JOINT COMMITTEE ON EDUCATION AND SCIENCE debate -
Thursday, 13 Feb 2003

Vol. 1 No. 5

Message to Houses.

Chairman

In accordance with Standing Order 85, the following message will be sent to the Dáil:

The Joint Committee on Education and Science has completed its consideration of the proposal that Dáil Éireann approve the following draft order: State Examinations Commission (Establishment) Order 2003.

In accordance with Seanad Standing Order 67, the following message will be sent to the Seanad:

The Joint Committee on Education and Science has completed its consideration of the proposal that Seanad Éireann approve the following draft order: State Examinations Commission (Establishment) Order 2003.

Senator U. Burke

Have we agreed the proposal or will it be amended in some way?

Chairman

Procedurally we could agree or not agree the proposal, but there is no provision for amendment to it under Standing Orders. We have agreed that the question of accountability will be revisited on the basis of practice and experience over the next few months, because we will all be watching it very closely.

Deputy N. Dempsey

I will report to the committee my correspondence on the question I raised about a specific timeframe for responses to Members of the Oireachtas, and we will agree to consider the issue again within 12 months, which encompasses one set of exams.

Chairman

Members will be informed by their experience of parliamentary questions, and that is probably how it will be viewed. I join with my colleagues in paying tribute to the examinations section. On occasion some of us have tried to send out 1,000 letters - sometimes we even get beyond ourselves and try to send 10,000. When one starts to think about 20 million documents, however, one cannot even begin to imagine the numbers of boxes, staplers and so on. It is an enormous undertaking and a huge tribute to the section that they have done it so well. We will be revisiting the question, hopefully on a positive note.

The joint committee adjourned at 1.30 p.m. until 11.30 a.m. on Thursday, 27 February 2003.