My Department is committed to openness, transparency and inclusivity in relation to all matters of public engagement, and we are continuously exploring new ways to ensure that public participation in decision making is as accessible as possible. My Department has held over 100 consultations in the last ten years. Consultations from 2020 can be found at www.gov.ie/en/search/?type=consultations&organisation=department-of-the-environment-climate-and-communications. Gov.ie does not host any consultations by State Bodies under our aegis, and such consultations are a matter for the agencies directly. I will ask the agencies to respond directly to the Deputy.
Any discussion documents, reports, feedback or relevant documentation are included either on the original consultation page; the policy information page (which is generally linked to or tagged on the consultation page); or the draft policy information page. The replies or submissions to the vast majority of our consultations have also been published on the original consultation page, except in cases of commercial sensitivity or other factors that may be identified on a case by case basis.The results of consultations are generally referenced in the policy documents that they inform. In many cases there may be more than one consultation phase, and the results of initial consultations are communicated to inform further consultation phases or draft policy statements.
