004	3,159.89
Dr. John Cassidy/Roland Berger Strategy Consultants	Survey of the leading European transnational corporations (TNCs) and their strategies in the area of off-shoring of services	25,000

Development Cooperation Directorate Consultancy Costs 2005
Consultant	Consultancy Title	Amount
		€
LATH	Review of the Northern Province Reproductive Health Programme and Ex Post Evaluation	59,829.51
Cassidy, Paul	Assessment of the current staffing levels and future requirements at Development Cooperation Ireland Headquarters	42,433.36
Courtney, Sean	Temporary Assignment as Programme Coordinator of Development Cooperation Ireland Development Assistance Activities in Northern Province, Zambia — December 2004 to March 2005	69,115.00
Hurley, John	Feasibility Study and Project Formulation for Hospice Uganda Pilot Project	7,892.65
Cronin, Patricia	Uganda Law Reform Commission Consultancy	5,906.31
Gaynor, Cathy	Workshop on Strengthening Capacity to mainstream within the DCI Programme Uganda, February 2005	30,670.87
Jennings, Mary	Workshop on Strengthening Capacity to mainstream within the DCI Programme Uganda, February 2005	14,329.62
Mokoro	Study to identify Financing Options to Support ESDP, Ethiopia — January to February 2005	40,593.93
Mokoro	Provision of input into Poverty Reduction Support Credit/Direct Budget Support Workshop	34,755.28
Polhemus, James	Review of the Centre for Study of Violence and Reconciliation, South Africa — November to December 2004	23,687.94
Marsh, Carolyn	East Timor 3-year Training Strategy Capacity Development Co-ordination Unit Feb-Apr 2005	44,797.83
Higgins, Cathal	Review of Timor-Leste Education Sector	8,439.11
PAI	Management Needs Analysis	50,285.42
McKeown, Mary	Participation in the Project Appraisal and Evaluation Group Meetings	4,925.68
O’Regan, Johnny	Evaluation of Internal Financial Controls,September to December 2004	16,656.00
RMI	Preparation & Presentation for Heads of Missions meeting Dec ’04	1,210.00
Brindley Advertising	Advertising Costs to update Register of Consultants	11,542.27
Petrus Consulting	Expenditure Review Initiative — Quality Review of Development Cooperation Ireland Report (Review of DCI Support to Afghanistan), November 2004	1,312.50
ETC East Africa	Evaluation of Kilosa District Development Programme — ext. to contract for Workshop in Dublin	9,278.68
INTRAC	Evaluation of DCI’s Multi-Annual Programme Scheme 2003-2005, January to x 2005	309,113.00
ARP (John Shiels)	Quality Review of DCI Report	13,086.15
Cosgrave, John	Evaluation Workshop on Afghanistan & Malawi	22,049.07
CDP	Workshop on Area-based Programmes in Dublin 10-11 Feb ’05	3,809.21
Agulhas	Reimbursement of Withholding Tax	108.90
CDP	Evaluation of Operational Research and Capacity Building for Food Security and Sustainable Livelihoods Programme in Ethiopia, February to April 2005	27,653.34
Oxford Policy Management	Evaluation of DCI’s Zambia Country Programme 2000-2004	77,302.67
O’Dwyer, Jerry	Support to Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB & Malaria,	23,005.00
Brugha, Ruairi (LSHTM)	Attendance at’ Combating Diseases associated with Poverty: Financing Strategies for Product Development and the Potential Role of Public-Private Partnerships’, London — 15 to 16 April 2004	3,932.50
McClean, Diarmuid	Participation in Consultative Meeting on Reproductive Health and HIV/AIDS in Montreux, Switzerland, 3-4 May 2004	3,932.50
Shine, Tara*	Support to Environment May05- May06	20,000.00
Shine, Tara	Development of an Environment Policy for Development Cooperation Ireland — July to November 2004	9,250.02
Gaynor, Cathy	Support for the Development of Education Policy Revision Process, September to December 2004	9,863.20
Scott, Mike	Assistance with the work of the Private Sector Forum, Sept to Dec ’04	11,303.58
Cremin, Peadar	Engagement with Educational Institutions in Ireland regarding Education for All (EFA) including Representation of DCI at a UNESCO Conference in Paris, November — December 2004	8,713.44
Jennings, Mary	Reporting on EU Development Transport Experts Meeting, 30 November — 2 December 2004	4,411.45
Brugha, Ruairi (LSHTM)	Review of DCI engagement with Global Health Partnerships (GHPs), November 2004 — January 2005	12,740.50
Wirak, Anders	Background paper on DCI engagement with UNESCO, November 2004	3,250.00
Higgins, Cathal	Rapporteur for Education Meeting at DCD, 10-13 January 2005	3,390.00
Broadreach Healthcare	Facilitator DCI meeting Mozambique Nov ’04	1,708.39
Jennings Mary	Preparation of an overview paper on poverty impact orientation and target settings for InfraPoor, January — April 2005	13,300.00
Anderson, Ian	Evaluation of Refugee Trust Projects	6,879.99
Smith, Marie	Appraisal and Monitoring Support for Civil Society and Assistant Desk Officers, August to December 2004	2,961.45
Crawford, Bernie	Assist DCI in appraising and approving proposals under the HAPS Supplementary Grant, September 2004	3,051.00
Crowley, Tom	Scoping Mission to Central America	9,955.00
Smith, Marie*	Appraisal and Monitoring Support for Civil Society and Assistant Desk Officers, August to December 2005	16,166.80
Grindle, John	Internship Feasibility Study, February 2005	2,500.00
Farrell, Deirdre	Member of the Development Education Grants Committee, March to September 2004	5,000.00
Grindle, John	External Evaluator for Development Cooperation Ireland Project Proposals for the Balkans and CIS, January to December 2004	6,000.00
Brunel University	Policy study on good practice in child care in Eastern Europe and the Russian Federation	38,272.24
Horgan, Geraldine	Production of a Report on National Structures for the Support, Funding and Coordination of Development/Global Education in Ireland	4,300.00
Grindle, John*	External Evaluator for Development Co-operation Ireland Project Proposals for the Balkans and CIS, January to December 2005	16,500.00
ARP (John Shiels)*	External Evaluator for DCI Organisational Development Grant Scheme, January to December 2005	4,083.75
McMullan, Pat	Support to IA funding of Intl. Fund for Agricult. Devl.	10,400.00
Scott, Mike	Private Sector Resource Specialist	25,056.24
Goodbody, Swithun	Review of DCI Support to Consultative Group Intl. Agricult. Research	1,898.17
Ngunyi, Mutahi	Monitoring of DCI Recovery Programme, Kenya Mar-Dec 04	18,121.00
Conroy, Anne	Monitoring of DCI Recovery Programme, Malawi Mar-Dec 04	7,453.60
Telford. John	Independent Consultants for the EmergencyHumanitarian Assist.Fund/Emerge. Preparedness and Post Emerg. Rehabilit- EHAF/EPPRFunding Committee	13,410.07
ODI	Good Humanitarian Donorship and the European Union — A study on good practice and recent initiatives, June to October 2004	29,050.65
Willitts-King, Barnaby	Support on Development of DCI Humanitarian Policy, October 2004 — early January 2005	9,787.61
Willitts-King, Barnaby *	Support on Development and Implementation of Humanitarian & Recovery Policy	16,937
Holmes, Anne*	Provision of Technical Support for Emergency and Recovery Section; Consultant Specialist for Tsunami Follow-up, March 2005 to March 2006	36,591.00
Jackson, John	Attendance at and Participation in the International Conference on Population and Development, New York — April 2005	5,880.00
Tara Shine	Support E & R Unit	9,620.37
Bannock Consulting	Evaluation of MAPS	12,124.20
Conor Brady	Facilitator for White paper Conf on Dev. Co-operation	8564.56
Aine Costigan*	Support on HIV AIDS	40,000.00
Johnny O’ Regan*	Provision of Audit Management Support	10,164.00
Una Murray*	Support Implementation of Gender Equality	10,734.50
Mary Mollaghan*	Production of Guide to Development Education Resources	3,960.00
John Snow International*	Provision of Technical Support for HIV/AIDS	19,349.00
HELM *Corporation	Provision of Audit Management Support	34750
ECORYS*	Training in Public Finance Management	15,726.92
Achilles Procurement Services*	Provision of Procurement Services 2005/2006	48,000.00
Fell, Arthur*	Project Appraisal and evaluation Group Meetings May04- Dec 05	5,270.00
International .* Dev. Ireland	Private Sector Devl. Mission — Uganda	44,200.00
Mary Jennings	Draft of Memo of Understanding between DCI and Dochas Apr 05	7,000.00

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

341 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31792/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

The following table sets out the number of personnel in the Department's press office, their grades and pay scales:

Grade/Position	Number	Salary Scale
		€
Press Adviser (non-established)	1	Principal Officer scale 75,036-92,813
Press Officer (First Secretary)	1	First Secretary scale 57,630-71,859
Third Secretary	2	Third Secretary scale 30,593-54,173
Clerical Officer	2	Clerical Officer scale 21,245-34,448
Total	6

Development Co-operation.

Michael Lowry

Question:

342 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs his plans to assist aid agencies and native civil society organisations in Zimbabwe in view of the recent currency crash. [31923/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs (Mr. C. Lenihan)

The political, economic and humanitarian situation in Zimbabwe continues to deteriorate. The economy has contracted by approximately 40% in recent years and devaluation of the currency is a function of this economic crisis. Continuous devaluation fuels inflation and puts basic necessities further out of the reach of the poor. Poverty and vulnerability are worsening and the current political climate is extremely difficult for donors and aid agencies. Zimbabwe has now slipped from 117th on the United Nations human development index, HDI, to 145th in 2005.

Ireland continues to assist many of the poorest and most vulnerable communities in Zimbabwe. Our support is delivered through UN agencies and NGOs with a proven track record of meeting the needs of the poorest. We have, for instance, been supporting the World Food Programme, WFP, Concern, Goal, Trócaire, missionary and local groups and other agencies.

Zimbabwe was once the breadbasket of southern Africa but hunger is now a daily experience for millions of Zimbabweans. The Government is funding the provision of food assistance and focusing on school feeding programmes. A sum of €900,000 has been provided in 2005 for this purpose and additional funding is under active consideration. During the recent visit of Mr. James Morris, executive director of the WFP to Ireland, I discussed with him the food security situation in Zimbabwe and how best to address the food deficits in a very difficult operating environment.

Zimbabwe is also one of the countries most affected by HIV-AIDS, with an estimated 25% of the population infected. Life expectancy has fallen below 40 years. This year Ireland has committed €1 million to mitigate the impact of the pandemic, through partnerships with aid agencies and civil society organisations. Since 2004, Ireland has committed approximately €7 million in aid to Zimbabwe. Despite the difficult operating environment, we will continue to deliver assistance directly to those most in need through a broad range of civil and aid organisations.

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

343 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Foreign Affairs the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31973/05]

Minister for Foreign Affairs (Mr. D. Ahern)

Under the Government's decentralisation programme the development co-operation directorate of the Department of Foreign Affairs, based in Dublin, is scheduled to decentralise to Limerick. This will involve the relocation to Limerick of 123 posts and is scheduled to take place during the first quarter of 2007. The decentralisation of the Development Co-operation Directorate will take place during a period of significant growth in the overseas development aid budget. The Taoiseach announced at the UN Millennium Review Summit in New York on 14 September that the Government would reach the target of spending 0.7% of GNP on official development assistance by 2012. Interim targets of 0.47% of GNP in 2006 and 0.5% in 2007 have also been agreed. The 2006 Estimates process is under way and the allocation to the Vote of the Department of Foreign Affairs for international co-operation, Vote 29, will be agreed in the context of the Estimates negotiations. On the basis of anticipated growth rates, total overseas development aid is expected to be of the order of €675 million in 2006 and €793 million in 2007.

Risk analysis carried out by the directorate in this context has identified the following as the main risk factors, for which appropriate risk mitigation strategies are being implemented: financial, including accountability and control; human resources, including loss of expertise and institutional memory; communications between the directorate and internal and external stakeholders; and associated operational and reputational risks. The risks associated with the decentralisation are considered in detail in the Department's decentralisation implementation plan which has been published on the Department's website. www.dfa.ie .

To avoid a high level of staff turnover in the months immediately preceding the decentralisation, the Department commenced importing staff from the central applications facility, CAF, in May 2005. Already, 26 staff for Limerick — 21% — are in place in the directorate and the Department will accelerate the process of importing staff from the CAF from next January onwards, with a view to having as many as possible of the staff in place by the autumn of next year, well in advance of the move.

The Department recognises it is important to take steps to ensure continuity of service to clients and stakeholders, including the NGOs, by minimising the disruption to the directorate. Departmental officials are finalising strategies for the preservation of the corporate memory of the directorate, through the development of effective knowledge management systems and by ensuring the provision of appropriate induction and ongoing training programmes and adequate hand-over periods for new staff. High quality communications facilities between the directorate in Limerick and the rest of the Department and missions will also be provided.

The Office of Public Works, OPW, is responsible for the provision of office accommodation for the directorate in Limerick and will bear its rental costs. The Department is working closely with the OPW to identify suitable accommodation in Limerick and it is hoped to select a premises in the very near future. Pending this, it is not possible to estimate the level of costs which the Department will incur in the provision of the information and communications technology infrastructure and in other areas. Salary and training costs, which can be attributed to the decentralisation programme, are estimated at €550,000 for the three-year period March 2004 to March 2007.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

344 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31748/05]

Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism (Mr. O’Donoghue)

The information sought by the Deputy is set out in the following table.

Consultancy	Purpose/Report	Month and Year	Contract Value
			€
Murray Consultants	PR Consultants for Department	Dec 2004	70,414
Mahon O’Neill	PR work in relation to James Joyce and Yeats exhibitions and other special events.	March 2005	65,289

With regard to breaches of the Payment of Wages Act 1991, it is the responsibility of the employee to present his or her complaint to a rights commissioner. The legislation does not give me, as Minister, the power to present complaints. With regard to the scheduling or hearing of cases by a rights commissioner, this is a matter solely for the management of the rights commissioner service of the Labour Relations Commission.

In addition, some employees expressed concern regarding their pay slips. The Payment of Wages Act 1991 provides that employers must give to each employee with every wage packet a written statement of gross wages, or pay slip, itemising each deduction. The Labour Inspectorate is responsible only for monitoring compliance with that specific provision, and in that regard the Labour Inspectorate is investigating the matter. The inspectorate has been in contact with representatives of the company to inspect the relevant records. The Deputy will appreciate that this task is difficult in circumstances where the company is now closed, and the company is unable at present to gain access to the premises in which the records are retained. However, every effort is being made to gain access to the relevant records.

Regarding any suppliers of the company who are owed money by the company, they should pursue that issue through the legal channels available to them.

Question No. 351 answered with QuestionNo. 122.

Unemployment Levels.

Eamon Ryan

Question:

352 Mr. Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the failure of the employment services policy unit to address the problem of long-term unemployment in recent years, which is at the same level now as it was in 2000, and represents more than one third of the overall unemployment rate. [32016/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Since 1997 more than 450,000 new jobs have been created. There has also been a significant fall in unemployment, from 10.4% to 4.2% at present.

Long-term unemployment fell from 5.5% in 1997 to 1.6% in 2000, and that very low level has been maintained — it is now at 1.4%. That long-term unemployment rate compares very favourably with the EU average of 4% and ranks fourth-lowest among the 25 EU member states.

However, we are not complacent about that level of long-term unemployment, and to reduce it a range of initiatives has been introduced.

In addition to the FÁS and local employment services and the community employment, social economy and job initiative programmes, the most significant measure has been the national employment action plan referral process. That involves early intervention by FÁS with unemployed people. It seeks to help the unemployed to re-integrate into the labour market as quickly as possible by providing them with the necessary skills and supports to improve their employability.

Under that process, since 2003 anyone who has been on the live register for six months, and all persons not previously referred and on the live register for more than six months, were referred to FÁS for interview. The majority of such referrals were long-term unemployed. Since June 2003, approximately 27,000 long-term unemployed clients have been referred to FÁS. Since the introduction of the NEAP in September 1998, a total of 247,000 clients have been referred to FÁS for assistance.

An external evaluation of the NEAP preventive strategy, which is due to be released shortly, concludes "that the NEAP process has been a success".

Other innovative responses developed by my Department and FÁS to assist unemployed persons have included: the pathways programme, which identifies the most appropriate development pathway to assist clients to obtain employment; the high supports process, which assists clients on a multi-agency basis to address personal barriers to employment; and the customised training fund to meet training needs of the unemployed flexibly.

We are therefore continuing to engage with those in long-term unemployment through a wide range of labour market measures and activities to help them return to employment.

EU Funding.

Eamon Ryan

Question:

353 Mr. Eamon Ryan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the measures he has taken to meet the €15 million reduction from the European Social Fund; and the steps he has taken to redress the departmental irregularities that led to the decrease. [32017/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

As a consequence of a Commission audit decision in 2000, €15.6 million of European Social Fund moneys were withheld from Ireland. The sum involved represents less than 1% of the amount allocated to the three operational programmes for the period 1994-99. The Commission decision was contested by my Department, and that resulted in a hearing before the European Court of Justice this year. On 15 September 2005, the European Court of Justice agreed with the European Commission's opinion that Ireland had overclaimed the contribution due from the ESF. That was owing to a technical issue in the manner in which Ireland presented ESF claims.

It should be noted that the Commission accepts that all expenditure incurred under the programmes in question was eligible and that no allegation of fraud was made.

Of the €15.6 million withheld after the Commission decision in 2000, €7.2 million was withheld from the funding allocated to mine and the following Departments: Education and Science; Health and Children; Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs; and Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

The remaining €8.4 million of funding was paid from Exchequer resources to what was then the National Training Development Institute, which was a non-governmental organisation. The action required to be taken in respect of those funds is under consideration, in consultation with the relevant Departments.

Irregularities of the types which have caused this claw-back are very unlikely to recur regarding the current operational programmes period because of the additional management and financial controls implemented within the funding cascade structure as a result of the expertise gained from the previous period of funding from 1994 to 1999.

Job Creation.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

354 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the immediate need for industry in the town of Ballina, County Mayo; if his attention has further been drawn to the fact that this Mayo town desperately needs an employment injection to ensure its survival rather than decline; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31413/05]

Jerry Cowley

Question:

355 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that it is more than six years since the IDA created employment in Ballina; if his further attention has been drawn to the fact that industrial employment is severely reduced in this ever-developing town; if he will consider establishing industry in Ballina in view of the fact that there is a new IDA industrial park in the pipeline; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31343/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 354 and 355 together.

Support for job creation and investment in individual counties is a day-to-day operational matter for the development agencies as part of their responsibility under the Industrial Development Acts. While I may give general policy directives to the agencies, I am precluded under the Acts from giving directives regarding individual undertakings or from giving preference to one area over others. In line with the national spatial strategy, a key goal for the agencies is the achievement of balanced regional development.

IDA Ireland, the agency charged with the attraction of foreign direct investment, FDI, to Ireland, has assured me that it is actively marketing and promoting the linked hub towns of Ballina, Castlebar and Westport for new greenfield investment. At the end of 2004, there were 22 IDA Ireland-supported companies in Mayo, employing 3,213 people. The agency is actively working with those clients with a view to encouraging them to grow and expand.

To underpin those efforts, they are working with local groups, utility providers and other agencies to ensure that Ballina has the appropriate infrastructure to support growth and attract new projects. In that regard, IDA Ireland has been deeply involved with local partners in the development of regional planning guidelines, and negotiations are at an advanced stage to acquire 27 acres of land on the Sligo Road in Ballina that will be developed into a high-quality business and technology park.

Enterprise Ireland is the agency which concentrates on the development of indigenous industries. Since 2003 Enterprise Ireland has approved funding support of over €4.6 million and paid more than €2.4 million to companies in County Mayo. Of that amount, Enterprise Ireland client companies in the Ballina area have been approved funding of almost €1 million. That financial support will enable the companies to fund their plans for innovation and new product development.

Enterprise Ireland also works with local communities and the county enterprise board in developing the business infrastructure in the county through its community enterprise centre programme. Enterprise Ireland has supported a total of ten community enterprise centres in County Mayo. In addition, it has committed funding of over €0.7 million to Moy Valley Resources IRD Group for the development of enterprise space in Ballina. That centre, which was completed at the end of 2004, is being marketed to potential clients.

Since January 2004 Mayo CEB has approved grant aid totalling €85,000 in favour of five separate micro-enterprise projects in Ballina. In addition, during 2005, the board provided training support to 36 people on courses also based in Ballina.

I am confident the policies and strategies being pursued by the development agencies, together with the ongoing commitment and support from Government, will bear fruit in sustainable additional investment and jobs for the people of Mayo, including Ballina.

Health and Safety Regulations.

Martin Ferris

Question:

356 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the person who made a written complaint to the Health and Safety Authority in July 2005 regarding a centre (details supplied) in County Kerry was sacked as a direct result of having made the complaint; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31702/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Killeen)

I provided details to the House in regard to certain other aspects of this case in my reply to a question on 25 October last.

Section 27 (3) of the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 2005, which came into effect on 1 September 2005, states that

An employer shall not penalise or threaten penalisation against an employee for ... making a complaint or representation to his or her safety representative or employer or the Authority, as regards any matter relating to safety, health or welfare at work . . .

For the purposes of this Act, "penalisation" includes dismissal within the meaning of the Unfair Dismissals Acts.

Accordingly, the employee concerned may have recourse to a rights commissioner of the Labour Relations Commission under the above Act. Alternatively, the employee may be entitled to take a case for unfair dismissal under the Unfair Dismissals Acts. To take such a case, an employee must, with certain specific exceptions, have one year's continuous service with the employer who dismissed him or her. Further information in that regard is contained in my Department's Guide to Labour Law, which is available from the employment rights information unit of my Department (Lo-call 1890 201615) or by e-mailing info@entemp.ie. My Department’s website also contains detailed explanatory information on the various pieces of employment rights legislation administered by my Department. Information and clarification of rights and entitlements may also be obtained from the employment rights information unit, should the employee concerned wish to enquire into his or her entitlements in this regard.

Insurance Industry.

Brendan Howlin

Question:

357 Mr. Howlin asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if, in view of the recent huge profits revealed for the insurance sector, he has satisfied himself that the industry is passing on the benefits of reduced claims to consumers; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [25440/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The financial regulator, under the aegis of the Minister for Finance, is responsible for the financial supervision of insurance companies here. Before the establishment of the financial regulator, my Department regulated and supervised insurance undertakings. I had ministerial responsibility, and my Department had access to detailed statutory returns which would have allowed my Department to make judgements relating to levels of reserves and profits in insurance undertakings. The financial regulator now receives those statutory returns and has responsibility for protecting consumer interests regarding insurance.

The insurance reform programme brought about improvements in the functioning of the Irish insurance market, and very real reform has been delivered. The reform programme, no doubt, has contributed to recent improvements in profitability in the insurance sector. It was expected that the insurance industry would ensure that reductions in insurance costs translate into significant reductions in premia to consumers on a quid pro quo basis.

I understand there was a reduction of 23.5% between October 2002, when the reform programme was launched, and August 2005 in motor insurance, according to the figures of the Central Statistics Office. Clearly, competition in the market is driving premia downward. My Department does not collect any figures in respect of public or employers' liability.

It must be noted that EU law prevents Governments from intervening regarding premium levels or risks that insurers are prepared to underwrite. Insurers generally make decisions about whether they are prepared to quote for a particular risk, and if so, at what premium level, based on their underwriting experience or assessment of that risk in the market.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

358 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31749/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

No contracts for public relations projects have been awarded by my Department since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

359 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31764/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Two civil servants and three other staff are employed in my Department's constituency office. Details regarding grade and remuneration are outlined in the following table:

Grade Breakdown	Salary Scale
2 Personal Assistants (1 work-sharer)	€21,245- €34,448 Class A PRSI
	€20,181-€32,728 Class B PRSI
1 Personal Secretary	€20,187-€38,948
3 Clerical Officers (1 work-sharer)	€21,245-€34,448 Class A PRSI
	€20,181-€32,728 Class B PRSI

In addition, two individuals receive allowances personal to them. The total annual remuneration for staff in my constituency office for 2005 is €156,270.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

360 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31779/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I understand the Deputy has confirmed that he is seeking details of contracts which have a total value of €10,000 or more. That information cannot be provided within the timescale available.

Officials of my Department are compiling the information, and it will be forwarded to Deputy McGrath as soon as it is available.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

361 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31794/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

There are five civil servants and one press adviser in my Department's press office. Details of grade and remuneration are outlined in the table below.

The principal officer undertakes other duties in addition to his role in the press office.

Grade Breakdown	Salary Scale
1 Press Adviser	€78,985-€97,698 Class A PRSI
	€75,036-€92,813 Class B PRSI
1 Principal Officer (part-time)	€78,985-€97,698 Class A PRSI
	€75,036-€92,813 Class B PRSI
1 Higher Executive Officer	€42,676-€54,173 Class A PRSI
	€40,563-€51,463 Class B PRSI
1 Executive Officer	€28,021-€44,458 Class A PRSI
	€26,61-€42,238 Class B PRSI
2 Clerical Officers	€21,245-€34,448 Class A PRSI
	€20,181-€32,728 Class B PRSI

The total annual remuneration for staff in the press office for 2005 is €317,101.

Health and Safety Regulations.

Paul Connaughton

Question:

362 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if the Personal Injuries Assessment Board has received a personal injury claim from a person (details supplied) in County Galway; if so, the reason it is taking so long to process the claim; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31892/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The Personal Injuries Assessment Board, PIAB, was established by ministerial order on 13 April 2004. From 1 June 2004, all personal injury claims arising from workplace accidents where an employee is seeking compensation from his or her employer, must be referred to the Personal Injuries Assessment Board before legal proceedings are issued. From 22 July 2004, all motor liability and public liability claims must also be referred to the Personal Injuries Assessment Board before legal proceedings are issued.

The issue of individual claims being handled by the PIAB is a day-to-day operational matter for which the CEO of the PIAB is responsible. However, I have been informed by the PIAB that the named person has a personal injury case before them. The case was first notified to the PIAB on 16 June 2005. Therefore, the case is well within the nine-month statutory assessment period as set out in section 49 of the PIAB Act 2003. It is also worth noting that this nine-month assessment period compares very favourably with the litigation system, where claims take on average three years to be settled.

Community Employment Schemes.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

363 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of workers involved through FÁS and community employment schemes on a county basis for each of the past five years; his views on whether there are quite a number of persons in long-term unemployment over the age of 50 who might be better employed under those schemes rather than claiming social welfare; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31893/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

Following a review of FÁS employment schemes, I announced on 10 November 2004 that the three-year cap for participants on CE was to be raised to six years for those over the age of 55.

The FÁS CE programme is available for the unemployed and persons experiencing disadvantage who wish to return to the labour market. Therefore, these arrangements could be of benefit to persons in the age group mentioned by the Deputy.

The following tabular statement gives the numbers of participants on community employment, CE, schemes on a county-by-county basis for each of the past five years.

County	2005*	2004	2003	2002	2001
Dublin	5,796	5,615	4,795	5,968	7,397
Carlow	329	333	302	384	470
Cavan	237	267	222	292	358
Clare	564	561	534	743	970
Cork	2,076	2,059	2,011	2,412	3,190
Donegal	1,098	1,066	963	1,168	1,338
Galway	1,419	1,358	1,248	1,653	1,980
Kerry	884	897	789	1,046	1,301
Kildare	613	601	573	701	836
Kilkenny	397	399	360	450	561
Laois	317	344	264	354	423
Leitrim	132	144	129	202	232
Limerick	1,205	1,212	1,172	1,407	1,698
Longford	296	313	246	320	358
Louth	717	726	629	780	980
Mayo	752	765	737	996	1,273
Meath	410	389	317	412	561
Monaghan	369	338	280	351	415
Offaly	378	394	311	383	490
Roscommon	303	264	211	244	319
Sligo	394	422	428	491	615
Tipperary	1,081	1,077	970	1,212	1,479
Waterford	577	598	516	657	762
Westmeath	498	541	457	569	633
Wexford	781	821	737	952	1,186
Wicklow	694	690	647	822	1,021

*2005 figures are as at 31 October 2005.

EU Funding.

Michael Lowry

Question:

364 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the position regarding the negotiations with the EU Commission regarding changes to the Border, midlands and western region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31933/05]

Michael Lowry

Question:

365 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he is taking to ensure that north Tipperary will be included in the expanded Border, midlands and western region; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31935/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 364 and 365 together.

The current regional aid guidelines are due to expire at the end of 2006. Negotiations regarding the revised regional aid guidelines covering the period 2007 to 2013 have been ongoing with the European Commission. Ireland has taken part in two multilateral meetings of state aid experts and also in a bilateral with senior officials of the Commission to discuss the new guidelines. It is expected that the revised regional aid guidelines will be approved by the end of 2005.

As the Deputy is aware, the purpose of regional aid is to assist the development of the most disadvantaged regions by supporting investment and job creation in a sustainable context. It promotes the expansion, rationalisation, modernisation and diversification of the economic activities of enterprises located in the less-favoured regions and encourages firms to set up new establishments there. The new draft regional aid guidelines stress that regional aid should only be used sparingly and proportionately and should be concentrated on the most disadvantaged regions of the European Union. Given Ireland's economic performance in recent years, we can no longer be classed as being among the most disadvantaged regions. Therefore, regional aid is being phased out in the most prosperous regions of the EU, including the BMW area. The new rates being proposed for the BMW are attached. No changes are proposed to the designation of the BMW region.

Under the proposed draft guidelines for regional aid, the southern and eastern region will no longer automatically qualify for regional aid. However, as a result of our negotiations regarding the proposed revised guidelines, the Commission is proposing to retain the safety net whereby no member state will lose more than 50% population coverage. As a consequence, it is likely that we will be able to designate 23.4% of population from the southern and eastern region in addition to the BMW region. In selecting the 23.4%, we must comply with the provisions of the draft guidelines with regard to unemployment rates and GDP. It must be noted that, given the higher GDP and employment rates in the southern and eastern region, aid rates in those additional areas will be much lower than available in the BMW region. No aid will be available for large firms, while small and medium firms can receive aid of up to 30% and 20% respectively.

BMW 2007-13
Large firms	Medium firms	Small firms
01.01.07	01.01.09	01.01.11	01.01.07	01.01.09	01.01.11	01.01.07	01.01.09	01.01.11
30%	20%	10%	45%	35%	20%	45%	35%	30%

Job Creation.

Michael Lowry

Question:

366 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he is taking to enhance employment opportunities in County Tipperary; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31936/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The issue of job creation is a day-to-day operational issue for the industrial development agencies under the remit of my Department and not one in which I, as Minister, have direct involvement.

IDA Ireland has responsibility for the attraction of foreign direct investment, FDI, to Ireland. The attractiveness of Tipperary for inward investment has to be seen in a regional context and, in that regard, IDA Ireland's regional strategy reflects the national spatial strategy, NSS, with an emphasis on the gateway and hub locations. In addition, IDA actively promotes the county towns of Thurles, Clonmel and Tipperary.

IDA recognises the need to provide high-value employment opportunities in Tipperary that provide sustainable long-term jobs and is consequently targeting companies and projects which are more knowledge-intensive and have a higher skill requirement.

Fundamental to regional success is the quality, calibre and drive of the third level education infrastructure in the region, and IDA Ireland continues to work closely with the Tipperary Institute, the universities of Limerick and Cork, and the Cork and Limerick institutes of technology in the development of new areas of opportunity through its strategic business group, SBG, and towards greater industry collaboration and research through its education, skills and research, ESR, group.

At the end of 2004, there were 2,805 people in permanent employment in 18 IDA-supported companies in County Tipperary. There is a diverse range of companies located in County Tipperary representing several industry sectors such as pharmaceuticals, health care, engineering and consumer products. IDA Ireland is confident that the strategies and policies being pursued in the county, together with the ongoing commitment to regional development, will bear fruit in overseas investment and jobs.

Enterprise Ireland is the national agency responsible for the development of indigenous industry, and Shannon Development acts as its agent in the mid-west region, which includes north Tipperary. Since the beginning of 2002, Enterprise Ireland has approved funding of over €4.9 million and made payments of over €5 million for client companies in Tipperary South. Enterprise Ireland also has a range of services offerings to encourage high-tech, high-opportunity indigenous enterprise such as: project-building; mentoring; training; space; patent protection advice and business angels. Community-based enterprise centres are also a crucial part of the drive to create new regional enterprise and Enterprise Ireland has provided support of over €700,000 for community enterprise centres in Carrick-on-Suir, Tipperary town and Clonmel.

Shannon Development supports the indigenous sector in north Tipperary through a range of support programmes. The ICT sector is not well represented in north Tipperary, and Shannon Development has initiated several initiatives focusing in particular on the development of Tipperary technology park in Thurles. There are eight companies operating out of Tipperary technology park, five based in the incubator innovation works. Those companies are involved in e-commerce, digital cinema, software development and health and safety.

Shannon Development initiated the establishment of a Thurles marketing group representing Thurles Town Council, Tipperary Institute, Leader, the county enterprise board, Thurles Chamber of Commerce and Shannon Development to promote the attractiveness of Thurles as an investment location.

Shannon Development has also acquired a 29-acre site adjacent to the N7 in Roscrea with a view to the development of a business park appropriate to the needs of the area. Shannon Development is also involved in Newport as part of its e-towns pilot project. That project is part of a pilot of demonstration locations to develop a template for the renewal or improvement of smaller communities in multiple locations.

Tipperary North Riding and Tipperary South Riding County Enterprise Boards were established in October 1993 to provide a source of support in County Tipperary for small businesses with ten employees or fewer. In 2004 the two boards assisted in the creation of 101 net jobs and paid out €454,608 in grant assistance to 36 projects in the region. Up to the end of 2004, both CEBs contributed to the creation of 1,190 net jobs and delivered over €6.7 million in grant payments to 761 projects in the county as a whole.

For the remainder of 2005, both Tipperary north and south riding CEBs will continue to be proactive in ensuring that all available funds are targeted to maximise entrepreneurial development in the micro-enterprise sector throughout the county.

Community Employment Schemes.

Michael Lowry

Question:

367 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps he is taking to amend the social economy programme and the community employment scheme; if the community employment scheme will be operated going forward by another agency; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31937/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

The main purpose of the community employment programme operated by FÁS is to provide work experience and training for the long-term unemployed and disadvantaged groups and thereby enable participants to advance successfully to employment in the open labour market.

Following a review of FÁS employment schemes — the community employment, job initiative and social economy programmes — on 10 November 2004 I announced that the three-year cap for participants on community employment would be raised to six years for those over 55 to ensure the maintenance of essential community services particularly in rural areas where it had been found that difficulties existed in finding replacement participants.

I have no plans at present to make any further changes of that type to the community employment scheme.

A review of the social economy programme highlighted the valuable role that it plays in the delivery of community services throughout the country. Discussions are taking place between my Department and the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs about the possible transfer of the programme to that Department.

Job Creation.

Paddy McHugh

Question:

368 Mr. McHugh asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the efforts his Department is making in conjunction with a company (details supplied) to create the climate for improved job opportunities in the town of Tuam; the progress being made on the construction of factory units in the IDA Ireland park in Tuam, County Galway; and the efforts being made to attract tenants for same. [31953/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

IDA Ireland is the agency with statutory responsibility for the attraction of foreign direct investment to Ireland. While I may give general policy directives to the agency, I am precluded under the Industrial Developments Acts from giving directives regarding individual undertakings or from giving preference to one area over others.

IDA Ireland is working closely with several public and private bodies, including Enterprise Ireland, which is concentrating on the development of the indigenous sector, the County Enterprise Board, which has responsibility for supporting the micro-enterprise sector, the county council, county development board and major infrastructure and utility providers to improve the business environment of the town.

I understand from IDA Ireland that phase 1 of the development of the new Tuam business and technology park was substantially completed in 2003 and that a minor estate access road and associated landscaping have recently been completed.

The next stage of the project will be the building of "advance technology units". The park will initially accommodate four units, two 5,000 sq. ft. units and two units of 7,500 sq. ft., for which planning permission has been obtained from Galway County Council.

Planning permission is also being sought for a new "advance technology building" on a site adjacent to the park entrance. This 20,000 sq. ft. building will be designed to accommodate manufacturing type operations but can alsobe converted to office based activity, if required.

Although the construction of an initial advance unit is not immediately planned, I understand that the park is actively being marketed to potential overseas investors by IDA Ireland through its network of overseas offices and project divisions. I have no doubt that the availability of the flagship park, together with the planned associated buildings, will enhance the attractiveness of the area to potential overseas investors.

I am confident that the strategies and policies being pursued by IDA Ireland, together with the ongoing commitment of the Government to regional development, will bear fruit in additional sustainable investment and jobs for the people of Tuam.

World Trade Negotiations.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

369 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number and location of new countries with which trade or other import and export agreements have been established in the past five years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31959/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. M. Ahern)

Ireland has not entered into any trade agreements with any new countries in the past five years. That is because international trade policy matters are a Community, and not solely a national, competence. As such, the European Union negotiates as a single entity on the basis of proposals made by the European Commission, which are developed and agreed by the EU Council of Ministers. However, the European Union has not in the past five years entered into bilateral trade agreements with third countries, given that it was a period in which the Community conducted extensive multilateral trade negotiations under the Doha development agenda with our WTO partners following the launch of the WTO trade round, in Doha, in November 2001.

Economic Competitiveness.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

370 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he has satisfied himself that adequate new export markets are available for Irish manufactured goods; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31960/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. M. Ahern)

379 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31975/05]

Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Martin)

My Department has completed a comprehensive risk assessment of the decentralisation programme. This assessment, which is included in the Department's most recent decentralisation plan submitted to the Decentralisation Implementation Group, identifies specific actions to deal with risks in the areas of HR-staffing, training, business continuity, IT, customer service and accommodation.

Decentralisation is now central to my Department's corporate decision making and business planning process. Specific actions in place to minimise the risks associated with decentralisation are factored into the day-to-day business of the Department. These include proper manpower and succession planning, implementation of enhanced records management policies, continued improvement in customer services, including the availability of online services and the establishment of internal committees and structures to progress specific aspects of the decentralisation programme, such as ICT, knowledge management and communications. The actions progressed to date are, by their nature, part of day-to-day management and governance. It is difficult therefore to quantify the cost involved.

It is not possible at this stage to put an overall cost on the decentralisation of the Department. My officials are developing a decentralisation costing framework, which will be used to produce reports to the Department of Finance on a quarterly basis. To date, approximately €51,000 has been spent directly on decentralisation within the Department. The costs incurred in the acquisition and development of the site and building in Carlow will be met centrally.

Social Insurance.

Dan Boyle

Question:

380 Mr. Boyle asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the cost to the Exchequer for the extension of maternity leave to 26 weeks. [31539/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

Entitlement to maternity benefit is contingent on entitlement to maternity leave, legislation for which is the responsibility of the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

Significant improvements have been made in the maternity benefit scheme over the recent years. As recently as 2001, improvements were made to increase core maternity leave, which attracted an entitlement to maternity benefit, from 14 to 18 weeks. The period of unpaid maternity leave was also increased from four to eight weeks, bringing the total period of maternity leave to which a woman is entitled to 26 weeks. Based on the current average number of recipients and average rate of payment, a further increase in the duration of maternity benefit by eight weeks would cost approximately €60.9 million in a full year.

There would also be additional Exchequer costs arising from the payroll costs of the many public servants who do not pay full PRSI contribution. While there are no immediate plans to extend the period for which maternity benefit is paid, this issue is being kept under review.

Pension Provisions.

Charlie O'Connor

Question:

381 Mr. O’Connor asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his plans to change regulations to better facilitate returning missionaries who have social welfare needs; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32161/05]

Seamus Healy

Question:

387 Mr. Healy asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if the habitual residency rule will be waived in respect of Irish missionaries at home on holiday in order to allow them to avail of the old age pension in cases in which they comply with the various other criteria. [31533/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

I propose to answer Questions Nos. 381 and 387 together.

The requirement to be habitually resident in Ireland was introduced as a qualifying condition for certain social assistance schemes and child benefit with effect from 1 May 2004. The old age non-contributory pension scheme is one of the schemes affected.

The basis for the restriction contained in the new rules is the applicant's habitual residence. The restriction is not based on citizenship, nationality, immigration status or any other factor. The effect of the restriction is that a person whose habitual residence is in the United States, Europe, Africa or elsewhere is not paid certain social welfare payments, including old age non contributory pension, on arrival in Ireland. The question of what is a person's habitual residence is decided in accordance with European Court of Justice case law, which sets out the grounds for assessing individual claims.

Each case received for a determination on the habitual residence condition is dealt with in its own right and a decision is based on application of the guidelines to the particular individual circumstances of each case. Any applicant who disagrees with the decision of a deciding officer has the right to appeal to the social welfare appeals office.

The habitual residence condition does not affect missionaries returning to Ireland on a permanent basis. They still qualify immediately for an old age pension or any other social welfare support on the same basis as heretofore if they meet the standard criteria. The application of the habitual residence condition has to be compatible with EU law and other international and national legal obligations and it is not possible, in applying the condition, to discriminate in favour of any particular group or nationality. It is not possible to waive the habitual residence requirement in respect of Irish missionaries who return home on holiday.

The habitual residence condition is being operated in a very careful manner to ensure that Ireland's social welfare system is not open to everyone who is newly arrived in Ireland, while at the same time ensuring that people whose cases are appropriate to the Irish social welfare system have access to the system when they need it.

Social Welfare Benefits.

Michael Ring

Question:

382 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will extend the household benefits package and free travel scheme to all widows and widowers irrespective of their age; the estimated costs of such a proposal; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31396/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

The household benefits package, which comprises the electricity/gas allowance, telephone allowance and television licence schemes, is generally available to people living permanently in the State, aged 66 years or over, who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test. The package is also available to carers and people with disabilities under the age of 66 who are in receipt of certain welfare type payments. People aged over 70 years of age can qualify regardless of their income or household composition.

Widows and widowers aged from 60 to 65 whose late spouses had been in receipt of the household benefits package retain that entitlement to ensure that households do not suffer a loss of entitlements following the death of a spouse. The free travel scheme, is available to all people living in the State aged 66 years, or over, to all carers in receipt of carer's allowance and to carers of people in receipt of constant attendance or prescribed relative's allowance. It is also available to people under age 66 who are in receipt of certain disability type welfare payments, such as disability allowance, invalidity pension and blind person's pension.

The estimated cost of extending the household benefits package and the free travel scheme to all widows and widowers irrespective of their age would be some €45 million. A range of proposals, including those referred to by the Deputy, have been made to extend the coverage of the household benefits package and the free travel scheme. These proposals are kept under review in the context of the objectives of the scheme and budgetary resources.

Cost of extending the Free Schemes to Widow/ers
Value of the Free Schemes
	Cost
	€
Electricity Allowance	332.67
Free Television Licence	152.00
Telephone Allowance	296.40
Total	781.07
Free Travel Pass (standard)	89.10
Total (incl. Free Travel)	870.17

Total no. of widows in the State (Census 2002)	186,860
No. widows aged 70+ (i.e. getting FT & HBs) (Census 2002)	120,823
No. widows u/70	66,037
No. widows age 66 — 69 (i.e. receiving FT)	18,391
No. widows u/66	47,646
No. u/66 receiving FT (PSO)	3,074
No. u/66 not receiving FT	44,572
Cost of extending FT u/66 widows	€3.98 million
No. u/70 receiving HB package	13,234
No. u.70 not receiving HB package	52,803
Cost to extend HB package	€41.2 million

Michael Ring

Question:

383 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of persons in receipt of the farm assist payment on a county basis; and the comparative figure for this time last year. [31401/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

The information requested by the deputy is contained in the following tabular statement.

Table: Number of Recipients of Farm Assist by County, 2004 and 2005
County	September 2004	September 2005
Carlow	61	56
Cavan	312	284
Clare	471	416
Cork	605	548
Donegal	1,194	1,123
Dublin	11	9
Galway	906	857
Kerry	668	624
Kildare	49	42
Kilkenny	128	120
Laois	89	84
Leitrim	245	227
Limerick	216	203
Longford	108	96
Louth	67	64
Mayo	1,627	1,452
Meath	57	54
Monaghan	416	403
Offaly	82	75
Roscommon	345	304
Sligo	355	327
Tipperary	220	191
Waterford	47	39
Westmeath	89	78
Wexford	176	151
Wicklow	57	53
Total	8,601	7,880

Michael Ring

Question:

384 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs if he will extend the Christmas bonus to include persons on short-term payments such as short-term unemployment payments, disability, maternity benefit and carers benefit; the estimated cost of extending the scheme; the current cost to the Exchequer of the scheme; the number of persons approximately who are in receipt of short-term payments and, therefore, are excluded from the Christmas bonus payment; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31402/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

The Christmas bonus will again be paid this year to all recipients of long-term social welfare payments, at a rate equivalent to 100% of the person's normal weekly payment, subject to a minimum payment of €30. This measure will cost an estimated €139.3 million in 2005 and will benefit some 1.2 million persons comprising 835,000 recipients and 384,000 dependents.

The estimated cost of extending the Christmas bonus to all persons in receipt of short-term payments, that is, short-term unemployment payments, disability benefit, maternity benefit, carers benefit, family income supplement and basic supplementary welfare allowance, is €31 million. Approximately 198,000 persons are receiving these short-term payments.

I am satisfied that the Christmas bonus payment is effectively and appropriately targeted. The focus of the bonus has always been on persons who rely on the social welfare system for financial support over the long-term. There are no plans to extend entitlement to the short-term schemes, having regard to the resources available and the significant cost which would be involved.

Michael Ring

Question:

385 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the average processing time for each claim or payment within his Department at present. [31403/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

My Department is committed to providing quality customer service to all its customers. This includes ensuring that applications are processed and that decisions on entitlement are issued as expeditiously as possible having regard to the eligibility conditions which apply. These conditions vary from scheme to scheme and may include establishment of the customer's social insurance record, the provision of medical certificates of incapacity, verification of a customer's identity, satisfying residency conditions and an assessment of means where appropriate. In some cases there is an unavoidable time lag involved in making the necessary inquiries to enable decisions to be made. Time can also elapse where the applicants do not supply all the necessary information in support of their claim. Details of the average processing times for new claims for the month of September 2005, and year to date including figures to the end of September, on a scheme by scheme basis, are set out in the following tabular statement.

Average Weeks to Award Social Welfare Claims
Scheme	September 2005	Year to Date 2005
Old Age Contributory Pension	6.21	7.52
Retirement Pension	5.70	6.74
Widow/er’s Contributory Pension	3.62	4.62
Old Age Non Contributory Pension	8.95	8.47
Widow/er’s Non Contributory Pension	7.17	5.41
One Parent Family — Separated	11.16	15.89
One Parent Family — Unmarried	6.05	11.81
Household Benefits (Free Schemes)	5.58	6.57
Unemployment Benefit	2.13	2.03
Unemployment Assistance	3.79	3.36
Disability Benefit	0.71	0.82
Child Benefit	1.52	1.26
Family Income Supplement	4.82	4.21
Invalidity Pension	9.13	7.83
Disability Allowance	13.98	12.49
Bereavement Grant (Longford)	2.50	2.71
Bereavement Grant (PSO)	4.06	3.68
Carer’s Allowance	8.81	9.32

Identity Cards.

Paul Kehoe

Question:

386 Mr. Kehoe asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs his plans to introduce photo identification on cards issued by his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31523/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

In recent years the Government has concentrated on increasing primary social welfare payment rates by amounts far in excess of inflation. This approach, although more costly than increasing fuel allowances, delivers a better outcome for pensioners and others by substantially increasing their real income over the whole year.

Since 2002, pensioners and other eligible groups have received cumulative increases of between 33.6% and 37.3% in their primary social welfare payment rates. These higher rates of primary payments are payable for the full 52 weeks of the year as opposed to the 29 weeks for which the fuel allowance is paid. This approach has improved the income situation of welfare recipients considerably in real terms relative to solid fuel cost increases and to price inflation generally. For example, a single person on a contributory old age pension has received an increase of €32 per week over the last three budgets when fuel allowances were held constant. This is approximately double the amount required to compensate for all inflation, including fuel price inflation.

Some 274,000 customers — 151,000 with basic fuel allowance and 123,000 with smokeless fuel supplement — benefit under the scheme at a cost of €85.4 million in 2005. In addition to fuel allowance, over 320,000 pensioners and their households qualify for electricity or gas allowances through the household benefits package, payable towards their heating, light and cooking costs throughout the year, at an overall cost of €108.8 million in 2005. As structured, these allowances are linked to unit energy consumption, so that recipients are protected against unit price increases. There is also a facility available through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme to assist people in certain circumstances who have special heating needs.

I consider it important to continue the policy of concentrating available budget resources to providing real increases to these primary social welfare rates and to move towards the targets set out in the national anti-poverty strategy. This is aimed at ensuring that people who depend on social welfare income support will have adequate income to meet their normal living expenses, including their heating costs. This approach will involve compensating them fully for all price inflation, including fuel price inflation, and providing additional increases over and above that in their year round weekly payments.

However, I am keeping the fuel allowance under active review. Any change to the scheme would have very significant cost implications and would have to be considered in the context of the budget and in the light of the resources available to me for improvements in social welfare generally.

Public Relations Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

391 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31750/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

The Department of Social and Family Affairs has not awarded any contracts for public relations projects since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

392 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31765/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

There are a total of six full-time administrative staff assigned to deal with matters in my constituency office. There are four established civil servants, one executive officer on a payscale of €26,618 to €42,238 and three clerical officers on a payscale of €21,245 to €34,448.

I have also appointed, on a contract basis for my term of office, two non-established civil servants, a personal secretary and a personal assistant. The annual salary for my personal secretary is €38,948. My personal assistant is on secondment from the Department of Education and Science. That Department will recoup from my Department on an annual basis the cost of a replacement teacher's salary, allowances, PRSI contributions and superannuation contributions. This will be in the region of €34,400.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

393 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31780/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

The activities of the Department of Social and Family Affairs require the engagement of a range of consultancy expertise. Broadly, expertise is sought under three main headings: support with a number of strategic multi-annual programmes aimed at enhancing the delivery of the Department's services, for example, the service delivery modernisation programme; technical consultancies relating to the ongoing development of information technology systems; consultancy assistance in other areas, including policy development, advertising and information.

In the year 2005, there are over 50 projects under way involving a consultancy element. The figures for 2004, 2003, 2002 and 2001 were 39, 43, 53 and 22 respectively. The amounts paid by the Department on the engagement of consultants each year since 2000 is as follows:

Year	Total Paid
	€
2000	£1,876,000
2001	3,605,000
2002	4,704,000
2003	1,975,000
2004	2,822,000
2005 (to end of September)	2,209,565

These amounts exclude Reach and the civil registration modernisation programme which, although facilitated by my Department, are financed as interdepartmental projects from the information society fund. The detailed information sought by the Deputy about the details of the contracts involved and the current status of the projects is being compiled. A letter will issue to the Deputy in the near future.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

394 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31795/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

There are three staff in the Department's press office, including the press officer who is a higher executive officer on a payscale of €40,543 to €51,463 and the deputy press officer who is an executive officer on a payscale of €28,021 to €44,458. The third member of staff, who is awaiting re-assignment following promotion to executive officer, served as a clerical officer on a payscale of €21,245 to €34,448. I have also appointed a press advisor on a contract basis for my term of office. The salary for this position is €80,750 to €93,599 together with a private pension contribution of 10% of salary.

Social Welfare Benefits.

Tony Gregory

Question:

395 Mr. Gregory asked the Minister for Social and Family Affairs the dietary allowance for diabetics who are old age pensioners; the reason this amount has not increased in more than 15 years; and if he will review this matter for categories of persons such as old age pensioners. [31883/05]

Minister for Social and Family Affairs (Mr. Brennan)

Diet supplements are provided through the supplementary welfare allowance scheme which is administered on my behalf by the community welfare division of the Health Service Executive, HSE. They are intended to meet any shortfall that may exist between the cost of a special diet and the amount it would be reasonable to expect a person to pay towards their food costs. These diet supplement payments are not confined to pensioners. Any person who receives a social welfare or HSE payment, has been prescribed a special diet as a result of a specified medical condition and is unable to provide for his or her food needs from within his or her own resources may qualify for a diet supplement under the supplementary welfare allowance scheme.

This is a matter for my colleague, the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government. I understand any such pipeline would require an environmental impact assessment, EIA, under the EIA directives and regulations.

Road Traffic Offences.

Olivia Mitchell

Question:

399 Ms O. Mitchell asked the Minister for Transport the breakdown of the number of penalty points awarded on a county basis in the past 12 months; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31657/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

The information requested by the Deputy, as supplied by the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, is set out in the following table. That Department is responsible for the national vehicle and driver file, which contains the driver records on which penalty points are recorded.

Penalty points awarded from 1 October 2004 to 30 September 2005 by county
County	Number of penalty point notices issued
Carlow	1,133
Cavan	1,167
Clare	2,036
Cork	8,230
Donegal	2,197
Dublin	28,042
Galway	3,820
Kerry	2,702
Kildare	5,099
Kilkenny	1,602
Laois	1,292
Leitrim	468
Limerick	3,650
Longford	811
Louth	3,895
Mayo	1,848
Meath	5,081
Monaghan	1,340
Offaly	1,471
Roscommon	1,103
Sligo	913
Tipperary	2,980
Waterford	1,814
Westmeath	1,512
Wexford	3,296
Wicklow	3,321
No driver number	18,041
Total	108,864

Road Traffic Regulations.

Michael Ring

Question:

403 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Transport if a national road freight carrier’s licence will be transferred from the licence holder to his nephew or if this person’s nephew’s name will be included on the licence; and the procedure for same. [31388/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Transport (Mr. Callely)

A road freight carrier's licence is non-transferable, except in the case of the death or incapacitation of the holder of the licence, in which case it is transferable for one year only. In the case to which the Deputy refers, both parties could apply for a road freight carrier's licence as a partnership. In that case, the current licence holder would need to surrender the licence held specifically in his name. As a further option, the nephew could apply for a separate licence in his own name. Under the legislation, it is not possible to enter additional names on an existing licence.

Driving Tests.

Earlier this year, the RPA informed my Department that arising from a procurement procedure for the selection of an integrated ticketing provider and operator, a procedure that was undertaken in accordance with European public procurement directives, no solution appropriate for integrated ticketing in this State emerged. Following this inconclusive procurement procedure, the RPA commenced work on a revised procurement strategy and has submitted a draft to my Department. The finalisation of that procurement strategy is being assisted by an informal tripartite group representing the RPA, Dublin Bus and my Department. The work of the group will assist the RPA in determining a revised target implementation timescale for the phased roll-out of integrated ticketing.

Driving Tests.

Jack Wall

Question:

407 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Transport when a person (details supplied) in County Kildare will receive a driving test date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31723/05]

My Department has not awarded any contract for public relations projects since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

411 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Transport the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31766/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

The following tables provide the information requested. The salary costs are based on current salary scales.

Office	Total staff	Grade or job title	Salary scale cost per annum
			€
Constituency office	1	Personal assistant	40,543-51,463
Constituency office	1	Personal administrative assistant	40,543-51,463
Constituency office	1	Personal secretary	20,187-38,948
Constituency office	1	Staff officer	32,028-42,761

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

412 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Transport the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31781/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

I refer the Deputy to my response to Question No. 337 of 12 October 2005 in regard to consultancy contracts awarded by my Department. Unless otherwise indicated, the amount indicates that the project has come to fruition.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

413 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Transport the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31796/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

The following tables provide the information requested by the Deputy. The salary costs are based on current salary scales.

Office	Total staff	Grade or job title	Salary scale cost per annum
			€
Press office	1	Press officer, ministerial appointment	75,036-92,813
Press office	1	Higher executive officer	42,676-54,173
Press office	2	Clerical officer	21,245-34,448

Road Network.

Joe Costello

Question:

414 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Transport the amount that has been spent on the Dublin Port tunnel planning and construction to date in 2005; if he will itemise the main areas of expenditure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31857/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

Minister of State at the Department of Transport (Mr. Callely)

It is a requirement for the registration and entry into service of new motor vehicles in the European Union that they have type-approval in accordance with Directive 70/157/EEC as amended by Directive 1999/101/EC, which sets down the permissible sound levels and exhaust systems for motor vehicles. Vehicle in-service standards are specified in the Road Traffic (Construction, Equipment and Use of Vehicles) Regulations 1963 which requires vehicles to be fitted with a silencer or other device that is suitable and sufficient for reducing to a reasonable level the noise caused by the escape of exhaust gases from the engine. Article 85 of these regulations prohibits the use in a public place of a vehicle which causes excessive noise; in this respect the article does not specify decibel levels.

An examination of the silencer to assess its effectiveness in reducing noise is part of the NCT and the roadworthiness test carried out on commercial vehicles. It is an offence to use in a public place a vehicle which causes excessive noise. Enforcement of the law in this regard is a matter for the Garda Síochána.

Dublin Port Tunnel.

Finian McGrath

Question:

419 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Transport if there was an incident at areas 3,000, 4,000 and 1,950 in the Dublin Port tunnel recently, where water was flooding the areas and a ceiling fell down; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32053/05]

Minister for Transport (Mr. Cullen)

The planning, design and implementation, including the supervision of construction, of national road improvement projects, including the Dublin Port tunnel, is a matter for the National Roads Authority, NRA, and the local authority concerned. I am informed by Dublin City Council that as with construction of any tunnel, under a 20m head of ground water, some minor initial entry of water is anticipated. I understand at the following locations; vehicle cross passages, chainage 3,000 m and 4,000 m, and the tunnel boring machine turn shaft head wall, at chainage 1,900 m, such entry of water has been encountered.

Dublin City Council inform me that the contractor has in place a sequence of preventative grouting, to seal off these ground water paths. No flooding has or is occurring, nor have there been any ceiling falls. Where voids are detected, in the crown of any concrete closure pours, these are to be dealt with by specialist grouting subcontracting firms. I understand these works are routine quality control activities, as part of the completion of the main civil works.

Rural Social Scheme.

Michael Ring

Question:

420 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of persons to date in 2005 on a county basis who have applied for the rural social scheme; the numbers who were accepted and refused; the costs of this scheme to date in 2005; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31389/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

The number of rural social scheme applications received by the implementing bodies in 2005 per county, along with details of places offered and applications refused, is shown in the following table.

County	No. of Applications Received in 2005	No. of such Applications where a place was offered and taken	No. of such Applications where a place was offered but not taken	No. of such Applications refused/ineligible
Carlow	58	14	9	35
Cavan	86	51	22	13
Clare	30	24	2	4
Cork	284	93	45	146
Donegal	136	98	8	30
Dublin	0	0	0	0
Galway	79	66	5	8
Kerry	138	94	23	21
Kildare	14	8	4	2
Kilkenny	18	14	1	3
Laois	19	14	2	3
Leitrim	21	14	0	7
Limerick	62	28	7	27
Longford	51	39	8	4
Louth	11	6	5	0
Mayo	519	311	30	178
Meath	8	8	0	0
Monaghan	57	21	32	4
Offaly	47	33	9	5
Roscommon	43	27	0	16
Sligo	99	70	5	24
Tipperary	55	39	8	8
Waterford	16	10	1	5
Westmeath	46	30	1	15
Wexford	32	19	0	13
Wicklow	14	11	1	2
TOTALS	1,943	1,142	228	573

The estimated cost of the rural social scheme in 2005 is €24.8 million.

Inland Waterways.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

421 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the progress which is being made towards opening up the waterways between Belturbet and Killykeen; if this waterway is affected in the same way as the Ulster Canal by the failure to set up the Assembly in Belfast and the cross-Border links; if it is not so affected, would it not be a project where the spare funds that have been sent back by his Department could be utilised in a constructive and progressive way to improve tourism in the Belturbet area; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31477/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

Waterways Ireland is one of the six North-South implementation bodies established in 1999 under the British-Irish Agreement Act. It has responsibility for the management, maintenance and development of inland waterways, principally for recreational purposes.

The extension of the Erne navigation to Killykeen is not included in the National Development Plan 2000-2006 and Waterways Ireland advises me that it has no plans to extend this stretch of canal at present. Clearly, in the context of the current suspension of the institutions in Northern Ireland, Waterways Ireland is continuing to work at present on a care and maintenance basis. However, I have been informed by the body that it proposes to begin to collate all existing studies relating to the Killykeen proposal before the end of the year. This should provide a useful set of background information to allow further studies to be undertaken on the feasibility and desirability of the proposal.

With regard to the underspend to which the Deputy refers, this arose primarily due to the suspension of the institutions in Northern Ireland and the subsequent and related deferral of the building of the Waterways Ireland headquarters in Enniskillen, which is now due to commence in 2006. In the event of an underspend under any heading, the money is either re-allocated to other projects within the Vote or surrendered to the Exchequer. In the case of deferral, a further provision is re-entered in the Vote the following year.

Fostaíocht Gaeltachta.

Dinny McGinley

Question:

422 D'fhiafraigh Mr. McGinley den Aire Gnóthaí Pobail, Tuaithe agus Gaeltachta cad iad na hiarrachtaí atáá ndéanamh le tionscal a lonnú ar an Chaiseal i nGort an Choirce i nDún na nGall agus an ndéanfaidh sé ráiteas ina thaobh. [31544/05]

Dinny McGinley

Question:

423 D'fhiafraigh Mr. McGinley den Aire Gnóthaí Pobail, Tuaithe agus Gaeltachta cad iad na tionscail atá lonnaithe ar an Fhál Carrach i nDún na nGall, cad é an líon daoine atá fostaithe i ngach ceann acu agus an bhfuil pleananna ann le monarchana úra a bhunú nó breis fostaíochta a chruthú. [31548/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

Tógfaidh mé Ceisteanna Uimh. 422 agus 423 le chéile.

Tuigim óÚdarás na Gaeltachta go bhfuil trí chomhlacht lonnaithe ar an eastát ar an bhFál Carrach i láthair na huaire agus go bhfuil fostaíocht iomlán de 24 post i gceist iontu mar atá léirithe sa tábla seo a leanas:

Comhlacht	Carbhait Teo.	Cora Tine Teo.	Dermalogics Teo.
Líon post	3	17	4

Níl aon ghnó lonnaithe san fhoirgneamh ar an gCaiseal i nGort an Choirce san am i láthair.

Tá iarrachtaí leanúnacha ar siúl ag an Údarás chun deiseanna fostaíochta a fhorbairt in iar-thuaisceart Dhún na nGall, chomh maith le bheith ag díriú ar pháirc ghnó Ghaoth Dobhair. Sa chomhthéacs sin, nuair atá príomhaithe nua á dtabhairt ar chamchuairt suíomh i nGaeltacht Dhún na nGall, tuigim go gcuirtear an Fál Carrach, Gort an Choirce agus ceantair eile san áireamh freisin.

Security of the Elderly.

Mary Upton

Question:

424 Dr. Upton asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs if he will review the structures for the award of grants to ER community groups (details supplied) for provision of security devices; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31651/05]

Minister of State at the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Mr. N. Ahern)

The experience of the operation of the scheme of community support for older people in 2005 will be borne in mind when finalising the operational details of the scheme for 2006. However, it is worth pointing out that I have recently approved the first tranche of funding to some 100 applicant groups, which has enabled earlier payments than in previous years. Assessment of the remaining applications is in progress and further approvals and payments will be notified to eligible applicant groups over the coming weeks.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

425 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31752/05]

Paul McGrath

Question:

427 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31782/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 425 and 427 together.

The number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants, including those awarded for public relations projects, by my Department since its establishment in June 2002 are set out in the table. Completed projects are indicated by an asterisk. This largely reflects material provided in reply to Question No. 344 on 12 October 2005. However, a number of contracts were inadvertently omitted from the appendix to the reply on 12 October 2005. Most of these had in fact already being previously notified to this House and all these contracts are included in the table.

For completeness of information I also draw attention to the contract for the development of an information system to support the administration of Leader+ and NRDP programmes. This contract was initiated by the Department of Agriculture and Food in 2002 and tender documentation assumed that the substantial IT infrastructure and staffing supports of that Department, along with software licenses it held, would support the project.

However, the new Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs to which the rural development programmes transferred from mid-2002 does not have a major IT function or comparable delivery capability nor did it hold the relevant application server licences. In addition, significant enhancements, including an audit module, were required. Hence fundamental and extensive re-negotiations with the provider were required. Nevertheless it is more appropriate to regard the two processes — the initial tendering and subsequent re-negotiating — as coming within a single contract rather than two separate contracts, as had previously been described in reply to Question No. 344 on 12 October 2005.

Contracts awarded to outside consultants each year since June 2002.
Recipient of the contract in each case	Details of the work covered by the contract	The original estimate of the cost of the contract € (Incl VAT)	The final amount paid in respect of each such contract € (Incl VAT)
2002
C.H.L. Consulting Co. Ltd *	Desktop Evaluation	€1,210.00	€1,210.00
Transition Management *	Working Group on Creation of Employment in Gaeltacht	€10,637.49	€10,637.49
An tOllamh Mícheál Ó Cinnéide, NUIG *	Review of submissions received in response to public consultation process on review of powers and functions of Údarás na Gaeltachta	€5,000.00	N/A (Report received, invoice outstanding)
Systems Dynamics	Development of Information System to support administration of LEADER+ and National Rural Development Programmes.	€192,024	€334,570.15 paid to date. Estimated completion date December 2005
IBM*	Provision of assistance in the specification and selection of a new Gaeltacht and Islands Client Database in 2002	€112,530	€112,530
NIRSA (National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis), NUI, Maynooth.*	Review of CLÁR areas and preparation of revised set of maps of areas eligible for CLÁR programme	€4,840.00	€4,840.00
Goodbody Economic Consultants *	Review of statutory funding of the Community & Voluntary sector to assist the Dormant Accounts Fund Disbursements Board in carrying out its functions. Note: This consultancy project was commissioned by the then Department of Social, Community & Family Affairs (SCFA) in May 2002. Responsibility transferred to the Department of Community, Rural & Gaeltacht Affairs (CRGA) in June 2002. First 2 payments totalling €22,990 were made by SCFA and final payment of €5,748 was made by D/CRGA.	€28,738.00	€28,738.00
Deloitte & Touche*	Provision of assistance in the specification and selection of a new financial management system for the Department.	€117,250.00	€117,250.00
Nexus Research Cooperative*	Completion of the evaluation of the Community Development programme commissioned originally by the Department of Social Community & Family Affairs	The value of the contract offered by the Department of Social, Community and Family Affairs was €79,675	€72,600
Deloitte & Touche*	Provision of professional accounting service between June 2002 and October 2003.	€74,004.00	€71,513.00
Peter Coyne & Co. Chartered Accountants, Aengus House, The Docks , Galway *	Provision of professional accounting advice regarding tenders for Aran Islands air service.	€4,840.00	€4,840.00
Achilles, Procurement Services, I Harmsworth, Greenmount Office Park, Harolds Cross, Dublin 6W *	Provision of procurement advice in relation to the award of ferry services contracts.	€756.25	€756.25
Montague Communications*	Provision of Public Relations & Event Management services to the National Advisory Committee on Drugs	€139,150.00 to end 2004 and per event in 2005. New contract being drawn up at present.	€150,671.14 to date
2003
Bearing Point *	Implementation of Peoplesoft Human Resources system for the Department	€148,350.84	€151,944.54 . The extra cost arose from additional training required
Quest Computing	Development of a Gaeltacht & Islands Client Database	€323,776.64 + vouched Travel Expenses at civil service rates	€358,923.37 to date including travel expenses. An additional cost of €50,000 was approved for this contract for interfaces to the JDE Edwards financial system . The costs were not included in the original contract as the Department had not selected the financial system at that stage.
SRL *	Implementation of JD Edwards Financial Management system	€856,056	€821,373.87
Core*	Implementation of Travel & Subsistence module of Financial Management system	€29,958,92	€29,958.92
Nexus Research Cooperative*	To develop a data collection software package (SPEAK) for the Community Development Programme and to provide support and training to projects funded under the Programme	€69,962.20 plus €450 per day, (on a needs basis), for technical support for project implementation.	2003 €36,468.66 2004 €63,345.57 2005 €1,415.70 Total Payments to date —€101,229.93
NIRSA (National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis), NUI, Maynooth.*	Preparation of further detailed maps of CLÁR areas.	€1,325.00	€1,325.00
DKM Consultants Davy House, Dawson Street, Dublin 2.*	Review and analysis of proposed Grant Aid Development of Cargo Apron at Knock Regional Airport under the CLÁR programme.	€18,045.00	€17,818.00
Fitzpatrick Associates *	Review of Enterprise Support in Rural Areas	€76,351.00	€76,351.00
Oonagh Breen *	Specialist advice in relation to charity law	€6,500.00	€6,500.00
Arthur Cox *	Legal research and assistance concerning charities regulation	€65,000.00	€64,850.34
Pricewaterhouse Coopers*	Systems Audit of Waterways Ireland	€6,500.00	€5,505.50
Institute of Public Administration*	Review of Internal Audit Function as required under Mullarkey Report	€10,890.00	€10,890.00
Goodbody Economic Consultants *	To assess all applications which were received under the funding scheme to support the role of Federations, Networks and Umbrella Bodies in the Community and Voluntary sector	€34,183.00	€34,183.00
Colgan & Associates*	To assess all applications which were received under the funding scheme to provide training and supports in the Community and Voluntary Sector	€25,168.00	€25,168.00
Deloitte & Touche*	Provision of advice and support in the areas of project management, quality assurance, business process redesign, user acceptance testing, change and risk management and post go-live support in relation to the implementation of a new financial management system in the Department.	€167,312.00	€288,838.00 The extra cost arose from a decision to extend the scope of the contract to provide full-time support and knowledge transfer to departmental personnel, post go-live.
Farrell Grant Sparks *	Review of property and equity portfolio of Údarás na Gaeltachta	€83,883.25	€83,883.25
Fitzpatrick Associates in conjunction with Brendan Kearney Associates Ltd *	Mid-term evaluation of the LEADER+ Community Initiative.	€100,370	€100,370
Indecon Consultants *	Review of Area Development Management Ltd.	€99,558.80	€99,558.80
Achilles, Procurement Services, I Harmsworth, Greenmount Office Park, Harolds Cross, Dublin 6W *	Provision of procurement advice in relation to Long Island ferry service	€605.00	€605.00
Malachy Walsh & Partners / Raymond Burke Consulting, c/o Park House, 21 Denny Street, Tralee, Co Kerry*	To carry out a study of transport service requirements of a number of offshore islands.	€86,946.97 excluding expenses	€95,641.66 including expenses
Peter Coyne & Co. Chartered Accountants, Aengus House, The Docks , Galway *	Provision of professional accounting advice relating to Aran Islands air service contract.	€1.089.00	€1,089.00
Peter Coyne & Co. Chartered Accountants, Aengus House, The Docks , Galway *	Provision of professional accounting advice in relation to Aran Islands cargo contract.	€399.00	€399.00
Achilles, Procurement Services, I Harmsworth, Greenmount Office Park, Harolds Cross, Dublin 6W *	Provision of procurement advice in relation to the award of ferry study contract	€5,445.00	€5,445.00
Achilles, Procurement Services, I Harmsworth, Greenmount Office Park, Harolds Cross, Dublin 6W *	Provision of procurement advice in relation to linguistic study	€1,815.00	€1,815.00
Lovegrove & Associates	Advisor to the Dormant Accounts Fund Disbursements Board	€79,860.00	€71,148.00 to date
N.U.I. Galway	Evaluation of National Drugs Awareness Campaign	€72,600.00	€42,350.00 to date
2004
Environmental Resources Management*	Assess Cohesion Schemes and Integrated Target Plans for Social Inclusion from County/City Development Boards in 2004	€8,729.61	€17,459.22 Includes related work additional to that envisaged in original contract.
Law Reform Commission *	Specialist legal research, public consultation and recommendations concerning charitable trust law reform	€35,000.00	€35,000.00
Dermot V.Cahill*	Core information on Irish Sectoral Regulators (comparative research to inform work on charities regulator)	€6,500.00	€6,500.00
Mazars	Audit of Foras na Gaeilge	€26,317.50	€17,407.25 Ongoing
A&L Goodbody*	Legal advice connected with a Community Development Programme tendering process Undertaken in 2004	Not exceed €5,000	€4,077.70
Deloitte & Touche*	Provision of professional accounting service in February/March 2004.	€17,185.00	€13,096.00
Deloitte & Touche*	Development of the Department’s ICT Strategy	€103,280	€103,280
Farrell Grant Sparks*	Desktop Review	€1,815.00	€1,815.00
Sinead O’Connor*	Provision of Research and Development support to Comhairle na Tuaithe from 28/6/04 to 31/12/04.	€35,000	€35,000
Bluett Conran*	Review of Capital Appraisal Procedures in Department	€6,050.00	€6,050.00
Tipperary Institute	Provision of Network Services for LEADER+ Community Initiative	€1,179,580	€643,783 paid to date.
Saltire Management Ltd, Victoria House, East Blackhall St., Greenhock, United Kingdom.*	Consultancy on aspects of ferry and air services for certain islands	€77,924.00	€106,889.25 paid to date. The extra costs arose from a decision to extend the scope of the contract to provide for additional reporting, inspection and advisory requirements. Contract completed and final invoice awaited.
Peter Coyne & Co. Chartered Accountants, Aengus House, The Docks , Galway*	Examination of accounts for Aran Islands Cargo Tenders	€605.00	€605.00
Irish Productivity Centre (IPC)/IPC Associates , Rockenham House, Passage West, Cork	Job Analysis and Process Mapping skills to staff of the Department.	€22,900	€10,450.00 Ongoing. Completion envisaged in early 2006
Oonagh Breen*	External report on the public consultation about charities regulation	€15,000.00	€15,000.00
Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge	Linguistic study of the use of Irish in the Gaeltacht as a means of strengthening the linguistic development of the Gaeltacht as an Irish-speaking area and as a basis for a review of the official Gaeltacht areas	€550,223.00	€321,494 paid to date. The study is not scheduled for completion until September 2006
Goodbody Economic Consultants*	Expenditure Review of the Local Drugs Task Forces	€79,618.00	€79,618.50
P.A. Consulting*	Mid Term Review of the National Drugs Strategy	€67,397.00 Plus vouched expenses	€74,431.34
Achilles Procurement Service*	Quality assessment of Mid Term Review of the National Drugs Strategy	€2,117.50	€2,117.50
Talbot Associates*	Review of the National Advisory Committee on Drugs	€47,341.25 plus vouched expenses	€47,877.52
QE5*	Evaluation of Coolamber Residential Rehabilitation Programme	€13,425.00	€13,425.00
2005
Environmental Resources Management	Assess Cohesion Schemes, Integrated Target Plans and Volunteering Measures for Social Inclusion from County/City Development Boards in 2005.	€30,250.00	€10,083.33 to date.
NIRSA (National Institute for Regional and Spatial Analysis), NUI, Maynooth.	Analysis of 2002 population census data	€3,248.85	Ongoing
Brendan Kearney and Associates *	Preparation of a brief background report to assist in ongoing work relating to updating the White Paper on Rural Development	€6,050.00	€6,050.00
Deloitte and Touche	Decentralisation Risk Exercise	The cost of the consultancy will be €41,454.60.	No payment made yet. Contract placed in September 2005.
Mary Higgins, Management Consultant *	Provision of an research on the development of support framework for philanthropy in Ireland	€5,102.00	€5,102.00
Indecon	Consultancy on the White Paper on a Framework for Supporting Voluntary Activity	€94,234.00	No payment to date
RSM Robson Rhodes*	Verification checks of once-off grants made under the 2004 programme of grants to locally based community and voluntary organisations	€34,787.00	Completed 2005.No payment made to date
RSM Robson Rhodes*	To revisit some of the groups for verification purposes	€4,840	Completed 2005.No payment made to date
A & L Goodbody Solicitors*	Review of Public Procurement Procedures in relation to certain projects	€3,513.92	€3,513.92
Fitzpatrick Associates in conjunction with Brendan Kearney Associates Ltd.	Mid-term evaluation of the LEADER+ Community Initiative.	€63,812	€42,541 paid to date.
Sinead O’Connor*	Provision of Research and Development support to Comhairle na Tuaithe from 1/3/05 to 31/5/05.	€17,500	€17,500
Tom Healy, Chartered Consulting Engineer, Railway View, Clifden, Co Galway.	Supervision of the construction work on Inishboffin airstrip.	€64,389.12	No payment yet.
Malachy Walsh & Partners / Mc Clure Watters, c/o Park House, 21 Denny Street, Tralee, Co Kerry.*	To review a study conducted in 1999 in respect of the proposed cablecar link between Inishbiggle and Achill Island, Co Mayo.	€21,489.60 excluding expenses and printing costs.	€25,676.43 including expenses and printing costs.
Brendan Kearney & Associates*	To review the operation of the Rural Development Fund incorporating stand-alone evaluations of a number of projects supported by the Fund.	€6,050 + travel and subsistence expenses at civil service rates	No payment made yet
Mr. Patrick Commins	Consultancy on support for micro-enterprises in rural areas	€3,812 + travel and subsistence expenses at civil service rates	No payment made yet
Goodbody Economic Consultants	Evaluation of Pilot Cocaine Projects	€45,012.00	€22,506.00 to date
Brendan Lynch Economic Consultant*	Evaluation of Local Drugs Task Forces Expenditure Review	€1,300.00	€1,300.00
Kate Ennals & Associates	Evaluation of the Community Research Grants Scheme	€22,640.00	€10,000.00 to date

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

426 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31767/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

431 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31978/05]

Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs (Éamon Ó Cuív)

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The person named presented an animal for slaughter at a meat export plant on 13 October 2005. When a CMMS traceability check was carried out at the factory, it was discovered that an animal with the same tag number had been recorded as having been exported the previous year. A feature of Ireland's traceability system is that each bovine's tag number details are unique. In the circumstances, an investigation was initiated by my Department to ascertain which was the correct animal. Thus, the animal presented at the factory was rejected for slaughter until such time as this investigation was completed.

The investigation found that the animal exported in the previous year was incorrectly recorded on the CMMS system and the rejected animal was cleared for slaughter on 20 October, some seven days later. While it is acknowledged that the person in question was not to blame in this case, my Department had no option but to await the outcome of the investigation before allowing the animal to proceed for slaughter for entry into the food chain. I am satisfied that there was no disease risk from the return of this animal to the farm while the investigation took place. I regret the inconvenience caused to the person named in this case. However, I have a duty to ensure that only cattle whose origin, identity and life history are verified by the traceability system enter the food chain.

Rural Environment Protection Scheme.

Michael Ring

Question:

438 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of persons in REP schemes on a county basis for each of the past five years; and the estimated total REP scheme payments to each county for each year. [31391/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The figures requested are being compiled and I will write to the Deputy in the next few days.

Grant Payments.

Michael Ring

Question:

439 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the estimated number of farmers who will receive the single farm payment in County Mayo; and the estimated total worth of the payments. [31392/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

Approximately 12,500 farmers in County Mayo have established entitlements under the single payment scheme. The value of these entitlements is in excess of €58 million.

Pat Breen

Question:

440 Mr. P. Breen asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a decision has been made on a single farm payment application for a person (details supplied) in County Clare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31419/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The person named submitted an application for a review of entitlements under the single payment scheme. During the processing of this review my Department took the view that the case of the person named should be assessed on the grounds of force majeure or exceptional circumstances as provided for in Article 40 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1782/2003. My Department has completed the examination of the force majeure circumstances and a decision was made that the single payment entitlements for the person named would be based on year 2000 only with the years 2001 and 2002 excluded. Details of the revised entitlements will issue to the person named shortly.

The person named submitted three applications under the 2004 special beef premium scheme in respect of a total of 32 animals. The first application, in respect of one animal for bull premium, was received on 7 September 2004; the second application, in respect of 18 animals for first age premium, was received on 6 October 2004 and the third application, in respect of 13 animals for first age premium, was received on 24 December 2004.

Following initial computer validation, it was found that some of the animals included on the applications of the person named appeared ineligible under the scheme. However, following further examination, it has now been established that these animals are eligible and, accordingly, the file is being further processed with a view to payment at an early date.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

444 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if, in view of recouping from Coillte Teoranta circa €8 million of forestry premium grants awarded to it but subsequently excluded from Community financing under the guarantee section of the European agricultural guidance and guarantee fund, and confirmed by a European Court, she has made a decision regarding seeking the return of these funds from Coillte Teoranta. [31508/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

A final decision in this matter hasnot been made as yet but the issue is being examined in consultation with the Department of Finance.

Paul McGrath

Question:

445 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she will provide details relating to the REP scheme file of a person (details supplied) in County Galway; the reason copies of bank statements were required by the regional inspector to which they are not entitled, resulting in a delay of more than one year in payment; if she will apologise to the person concerned for the stress and anxiety caused by this intrusion; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31662/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The person named had completed three years in REPS 2 and was selected for a compliance inspection in his fourth year. Following the inspection, he was notified on 3 November 2004 that he was to be penalised for not spreading lime as required in his farm plan. This was because he could produce no record of having bought lime. He appealed the penalty locally and at the end of November 2004 he provided a photocopy of a receipt for the purchase and spreading of lime. My officials did not consider this to be acceptable evidence of the transaction and asked him to produce a bank statement to prove it. On 10 January 2005, the person named contacted my officials again but did not provide the material requested. In March 2005, my officials contacted his planner asking him to produce the original of the receipt.

Instead of the original receipt the planner provided another copy of the receipt, which he certified. My officials still considered this unacceptable and in a final effort to resolve the situation so that the person named could be paid, they contacted the company named on the receipt and verified directly from them that they had provided him with lime and spread it on his land. He was then told that the matter had been resolved and his payment issued on 5 September 2005.

While the delay is regrettable, my Department has an obligation to operate effective controls in REPS to safeguard national and EU funds.

Poultry Industry.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

446 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the gross output from the poultry industry here; the number of farmers involved in the industry; the number of persons involved in the industry directly and indirectly in the service industry; the percentage of that industry based in Monaghan; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31663/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The gross output of the poultry industry is in excess of €150 million. There are approximately 1,000 commercial poultry farms in Ireland and 40% of these farms are based in County Monaghan.

While there are no official statistics for the numbers employed directly and indirectly in the service industry, it is estimated that there would be roughly up to 6,000 people involved in the production, processing, packing and associated activities in the poultry industry.

Food Industry.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

447 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of farm families involved in deer production in 1997; the number involved in production in October 2005; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31664/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

Official data on deer farming is available from the census of agriculture which is carried out by the Central Statistics Office roughly every ten years. The first and so far only census of agriculture that included deer was in June 2000. This stated that there were farmed deer on 266 farms. Teagasc has estimated that the number of farms involved in deer production peaked in the mid-1990s at about 450 and estimates that the number stands at between 200 and 250.

The structure of deer farming has altered over the last ten years and the number of units has decreased. While there are fewer enterprises now, they are larger, more specialised and moving towards quality assured high value product outlets.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

448 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of farm families involved in mushroom production in 1997; the number involved in production in October 2005; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31665/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

According to the Teagasc survey, the number of mushroom producers in Ireland in 1997 was 576. The latest information available from Teagasc is that the number of producers has now fallen to 135. However in the same period, the level of production has increased from 57,000 tonnes of mushrooms in 1997 to 65,059 tonnes in 2004 due to the increasing scale and production output of farms remaining in operation.

The mushroom task force which published its report in May 2004 agreed that the industry needed to become more efficient to move forward in a very competitive market environment and agreed a set of recommendations to put it on a firm footing. A review group continues to monitor the implementation of these recommendations.

Under the National Development Plan 2000-2006 my Department will be providing funding of more than €2 million this year to growers for capital investments in buildings and equipment. This follows on the €2.5 million paid to growers under the three earlier rounds of the scheme. Funding under the EU producer organisation scheme is also being provided and this year €5 million was paid to six mushroom producer organisations, bringing the total EU aid in this sector to €16.5 million since 2002.

Grant Payments.

Paul Connaughton

Question:

449 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason the area-based payment for 2004 has not been made to a person (details supplied) in County Galway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31667/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The 2004 area aid application of the person named was fully processed with an area determined for payment purposes of 18.17 hectares. Payment under the disadvantaged areas scheme issued on 17 September 2004. His 2005 application has also been fully processed with an area of 18.17 hectares. His grant under the 2005 scheme will issue shortly.

Paul Connaughton

Question:

450 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if a decision has been made on an application by a person (details supplied) in County Galway to receive entitlements from the national reserve; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31668/05]

Paul Connaughton

Question:

451 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the single payment calculated for a person (details supplied) in County Galway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31669/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 450 and 451 together.

The person named has established 57.66 entitlements with a total net value of €6,423.90 under the single payment scheme. The person named submitted an application for consideration of force majeure-exceptional circumstances in respect of his entitlements under the scheme. The circumstances outlined by him did not satisfy the criteria for force majeure-exceptional circumstances under Article 40 of Council Regulation (EC) No. 1782/2003. The person named appealed that decision to the independent single payment appeals committee. The finding of the appeals committee was that the original decision taken by my Department should be upheld.

The person named submitted an application for an allocation of entitlements from the single payment scheme national reserve under category B which caters for farmers who, between 1 January 2000 and 19 October 2003, made an investment in production capacity in a farming sector for which a direct payment under livestock premia and-or arable aid schemes would have been payable during the reference period 2000 to 2002.

The person named also submitted an application under category C which caters for farmers who, between 1 January 2000 and 19 October 2003, sold their milk quota into the milk quota restructuring scheme and converted their enterprise to a farming sector for which a direct payment under livestock premia and-or arable aid schemes would have been payable during the reference period 2000 to 2002. It should be noted however that the rules governing the single payment scheme stipulate that an applicant who is found to be eligible under more than one category in the reserve may only receive an allocation of entitlements under whichever category is most beneficial to him.

The position is that more than 23,000 applications for an allocation of entitlements from the national reserve were received when account is taken of farmers who applied under more than one category. Processing of these applications is continuing and the intention is to make allocations to successful applicants at the earliest opportunity. The Department will be in touch with individual applicants as soon as their applications are fully processed.

Dairy Sector.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

452 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she will seek support from fellow Ministers in the Agriculture Council for a review of the 2006 dairy budget (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31711/05]

Jerry Cowley

Question:

460 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if she will engage with the European Commission to challenge the methodologies used in setting refunds and aids and to request greater flexibility to allow the dairy sector and dairy farmers benefit from strong markets; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31811/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 452 and 460 together.

Finance Ministers will conduct their second reading of the preliminary draft budget for 2006 later this month following which it will be sent to the European Parliament for its final reading. I will endeavour to ensure that the budget for 2006 is sufficient to provide for the full range of market and other supports, direct payments and rural development measures which are essential to allow Irish farmers and processors to maintain their competitiveness in 2006 and beyond.

As regards the dairy sector I have continuously impressed upon the Commission the necessity to ensure flexibility in its ongoing evaluation of aids and subsidies in order to take full account of variations in the market or weaker dollar-euro exchange rates. I am particularly concerned that the dairy sector be provided with sufficient resources to meet its market challenges and that the market dynamics take precedence rather than an undue emphasis on the budgetary requirements, while respecting prudent budgetary disciplines.

My priority in the ongoing implementation of the CAP reform is the maintenance of a stable and appropriately resourced dairy sector. This requires the provision of a combination of appropriate levels of internal supports and export refunds to safeguard the sector's market share, allow for its expansion and provide the necessary returns to farmers.

Animal Welfare Bodies.

Jack Wall

Question:

453 Mr. Wall asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food if funding is available for an organisation (details supplied) in County Kildare; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31714/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

My Department has in recent years made ex gratia payments to a number of bodies involved in the actual delivery of animal care and welfare services throughout the country. The funding available to any individual organisation is dependent on resources available and the level of demand and is therefore intended only as a contribution to the overall costs of the organisations. Until 2004, these ex gratia payments were made from residual funds available in my Department’s Vote at the end of the year. However from 2004, specific provisions for this purpose have been included in the Department’s Estimates. I will be making decisions in the next few weeks on payments to these bodies, including the body named, which have made applications for funding for 2006.

Grant Payments.

Paul Connaughton

Question:

454 Mr. Connaughton asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food when the 2004 area-based payment will issue to a person (details supplied) in County Galway; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31724/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The person named was paid his 2004 disadvantaged areas grant on 17 September 2004. His grant under the 2005 scheme was paid on 24 October 2005.

Animal Diseases.

Trevor Sargent

Question:

455 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the measure being taken to ensure the safety of birds here (details supplied). [31732/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

My Department has taken a range of measures aimed at minimising the risk of the introduction of avian influenza into the country. The Department is constantly reassessing the level of risk and will continue to introduce such measures as are proportionate to that level of risk. To date, bans have been placed on the importation of live birds and specified poultry products from countries affected by outbreaks of H5N1 avian influenza. In addition, the European Commission has introduced a ban on the importation of captive birds into the Community and controls on imports of pet birds.

Last week, I signed two statutory instruments providing for the registration of all poultry flock owners, including owners of racing pigeons, the reporting of all unusual or unexplained patterns of mortality among poultry flocks, and an immediate ban on the collection of poultry and captive birds for poultry markets, shows, exhibitions and cultural events, other than under licence. In addition to these legal measures, my Department has also updated and reissued biosecurity measures to flock owners which, if followed, will also help to reduce the risk of introduction of disease.

My Department has an early warning system in place which operates with the assistance of the national parks and wildlife service, the National Association of Regional Game Councils and BirdWatch Ireland. My Department also participates fully in the annual EU avian influenza survey, which includes a survey of both domestic poultry and wild birds while our laboratories also screen all samples received for avian influenza. These extensive measures play a central part in ensuring that any outbreak of avian influenza will be detected early. Conscious of the potential role of migratory birds in introducing the disease, much of our focus is placed on early detection and speedy eradication of the disease.

Our approach at all times is one of vigilance as well as being measured in our response. That response will continue to be informed by our assessment of the risk level at any given time and we will continue to introduce such additional measures as are proportionate to that risk and as are appropriate in an Irish context.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

456 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by her Department since December 2004. [31753/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

No contracts for public relations projects have been awarded by my Department since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

457 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the number of civil servants and other staff employed in her constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31768/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

The following table gives a breakdown of staff employed in my constituency office.

Minister's Office Staff
Grade	Number	Salary Scale
Personal Assistant	1	€43,000-€53,191 HEO Higher Scale
Personal Secretary	1	€20,186-€38,948 + 10% Higher Duty Allowance CO Higher Scale
Clerical Officer	2	€21,121-€33,436 CO Higher Scale
Clerical Officer	2	€21,245-€34,448 Full PRSI Standard Scale

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

My Department requested additional information to support the application from the persons named on 10 February 2005 for the transfer of entitlements by way of inheritance. The requested information was not submitted to my Department and, therefore, the persons named were informed on 10 August 2005 that my Department could not process the application as the information had not been submitted. The information required has now been submitted and the application has been processed to a successful conclusion. The persons named were notified of this on 27 October 2005.

Animal Diseases.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

463 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the reason first class hereford and other native breeds are downgraded to such an extent on the advice sheet to the appointed buyers of tuberculosis reactor animals; her views on whether the lower prices being advised to the buyers bears no relation to the actual market value of these animals in public auction rings; if the situation will be re-examined and rectified accordingly; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31898/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

Under the existing arrangements, the main compensation scheme for farmers whose herds are affected by TB or brucellosis is the on-farm market valuation scheme, which provides for compensation to be paid on the basis of market value. Under the scheme, market value is the equivalent price that might reasonably have been obtained for the animal, at the time of determination of compensation, from a purchaser in an open market if the animal was not affected by TB or brucellosis or was not being removed as part of a depopulation under the disease eradication programme. Cattle removed as infected animals are valued by suitably qualified valuers approved by my Department and by reference to Department guidelines on market values of animals. The amount payable is subject to a maximum ceiling of €2,540 applying in respect of any individual animal, except in respect of one pedigree stock bull per breakdown episode where a ceiling of €3,175 is applied.

All reactor animals are valued as if they were not affected by disease and are categorised by breed and quality. Summary market guideline prices are compiled and issued by my Department to independent livestock valuers on a weekly basis for use as a reference for the valuation of animals affected by disease prior to slaughter. These prices are based on current livestock sales which are closely monitored by my Department. Prices for finished cattle are obtained from the meat factories each week. The prices for all other commercial cattle are obtained by my Department from representative livestock marts throughout the country. Prices for breeding animals are obtained from clearance, reduction and specialised sales that are normally held during the breeding season, that is, during spring and autumn. Department staff also monitor the valuations attributed to animals by the valuers.

Farmers receive payment from meat plants for the meat value of reactors. This payment is netted against the on-farm valuation, with the appropriate net differential payment being paid by the Department to the farmer. With regard to prices paid by the meat plants buying tuberculosis reactor animals, my Department operates a weekly tendering system whereby the meat plants submit quotations for the purchase of the reactors. My Department does not advise factories as regards the meat price of reactor animals. The farmer receives the full market valuation of his or her reactors irrespective of the price paid by meat plants.

I am therefore satisfied that the guidelines issued by the Department reflect the appropriate market value for all animals, including first class herefords and other native breeds, and I do not propose to revise the current market valuation arrangements.

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

464 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture and Food the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis being conducted on her Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of her Department’s decentralisation programme; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31979/05]

Minister for Agriculture and Food (Mary Coughlan)

As part of my Department's decentralisation implementation plan, a risk assessment and management analysis was carried out. The document outlines the risks of decentralisation and the mitigating actions necessary. It is not possible to estimate at this stage the cost of these mitigating actions. The Department is satisfied that any costs arising can be met from its existing administrative budget.

The main costs associated with decentralisation will be accommodation costs. In its report of November 2004, the decentralisation implementation group, DIG, indicated that the Department's corporate headquarters in Portlaoise would be provided on a design, build, finance and maintain, DBFM, approach and the OPW is proceeding on that basis.

Citizenship Applications.

Phil Hogan

Question:

465 Mr. Hogan asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform when a citizenship application will be processed for a person (details supplied) in County Waterford; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31860/05]

Registration of Title.

Paul McGrath

Question:

468 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if a Land Registry dealing for a person (details supplied) in County Cork will be expedited. [31327/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have requested the Land Registry to contact him directly concerning the current position of the application in question. I understand that, in circumstances where the completion of an application in a particular case is urgent, the Land Registry will make every reasonable effort to facilitate such requests on receipt of a written explanation as to the reason underlying the urgency.

Work Permits.

Fergus O'Dowd

Question:

469 Mr. O’Dowd asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the entitlements of a person (details supplied) residing in County Louth for five years to obtain employment here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31328/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The person concerned arrived in the State on foot of a D-employment visa on 23 September 2000, as a work permit had been obtained by an employer in respect of her. She was granted permission to remain until 19 July 2001 on work permit conditions. Her employer did not seek to renew the work permit in respect of her. She subsequently took up employment with a new employer. However, this employer had not obtained a work permit on her behalf. She failed to renew her permission to remain in the State from 19 July 2001 and continued to reside in the State.

As a result of representations received on her behalf in February 2004 and following consideration of all the circumstances of her case, she was granted permission to remain for a three-month period to enable a prospective employer obtain a work permit on her behalf. This permission to remain was subsequently renewed on two occasions and she has permission to remain until 21 June 2006.

If the person concerned wishes to take up employment in the State, a prospective employer will first have to obtain a work permit on her behalf. In the event that a work permit is issued in respect of the person concerned, she should return to her local immigration office to have the appropriate permission endorsed on her documents.

Road Traffic Accidents.

John Perry

Question:

470 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of persons killed on roads for the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and to date in 2005: the number of vehicles on roads for the same period; the funding allocated to the Garda Síochána for each county specifically for the prevention of road deaths in each of these complete years; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31329/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the number of persons killed on the roads for the years 2000 to 2004, inclusive, and to date in 2005 is set out in the following table.

Year	Number of fatalities on the roads
2000	415
2001	411
2002	376
2003	335
2004*	374*
2005*	323 to 1 November*

* These figures are provisional, operational and liable to change.

Members of the Garda Síochána discharge a large number of duties, including road traffic safety and road traffic law enforcement as part of their regular policing responsibilities. The annual Garda budget has a national remit and is not allocated on a programme or county basis. Therefore, it is not possible to quantify Garda expenditure designed to prevent road deaths on a county basis. However, expenditure of funds is consistent with the objectives set out in the annual policing plan, which include Garda duties and initiatives designed to prevent road deaths.

The assistant commissioner for traffic has overall responsibility for identifying and recommending necessary expenditure on a national basis. Prior to the establishment of a new traffic corps in 2005, this responsibility lay with the Garda national traffic bureau.

I am informed by the Garda authorities that funding for road traffic enforcement technology and road traffic equipment is accounted for under E5 subhead. The budget for this subhead for the years 2000 to 2005 inclusive is outlined in the following table.

E5. Road Traffic Equipment
Year	€000’s
2000	1,270,000
2001	1,152,000
2002	873,000
2003	1,127,000
2004	1,074,000
2005	1,106,000

I am informed by the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, who has responsibility for the licensing of motor vehicles, that the numbers of mechanically propelled vehicles under current licence at 31 December were as follows.

Number of Mechanically Propelled Vehicles under current licence at 31 December
Year	Number of Vehicles
2000	1,682,221
2001	1,769,684
2002	1,850,046
2003	1.937,429
2004	2,036,307
2005	2,129,888
(Position at 30 September 2005).

Garda Operations.

John Perry

Question:

471 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he will provide a breakdown of the number of Garda checkpoints held in each county for the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and to date in 2005; the number of speed related fines or dangerous driving incidences that were issued for each year in the same period; his views on whether the visibility of Garda patrol cars on roads is a deterrent for motorists to travel at high speed; his plans to have unmanned Garda patrol cars parked on roads to deter high speed on the road and the cost to implement such a measure; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31330/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am informed by the Garda authorities that there are no data available on the number of checkpoints held in each county for the years 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004 and to date in 2005. The number of speed related fines and dangerous driving incidences for the years 2000, 2001, 2002 and 2003 are available in the Garda annual report 2000-2003, a copy of which is available in the Oireachtas Library. The Garda annual report for 2004 is not yet available.

I am advised by the Garda authorities that they consider high visibility Garda traffic corps patrols are a deterrent for errant motorists. I am also advised that unmarked cars have limited deterrent effect but are used in appropriate circumstances. Unmarked patrol cars are allocated to the Garda traffic corps and the number will be increased as additional gardaí are allocated to the Garda traffic corps in line with the strategic review of traffic policing 2002. I am informed by the Garda Commissioner, who has responsibility for the allocation of Garda resources, that there are no plans to introduce unmanned patrol cars on the roads and streets.

The annual budget provided for the purchase of Garda vehicles, marked and unmarked, is accounted for in the D subhead of the Garda Vote. The actual and budgeted expenditure on the acquisition of Garda vehicles for the years 2000 to 2005 inclusive is as follows.

Expenditure on Garda Vehicles 2000-2005
Year	€000’s
2000	8,291
2001	7,307
2002	9,589
2003	5,880
2004	14,352
2005*	10,299

*Figures of expenditure for 2005 is the budgeted amount.

480 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the outcome of the decision by the Garda Commissioner to transfer five gardaí who were the subject of criticism in the second Morris tribunal report; the location of each of the gardaí at present; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31468/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The current position in respect of the five members of the Garda Síochána in question is as follows. One member was transferred on 24 June 2005 but is now absent without leave and has been taken off the payroll. One member retired from the force before his transfer was to come into effect. One member appealed his transfer to the assistant commissioner, for human resource management. This was refused but the transfer has not yet taken place because the member is on sick leave. One member appealed his transfer to the Commissioner. This was refused but the transfer has not yet taken place because the member is on sick leave and suspended from duty. One member has taken his appeal to the transfers review body — the third and last stage in the appeals process — and his case was heard on Monday, 10 October. The recommendation of the review body is being examined by the Commissioner.

It is clear from the foregoing that the Garda Commissioner has taken all available steps to effect each of the proposed transfers. Due process and the right of appeal must be observed, but if we stand back from the detail and look at the position as a whole, we can see that of the five gardaí concerned, one has retired, one is suspended and one is no longer on the payroll. Of the remaining two members, one is on sick leave and one is awaiting the Commissioner's response to the recommendation of the transfers review body.

Garda Vetting Procedures.

Joe Costello

Question:

481 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if his attention has been drawn that a convicted drug dealer (details supplied) has been appointed by a local authority to a position of care and responsibility for children and young persons; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31469/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am aware that at the time of the person's application in 2002 the services of the Garda central vetting unit were not available in relation to the particular employment in question. The Deputy will be aware that all organisations that recruit persons who would have substantial, unsupervised access to children and vulnerable adults will shortly be entitled to avail of the vetting services of the GCVU. The augmentation of the GCVU's existing vetting arrangements will commence on a phased basis upon decentralisation of the unit later this month from Dublin to Thurles, County Tipperary.

Victim Support Services.

Joe Costello

Question:

482 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his plans for a nationwide victim support service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31470/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

Services assisting the victims of crime are supported through the work of the Commission for the Support of Victims of Crime which I established in March 2005. The commission's term of office is for three years and its members are: Mr. Jim Mc Hugh, retired Garda assistant commissioner, Chairman; Ms Nora Owen, former Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform; Mr. Sean Lowry, former head of the probation and welfare service; Mr. Michael Whelan, Gemini Consulting; and Ms Marian Finucane, broadcaster.

The commission's remit is to devise an appropriate support framework for victims of crime into the future and disburse funding for victim support measures. The commission's remit also includes the examination of all aspects of the provision of services for victims of crime within the criminal justice system. These provisions are set out in the victims' charter which was last updated in 1999. In addition, the commission supervises the disbursement of funds to community and other voluntary groups providing victim services, with a particular emphasis on the funding of activities on the ground that provide direct supports for victims of crime. I am advised that the commission has received over 60 applications for funding for measures to support victims of crime in response to a public advertisement earlier this year. The commission examines each application on its merits and makes an independent decision in relation to eligibility for funding.

I understand that these included independent applications from a number of former elements of the Victim Support organisation including a group of ten branches that have formed a new Federation for Victim Assistance, as well as the interim board of Victim Support. It should be noted that I decided to terminate funding for the Victim Support organisation with effect from 31 March 2005 because of reductions in service levels and concerns in relation to governance, accountability and value for money arising from ongoing internal difficulties in that organisation and because an independent review, carried out early in 2005, concluded that the organisation was terminally damaged.

The Deputy may be interested to note that the commission has already agreed to make funding available to the following: the national crime victims helpline, a single low-call number manned by volunteers and providing information on all services available to victims of crime; Rape Crisis Network; Women's Aid Dublin; Irish Tourist Advisory Service; Support after Homicide group; Advic, a new organisation providing advocacy for families of homicide victims; Court Support Service, which provides impartial practical support for victims and witnesses in court proceedings; Muintir na Tíre, for follow-up support to elderly rural crime victims; ICPAC, the Irish Centre for Parentally Abducted Children; CARI, which provides services to child abuse victims. A number of other applications are under consideration.

Legal Aid Service.

Joe Costello

Question:

483 Mr. Costello asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his proposals to amend Statutory Instrument No. 8 of 2002 regarding civil legal aid regulations; his further proposals to increase the income eligibility; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31471/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The financial eligibility limits prescribed in the civil legal aid regulations of 2002 are being kept under ongoing review.

Tribunals of Inquiry.

Finian McGrath

Question:

484 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the criteria for the appointment of barristers to represent the State and its agencies; if millions of euro of public funds have been spent in the Morris tribunal on barristers and the public; and the basis upon which barristers are offered such lucrative work. [31484/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The national missing persons helpline was established in October, 2002. It was operated by Victim Support and supported by the Garda Síochána. Funding of €110,000 was provided to the helpline by my Department in respect of the years 2002-2004. In addition, my Department also provided funding for the Victim Support organisation.

Following a review of existing support provisions, I established the Commission for the Support of Victims of Crime in March 2005. The commission's remit is to devise an appropriate framework support for victims of crime into the future and disburse funding for victim support and assistance measures. Victim Support and its associated services ceased to operate from 31 March, 2005.

I am advised that in response to a public advertisement earlier this year the commission has received over 60 applications for funding for measures to support victims of crime. The commission examines each application on its merits and makes an independent decision in relation to eligibility for funding. One of these applications was from the missing persons helpline. I have been informed that the commission made an offer of funding to the helpline and that this offer was refused.

Garda Stations.

Willie Penrose

Question:

490 Mr. Penrose asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the steps he will take to erect a new Garda station in Castlepollard, County Westmeath; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that Westmeath County Council is prepared to play a positive role in the provision of the necessary site for the construction of a new station; the further steps he will take to have same pursued and the erection of this station expedited; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31654/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have been informed by officials in the citizenship area of my Department that there is no record of an application for naturalisation having been received from the person referred to by the Deputy.

Extradition Requests.

Billy Timmins

Question:

494 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of extradition warrant requests being considered by his Department; the persons involved; the length of time each request has been in existence; the subject matter of each request; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31660/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

First, the Deputy's question refers to those requests being considered by my Department. I interpret this to mean extradition requests under Part 2 of the Extradition Act 1965, as amended, which have not as yet been certified by me under section 26(1)(a) of the Act and European arrest warrants that have not yet been presented to the High Court for endorsement.

There are 24 Part 2 requests and 47 European arrest warrants still being considered by my Department at present. For obvious reasons I cannot indicate the names of the persons involved in any of these requests.

The Deputy will appreciate that I, as Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform, can only exercise my powers under the 1965 Act when I am satisfied that a request has been made in accordance with Part 2 of that Act. I can assure the Deputy, however, that requests for extradition or surrender are dealt with in my Department without any undue delay.

The tables which follow set out the date on which each of the 71 requests still under consideration was received in my Department, as well as the principal offence identified in each.

Table 1. Requests under Part 11 of the Extradition Act 1965 as amended
Request No.	Date Received	Principal Offence
1	18/1/02	Murder/Robbery
2	29/11/02	Theft/Driving Offences
3	5/9/03	Rape
4	23/10/03	Robbery
5	12/12/03	Public Disorder
6	5/2/04	Fraud/Forgery
7	6/5/04	Forgery/Fraud
8	25/5/04	Fraud/Forgery
9	25/5/04	Fraud
10	29/7/04	Sexual Assault
11	20/1/05	Offences relating to terrorism
12	20/1/05	Armed Robbery
13	6/4/05	Murder/Robbery
14	12/5/05	Embezzlement/Theft
15	25/5/05	Theft
16	25/5/05	Theft
17	1/6/05	Rape
18	2/8/05	Robbery
19	2/8/05	Theft/Assault
20	13/8/05	Theft/bodily injury
21	14/9/05	Training for Unlawful Activities/use of false documents
22	14/9/05	Training for Unlawful Activities/use of false documents
23	14/9/05	Training for Unlawful Activities/use of false documents
24	17/10/05	Fraud/Forgery

Table 2. European Arrest Warrants
No. of Offence	Date Received	Principal Offence
1	20/02/2004	Robbery
2	02/08/2004	Assault
3	16/08/2004	Fraud
4	16/08/2004	Forgery
5	29/08/2004	Rape
6	26/10/2004	Drug Trafficking
7	10/11/2004	Theft
8	24/11/2004	Robbery
9	24/02/2005	Indecent Assault
10	05/04/2005	Sexual Assault
11	14/04/2005	Sexual Assault
12	20/04/2005	Fraud
13	20/04/2005	Murder
14	16/05/2005	Conspiracy to Rob
15	17/05/2005	Attempted Murder
16	17/05/2005	Attempted Murder
17	02/06/2005	Assault
18	10/06/2005	Assault
19	16/06/2005	Death by Dangerous Driving
20	20/06/2005	Robbery
21	26/06/2005	Rape
22	28/06/2005	Fraud
23	29/06/2005	Racketeering
24	10/07/2005	Handling stolen goods
25	12/07/2005	Drug offences
26	13/07/2005	Terrorist Offences
27	14/07/2005	Theft
28	14/07/2005	Escape from Custody
29	22/07/2005	Fraud
30	27/07/2005	Robbery
31	09/08/2005	Attempted Murder
32	09/08/2005	Attempted Murder
33	09/08/2005	Attempted Murder
34	10/08/2005	Murder
35	12/08/2005	Robbery
36	17/08/2005	Robbery
37	12/09/2005	Fraud Type Offences
38	16/09/2005	Sexual Offences
39	28/09/2005	Drug Trafficking
40	30/09/2005	Drug Offences
41	30/09/2005	Robbery
42	05/10/2005	Assault/Robbery
43	14/10/2005	Robbery
44	18/10/2005	Fraud
45	21/10/2005	Murder
46	24/10/2005	Murder
47	24/10/2005	Murder

Staffing of Ministers' Constituency Office
Grade of Staff	Level of Remuneration
2 executive Officers	€28,021-€44,458
2 clerical Officers	€20,181-€34,448
1 personal secretary*	€386.87-€746.41p.w. + 10% attraction Allowance
1 personal assistant*	€40,543-€51,463

* The personal assistant and personal secretary are not civil servants. They are appointed for the duration of the Minister's tenure only.

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

498 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the last five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31784/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

In the time available for response it has not been possible to compile the detailed information requested. The information requested is being collated and I will forward it to the Deputy shortly.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

499 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31799/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The information requested is set out in the following table.

Grade of Staff	Level of Remuneration
1 assistant principal	€57,630 —€71,859
1 administrative officer	€30,593 —€54,173
1 executive officer	€26,618 —€42,238
1 clerical officer	€20,181 —€32,728

Garda Investigations.

John Gormley

Question:

500 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if he has satisfied himself with the progress being made to date in 2005 regarding the investigation into the murder of Mr. Joseph Rafferty; if former paramilitaries were involved; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31804/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am informed by the Garda authorities that the investigation into the murder of Mr. Joseph Rafferty is ongoing and that local Garda management is satisfied with progress made to date. With respect to the other matters raised, I refer to my comprehensive statement to Seanad Éireann on 28 September 2005.

Crime Levels.

I am informed by the Garda authorities, responsible for the detailed allocation of Garda resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength, all ranks, of each Garda station in the Longford-Westmeath division at the end of each year 1997 to 2004, inclusive, and as at 28 October 2005 is set out in the following table.

Station	’97	’98	’99	’00	’01	’02	’03	’04	28/10/05
Ardagh	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	0
Athlone	42	47	46	47	49	46	46	47	49
Ballinahown	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Ballinalee	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Ballymahon	3	3	2	3	3	3	3	3	3
Ballymore	2	2	2	1	1	2	2	2	2
Ballynacargy	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2	2
Castlepollard	2	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Castletown Geoghegan	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Delvin	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Drumlish	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Edgeworthstown	6	6	6	5	4	5	5	5	4
Glasson	2	2	2	1	1	1	1	1	1
Granard	22	22	25	26	26	25	24	24	29
Kenagh	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Kilbeggan	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Killucan	3	3	2	2	2	3	3	3	2
Kinnegad	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6	6
Lanesboro	8	8	8	8	7	7	6	7	6
Longford	39	38	36	37	33	40	45	44	45
Moate	5	4	4	5	4	4	5	4	4
Mullingar	69	71	71	75	73	72	71	72	73
Multyfarnham	2	2	2	1	2	2	2	1	1
Newtowncashel	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Rathowen	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1
Rochfortbridge	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3	3
Smear	1	1	2	1	1	1	1	1	1
Tarmonbarry	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1

The number of gardaí serving in each Garda station in the Longford-Westmeath division prior to 1997 is not readily available and can only be obtained by the disproportionate expenditure of Garda time and resources.

The accelerated recruitment campaign to reach a record force strength of 14,000, in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government, is fully on target. This will lead to a combined strength, of both attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of 2006. The Garda Commissioner will now be drawing up plans on how best to distribute and manage these additional resources, and in this context the needs of the Longford-Westmeath division will be fully considered within the overall context of the needs of Garda divisions throughout the country.

Paul McGrath

Question:

504 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of Garda recruits who graduated from Templemore College who have been assigned to Garda stations in counties Longford and Westmeath in each of the past five years. [31818/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I am advised by the Garda authorities, responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that Garda recruits are assigned to stations as serving members of the force upon attestation. The number of gardaí allocated to Garda stations in the Longford-Westmeath division following attestation in each of the last five years is set out in the following table.

Year	Allocation
2001	10
2002	2
2003	2
2004	5
2005	4
Total	23

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have been informed by the Garda authorities, responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the number of gardaí working full-time on drug related issues in the Longford-Westmeath division as at 27 October 2005 was six, all ranks.

The accelerated recruitment campaign to reach a record force strength of 14,000, in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government, is fully on target. This will lead to a combined strength, of both attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of 2006. The Garda Commissioner will now be drawing up plans on how best to distribute and manage these additional resources, and in this context the needs of the Longford-Westmeath division will be fully considered within the overall context of the needs of Garda divisions throughout the country.

Public Order Offences.

John Gormley

Question:

509 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if his attention has been drawn to the continuing problem of anti-social behaviour for residents on Ranelagh Avenue from patrons of a late night premises; if steps have been taken to deal with this problem; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31871/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have first hand experience of the problem in question and I have taken up the matter with local Garda management on several occasions. I have been assured that the area has received increased Garda attention in the form of patrols. Garda management has been in touch with the proprietor of the premises in question regarding the residents' concerns which I share.

I am informed that the enforcement of the liquor licensing laws and prevention of anti-social behaviour remains a top priority for the Garda. When breaches of the law are detected offenders are dealt with accordingly through the courts. Operation Encounter is a Garda initiative designed to provide high visibility policing in problematic areas. It was established with a view to dealing effectively with public order issues in the community which occur particularly late at night and the early hours of the morning, when social venues have closed. Garda management keep this initiative under review so as to tailor it to respond to changing circumstances.

Because of my concerns about the abuse of alcohol and its contribution to public order offending and broader social problems, I brought forward tough new provisions to deal with alcohol abuse and its effect on public order in the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2003. One of the provisions is the use of temporary closure orders. The Act broadened the application of the temporary closure order penalty, which had been introduced to combat under-age drinking, to cover also convictions for a series of public order offences, such as supplying intoxicating liquor to drunken persons and permitting disorderly conduct on licensed premises.

The Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 2003 has also been enacted, the main purpose of which is to provide the Garda Síochána with additional powers to deal with late night street violence and anti-social conduct attributable to excessive drinking. It does this by providing for the closure of premises such as pubs, off licenses, late night clubs and food premises, as well as the making of exclusion orders on individuals, in addition to any penalty they might receive under the 1994 Public Order Act.

Visa Applications.

Denis Naughten

Question:

510 Mr. Naughten asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform when a decision will be made on an application for a visa for a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31873/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The visa application in question was approved by my Department on 19 July 2005.

Garda Stations.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

511 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the situation regarding the old Garda barracks in Dowra, County Cavan, that is attached to the courthouse; if same will be restructured and put back into use as a Garda barracks; if it will be disposed of; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31888/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The future of the old Garda station in Dowra is a matter for consideration by the Office of Public Works in consultation with the local county council which owns the property and from whom the Office of Public Works hold a lease for the building. The Garda authorities are satisfied with the current accommodation they have occupied in the town since vacating the old station on health and safety grounds and that there are no plans to reoccupy the old station.

Garda Training.

Jim O'Keeffe

Question:

512 Mr. J. O’Keeffe asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the training available to members of the Garda Síochána in interviewing children; his views on the opinion in the Ferns report that the specialist child protection units in Northern Ireland might provide a useful model for implementation in the Republic of Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31938/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

515 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of gardaí assigned to each Garda division; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31983/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have been informed by the Garda authorities, responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the personnel strength of each operational Garda division as at 28 October 2005 is set out in the following table.

Division	Strength
Carlow/Kildare	332
Cavan/Monaghan	370
Clare	268
Cork City	615
Cork North	245
Cork West	248
D.M.R. Eastern	567
D.M.R. North Central	667
D.M.R. North	625
D.M.R South Central	817
D.M.R. South	578
D.M.R. West	695
Donegal	421
Galway West	373
Kerry	266
Laois/Offaly	281
Limerick	485
Longford/Westmeath	248
Louth/Meath	526
Mayo	258
Roscommon/Galway	248
Sligo/Leitrim	267
Tipperary	316
Waterford/Kilkenny	348
Wexford/Wicklow	312

Garda Deployment.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

519 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform the number of gardaí whose primary duties include engaging in community policing in each Garda division. [32064/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have been informed by the Garda authorities, responsible for the detailed allocation of resources, including personnel, that the number of gardaí, all ranks, assigned to community policing duties in each Garda division as at 21 June 2005, the latest date for which figures are available, is set out in the following table.

Division	Community Gardaí
Carlow/Kildare	4
Cavan/Monaghan	3
Clare	1
Cork City	25
Cork North	0
Cork West	0
D.M.R Eastern	43
D.M.R. North Central	73
D.M.R. North	53
D.M.R. South Central	39
D.M.R. South	47
D.M.R. West	75
Donegal	2
Galway West	14
Kerry	3
Laois/Offaly	4
Limerick	23
Longford/Westmeath	6
Louth/Meath	12
Mayo	0
Roscommon/Galway	0
Sligo/Leitrim	6
Tipperary	10
Waterford/Kilkenny	16
Wexford	0

It should be noted that all members of the Garda Síochána have responsibility, inter alia, to deal with community policing issues as they arise.

The accelerated recruitment campaign to reach a record force strength of 14,000, in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government, is fully on target. This will lead to a combined strength, of both attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of 2006. The Garda Commissioner will be drawing up plans on how best to distribute and manage these additional resources and, in this context, the overall needs of the Garda Síochána will be fully considered.

Garda Stations.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

520 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if it is intended to have the Leixlip Garda station open and fully functioning in the lifetime of this Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32065/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

The current position is that the Garda Síochána has recently concluded consideration of a sketch scheme of the proposed new station in Leixlip prepared by the Office of Public Works and have proposed certain amendments to it. Once these amendments have been finalised and agreement on the sketch scheme has been concluded, it will be submitted to the Office of Public Works which will progress the project as quickly as possible.

Garda Strength.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

521 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform if the expansion of Garda resources from 12,000 to 14,000 as set out in the programme for Government was intended to include the new traffic corps; the strength of that force when the corps is fully operational; if it is intended to recruit in excess of 14,000 to allow for the traffic corps element; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32066/05]

Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform (Mr. McDowell)

I have been informed by the Garda authorities that the total number of gardaí allocated to traffic duties as at 19 October 2005 was 574, all ranks. A further seven gardaí, all ranks, are attached to the Garda national traffic bureau based at Garda Headquarters. The personnel strength of the Garda Síochána includes personnel assigned to the Garda traffic corps.

While the members of the traffic corps are specifically dedicated to traffic duties, all gardaí have responsibility, inter alia, to deal with traffic duties as they arise.

Last November I announced the establishment by the Commissioner of a Garda traffic corps with a dedicated budget and staff structure. Furthermore, as a result of the Government's approval of my proposal to increase the strength of the Garda Síochána to 14,000 members, the Garda Commissioner will be in a position, as each cycle of recruit training is completed, to assign additional new members to the areas of greatest need with particular regard to certain priorities. These priorities will include the traffic corps.

The personnel strength of the Garda Síochána stood at 12,316, all ranks, on 28 October 2005. Between now and 2008, the traffic corps will increase its numbers to a complement of 1,200 on the following phased basis:

Year
2006	805
2007	1,030
2008	1,200.

On Garda resources generally, the accelerated recruitment campaign to reach a record force strength of 14,000, in line with the commitment in An Agreed Programme for Government, is fully on target. This will lead to a combined strength, of both attested gardaí and recruits in training, of 14,000 by the end of 2006.

Decentralisation Programme.

Paul McGrath

Question:

522 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of civil servants who will be transferred to Mullingar in the decentralisation programme; the grades and numbers of staff required to have her Department operating fully; the percentage of staff by grade in the Department who have indicated a willingness to transfer to Mullingar; and the number of staff by grade who have indicated they are not willing to transfer. [31742/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

A total of 301.5 whole-time equivalent posts will transfer from my Department to Mullingar as part of the Government's programme of decentralisation. Apart from the Secretary General and the members of the management advisory committee, MAC, it is estimated that the following posts are required in order to carry out the portion of the business of my Department that will be conducted from Mullingar:

14.5 Principal Officer, PO, posts,

30.5 Assistant Principal Officer, APO, posts,

58 Higher Executive Officer/Administrative Officer posts, HEO/AO

70 Executive Officer posts, EO

6.5 Staff Officer posts, SO

67 Clerical Officer posts, CO

9 Service Officer posts

1 Attendant post

2 Telephonist

8 Cleaner

27 Professional/Technical grade posts.

In addition to this the Secretary General, with a number of the members of my Department's MAC, will be based in Mullingar.

The following percentages of those applying to decentralise by grade are based on the information available to my Department from the Public Appointments Service, PAS, on first preference priority applications through the central applications facility, CAF, to decentralise with my Department to Mullingar and those new entrants who have undertaken to decentralise to Mullingar as a condition of employment:

PO 6.0%;

APO 16.37%;

HEO/AO 8.21%;

EO 6.91%;

SO 11.67%;

CO 6.21%;

Service Officer 6.84%;

Attendant 0%;

Telephonist 0%;

Cleaner 0%;

Professional and Technical grades 0%.

The PAS has not furnished my Department with details of those who have applied to decentralise to Mullingar as their second to tenth preferences priority applications or with details of those applicants who have made non-priority applications, namely those who applied through the CAF after 7 September 2004.

Application for decentralisation through the CAF is a voluntary process and it remains open to any member of my Department to apply to decentralise to Mullingar. In these circumstances we are not yet in a position to indicate the number of staff by grade who have indicated definitively that they are unwilling to decentralise to Mullingar.

Child Care Services.

John Gormley

Question:

523 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason VETOS grants for child care for single mothers apply only to children under the age of five; if she intends to change same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31881/05]

John Gormley

The school in question first made an application for an extension in September 1999. It is not my Departments policy to provide details of estimated costs as to do so might prejudice the tender outcome for the project.

The project was included in the expansion of the devolved scheme for primary school building works for 2005. A grant was sanctioned to enable the management authorities of this school to provide additional accommodation.

The initiative allows boards of management to address their accommodation and building priorities with a guaranteed amount of funding and gives boards of management control of the building project. It is my understanding that the board of management is at the pre-tender stage with the project and expects that it will be on site by the new year.

Teachers’ Remuneration.

Finian McGrath

Question:

525 Mr. F. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science if a primary school teacher (details supplied) in County Dublin will receive their full holiday pay; and if she will give them the maximum support on this matter. [31436/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

In order for a temporary teacher to receive holiday pay for July and August of the school year in which he or she is working, the teacher must commence employment as a temporary teacher during the month of September or on the first working day of October.

A teacher who commences employment between October and 1 April will receive summer pay retrospectively if he or she secures a temporary-permanent contract in September of the following school year. In the event of a teacher not securing a post in September, he or she will be entitled to holiday pay at a rate of 8% of the hours worked, subject to a maximum of 20 days in a school year.

A temporary teacher taking up employment from 1 April will receive payment for July and August, one year after they take up the post.

The teacher referred to by the Deputy worked as a temporary teacher on 4 and 5 October 2005 and commenced employment again as a temporary teacher on 10 October 2005. If this teacher continues to work as a temporary teacher until the end of the school year and secures another temporary-permanent contract for the 2006-07 school year, she will receive payment retrospectively for July and August when she resumes in September 2006.

Schools Building Projects.

Emmet Stagg

Question:

526 Mr. Stagg asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason for the delay in providing funding to upgrade a school car park (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31473/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The school to which he refers has submitted an application for a new site entrance under the summer works scheme for 2006. The closing date for the receipt of such applications was the 14 October 2005. All applications are being assessed and a list of successful applicants will be published when the assessment procedure has been completed.

All primary schools receive an annual minor works grant from my Department. Each school gets a standard rate of €3,809 together with a per pupil rate of €12.70. It is open to the school management authority to use this devolved grant for the works in question provided it is not required for more urgent works.

Pat Breen

Question:

527 Mr. P. Breen asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason a school (details supplied) in County Clare does not have a wheelchair accessible entrance; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31483/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

In accordance with the Safety, Health and Welfare at Work Act 1989 individual school authorities are responsible in the first instance for ensuring the safety and welfare of children and others in their care. Provision is built into the annual school building programme to enable schools to address urgent health and safety issues as identified by the school authority by way of an annual allocation, amounting to €3,809 plus €12.70 per pupil, under the devolved grant scheme for minor works. This allocation can be used entirely at the discretion of the school authority to address issues such as wheelchair access as required. Where schools are unable to address all issues arising on an incremental basis it is open to the school authority to apply for funding from my Department under the appropriate scheme, in this instance the summer works scheme. The closing date for receipt of applications for the 2006 summer works scheme was 14 October 2006. However, the school will have an opportunity to apply under next year's scheme should this be necessary.

The Department also sets aside a contingency sum each year to deal with emergency works in primary and post-primary schools, including health and safety works. If the school authority considers that wheelchair access is required as a matter of urgency to accommodate a particular pupil or staff member, then an application for funding should be submitted for consideration to my Department's school planning and building unit.

School Transport.

Seymour Crawford

Question:

528 Mr. Crawford asked the Minister for Education and Science if the school buses in counties Cavan and Monaghan are meeting the new regulations put forward last autumn that there would be one child per seat; the number of these buses which are not meeting this regulation; the action she will take regarding same; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31518/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Bus Éireann, which is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the school transport services, has advised my Department that buses serving post-primary centres in Cavan and Monaghan are operating on the basis of one child per adult seat. Buses serving primary schools which have seat belts fitted are also operating on a one child per adult seat basis. As I announced on 27 July 2005, my intention is that all school transport will be on a one child per seat basis by December 2006.

School Inspections.

Tony Gregory

Question:

529 Mr. Gregory asked the Minister for Education and Science if she will make a statement on any issues of concern regarding a school (details supplied) in Dublin 7. [31524/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

During the course of the normal school inspection process, my Department's inspectorate became aware of a number of issues at the school referred to by the Deputy. The majority of those issues have now been resolved.

The inspectorate is continuing to work closely with the school authorities to resolve any outstanding issues relating to compliance with the rules for national schools.

School Transport.

Pat Breen

Question:

530 Mr. P. Breen asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason a person (details supplied) in County Clare is not entitled to school transport from their residence; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31531/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The closing date for receipt of applications for the summer works scheme 2006 was 14 October 2005. While the scheme was initially advertised on my Department's website on 18 August last, it was subsequently widely publicised in advertisements in the national newspapers on 7, 8 and 11 September. These dates were specifically chosen to allow schools a settling-in period at the commencement of the new school year. In addition, publication of the scheme was brought to the attention of education umbrella groups and representative bodies for the purposes of bringing it to the attention of their members.

I am satisfied that, as the thrust of my Department's advertisement campaign took place after the appointment of the principal in question and that advertisements were addressed to school authorities, which includes boards of management, the school has not been disadvantaged relative to all other schools. In the circumstances and in the interest of maintaining the integrity and the openness and transparency of the scheme, I am not in a position to accede to the Deputy's request.

It will, of course, be open to the school authority to apply for funding under the 2007 scheme when it is announced next year. In the meantime the school authority can use its devolved grant for minor works to address any minor works it might need.

Special Educational Needs.

Michael Lowry

Question:

534 Mr. Lowry asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of children in each primary school in County Tipperary who have been identified as needing speech and language therapy services in the past four years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31566/05]

The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act was enacted in July 2004. On 14 July 2005 establishment day orders were signed in respect of sections 19 and 36 of the Act. The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004 (Establishment Day) (Section 19) Order 2005, SI 508 of 2005, set 1 October 2005 as the establishment day for the National Council for Special Education. The Special Educational Needs Act 2004 (Establishment Day) (Section 36) Order 2005, SI 509 of 2005, set 3 April 2006 as the establishment day for the Special Education Appeals Board.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

539 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science if all sections of the Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act 2004, including the right to an assessment of need and an education plan, are legally operational; if not, when she expects that they will be operational; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31671/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The Education for Persons with Special Educational Needs Act was enacted in July 2004. On 14 July 2005 sections 1, 2, 14(1)(a), 14(1)(c), 14(2) to 14(4), 19 to 37, 40 to 44 and 50 to 53 of the Act were commenced. Separate establishment day orders were made in respect of the National Council for Special Education and the Special Education Appeals Board, setting their establishment dates as 1 October 2005 and 3 April 2006 respectively. A further commencement order was signed to commence sections 45 to 49 with effect from 1 October 2005 abolishing the council established under section 54 of the Education Act 1998 and replacing it with the council established under the 2004 Act. These sections could not come into effect prior to the establishment of the new council under section 19 of the 2004 Act.

The remaining sections relate mainly to the statutory assessment and education plan process for which the Act provides. These cannot come into effect without the council having an opportunity to present an implementation report to the Minister which it must do before 1 October 2006. On 21 October 2005 the National Council for Special Education published a call for submissions in the national media on the implementation of the Act. The closing date for submissions is 13 January 2006 and should the Deputy wish to advise any interested groups on the suggested format in which submissions can be made, there is information available on this from the council.

Schools Refurbishment.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

540 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science if the necessary funding will be made available for the repair and upgrade of a complex (details supplied) in County Limerick; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31672/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The design team working on the proposed refurbishment project at the school to which the Deputy refers has been asked to report on remedial works required in the sports complex also. This report is due to be submitted in the coming weeks and once it has been received a decision can be taken on how to progress this matter.

Residential Institutions Redress Scheme.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

541 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science if Cheeverstown House, Templeogue, Dublin 6W, will be included on the schedule of institutions covered by the Residential Institutions Redress Board; the reason it has not to date been included; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31673/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The Residential Institutions Redress Act 2002 provides a statutory scheme of financial redress for persons who, as children, were abused while in residential institutional care. The scheme applies in respect of institutions specified in the Schedule to the Act. Section 4 of the Act provides that the Minister for Education and Science may, by order, provide for the insertion in the Schedule of additional institutions in which children were placed and resident and in respect of which a public body had a regulatory or inspection function. Since the enactment of the legislation, my Department has been contacted by individuals and solicitors in relation to various institutions not specified in the Schedule, including the facility mentioned by the Deputy.

Following consideration of the matter and consultation with relevant public bodies, I signed an Order on 9 November 2004 which provided for the inclusion of 13 additional institutions in the Schedule. A further order was made on 1 July 2005 adding three institutions to the Schedule. The institution referred to by the Deputy did not qualify for consideration under the provisions of section 4 of the Act. The question of including additional institutions has now been fully considered by my Department in consultation with relevant Departments and it is not proposed to add further institutions to the Schedule at this point.

Schools Building Projects.

Róisín Shortall

Question:

542 Ms Shortall asked the Minister for Education and Science the progress to date on the application for permanent premises for a school (details supplied) in Dublin 9; and the reason for the excessive delay in view of the fact that contact was first made with her Department in 1997. [31674/05]

Pat Carey

Question:

591 Mr. Carey asked the Minister for Education and Science if she has examined the case of a school (details supplied) in Dublin 9 for permanent accommodation; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31919/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 542 and 591 together.

The school referred to by the Deputy has made an application for a new school building. In considering this application, officials in school planning section are carrying out a review of all-Irish provision at primary level in the Ballymun area. This review will take into account current and future demographics, planned housing developments and the likely demand for all-Irish primary education in the area into the future. It will also take account of the most cost effective manner in which this can be delivered. The outcome of this review, which will be carried out as quickly as possible, will inform a decision on the school's application for capital grant aid.

Special Educational Needs.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

543 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Science, further to Parliamentary Question No. 1255 of 28 September 2005 regarding a school (details supplied) in County Kildare, if she has received further response from the school authorities with a view to meeting requirements to make the necessary provisions as originally requested by the authorities appertaining to the double autistic unit; if she has been in further contact with the school authorities in this regard or is likely to be in contact; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31675/05]

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

544 Mr. Durkan asked the Minister for Education and Science when a decision will be made by the National Council for Special Education in respect of an application by a school (details supplied) in County Kildare through her Department for resources and staffing and so on for the double autism unit; the position in this regard; if the matter will be prioritised in view of the fact that this unit has been completed and ready for occupation for the past two years and has remained vacant; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31676/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 543 and 544 together.

My Department received a response from the school in question on 1 November 2005 to its proposals for resourcing the proposed autism unit at the school. This response is now being considered within my Department. I also understand that the local special educational needs organiser, SENO, is continuing to liaise with the school authorities regarding the matter.

As the Deputy is aware my officials have been liaising with the school authorities in relation to resources to be made available to facilitate the operation of the classes in the unit. My Department has confirmed that the classes will be capable of catering for up to 12 pupils with autism at a pupil teacher ratio of 6:1. In addition, two full-time special needs assistants, SNA, will be allocated to each class. The National Council for Special Education, NCSE, through the local SENO, will process the relevant application for resources following receipt of a formal application from the board of management of the school for the establishment of the classes. Additional SNAs for the classes may also be considered by the SENO on the basis of the individually assessed needs of the pupils enrolled.

The Department is extremely anxious that this purpose-built facility for children with autism will become operational as soon as possible.

Schools Building Projects.

Olwyn Enright

Question:

545 Ms Enright asked the Minister for Education and Science the way in which the principal and board of management of a school (details supplied) in County Donegal can progress their application from band three rating; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31709/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

An application for a general purpose room and ancillary accommodation has been received from the management authorities of the school referred to by the Deputy. The application was assessed in accordance with the published prioritisation criteria, which was revised last year following consultation with the education partners. In general a band three rating is applied to projects such as this one, where there is no deficit of mainstream classroom accommodation at the school. The project is being considered in the context of the 2005-09 school building and modernisation programme.

Third Level Fees.

John Perry

Question:

546 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason universities are able to raise their fees by up to 20% each year for postgraduate students; if this fee increase is initiated by universities or by her Department; if initiated by her Department, the criteria on which it is based (details supplied); if this fee increase is in line with the State’s policy of encouraging education; her views on whether such massive increases are fair on students; if she will consider imposing a cap on fee costs for postgraduate students; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31733/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The levels of tuition fees for postgraduate courses are set by individual universities and not by my Department. The universities are autonomous institutions and, under the Universities Act 1997, may determine the amount of such fees they charge. I am not aware that there has been a general increase in postgraduate fees of the magnitude outlined by the Deputy. Section 473A, Taxes Consolidation Act 1997 provides for tax relief on tuition fees, at the standard rate in respect of approved courses at approved colleges of higher education including certain approved undergraduate and postgraduate courses in EU and non-EU member states. The maximum level of qualifying fee for tax relief purposes in respect of the academic year 2005 to 2006 is €5,000. Further details and application forms, IT 31 form, to claim tax relief on tuition fees are available from the Revenue Commissioners.

Schools Building Projects.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

547 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Education and Science if a guarantee will be given regarding the site acquisition for a school (details supplied) in County Mayo; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that the request for a permanent school building is not new; if her attention has further been drawn to the fact that this school will be homeless from June 2006 unless a permanent site and building are acquired; if this project will be included in the 2005-2006 capital programme due to the imminent deadline for vacation of the present site and the need for teachers and pupils to be relocated to a new school site or building; the measures which have been taken by her Department in relation to this project; the progress being made; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31736/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The level of funding my Department provides to Educate Together as a school management body is on a par with that provided to Foras Patrúnachta na Scoileanna Lánghaeilge, the Church of Ireland Board of Education, the Islamic Board of Education and the National Association of Boards of Management in Special Education. However, following discussions with Educate Together my Department has provided additional funding to Educate Together in 2005 to meet the immediate issues of concern to that body. The matter of the future funding to be provided to the primary management bodies, including Educate Together, in 2006 will be considered as part of the normal Estimates process.

With regard to support for the establishment of new multi-denominational schools, it should be noted that my Department has supported the establishment of many new Educate Together schools in recent years. Of the 24 new schools granted provisional recognition in the past three years, 12 of them are under Educate Together patronage, 11 of which are open. My Department has made a number of changes in recent years which have made the provision of accommodation for new schools much easier. One of these changes, which was strongly welcomed by Educate Together, was the abolition of the local contribution to the building costs for state-owned school buildings, which had cost up to €63,500 per school. Other innovations include the development of the design and build model to provide permanent accommodation much faster, such as in the case of the new Educate Together school in Griffeen Valley, Lucan, which was designed and built in under 13 months.

Higher Education Grants.

Billy Timmins

Question:

553 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for Education and Science the position in relation to the reply to Parliamentary Question No. 721 of 18 October 2005; if the criteria for qualification will be examined (details supplied); and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31813/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Under the terms of my Department's third level maintenance grant schemes, a mature student is defined as a candidate who is at least 23 years of age on 1 January of the year of entry or re-entry to an approved course. Mature students are categorised as either independent mature students or mature students dependent on parents. An independent mature student is defined to mean a mature student who was not ordinarily resident at home with his or her parents from the October preceding their entry or re-entry to an approved course. Independent mature students are assessed without reference to either their parents' income or address.

When assessing the means of students other than independent mature students, the schemes specify that the students' means and those of their parents or guardians must be below a prescribed limit. This provision requires that parental income be taken into account irrespective of the individual circumstances in any case where the student is not an independent mature student. Generally speaking, candidates continue to be assessed under the terms and conditions of the scheme appropriate to their year of entry. Accordingly, candidates who were not classified as independent mature students at the time of entry to an approved course may not generally be assessed as such for the duration of their courses.

While the candidate in question is now 24 years of age she will continue to be assessed for her PhD under the terms and conditions of the scheme appropriate to her year of entry. There is, however, provision under the terms of the 2005 schemes for candidates who are re-entering as mature students, following a break in study of at least one year, to pursue or complete an approved course for the first time. Such candidates may be assessed under the terms of the scheme appropriate to the year in which they re-enter. The terms of my Department's schemes of student support must be applied impartially and it is not possible to make exceptions in individual cases. There are no plans at present to make changes to the existing arrangements.

The refurbishment project for the school referred to by the Deputy is at an early stage of architectural planning.

My Department's officials are in the process of examining a recently received revised stage two submission, outline sketch scheme. When this examination is completed my Department will be in contact with County Longford vocational education committee with regard to the next steps involved in progressing this building project.

Progression of projects to construction will be considered in the context of the School Building and Modernisation Programme, 2005-09.

Paul McGrath

Question:

575 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the progress which has been made through the architectural planning stage of a school building programme (details supplied); when the school will proceed to construction; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31846/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Higher Education Grants.

Paul McGrath

Question:

579 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the number of persons who qualified for top ups for higher education grants in each of the past five years. [31850/05]

Paul McGrath

Question:

580 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the cut off point for top up higher education grants. [31851/05]

Paul McGrath

Question:

581 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the way in which a student is refused a top up for higher education grant when their parents’ only source of income is a disability payment from the Department of Social and Family Affairs and this payment falls well below the income threshold for availing of such a grant. [31852/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 579 to 581, inclusive, together.

The report of the action group on access to third level education, which was launched in July 2001, made detailed recommendations concerning the target group of "those most in need" which has been defined in terms of the child dependants of people receiving long-term welfare payments, where the necessary conditions are fulfilled.

The action group recommended the introduction of special rates of maintenance grants for disadvantaged students, usually referred to as "top-up" grants and advised that an income limit should be fixed at a level which would, at a minimum, include persons on unemployment assistance, long-term, with a qualified adult allowance, full rate. The special rate of maintenance grant was introduced for the 2000 to 2001 academic year.

Following a review in early 2002, the income thresholds for the award of the special rate of grant were increased. In addition, the criteria was broadened significantly and a number of additional social welfare payments were included as eligible payments for the purpose of the scheme. Since 2002 to 2003, the total reckonable income limit has been based on the maximum point of the old age contributory pension plus the maximum qualified adult allowance for a person over 66 years. This yielded an annual income threshold of €15,626 for the 2005 scheme.

To qualify for the top-up grant in the academic year 2005-06 all candidates must satisfy the following conditions. They must qualify for the ordinary maintenance grant in respect of the academic year 2005 to 2006. Their total reckonable income limit in the tax year to 31 December 2004 must not exceed €15,626, net of standard exclusions, as set out in the 2005 maintenance grants schemes and net of CDA payments, where applicable. As at 31 December 2004, the reckonable income of parent or parents, guardian or guardians, the candidate himself or herself or the income of the spouse or partner as the case may be, must include one of the eligible social welfare payments prescribed under the scheme.

Where the reckonable income exceeds the "top-up" income limit of €15,626 the candidate is ineligible for ‘top-up' grant assistance. The decision on eligibility for third level grants is a matter for the relevant local authority or VEC. These bodies do not refer individual applications to my Department except, in exceptional cases, where, for example, advice or instruction regarding a particular clause in the relevant scheme is desired.

If an individual applicant considers that he or she has been unjustly refused a maintenance grant, or that the rate of grant awarded is not correct, she or he may appeal to the relevant local authority or VEC.

Where an individual applicant has had an appeal turned down, in writing, by the relevant local authority or VEC, and remains of the view that the body has not interpreted the schemes correctly in his or her case, a letter outlining the position may be sent to my Department. Alternatively, as already indicated, the local authority or VEC may, itself, in exceptional circumstances, seek clarification on issues from my Department. However, it is not open to me, or my Department, to depart from the terms of the maintenance grants schemes in individual cases.

The following paragraphs outline the estimated number of persons who qualified for a top-up in the last five years based on information received from awarding authorities together with details of the rate of grant and the list of eligible payments in respect of the 2005 to 2006 scheme.

As far as the award of a special rate of maintenance grant in respect of the 2005-06 academic year is concerned, a candidates reckonable income, for the period 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2004, the 2004 tax year, shall not exceed: €15,626 net of standard exclusions and net of child dependant increase paid by the Department of Social and Family Affairs.

As of 31 December 2004, this reckonable income must include one of the social welfare payments listed as follows. First, the category of social assistance payments includes blind person's pension, carer's allowance, deserted wife's allowance, disability allowance, farm assist, lone parent's allowance, unemployment assistance where held for 391 days or more, old age non-contributory pension, one-parent family payment, orphans non-contributory pension, pre-retirement allowance, prisoner's wife's allowance and the widow's or widower's non-contributory pension.

Second, the category of social insurance payments includes carer's benefit, deserted wife's benefit, invalidity pension, unemployability supplement, the orphan's pension associated with the occupational injuries death benefit, occupational injuries death benefit, that is, a pension for a widow or widower, old age contributory pension, orphan's contributory allowance, unemployment benefit which is continuous for at least 12 months, widow's or widower's contributory pension and the retirement pension.

Third is the family income supplement, FIS. Fourth, the designated programmes include the back to education allowance, the back to work allowance for employees, the back to work enterprise allowance, the community employment scheme, FÁS training programmes including apprenticeships, Jobstart, the part time job incentive scheme and the vocational training opportunities scheme, VTOS. Fifth is the category of others, which includes those: in receipt of payments under the Fáilte Ireland skills programme equivalent to a social welfare payment; in receipt of payments under the FIT, Fastrack to IT, initiative equivalent to a social welfare payment; who are participants on a training course approved by a Department, State agency or area partnership and who were in receipt of an eligible payment prior to progressing to the programme; grant aided employees in social economy enterprises; and those in receipt of payments under the senior traveller training centre programmes.

The following table gives details of the number of students who qualified for top-up grant.

Scheme	2000-01	2001-02	2002-03	2003-04	2004-05
Top-Up Holders	2,316	3,422	9,984	11,500	12,500 approximately.

School Transport.

Paul McGrath

Question:

582 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Education and Science the options available for transport for primary school students with special needs who attend a special class many miles from their home. [31853/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The circumstances of each case are examined by the local special education needs organiser, SENO, employed by the National Council for Special Education which makes a recommendation to my Department on the suitability of the placement and on the transport supports required.

My Department endeavours to provide school transport services for children with special educational needs on the basis of the SENO's recommendation.

Depending on the circumstances of the case, such support might range from a place on a regular school transport service to more specialised provision involving, perhaps, supervised transport by taxi.

Institutes of Technology.

Billy Kelleher

Question:

583 Mr. Kelleher asked the Minister for Education and Science the position regarding the provision of a third level college on the northside of Cork city; if there has been any progress made between the Higher Education Authority and her Department in moving this project forward; if University College Cork and the Cork Institute of Technology are committed to this very important facility; if all interested parties will meet to proceed as quickly as possible and resolve outstanding issues; if she or the Office of Public Works have been trying to secure a suitable site; if her attention has been drawn to the fact that a college (details supplied) is closing in the near future and that this will present a great opportunity to purchase the site and situate a third level facility at same; if she is committed to providing this proposal; the progress to date; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31856/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

As the Deputy is aware, in October 1999 Cork Institute of Technology and University College Cork made a joint proposal to establish a Cork college of higher education. A former city manager of Cork was appointed in January 2000 to undertake further analysis of the project and this report was presented to my Department in January 2001. A task force was then established to scope the detailed arrangements for the establishment of the college including site identification, proposed course mix, management structures, etc. A site for the proposed college was identified in the grounds of the diocesan college at Farranferris.

However, the review and prioritisation of capital projects in the higher education sector of 2004, the Kelly report, considered the proposal and stated that the group considered that the policy framework for this project required further development before a meaningful review of the investment requirement could be undertaken. In light of the Kelly report, a re-examination of the proposal would be required before any capital funding, including capital funding to acquire a site, could be considered. Pending such an examination it would not be appropriate to proceed with the further development of the proposal.

The Deputy should be aware that the number of third level places in Cork has increased dramatically since 1999, when the proposal to establish a Cork college of higher education was made, through a major expansion of both UCC and CIT.

Student numbers in UCC increased by 28% between 1998 and 2004, while student numbers in CIT increased by 43% during the same period. Over €110 million has been invested in capital projects in these two instructions since 1997.

The number of students from Cork going to third level in their home county or elsewhere in the country has also increased considerably, with an increase of more than 18% in the number of 17 to 19 year olds from Cork entering third level between 1998 and 2003. Indeed the third level participation rate in Cork is above the national average. Targeted measures are in place to assist students from disadvantaged areas in going to third level and these are helping more students from these areas to avail of a third level education than ever before.

Schools Building Projects.

Richard Bruton

Question:

584 Mr. Bruton asked the Minister for Education and Science if a consultant employed by her to assess the works that were required at a site (details supplied) in Dublin 24 on 6 September 2005 put a proposal to her for the approval to erect a palisade fence around the site in question; her views on this course of action; if planning permission from the relevant local authority is necessary before such a structure is established; when her Department will be in a position to erect such a structure; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31858/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The consultant has submitted a report to my Department with a proposal to erect palisade fencing around the three unsecured sides of the site. This work requires a planning application.

My Department has authorised the consultant to seek planning permission and obtain tenders for this work.

Physical Education Facilities.

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

My Department was recently informed of a proposal to amalgamate the two schools to which the Deputy refers. As a matter of course in amalgamation scenarios, technical inspections are carried out on existing buildings to determine which, if any, would be suitable to act as a host for the new school. My Department will be in direct contact with the school authorities in question when it is in a position to schedule a technical inspection of the buildings concerned.

Vocational Education Committees.

John McGuinness

Question:

593 Mr. McGuinness asked the Minister for Education and Science the reason the hours of tutors have been cut in relation to a higher national diploma course (details supplied) being run by Kilkenny Vocational Educational Committee; if the reduced staffing hours will lead to a reduction of the modules to five for the years 2005-06; the way in which the remaining 11 modules can or will be delivered in the year 2006-07; if those participating in the course will be fully informed of the changes to the delivery of the course; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31929/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

Teacher allocations to second level schools and vocational education committees, VECs, are approved annually by my Department in accordance with established rules based on recognised pupil enrolment. Each school management authority is required to organise its timetable and subject options having regard to pupils needs within the limit of its approved teacher allocation. Apart from meeting requirements in respect of the provision of core subjects, the curriculum offered in individual second level schools is a matter for the authorities concerned having regard to its approved teacher allocation. My Department has approved some 410 VPT, PLC, places and an allocation of 25.63 wholetime teacher equivalents for the provision of VPT, PLC, courses at County Kilkenny VEC for the 2005-06 academic year. This allocation is based on a pupil teacher ratio of 16:1. The distribution of student places and the attendant teacher allocation across individual schools is an operational matter for County Kilkenny VEC.

Teachers’ Remuneration.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

594 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Education and Science her proposals to allow primary teachers, who have not opted to pay a widow, widower and orphans pension contribution in the past, to take up that option; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [31939/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The position is that the Government has decided that all members of the national teachers' and secondary teachers' superannuation schemes in service on 31 March 2004 should be given the option of joining the revised spouses' and children's contributory pension scheme. This decision was taken following a recommendation of the joint union and management working group which considered the introduction of pension reforms arising from the work of the Commission on Public Service Pensions.

The revised scheme provides pension benefits for the spouse and children of the member and unlike the original scheme, includes provision for the spouse of a member who marries after retirement, for the children of a member which are born after the member's retirement and for non-marital children. Persons in pensionable service between 31 March 2004 and 31 August 2005 will have the option of joining the revised scheme or of retaining their existing status. This includes those teachers still in service who, on the introduction of the original scheme, opted not to join at that time.

Membership of the revised scheme will be mandatory for persons who commence teaching in primary, secondary, community and comprehensive schools on or after 1 September 2005. Membership will also be mandatory for persons who return to teach on or after that date and who were not in pensionable teaching service at any time during the period from 31 March 2004 to 31 August 2005. The contribution rates for teachers who opt to join the revised scheme, having been members of the original scheme, will remain unchanged at 1.5% of ongoing pay, together with, where the teacher is married at retirement, 1% of pay at retirement in respect of pre-entry service, that is, service given before the introduction of the original scheme. Contributions at the 1% rate may also be payable at retirement by a teacher who is not married at that time but has been married at some stage since the introduction of the original scheme.

In line with the recommendations of the joint union and management working group, increased contributions will be payable by teachers who join the revised scheme, having previously opted not to join the original scheme: the contribution rates will be 2% of ongoing pay, together with, where the teacher is married at retirement, 1.5% of pay at retirement in respect of pre-entry service, that is, service given before the introduction, from 1 April 2004, of the revised scheme. Contributions at the 1.5% rate may also be payable at retirement by a teacher who is not married at that time but has been married at some stage since the introduction, from 1 April 2004, of the revised scheme.

A detailed circular setting out the arrangements for the introduction of the revised scheme, including the contribution conditions, issued to schools earlier this year, that is, to secondary schools in May and to primary schools in June. Arrangements are now being made to issue individual option forms to some 47,000 teachers and it is expected that the teachers concerned will receive the option forms before the end of November. Teachers will have until 31 March 2006 to exercise their options.

Departmental Records.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

595 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Education and Science when her Department will lodge records or copies of those records relating to industrial schools and reformatories that are held by the special school’s section of her Department with the national archives; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32013/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

I am aware of the provisions of the National Archives Act 1986 and the general requirement relating to transfer to the National Archives of Department records which are more than 30 years old. However, the Act also provides for the retention of records that are in regular use by a particular Department and where their transfer to the National Archives would seriously interfere with the administration of that Department.

The records to which the Deputy refers are in active use by officials of my Department in complying with current legislation relating to the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse and the Residential Institutions Redress Board. Their transfer to the National Archives at this time would seriously hinder my Department's ability to meet its statutory and administrative obligations in facilitating and assisting the work of the commission and the redress board. At this stage, it is anticipated that the work of the both will be completed in 2008 and, consequently, it is unlikely that my Department will be in a position to give consideration to the transfer of the relevant records to the National Archives until then.

Departmental Guidelines.

David Stanton

Question:

596 Mr. Stanton asked the Minister for Education and Science if her Department issues policy or guidelines for secondary schools relating to pupils who are pregnant; the details of such a policy or guidelines; her plans to introduce such a policy or guidelines if they do not already exist; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32031/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

My Department does not prescribe any special rules for the treatment of pregnant schoolgirls by school authorities. However, I expect that in dealing with any particular case, school management would have regard to the sensitivity of the situation and would have as its priority the well being of the pupil concerned. I would hope that pregnancy would cause no more than a temporary absence from school and each pupil would be in a position to resume her education following the birth of the child.

It will be appreciated that no two sets of circumstances will be identical and, accordingly, management practice will vary from case to case. Generally, when it comes to the attention of the school that a pupil is pregnant, the school authorities check to ensure that the girl is receiving appropriate medical assistance and counselling advice. Schools endeavour to be sensitive and understanding to the girl's needs while trying to ensure that her education is not neglected. Home tuition is provided to pregnant schoolgirls. It is provided to pupils who are absent from school during the later stages of pregnancy or immediately following the birth of a baby when attendance may be impractical.

School Curriculum.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

597 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Education and Science her proposals to introduce a meaningful sex relationship gender and gender violence component into regular education programmes; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32032/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

All recognised primary and post-primary schools are required to offer relationships and sexuality education, RSE. It is an integral part of the social, personal and health education, SPHE, curriculum at primary level and at junior cycle post-primary level. In addition, all schools are required to have an agreed school policy and a suitable relationships and sexuality education programme in place for senior cycle pupils. Comprehensive guidelines for junior cycle and senior cycle have also been published and distributed to schools by the National Council for Curriculum and Assessment, NCCA, to support the RSE aspects of the curriculum. An integrated SPHE programme at senior cycle incorporating RSE is also being developed.

The overall aims of the SPHE curricula are to foster the personal development, health and well being of students and help them to create supportive relationships and become responsible citizens, to develop a framework of values, attitudes, understanding and skills that will inform their actions and decision making and to establish and maintain healthy patterns of behaviour. The RSE programme at senior cycle deals further with these issues and addresses issues such as pregnancy, contraception, sexually transmitted diseases, sexual harassment, sexual assault and accepting sexual orientation.

A national SPHE support service was established in September 2000 and provides a full-time support service in collaboration with the areas of the Health Service Executive to assist schools to deliver the programme. SPHE programmes are designed to enable children and young people to develop a framework of values, attitudes, understanding and life skills that will inform their decisions and actions both during their time in school and in their future lives.

Mental Health Services.

Brian O'Shea

Question:

598 Mr. O’Shea asked the Minister for Education and Science her proposals to provide counselling and appropriate guidance where children have experienced violence in the family; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32033/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

As Minister for Education and Science, I am always concerned for the general welfare of children. Any experience that interferes with a child's potential for learning is of particular concern to me. The National Education Psychological Service, NEPS, of my Department provides an educational psychological service to primary and post-primary schools. The NEPS also supports all schools in the context of traumatic incidents arising from violence in the home or in community. When a case involving circumstances such as those mentioned by the Deputy comes to the attention of NEPS, guidance counsellors, teachers or principals, the child in question is always referred to the Health Service Executive at local level for appropriate investigative and therapeutic services. In addition, a guidance and counselling service is available in all post-primary schools.

Schools Building Projects.

Fergus O'Dowd

Question:

599 Mr. O’Dowd asked the Minister for Education and Science when a decision will be made in respect of the application for extensions to a school (details supplied) in County Louth; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32052/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

My Department is in receipt of an application for an extension at the school to which the Deputy refers. The long-term accommodation needs of the school are under review and further information is awaited from its authority to finalise this matter. Progress on the proposed works will be considered in the context of the school building and modernisation programme from 2006 onwards. The school authority has also applied to my Department for additional temporary accommodation. The school planning section of my Department will be in contact with the school authority shortly in relation to this matter.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

600 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science if a school (details supplied) in County Kildare has proceeded to advanced architectural planning in accordance with a letter sent to the chairperson of the board of management on 8 January 2004; if funding will be provided in 2006 in order that construction can proceed; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32055/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The building project for the school referred to by the Deputy is at an early stage of architectural planning. The school in question was listed in my announcement of April this year as a project to progress through architectural planning up to pre-tender stage, namely, up to and including advanced architectural planning. The letter referred to by the Deputy in January 2004 did give provision for the school in question to proceed to advanced architectural planning provided the sketch scheme at that time was approved by my Department. However, the project did not move to advanced architectural planning as the brief changed in August of 2004 to reflect an increase in enrolments at the school and it was necessary to request a revised sketch scheme to take account of this.

My Department's officials are in the process of examining a recently received stage 2, developed sketch scheme, submission, which reflects the change in brief as of August 2004, and when this examination is completed will be in contact with the school authorities with regard to the next steps involved in progressing this building project. Progression of projects to construction will be considered in the context of the School Building and Modernisation Programme 2005-09.

Pupil-Teacher Ratio.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

601 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science if she will provide a breakdown of primary school class sizes for the towns of Drogheda and Dundalk in County Louth showing in each case the number of pupils in classes of 19 or less, 20-29, 30-39 and 40 plus; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32056/05]

A national curriculum in social, personal and health education, SPHE, incorporating relationships and sexuality education, has been developed at junior cycle level and been made mandatory for all schools with effect from September 2003. All schools are required to have an agreed school policy and a suitable relationships and sexuality education programme in place for senior cycle pupils. Comprehensive guidelines for junior cycle and senior cycle have also been published and provided to schools by the NCCA to support the RSE aspects of the curriculum. An integrated SPHE programme at senior cycle incorporating RSE is being developed.

The SPHE modules at junior cycle in post-primary schools deal specifically with belonging and integrating, handling conflict constructively, dealing with peer pressure, influences on decision making, relationships and sexuality in terms of values, reproductive system, tackling myths about sex and pregnancy, personal safety, substance use and the impact of teenage pregnancy. Child protection guidelines that were distributed to post-primary schools in November 2004 were produced in consultation with the partners in education to meet the needs for schools to have in place clear procedures which teachers and other school staff should follow where they suspect or are alerted to possible child abuse. The guidelines reflect the particular circumstances of the post-primary school setting and provide management authorities and staff with guidance in relation to recognising the signs and symptoms of child abuse and with procedures for dealing immediately with such concerns.

A central facet of the guidelines is the requirement for each board of management to designate a senior member of staff as the designated liaison person for the school. This person will act as a liaison for the school in all dealings with the Health Service Executive, An Garda Síochána and other parties, in connection with allegations of and/or concerns about child abuse and as a resource person to staff who may have child protection concerns.

Jan O'Sullivan

Question:

605 Ms O’Sullivan asked the Minister for Education and Science the action she has taken to ensure that the Stay Safe programme or an equivalent is provided in all primary schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [32060/05]

Minister for Education and Science (Ms Hanafin)

The issue of child protection and ensuring that all children in every primary school are aware of child protection issues are high priority areas for my Department. The Stay Safe programme is a personal safety programme for children. It is designed to give children the knowledge and necessary skills to help them deal with potentially abusive or threatening situations. However, it is also recognised that the programme must cover those individuals closely involved with children on a daily basis, namely, parents, guardians and teachers. To this end, professional in-service courses for teachers and parent awareness seminars have been put in place at individual school level. This is in addition to the teaching of a personal safety skills programme to pupils.

The training of teachers, parents and boards of management in the Stay Safe programme and the development of guidelines and procedures for a school policy on child protection is provided by a network of 31 regionally based teachers who are available to the programme on a part-time basis. This support supplements the assistance provided by the Department of Health and Children, which maintains an administrative office for the Stay Safe Programme. An initial one day in-service training seminar on the Stay Safe programme has been provided for all primary schools. Since the programme was introduced, 99.7% of primary schools have participated in this training. At present, approximately, 80% to 85% of primary schools are teaching the programme to their students.

Although it should be noted that the Stay Safe programme is not mandatory, the teaching of the overall issue of child protection is now an integral element of the subject of social, personal and health education, SPHE, which is part of the primary curriculum taught in every school. The introduction of SPHE as subject on the revised primary school curriculum combined with the implementation of the national child protection guidelines Children First gave an additional impetus to the Stay Safe programme. It is a priority of my Department to ensure that a high level of awareness and necessary skills to address child protection issues, which includes the implementation of the Stay Safe programme, is maintained in all schools. For this reason, my Department will continue to support the promotion of child protection within the context of the SPHE curriculum.

Defence Forces Training.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

606 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Defence if money will be spent on Castlebar military barracks, if so, the timeframe for same; if his attention has been drawn to the fact that the west is the only area in the country with no current facilities for RDF training and that the summer training camps for the RDF are totally overcrowded; his views on whether the minimum spend facility will be up to standard and available for use; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31464/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

Castlebar military barracks is primarily a Reserve Defence Force facility and provides training facilities, office accommodation and storage facilities for Permanent Defence Force cadre and unit personnel of units stationed in the barracks. The military have costed the refurbishment of some buildings necessary to effect compliance with building, health and safety and fire regulations to provide permanent accommodation and catering facilities for RDF summer camps. The estimated cost of approximately €4 million raises value for money considerations. Therefore, there are no plans at present to carry out any major building or refurbishment works on the barracks.

Western Brigade is well served with training facilities for RDF personnel at Finner Camp, Donegal, Dun Uí Mhaoilíosa, Galway; Custume Barracks, Athlone, Columb Barracks, Mullingar, Connolly Barracks, Longford and Dun Uí Néill, Cavan where accommodation and training facilities are of the highest standard. The military authorities have informed me that there is no evidence of overcrowding in RDF summer camps in the western brigade.

Ambulance Service.

Jerry Cowley

Question:

607 Dr. Cowley asked the Minister for Defence his views on whether the air ambulance service provided by the Air Corps should be on more than an as is basis as these new helicopter types will have the capacity of being configured for the ambulance role, in view of the fact that parts of west Mayo have no ambulance base; if he has formalised the arrangements for the provision of the air ambulance service with the Department of Health and Children; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31474/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The Department of Health and Children is responsible for policy formation in respect of pre-hospital emergency care and the Health Service Executive has statutory responsibility for the provision of ambulance services throughout the State. A detailed service level agreement for the provision of an air ambulance service by the Air Corps, prepared by my Department and the Department of Health and Children, in consultation with the Health Service Executive and the Defence Forces, which are all signatories to the agreement, has recently been finalised and signed. The agreement sets out the range of the service to be provided by the Air Corps, specifically interhospital transfers for spinal and serious injuries and illnesses, air transport of neonates requiring immediate medical intervention within Ireland, air transport of patients requiring organ transplants in the United Kingdom, air transport of organ harvest teams within Ireland and air transport of patients from offshore islands to mainland hospitals where the Irish Coast Guard service is not available.

Both of the new helicopter types will have the capacity of being configured for the air ambulance role and an air ambulance kit is part of the additional equipment ordered with the helicopters. Both kits will be fully certified for airborne use and will enable the transfer of one patient with up to two medical personnel in the helicopter cabin. Both systems will incorporate basic medical facilities such as electrical power, oxygen supply and suction.

Pension Provisions.

John Gormley

Question:

608 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence the number of pensioners in the Defence Forces; the way in which their categories break down; the number which have been discharged with and without medical pensions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31686/05]

John Gormley

Question:

612 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence the ranks of the Defence Forces in receipt of a United Nations pension; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31690/05]

John Gormley

Question:

613 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence the number of Defence Forces pensioners injured overseas; the number injured here; the types of injuries suffered in the broadest terms; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31691/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 608, 612 and 613 together.

The numbers of former members of the Permanent Defence Force in receipt of pensions from my Department are as follows:

Type of Pension	Category	Number
Service Pensions	Officers	1,338
	Enlisted Personnel	6,563
Disability Pensions	Officers	124
	Enlisted Personnel	691

These numbers include 548 personnel in receipt of both a service pension and a disability pension. The pension entitlements of former members of the PDF arising from overseas service with the United Nations are entirely a matter for my Department and the UN does not grant any such pensions.

I propose to take Questions Nos. 609 to 611, inclusive, and 614 and 615 together.

I am informed by the military authorities that, since the publication of the Gleeson report in July 1990, 293 members of the Permanent Defence Force have been medically discharged. The average length of service of these personnel was 16.3 years. I am advised by the military authorities that the number of Permanent Defence Force enlisted personnel who have been discharged since the Gleeson report with less than 31 years service and less than 21 years service is 9,182 and 6,096, respectively.

The number of Permanent Defence Force personnel who have left the Permanent Defence Force with more than three years service and less than 21 years service since the Gleeson report is 4,084. This figure includes 430 commissioned officers who retired or resigned in this period. The average length of service of all of these personnel was 12.7 years. The number of Permanent Defence Force personnel who have taken voluntary early retirement since the Gleeson report is 2,180. This figure includes officers who left the Permanent Defence Force before their mandatory age of retirement and those persons of all ranks who availed of the voluntary early retirement, scheme in the period 1996-98. A total of 1,509 personnel availed of the scheme in the period 1996-98. All superannuation benefits of former members of the Permanent Defence Force are based on pensionable service and retiring rank, payable by way of pension and-or gratuity in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Defence Forces pensions schemes.

The additional statistical information requested by the Deputy regarding the medical categories of those discharged and the pensions awarded is not readily available in either electronic or paper format. Such information could only be obtained from examining the personal and pension files of each member who left the Defence Forces over the past 15 years. This task would involve an inordinate amount of time and resources, which I do not consider warranted by the public interest.

Questions Nos. 612 and 613 answered with Question No. 608.

John Gormley

Question:

619 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for Defence the number of married quarters housing units there were in 1990; the number there are today; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31697/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

For the past number of years, it has been the policy of the Department to discontinue married quarters in a managed and orderly manner. The provision of housing is primarily a matter for the local authorities and married military personnel have an equal claim on such housing as other members of the community in the same income category. While details relating to 1990 are not readily available, in 1993 there were a total of 517 quarters, 61 for officers and 456 for enlisted personnel. At present, a total of 155 such quarters remain in service, 37 for officers and 118 for enlisted personnel.

Defence Forces Recruitment.

Paul McGrath

Question:

620 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence if he intends to review the height requirements for women wishing to enter the armed forces; the height requirements; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31740/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The Government is committed to a policy of equal opportunity for men and women in the Defence Forces, Army, Air Corps and Naval Service, including the Reserve Defence Force, and to the full participation by women in all aspects of Defence Forces activities. In effect this means women are eligible on the same basis as men for participation in operational and ceremonial activities, for assignment to all military appointments and educational and training courses and for promotion. All female personnel undergo the same training and receive the same military education as their male counterparts.

In order to encourage increased participation by women in the Defence Forces my predecessor decided in March 1998 to reduce the height requirement for all female recruits to 162.5 cm or 5 ft. 4 in. This height requirement now also applies to male recruits. As I indicated to the House on 29 September that requirement is kept under constant review. I have asked the military authorities to report to me on it. I will review the height requirement in the light of that report.

The Defence Forces actively encourage female applicants in a number of ways. Where possible, all graphical advertisements and booklets produced for the Defence Forces show both male and female personnel and emphasise that all applicants are assessed on an equal basis. Stands at recruiting fairs are generally staffed by male and female personnel, and when the Defence Forces are invited to give talks at all female or mixed schools, every effort is made to have a female speaker.

Over the past eight years, the strength of female personnel in the Permanent Defence Force has grown from 244 at the end of 1997 to 524 at the end of August 2005. This constitutes an increase of over 100% in the number of females serving over this period. On 5 August 2005 I wrote to both the Department of Education and Science and the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform along with a number of outside organisations seeking their views and recommendations on how more women might be encouraged to enlist in the Defence Forces. While to date a number of replies have been received, a number are still outstanding. When these submissions have been received and examined, I propose that officials, both civil and military, of my Department will meet representatives of each of the organisations who made submissions along with the Representative Association of Commissioned Officers, RACO, and the Permanent Defence Force Other Ranks Representative Association, PDFORRA, to consider the ideas and suggestions to see what, if any, improvements or changes can be made to the programme of recruitment so as to encourage more females to join the Defence Forces.

Public Relations.

Paul McGrath

Question:

621 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31756/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

My Department has not awarded any contracts for public relations projects since December 2004.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

622 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31771/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The details requested by the Deputy are as follows:

Grade	Salary Scale
Personal Assistant	€40,543- €51,463
Personal Secretary	€386.87-€746.41 per week
Executive Officer (1)	€28,021-€44,458
Staff Officer (1)	€30,428-€40,628
Clerical Officers (4) (of whom one is worksharing)	€20,181-€32,728

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

623 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31786/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The information sought by the Deputy is set out in the following table.

Year	Name	Purpose	Cost	Status
			€
2000	Mr. Mike Ginn	To assist and advise with a tender competition for the supply of Medium Lift Helicopters for Search and Rescue	121,682	Completed
2000-01	Exselan Computer Systems	To facilitate development of Department’s E-Government Strategy Statement	22,093	Completed
2000-04	Brian Meehan & Associates	Grounds of Appeal on behalf of the Minister relating to Aeronautical Development Planning & Development Control matters adjacent to Casement Aerodrome	20,682	Completed
2001	Deloitte & Touche	Study in relation to the introduction of the Management Information Framework in the Department and the Defence Forces	127,925	Completed
2001	Intercontinental Aviation Consultants	Carry out an Air Operations Safety Audit of the Air Corps	55,442	Completed
2001-02	Dr. Eileen Doyle	(Chairperson) Report concerning the nature and extent of any harassment, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment in the Defence Forces	63,000	Completed
2001-02	Gallagher & Kelly Public Relations	Public relations service	32,048	Completed
2001	Margaret Considine	Assist in the selection of advertising agency for a recruitment campaign for the Defence Forces	6,247	Completed
2002	Sweeney Communications	Public relations service	12,235	Completed
2002	Dr. Eileen Doyle	Chairperson, Monitoring Group to give effect to recommendations of the Report concerning harassment, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment in the Defence Forces	20,000	Completed
2003	Dr. Eileen Doyle	Chairperson, Monitoring Group to give effect to recommendations of the Report concerning harassment, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment in the Defence Forces	97,400	Completed
2003	Mr. Colm Dunne	Expenditure Review on “Maintenance of Aircraft in the Air Corps”	3,220	Completed
2003	Mr. Martin McCoy	Assist in the Department’s preparations to seek ISO 9000 accreditation	10,150	Completed
2003	Deloitte & Touche	Assist with specification and selection of Management Information Framework System	26,740	Completed
2004	Dr. Eileen Doyle	Chairperson, Monitoring Group to give effect to recommendations of the Report concerning harassment, bullying, discrimination and sexual harassment in the Defence Forces	43,859	Completed
2004	Goldsmith Fitzgerald Partnership	Climate survey analysis in relation to the performance management and development system (PMDS)	1,800	Completed
2005	Occupational Health Consultants	Provision of information sessions for civilian employees in relation to asbestos	35,869	Completed
2005	Dr. Charles O’Malley	Medical Advisor for Civil Defence	6,400 Set Fee per annum	On-going (Term of 3 years from May 2005

In addition, consultants with appropriate expertise are engaged by the Department as necessary to provide technical services in connection with building, engineering and equipment projects, and in connection with psychometric testing for Army, Naval Service and Air Corps cadetships and trainee technicians.

It should also be noted that the Department has never included the following projects as consultancies: the payment of €1.5 million to date to Oracle EMEA Limited in respect of implementation services for the installation of new financial and management information systems for the Department and the Defence Forces, which is ongoing, and the full value of the contract is €2.6 million; and the payment of €1.92 million to date to Hewlett Packard in respect of a contract signed on 18 December 2002 by the Department of Defence and Hewlett Packard Ireland Limited for the supply and maintenance of shore and ship based components of a fisheries control project. The main objective of the project is to collect, manage and disseminate fisheries protection information to support all relevant stakeholders. The full value of the contract is €3.2 million and it will be completed this year.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

624 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for Defence the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31801/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The details requested by the Deputy are contained in the following table. In addition to dealing with media related matters, the press office is also responsible for dealing with all freedom of information requests to the Department.

Grade	Salary Scale
Press Adviser	€75,036-€92,813
Press Officer-Assistant Principal	€57,630-€71,859
Executive Officer	€28,021-€44,458

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

625 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for Defence the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31980/05]

Minister for Defence (Mr. O’Dea)

The issues which have arisen following the risk analysis conducted in my Department and the way in which it is intended to address these issues is outlined in the following table. The projected costs of resolving these issues and the overall cost of my Department's decentralisation programme have not yet been determined.

	Risks	Mitigation Strategies
1	The loss of corporate memory.	i. Process mapping;ii. Job guides.
2	Slow down of the defence modernisation process	i. Strong leadership and strategic direction;ii. Early assignment of key personnel.
3	Reduction in quality or temporary loss of service to customers.	i. Staff in place in advance of decentralisation;ii. Adequate training for new staff.
4	Inadequate time for training.	i. Secure new staff as early as possible;ii. Early assessment of training requirements.
5	Loss of key staff to execute the tasks contained in this plan.	i. Match decentralising staff to essential roles within this process.
6	Corporate isolation.	i. Reinforcement of links with the centre and other Government Departments;ii. Support of central Departments; iii. Use of technology.
7	Possible loss of high performance culture.	i. Strong leadership and strategic direction;ii. Training and development; iii. Stronger performance measurement and management within the MIF and through the use of the balanced scorecard; iv. Staff selection;v. Motivational supports; vi. Staff cooperation and partnership.
8	Staff demotivation.	i. Strong leadership and strategic direction;ii. Motivational supports; iii. Communications; iv. Early decisions;v. Staff co-operation and partnership.
10	Reliance on the CAF system	i. Provision of timely and accurate information to the implementation group, management and staff;ii. Addressing the seniority issue; iii. Addressing the IT and specialist staffing issues.
11	Distract the Department from core business functions and objectives	i. Strong leadership and strategic direction;ii. Motivational supports; iii. Staff co-operation and partnership.
12	Impact of decentralisation in other Departments on the work of the Department	i. Strong leadership and strategic direction;ii. Motivational supports; iii. Staff cooperation and partnership.
13	Loss of IT expertise	i. Training;ii. Outsourcing; iii. Comprehensive documentation.
15	Inadequate preparation	i. Early planning;ii. Solid project management and implementation.
16	Loss of MIF implementation expertise	i. Outsourcing of required skillsii. Procure and train replacements
17	Loss of social capital, bonding and bridging links within an organisation	i. Secure new staff as early as possible;ii. Staff and management co-operation and support during the hand-over period; iii. Avail of Departmental networks.

Water and Sewerage Schemes.

Michael Ring

Question:

626 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the position regarding a water scheme (details supplied) in County Mayo; the stage of the scheme; the funding which has been committed to the project; when the scheme will commence; when funding will be approved for extensions to the scheme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31393/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

The extension of the Lough Mask regional water supply scheme from Srah to Westport is approved for construction in my Department's water services investment programme 2004-06 at an estimated cost of €12.73 million. Further consideration will be given to Mayo County Council's contract documents for the scheme on receipt of additional information requested from the council in August.

The Louisburgh water supply scheme, which includes Murrisk, is also approved for construction in the investment programme at an estimated cost of €5.3 million. Mayo County Council's design report for this scheme is being dealt with as quickly as possible by my Department and following approval the council will be in a position to prepare contract documents.

Mary Wallace

Question:

627 Ms M. Wallace asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the schemes (details supplied) which are included in the WSIP; if they are not included, when the next opportunity will arise for including them; the reason they have not been included in the present WSIP; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31488/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

I refer to the reply to Question No. 1414 of 28 September 2005.

Water Charges.

Billy Timmins

Question:

633 Mr. Timmins asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the way in which local authorities calculate a mains water contribution charge; if it is based on the number of units or square footage; the charge of same and the legislation that underpins it; if it varies across local authorities; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31734/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

In accordance with the EU water framework directive, national water services pricing policy provides for the full recovery by sanitary authorities of the cost of providing water services from the users of these services, on the basis of average operational and marginal capital costs, with the exception of households using water services for domestic purposes. This recovery of the cost of providing water services to the non-domestic sector is to be mainly achieved by means of meter based volumetric charges; metering of the non-domestic sector for this purpose is to be completed by December 2006.

All projects funded under my Department's water services investment programme now require that the marginal capital cost of servicing non-domestic consumers should be met by the non-domestic sector. Marginal capital cost is to be calculated on the basis of existing and future non-domestic capacity requirements which vary from scheme to scheme. Non-domestic marginal capital costs are recovered by a sanitary authority from all non-domestic consumers in its functional area, on a county-wide basis, through a combination of water charges on non-domestic customers and planning levies on future development. In general, the capital and operational costs of water services provision is charged to the non-domestic sector on the basis of metered use. The power for a local authority to charge for the supply of water is provided for in section 65A of the Public Health (Ireland) Act 1878, as amended by the Local Government (Sanitary Services) Act 1962 and the Local Government (Financial Provisions) Act 1997.

Public Relations.

Paul McGrath

Question:

634 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number and value of contracts awarded for public relations projects by his Department since December 2004. [31757/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

Two communications contracts for public relations have been awarded by my Department since December 2004, one for a publicity campaign for the draft Register of Electors 2006-07 at a value of €148,158.15; and another for media support for the launch of the Burren LIFE project at a value of €423.50. The latter contract has been completed and paid for in full. The former contract is still being mobilised and expenditure on it has not yet been incurred.

Ministerial Staff.

Paul McGrath

Question:

635 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of civil servants and other staff employed in his constituency office; and the grade and remuneration of each. [31772/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

Details of the staff in my constituency office are set out in the following table:

Permanent Civil Servants	Temporary Unestablished Civil Servants
Number of Full-Time Equivalents	Grade	Number of Full-Time Equivalents	Title
2	Executive Officers	0.8	Special Adviser (Principal Officer grade)
2	Clerical Officers	1	Personal Assistant (HEO grade)
		1	Personal Secretary (Secretarial Assistant grade)

The salary scales for all administrative grades, except secretarial assistants which are detailed below, are available on the Department of Finance website. www.finance.gov.ie, Circular 24/2005.

Weekly salary scale, incremental, for Secretarial Assistants on 1 June 2005.
€	€	€	€	€
386.87	408.62	434.39	469.88	505.37
542.79	579.66	614.13	649.28	682.67
707.46	719.20	734.13	746.41

Consultancy Contracts.

Paul McGrath

Question:

636 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number and value of contracts awarded to outside consultants by his Department in each of the past five years; the details of the contracts involved; and if these projects have reached fruition. [31787/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

The information requested is being compiled and will be communicated to the Deputy shortly. A considerable amount of the information involved was set out in reply to Question No. 1331 of 28 September 2005.

Paul McGrath

Question:

637 Mr. P. McGrath asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the number of civil servants and other staff in his press office; and the grade and remuneration of each staff member. [31802/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

Staff details for the press office are set out in the following table. The salary scales for these grades are available on the Department of Finance website. www.finance.gov.ie Circular 24/2005.

Temporary Unestablished Civil Servants	Permanent Civil Servants
Number	Grade	Number	Title
1	Press Officer (Principal Officer Grade)	1	Higher Executive Officer
		1	Executive Officer
		3	Clerical Officer

Fire Stations.

Michael Ring

Question:

638 Mr. Ring asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government when the proposed new fire station for Westport, County Mayo, will go to tender; if funding is in place for this project; when work is expected to start; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31808/05]

Minister of State at the Department of the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. B. O’Keeffe)

My Department has recently authorised Mayo County Council to invite tenders for the provision of a new fire station at Westport, County Mayo, and has indicated that up to €2 million of grant aid will be available for the project. Until the tender process has been completed, it will not be possible to indicate when construction will commence.

Waste Management.

John Gormley

Question:

639 Mr. Gormley asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government if the documentation he signed for a public private partnership for an incinerator on the Poolbeg Peninsula in Ringsend will be made available; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31874/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

The public private partnership, PPP, concerned is for a waste to energy plant which will be procured by Dublin City Council on behalf of the four Dublin local authorities, in accordance with their joint waste management plan. Under guidelines issued by the Department of Finance, my Department is required to monitor compliance by local authorities with public policy in regard to PPP procurement. Following submissions from Dublin City Council, and consultation with the National Development Finance Agency, my Department has now issued the necessary certification of this compliance to Dublin City Council in the present case. It is now a matter for Dublin City Council to enter into resulting contractual arrangements with the preferred private partner. Pending the conclusion of these contractual arrangements, it would not be appropriate for my Department to make available information which is commercially sensitive or which might prejudice the conclusion of the arrangements.

Decentralisation Programme.

Catherine Murphy

Question:

640 Ms C. Murphy asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government the issues which have arisen following the risk analysis conducted on his Department’s decentralisation programme; the way in which it is intended to address these issues; the projected cost of resolving these issues; the overall cost of his Department’s decentralisation programme; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31981/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

My Department submitted implementation plans to the Decentralisation Implementation Group on the decentralisation of the Department's Dublin operations to four locations in the south east, Wexford, Waterford, New Ross and Kilkenny. These plans are also published on my Department's website at www.environ.ie.

The plans inter alia identify the risks attendant on the decentralisation process and measures which are proposed to address these. The main risks identified at this stage relate to loss of knowledge arising from the anticipated significant high turnover of staff in all Dublin based areas of the Department. A number of mitigation strategies are in place or are being developed to facilitate skills and knowledge transfer from existing staff to their replacements. These strategies include the recruitment of new staff as early as possible, the phased transfer of existing staff out of the Department, the implementation of a comprehensive training and development plan and making available updated work guidelines and process maps.

Other strategies will provide for the greater use of communication technologies such as intranet, e-mail and video conferencing to deal with the requirements of communication in a decentralised environment. Further risks may be identified as the implementation plans proceed through further iterations and mitigation strategies will be developed as additional information emerges about people, property and business issues. The overall costs of the decentralisation programme to my Department cannot be quantified at this stage, but will be agreed with the Department of Finance in the context of the Estimates process over the lifetime of the programme. The more significant costs arising, which are being borne by the Office of Public Works, involve the acquisition and fit-out of office accommodation.

Planning Issues.

Arthur Morgan

Question:

641 Mr. Morgan asked the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government his views on the zoning for high density retail and residential development on land which forms part of a floodplain in Bray, County Wicklow and the fact that this zoning contradicts advice from the Office of Public Works and town planners that it was not advisable to build on same; and his further views on the fact that this rezoning is inconsistent with the communication from the European Commission to the Council, the European Parliament, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on flood risk management, flood prevention, protection and mitigation with regard to best practice in respect of flood prevention (details supplied). [31988/05]

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government (Mr. Roche)

The low cost safety improvement works scheme of grants for non-national roads was introduced by my Department in 2000 as an extension of the scheme operated on national roads by the National Roads Authority, NRA. The NRA assesses applications for grant assistance under this non-national roads scheme on behalf of my Department. The criteria for grant approval are based on accident data, inspection of sites, locations showing demonstrable hazard and discussions between the relevant local authority and the NRA. I am satisfied with the criteria and I have no proposal to review the scheme at this stage.

Dáil Éireann debate - Wednesday, 2 Nov 2005

Community Employment Schemes.

Cecilia Keaveney

County Enterprise Boards.

Denis Naughten

EU Funding.

Trevor Sargent

Health and Safety Regulations.

Ciarán Cuffe

Pat Rabbitte

Richard Bruton

Brian O'Shea

National Consumer Strategy.

Thomas P. Broughan

Joan Burton

Thomas P. Broughan

Industrial Relations.

John Gormley

Employment Support Services.

Dan Boyle

Pension Provisions.

Joe Sherlock

Departmental Inquiries.

Brian O'Shea

Breeda Moynihan-Cronin

Regulatory Amalgamation.

Enda Kenny

Public Safety Regulation.

Tony Gregory

Jerry Cowley

Small Business Forum.

Paul Kehoe

Insurance Industry.

Bernard J. Durkan

Proposed Legislation.

Eamon Ryan

Labour Inspectorate.

Seán Crowe

Kathleen Lynch

Róisín Shortall

Emmet Stagg

Liz McManus

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Economic Competitiveness.

Bernard Allen

Tom Hayes

Legislative Programme.

Jan O'Sullivan

Employment Rights.

Aengus Ó Snodaigh

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin

Seán Crowe

Arthur Morgan

Job Creation.

Jim O'Keeffe

Employment Support Services.

Ruairí Quinn

Employment Rights.

Jan O'Sullivan

Ministerial Appointments.

Trevor Sargent

Community Employment Schemes.

Dan Boyle

Employment Permits.

Olivia Mitchell

Employment Rights.

Joe Sherlock

Pat Rabbitte

Seán Ryan

Economic Competitiveness.

Bernard J. Durkan

Labour Inspectorate.

Michael D. Higgins

Employment Rights.

Dáil Éireann debate -
Wednesday, 2 Nov 2005