This will be a short meeting but anyone who wishes to make a brief contribution may do so.
Business of Joint Committee.
On behalf of my Fine Gael colleagues on the committee, I congratulate Deputy Gogarty on his appointment as Chairman and Deputy Quinn on his appointment as Vice Chairman. I assure the Chairman of my commitment and that of my colleagues to this committee over the course of this, the 30th Dáil. As a former member of the committee, the Chairman has addressed many issues in the past five years, some of which we will no doubt revisit in the next few years. It is important that we work as a committee because there are crucial issues that must be discussed in an atmosphere of partnership and co-operation. I look forward to that work and congratulate all concerned.
I congratulate Deputy Gogarty on his election as Chairman and Deputy Quinn on his election as Vice Chairman.
In his introductory statement the Chairman mentioned that the work programme was a rolling one and that in regard to certain issues, time had run out before they were fully completed. I refer particularly to the revision of catchment boundaries. A huge number of submissions were received from around the country on the urgent need for their revision. The Minister of the day did not agree. Given the changing pattern of the population and the issues that have arisen and have never been dealt with on the basis that we cannot change boundaries that have been established for 25 years or more, this committee should take up the issue as early as possible in its schedule of work. I would greatly appreciate it if it were included in its programme of work.
I wish Deputy Gogarty well in his new role as Chairman of the committee. I also congratulate Deputy Quinn on his election as Vice Chairman. I am new to the committee and this is my first committee meeting. What is the Chairman's outlook for the committee and how does he see it running? What work does he hope to complete and does he have a plan of work in mind?
Deputy Moynihan has done an excellent job but I have a couple of ideas of my own. I would be interested in receiving submissions or even informal contacts from members of the committee in regard to how we can do our business more efficiently. I would like to see matters dealt with in a timely manner. Shorter contributions from visitors, for example, would allow more time for questions. They could be encouraged to supply written documentation which, using broadband technology, could be put on the Internet alongside committee deliberations.
In regard to the programme of work, I have already received submissions by post and e-mail on the catchment boundaries. As the committee will discuss the programme of work at its next meeting, I will not go into it in detail now. I would certainly be eager to carry on Deputy Moynihan's work and possibly invite new submissions because requests have been made by new Deputies in this regard. I have also had third party requests along the same lines. We can discuss the matter at the next meeting and possibly agree to it.
I congratulate the Chairman on his election and Deputy Quinn on his election as Vice Chairman. I look forward very much to being a member of this committee. Given that I have a background in education it is very relevant to me and I hope I can make a positive contribution to its proceedings. I agree the committee should work in a spirit of co-operation so that we can ensure there are benefits for the people we serve throughout the country. I will have suggestions and ideas for a work programme but I will have the opportunity to put them forward on another occasion.
I congratulate the Chairman and wish him every success. I agree that submissions by the various groups attending the committee should be as brief as possible. Those submissions are important. It would be helpful if the groups concerned provided us with information in advance so that we can keep our questions brief. A great deal of work can be done without spending hours talking nonsense. I also wish Deputy Quinn every success as Vice Chairman and look forward to working on this committee.
I congratulate the Chairman and the Vice Chairman on their election. The Chairman was a valuable member of the previous Joint Committee on Education and Science and has gained much experience over the past five years. I am sure he will be even more effective as Chairman. Being a member of the Green Party, he is environmentally-friendly and I am sure there will be a very friendly environment in this committee.
Thank you, Deputy.
I congratulate the Chairman and wish him every success. I also congratulate Deputy Quinn on his election as Vice Chairman. The Chairman was a valuable member of the previous committee and did a great deal of work on the issues that arose in this field. I wish all members every success in this committee.
I join colleagues in wishing the Chairman and Vice Chairman well. I followed the work of the last committee very closely on the monitor over the past few years and very much look forward to taking part in its work in the years ahead.
I propose that we go into private session for the remainder of the meeting.
The joint committee went into private session at 10.17 a.m. and adjourned at 10.40 a.m. sine die.