In accordance with the Transfer of Functions Guidelines, my Department has responsibility for co-ordination of transfers of Departmental administration and Ministerial functions. Following the reorganisation of Government Departments announced by the Taoiseach on the 6th of May, functions were to be transferred between the Department of the Environment, Community and Local Government and the Department of Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht, and between the Department of the Environment and the Department of Communications, Energy and Natural Resources.
Functions relating to Rural Affairs have already been transferred from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht under the Rural Affairs and Social Enterprise (Transfer of Departmental Administration and Ministerial Functions) Order 2016 which will come into effect on 9 July 2016. These include functions relating to the LEADER programme, the Rural Development Fund, the CLÁR programme, Rural Recreation, Rural Economic Development Zones, Tidy Towns, the Town and Village Renewal Scheme, the Walks Scheme, Social Enterprise and the Western Development Commission.
There is a much larger number of functions to be transferred from the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government to the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources involving a significant amount of legislation. The legal complexity associated with the drafting of this Transfer of Functions Order means that there is a considerable time requirement associated with it. Drafting of the Order is nearing completion and it is expected to be brought to Government in the next number of weeks. The entire Environment and Waste Management Programme and the Environment Fund are transferring to the Minister for Communications. This includes seven programme areas, which are:
- Environmental Protection Agency
- Carbon Fund
- International Climate Change Commitments
- Landfill Remediation
- Technical Research and Modelling (Climate Change)
- Subscriptions to International Organisations
- The Environment Fund
The delegation of powers for Ministers of State is not centrally coordinated by my Department and is a matter for the individual Departments in question.
