I propose to take Questions Nos. 144 to 147, inclusive, together.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Review Implementation Plan, which was published in January 2012 and is available on my Department’s website,
http://www.environ.ie/en/Environment/EPA/PublicationsDocuments contains a list of 58 actions arising from the review, some of which are a matter for my Department and others which are the responsibility of the EPA and others. In the plan, I prioritised a number of actions for implementation in 2012, with others to be considered over a longer period as they will require detailed consultation and possibly primary legislation. Details of the expected timeframes for the implementation of individual recommendations were set out in the implementation plan.
Implementation of the majority of recommendations is progressing in a satisfactory manner. For example, in response to the recommendation that there should be increased emphasis on knowledge and experience of environmental protection in the appointment of members of the Advisory Committee, I introduced the Environmental Protection Agency (Advisory Committee) Regulations 2012, which made adjustments to the bodies included in the list of prescribed bodies, notably to reflect the increasingly important interface of the environment with health matters and the EPA’s interactions with the academic sector. In making appointments to the 6th Advisory Committee, I also considered the suitability of persons expressing an interest in membership, the need to establish an appropriate balance of expertise in the Advisory Committee’s overall membership and the achievement of gender balance. However, delays have arisen in the implementation of some issues particularly those requiring legal advice and/or legislative change. My Department and the Agency have continued to liaise on implementation and I expect to publish a review of progress made in the near future.
In regard to whistleblower legislation, my colleague the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform, Brendan Howlin, T.D., published, in July 2013, the Protected Disclosure Bill 2013, which will establish a detailed and comprehensive legislative framework protecting whistleblowers in all sectors of the economy. This legislation is currently progressing through the Oireachtas.