Written Answers Nos. 178-197
178. Deputy Barry Cowen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will provide an update on the work that the National Competitiveness and Productivity Council is undertaking to interrogate the ongoing excessive rises in household and commercial energy prices; and the areas in which there may be legislative constraints on the Council in undertaking the aforementioned work. [15636/22]
View answerThe National Competitiveness and Productivity Council provides advice to the Taoiseach and the Government, through the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment on key competitiveness issues facing the Irish economy and offers recommendations on the policy actions required to enhance Ireland’s competitive position. The NCPC’s main functions are: to diagnose and analyse competitiveness and productivity developments; to influence policymakers to take actions to improve the environment in which businesses operate; to publish work to generate and inform the debate on competitiveness and productivity issues; and, to function as Ireland’s National Productivity Board (NPB). The NCPC does not have a role in investigating the pricing behaviour of commercial enterprises.
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (CCPC) is the statutory body responsible for promoting compliance with, and enforcing, competition and consumer protection law in Ireland. The impact on fuel prices has caused much concern and distress for consumers. To date, the CCPC has received nearly 200 complaints in relation to retail fuel prices, which they are currently reviewing.
The CCPC continues to assess the complaints it has received in relation to fuel prices at the pump. As part of this process, it is engaging with complainants and the industry, and will assess any evidence that might indicate the possibility of breaches of the law.
There are a number of other actions the CCPC has taken in relation to fuel pricing:
- It has written to one trade association and two fuel companies about the competition law risks of making public statements about future increases in fuel prices, and they are continuing to monitor public statements;
- It has updated its website to provide consumers with relevant information on price increases and their role;
- It has written to fuel retailers’ representatives to remind them of their members’ obligations under consumer protection law and will be continuing compliance checks in relation to pricing displays.
The National Competitiveness and Productivity Council has recently published a Bulletin on Energy Security which highlighted the urgency of diversifying Ireland’s sources of energy supply to ensure energy security and competitiveness of enterprises operating in Ireland, which is heavily reliant on imported energy (oil, gas, coal, and peat). In particular, the dominance of gas is a risk to both the physical security of supply and in terms of exposure to price variation. The NCPC also emphasised that policies to enhance energy security should align with the targets set out in the Climate Action Plan 2021 to facilitate Ireland’s transition to a low carbon economy.
179. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when legislation will be commenced and the expected completion date in respect of blended working; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15958/22]
View answerI and the Government are acutely conscious that many workers place huge social value on workplace flexibility, and remote working plays a central role in enabling that increased flexibility to support a better work/life balance. There has been a significant long-term shift in attitudes to remote work amongst both employers and workers throughout the country.
Remote work is already a key consideration in government policy documents such as the National Economic Plan, the Climate Action Plan, the Town Centre Living initiative and the Smarter Travel Policy. The State is committed to increasing remote work adoption in Ireland through removing barriers, developing infrastructure, providing guidance, raising awareness and leading by example in this area.
In the context of Pillar 1 of the National Remote Work Strategy, published in January 2021, a commitment was made to legislate to provide employees with the right to request remote work. This is one of the key actions of the Strategy.
On 25th January the Government approved the priority drafting of the Right to Request Remote Working Bill 2022. Pre-legislative scrutiny of the General Scheme by the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Enterprise, Trade and Employment commenced on 9th February.
The intention remains that the Bill will be progressed through the Oireachtas as quickly as possible.
Following publication of the Joint Oireachtas Committee’s Report on pre-legislative scrutiny, any recommendations made will be reviewed and considered.
180. Deputy Colm Burke asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the Government’s position on the recently proposed compromise text put forward by some European Union countries, the United States, South Africa and India that would allow some developing countries to authorise the production and use of patented Covid-19 vaccines and potentially Covid-19 treatments without the patent-owner’s consent; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16001/22]
View answer182. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the way that his Department responded to the outline text of the compromise agreement reached on the TRIPS waiver for Covid-19 vaccines as presented to the EU Council's Trade Policy Committee on 14 March 2022; if his Department will support this compromise agreement; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16142/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 180 and 182 together.
Universal and equitable access to safe, effective and affordable vaccines, diagnostics and treatments is crucial in the global fight against COVID-19.
International Trade is a competence of the EU under the Treaties and in exercising that competence, the European Commission engages fully with the Member States, including Ireland, through a variety of Committees and Working Parties/Groups, including on Intellectual Property.
The EU is of the view that there is no single solution and that a multi-pronged approach is needed and that discussions should concentrate on how the Intellectual Property system can contribute towards increasing the manufacturing capacity and the equitable access to vaccines around the world.
In recent months, the EU has participated in the informal discussions on the intellectual property element of the WTO response to the COVID-19 pandemic with representatives of South Africa, India, and the US, known as the ‘Quad’ group. These discussions have been detailed and protracted, and a potential proposed compromise outcome has now emerged, that aims to offer the most promising path toward achieving a meaningful outcome among all WTO Members. The outcome was put forward by the WTO Secretariat last week.
This draft proposal has not yet been presented to the full WTO membership for consideration. As these consultations are still ongoing, I am not in a position to provide details of the draft proposal.
In the meantime, the EU will continue to engage constructively in discussions in the WTO in order to reach a compromise as soon as possible.
Global production of COVID-19 vaccines reached 12.6 billion doses by February 2022 and is expected to be between 18 and 19 billion by mid-2022. This means that by mid-2022 we will have sufficient vaccines for everybody in the world, including for booster campaigns. As vaccine production is no longer an issue, the focus has now shifted to vaccinations and how strengthening health systems and their preparedness is pivotal in the achievement of the 70% vaccination target.
In 2021, the EU was the largest donor of doses through COVAX and is the largest donor and exporter of vaccines globally. Team Europe has shared more than 400 million vaccine doses and exported over 1.8 billion vaccines to 165 countries and is committed to sharing 700 million doses by mid-2022, with a focus on supporting Africa where vaccination rates are lower than in other parts of the world. Team Europe is also investing €1 billion to ramp up mRNA production capacity in Africa.
In addition to dose donation and exports of vaccines, the EU, with its Member States, has committed over €3 billion to COVAX in support of the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
The Irish Government has to date committed to the donation of €13.5 million and five million COVID-19 vaccine doses to the COVAX facility. Over 1.8 million doses have already been delivered to recipient countries including almost 1.5 million doses delivered to African countries including Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, and Burkina Faso, with further deliveries expected to follow shortly.
181. Deputy Marc MacSharry asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment when employment permits will issue to persons (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16037/22]
View answerThe Employment Permits Section of my Department inform me that General Employment Permit renewal applications for the persons concerned (details supplied) were received on 17th September 2021 and 20th September 2021.
On 9th March 2022 a request for additional information was forwarded to both the applicant and their authorised agent to provide a copy of required documentation. While some of the requested documentation has been received, Employment Permits Section has yet to receive a copy of all the documentation required to ensure that the criteria for the renewal General Employment Permits are met.
In relation to both cases, the applicant has yet to provide a copy of the Employment Detail Summary for 2021.
When the additional information has been requested, both General Employment Permit renewal applications will receive further consideration.
When additional information is requested, an applicant is awarded 28 days in which to furnish the outstanding required documentation. After the 28 days have expired, a decision may be made in respect of the application based on information already held.
As the General Employment Permit renewal applications were submitted within the correct timeframe for a renewal, the persons concerned may continue in their employment pending the outcome of the renewal applications.
Information is provided on the Department's website in respect of employment permits and a FAQ document which answers the majority of the most common questions, all of which is available through this link:- Employment Permits - DETE (enterprise.gov.ie).
183. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of retainers his Department has with outside organisations; and the cost of each retainer in tabular form. [16148/22]
View answerWithin the definition provided by the Deputy, that a retainer is a fee to a company to secure their availability should they be needed, I can confirm that my Department has no such retainers in place with outside organisations.
184. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the status of a work permit application by a person (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16325/22]
View answerThe Employment Permits Section of my Department inform me that a standard General Employment Permit application for the person concerned (details supplied) was received on 2nd March 2022.
Applications for employment permits are dealt with in date order. The Employment Permits Section of my Department are currently processing standard new General Employment Permit applications received on 1 November 2021.
Applicants can keep track of Employment Permit applications current processing dates at the following link: enterprise.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Workplace-and-Skills/Employment-Permits/Current-Application-Processing-Dates/Current-Processing-Dates-for-Employment-Permits.html.
If a permit is urgently required, an applicant may request to have an application expedited. A request to have an application expedited will only be considered in exceptional cases. The Department can only consider a request to expedite an employment permit application where a detailed business case is provided.
Details of the exceptional case must be submitted to the Department on the attached expedite request form, which is a prerequisite for DETE to consider any such request.
Once the business case is completed it should be submitted to Employmentpermits@enterprise.gov.ie for consideration. It is important to point out that the completion of a business case does not guarantee that an expedite will be facilitated.
The Employment Permits processing times are updated on a weekly basis at the following link: enterprise.gov.ie/en/What-We-Do/Workplace-and-Skills/Employment-Permits/Current-Application-Processing-Dates/
185. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of staff assigned to the digital economy policy unit of his Department; the work undertaken by the unit since it was created; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16347/22]
View answerThe Digital Economy Policy Unit in the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment currently has eight staff members. It was created in the second half of 2017. Its initial focus was on coordinating the EU’s Digital Single Market (DSM) agenda across Government.
The role of the Unit expanded in April 2018 in line with developments on the DSM agenda. Accordingly, the Unit led the Irish position on the negotiations for the EU’s Platforms to Business Regulation, which was adopted in 2019 (EU Regulation 2019/1150) and was implemented into Irish law by S.I. No. 256 of 2020. At the same time, the Unit took responsibility for EU policy on Artificial Intelligence.
In December 2020, the European Commission published their proposals for two new EU Regulation, namely the Digital Services Act and the Digital Markets Act.
The Unit has managed the Irish position in the negotiations on both proposals to date, including establishing an interdepartmental group that meets weekly, running public consultations and organising round table discussions with both business and representatives of civil society. The Council and European Parliament reached agreement on the Digital Markets Act on 25 March 2022. The Digital Services Act is in trilogue negotiations and is expected to be agreed before the end of June 2022.
The Unit also manages the Irish position in the EU negotiations for a Regulation on artificial intelligence, known as the AI Act. It conducted a public consultation in 2021 and is working across relevant Departments and Agencies on the Irish position. Negotiations in Council may reach a general approach in June of this year.
Last month, the Commission published its proposals for a Regulation on data, the Data Act and responsibility for coordinating the Irish position in the EU negotiations has been assigned to the Unit. It intends to open a public consultation shortly and is working with the relevant Departments to identify issues.
In mid - 2021, the Department expanded the remit of Digital Economy Policy Unit, to include national digital policy as well as EU policy and regulation. This includes responsibility for the implementation of the National AI Strategy (AI – Here for Good: National artificial intelligence strategy for Ireland), as well as the enterprise pillar of the National Digital Strategy (Harnessing Digital – The Digital Ireland Framework). Actions under these strategies being advanced in the Unit include establishing Ireland’s first AI Ambassador, who will champion AI as a positive force for the economy and society. I intend to appoint the new Ambassador shortly. Another action in the Unit is the creation of an Enterprise Digital Advisory Forum [EDAF]. This forum will bring together representatives from across the enterprise base and experts in digital technologies to advise and work with Government to drive industry adoption of AI and other digital technologies. The Forum will be appointed shortly. The Unit is also responsible for the development of the Digital Transition Fund, which is an €85 million multi-annual fund that will be announced in Q2 of this year and will run until 2026. This fund is part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan (NRRP).
Finally, the Unit manages Ireland’s representation at the D9+ Group on EU Member States, at the Global Partnership on Artificial Intelligence, and at the OECD on digital issues.
186. Deputy Brendan Griffin asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the supports that are in place for a small business (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16350/22]
View answerI would encourage any person looking to start, expand or pivot their business to first contact their Local Enterprise Office. The Local Enterprise Offices act as a ‘first stop shop’ providing a signposting service to all available Government business supports.
The Local Enterprise Offices can offer direct grant aid to microenterprises (10 employees or fewer) in the manufacturing and internationally traded services sectors which, over time, have the potential to develop into strong export entities. However, it should be noted that the Local Enterprise Offices do not provide direct grant-aid to areas such as retail, personal services, local professional services, or local building services, as it may give rise to the displacement of existing businesses.
The Local Enterprise Offices also provide a wide range of high-quality business and management development programmes that are tailored to meet specific business requirements. Whether it is starting a business or growing a business there is something suitable for anyone exploring self-employment as an option.
I would suggest seeking the advice of a LEO Business Mentor; The Mentor programme is designed to match up the knowledge, skills, insights and entrepreneurial capability of experienced business practitioners with small business owner/ managers who need practical and strategic one to one advice and guidance. This may provide this company with guidance on how best to proceed with their business plans.
Programmes such as LEAN for Micro and Green for Micro can provide business owners with tools and expert advice on reducing costs and increasing efficiencies within their business. I would also encourage them to enquire about further digital supports such as the Trading Online Voucher scheme, which can assist businesses in developing their e-commerce capabilities and includes training in digital marketing and social media.
The above supports along with a host of others can also be found on the supportingsmes.gov.ie website. This is a cross-governmental guide to help small businesses know which of the over 170 Government supports could fit their business.
187. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the external consultancy organisation or provider which delivered diversity and inclusion training within his Department in each of the years 2018 to 2021 and to date in 2022; the costs associated with such services; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16372/22]
View answerMy Department is committed to building a supportive and inclusive workplace and this is highlighted in our People Strategy launched in November 2021. In implementing our People Strategy, in 2022 the Department will develop an Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy. Officials in my Department are working in partnership with the Irish Centre for Diversity to develop the Strategy. This will include the delivery of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion training later this year.
While my Department has had no standalone training in Equality, Diversity and Inclusion for the years specified, equality awareness and unconscious bias is addressed as part of Interviewer Skills training which is provided to staff in advance of their participation as interviewers on competition boards.
188. Deputy Paul Murphy asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if he will take a public position supporting the necessity for the TRIPS Agreement for the Prevention, Containment and Treatment of Covid-19 to clearly affirm the Government’s support for such an initiative within the EU (details supplied); and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16403/22]
View answerUniversal and equitable access to safe, effective and affordable vaccines, diagnostics and treatments is crucial in the global fight against COVID-19.
International Trade is a competence of the EU under the Treaties and in exercising that competence, the European Commission engages fully with the Member States, including Ireland, through a variety of Committees and Working Parties/Groups, including on Intellectual Property.
The EU is of the view that there is no single solution and that a multi-pronged approach is needed and that discussions should concentrate on how the Intellectual Property system can contribute towards increasing the manufacturing capacity and the equitable access to vaccines around the world.
In recent months, the EU has participated in the informal discussions on the intellectual property element of the WTO response to the COVID-19 pandemic with representatives of South Africa, India, and the US, known as the ‘Quad’ group. These discussions were difficult and protracted and have resulted in a potential compromise outcome that aims to offer the most promising path toward achieving a meaningful outcome among all WTO Members. The outcome was put forward by the WTO Secretariat last week.
This draft proposal has not yet been presented to the full WTO membership for consideration. As these consultations are still ongoing, I am not in a position to provide details of the draft proposal.
In the meantime, the EU will continue to engage constructively in discussions in the WTO in order to reach a compromise as soon as possible.
Global production of COVID-19 vaccines reached 12.6 billion doses by February 2022 and is expected to be between 18 and 19 billion by mid-2022. This means that by mid-2022 we will have sufficient vaccines for everybody in the world, including for booster campaigns. As vaccine production is no longer an issue, the focus has now shifted to vaccinations and how strengthening health systems and their preparedness is pivotal in the achievement of the 70% vaccination target.
In 2021, the EU was the largest donor of doses through COVAX and is the largest donor and exporter of vaccines globally. Team Europe has shared more than 400 million vaccine doses and exported over 1.8 billion vaccines to 165 countries and is committed to sharing 700 million doses by mid-2022, with a focus on supporting Africa where vaccination rates are lower than in other parts of the world. Team Europe is also investing €1 billion to ramp up mRNA production capacity in Africa.
In addition to dose donation and exports of vaccines, the EU, with its Member States, has committed over €3 billion to COVAX in support of the equitable distribution of COVID-19 vaccines.
The Irish Government has to date committed to the donation of €13.5 million and five million COVID-19 vaccine doses to the COVAX facility. Over 1.8 million doses have already been delivered to recipient countries including almost 1.5 million doses delivered to African countries including Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana, and Burkina Faso, with further deliveries expected to follow shortly.
189. Deputy Maurice Quinlivan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if an update will be provided on a new employment regulation order for the security industry; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [16474/22]
View answerAs a result of a settlement agreement reached in December 2021, the Security ERO as approved was quashed and the draft proposals remitted back to the Labour Court.
A Division of the Labour Court decided on the 7 February 2022 to direct the holding of a fresh hearing involving all interested parties desiring to be heard. This hearing took place in March.
If the Court decides to adopt the proposals, having heard from the interested parties, it will submit the proposals to me for consideration.
190. Deputy Neasa Hourigan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the number of civil servants in his Department currently on secondment to the private sector; if he will list the entities that they are working for in each instance; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17147/22]
View answerThere are no staff of my Department on secondment to the private sector. There are a number of staff on secondment to agencies under the remit of my Department, including the Competition and Consumer Protection Authority, IDA Ireland, and the Health and Safety Authority strengthening links between the Department and its agencies.
There are also a number of staff seconded to other Government Departments including the Department of Foreign Affairs thus increasing the Department’s global footprint and building and maintaining strong relationships across the globe. A small number of staff are seconded as national experts to the EU Commission.
191. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on whether Ireland’s indigenous off-shore hydrocarbon assets should be considered as a development priority based on Ireland’s energy security grounds; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15796/22]
View answer192. Deputy Carol Nolan asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his views on and if he supports the recent comments from the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment in Dáil Éireann when they confirmed that the Irish Government will be supportive of licensing for gas and that if gas is found it will be brought ashore; if so, the steps that are being taken by his Department with respect to progressing the actions required to facilitate this; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15797/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 191 and 192 together.
The Programme for Government contains a commitment to end the issuing of new licences for the exploration and extraction of gas on the same basis as the decision taken in 2019 by the previous Government in relation to oil exploration and extraction. This commitment was made effective immediately upon the current Government taking office, and was placed on a statutory footing on commencement of the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development (Amendment) Act 2021.
Holders of existing authorisations are not affected by these changes, and may apply to progress their authorisations through the licensing stages towards a natural conclusion – which may include expiry, relinquishment or production. This means that a future commercial discovery in an existing authorisation could potentially reach production. Any applications for follow-on authorisations or applications to conduct petroleum activities in the Irish offshore under an authorisation require Ministerial consent, and are required to meet environmental, technical and financial standards as appropriate.
193. Deputy John Brady asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications if his Department will provide assistance in the form of an allowance for the burning of coal for organisations that have heritage vehicles such as steam engines as these vehicles are used in vintage car shows to raise vital funds and awareness for charity; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15896/22]
View answerNew regulations on the use of solid fuels in Ireland, due to take effect from 1 September this year, are to apply to solid fuels that are placed on the market for heating in residential and licensed premises. This will not impact on fuels supplied for the purposes of powering vintage machinery, and as such, there are no plans to provide any form of financial assistance or allowances in relation to the supply of fuel for this purpose.
194. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications when the Demand Side Strategy will be published; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15917/22]
View answer195. Deputy Eoin Ó Broin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the number of meetings his Department has had with stakeholders in relation to the Demand Side Strategy; the stakeholders which were met; and the frequency and dates of those meetings. [15918/22]
View answerI propose to take Questions Nos. 194 and 195 together.
Demand side management is an increasingly important element of the management of electricity networks worldwide. Successfully lowering electricity demand ultimately avoids the cost and inconvenience of building new generators and transmission lines. Managing demand by changing the time when electricity is used can allow greater use of renewable power. Demand side management is currently used by EirGrid in managing the power system efficiently.
Action 100 in Climate Action Plan 2021 requires the energy regulator, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU), to deliver an Electricity Demand Side Strategy by the end of this year, following public consultation. Key stakeholders will be EirGrid, ESB Networks and a variety of market participants. My department will also take a keen interest in the development of the strategy. The strategy will be expected to consider various demand side management techniques including energy efficiency measures and demand response measures.
196. Deputy Duncan Smith asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the reason that all houses in the Burrow peninsula, Portrane, County Dublin have not been included in the National Broadband Plan intervention area (details supplied). [15928/22]
View answerThe High Speed Broadband Map, which is available at www.broadband.gov.ie, shows the areas which will be included in the National Broadband Plan (NBP) State led intervention as well as areas targeted by commercial operators. The map is colour coded and searchable by address and Eircode. Premises in the AMBER area will be provided with high speed broadband through the State led Intervention, the contract for which was signed in November 2019 with National Broadband Ireland (NBI). The BLUE area represents those areas where commercial providers are either currently delivering or have plans to deliver high speed broadband services. This includes the premises referred to in the Question located in the Burrow Peninsula which are located in the BLUE area and will be delivered with high speed broadband by commercial providers operating in the area.
In July 2019, in order to finalise the mapping exercise required under the State Aid Guidelines on Broadband and to ensure the NBP High Speed Broadband Map was up to date, my Department conducted a consultation in relation to the High Speed Broadband Map. This consultation sought submissions from operators who wished to have their existing high speed broadband networks or plans to invest in high speed broadband networks over the following 7 years to be included on the Department’s High Speed Broadband Map.
This consultation was part of a significant engagement with industry initiated in July 2013 where my Department engaged in an extensive process of mapping and monitoring broadband availability in Ireland. This has been supported by a number of public consultations conducted from 2013 to 2019. As part of the 2019 consultation, over 180 submissions were received from a variety of stakeholders including 30 from large and small telecoms operators with the remainder from local authority broadband officers and members of the public. All operator submissions were fully assessed against my Department’s published assessment criteria and operators were informed of the outcome of this assessment in November 2019. The mapping exercise was conducted across all counties, including Dublin, to ensure the map is up to date.
My Department defines high speed broadband as a connection with minimum speeds of 30Mbps download and 6Mbps upload. Commercial operators have indicated their plans to supply Gigabit services to all premises in the BLUE area of the NBP Map by 2026. Under State aid rules, my Department is not permitted to displace commercial investment by intervening in areas where commercial investment exists or is planned, as to do so would be an infringement of these State aid rules. The activities of commercial operators delivering high speed broadband within BLUE areas are not planned or funded by the State and my Department has no statutory authority to intervene in that regard.
Complaints about service provision are a matter to be dealt with between the consumer and the service provider in the first instance. If this avenue has been exhausted without a satisfactory resolution, the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) may be able to assist further. ComReg is the independent body that issues licences to broadband service providers and investigates complaints to ensure that companies are delivering services in line with their licence obligations.
197. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications when the work of the interdepartmental group, which was established to, inter alia, examine the feasibility of additional Government services being provided through An Post and the post office network will published; if all options will be considered fully to give effect to the Government’s commitment to ensuring a sustainable and viable post office network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15945/22]
View answer198. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the expected timeframe for the publication of the report of the interdepartmental group, which was established to, inter alia, examine the feasibility of additional Government services being provided through to An Post and the post office network; the reason for the delay; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15946/22]
View answer199. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications his strategy to support the rural post office network; the additional Departmental services that could be provided via the network; when offline services for post offices will be rolled out; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15947/22]
View answer200. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the steps he is taking to ensure a sustainable post office network as a key component of the economic and social infrastructure in rural and urban areas; the types of services that An Post can deliver into the future in order that it can continue to make a significant contribution to communities across Ireland; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15948/22]
View answer201. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the actions his Department is taking to support and strengthen the rural post office network and the wider post office network; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15949/22]
View answer202. Deputy Marian Harkin asked the Minister for the Environment, Climate and Communications the measures he has taken to fulfil the clear commitment on post offices as outlined in the Programme for Government; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [15950/22]
View answerI propose to take Question Nos. 197 to 202, inclusive, together.
An Post is a commercial State body with a mandate to act commercially and it is longstanding Government policy that postal services will not be directly subsidised by the taxpayer. An Post has statutory responsibility for the State’s postal service and the post office network. Decisions relating to the network, including those in relation to the size, distribution and future of the network are operational matters for the Board and management of the company.
The Government is committed to a sustainable An Post and post office network as a key component of the economic and social infrastructure throughout Ireland. A long-term low interest loan of €30m was provided to the company in December 2017, of which €15m was to support and protect the renewal of the post office network.
An Post provides important services to its customers and key Government services to citizens; including through commercial contracts with the Department of Social Protection and the National Treasury Management Agency. Government is committed to working with An Post and postmasters to ensure that the network continues to play a strong role in delivering State services.
However, it is essential that Government Departments and agencies operate in line with best practice in relation to the procurement of Government services and that public contracts are subject to a competitive and open tendering process.
The work of the Inter-Departmental Group is being considered by Minister Naughton and its report will be submitted to Government in due course.
