Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 20 June 2023
417. Deputy Denis Naughten asked the Minister for Social Protection if she will outline the implementation of circular 25/2016 by each State body under the aegis of her Department; and if she will provide, in tabular form, by State agency, the compliance with each of the standards and timelines set out in responding to Oireachtas Members’ queries; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [29482/23]
View answerCircular 25/2016 states that State Bodies under the aegis of Government Departments must provide and maintain a dedicated email address for queries by Oireachtas members.
The statutory bodies operating under the aegis of my Department are the Citizens Information Board, the Pensions Authority, the Pensions Council and the Social Welfare Tribunal. Details in relation to the compliance by each of these bodies with the provisions in the relevant circular is set out in tabular format below:
Citizens Information Board (CIB)
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Dedicated E-mail Address for Oireachtas Members |
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Provide and maintain a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members, and notify/publicise this to Oireachtas members. |
The CIB has a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members: oireachtas@ciboard.ie. This email address is regularly monitored by CIB staff. |
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Target Deadlines |
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Comply with target deadlines and standards in terms of acknowledgements and substantive responses to queries, as follows: 1. Response time for acknowledgement of a query is 3 working days. Acknowledgement should include contact details for the staff member dealing with the query. 2. Response time for substantive reply 15 working days. [Bodies should of course seek to surpass the target response times where possible]. |
The CIB complies with all target deadlines and standards in terms of acknowledgements and substantive responses to queries from Oireachtas members as outlined in DPENDPDR Circular 25/2016. |
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Designation of Responsible Person |
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4. Designate a person at senior management level within the State body with responsibility for ensuring the timely provision of information to members of the Oireachtas. |
A staff member at Principal Officer level of the CIB’s Corporate Services Section is responsible for ensuring timely provision of information to Oireachtas members. |
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Open Government Partnership |
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In the spirit of Open Government Partnership, bodies should seek, where appropriate, to publish the response to queries from members of the Oireachtas on their website.
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Enquiries received typically contain sensitive information. On that basis, CIB does not publish details of these enquiries. |
Pensions Authority
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Dedicated E-mail Address for Oireachtas Members |
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Provide and maintain a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members, and notify/publicise this to Oireachtas members. |
The Pensions Authority has a dedicated email address for Oireachtas members: oireachtas@pensionsauthority.ie It has two permanent members of its Operations Unit assigned to this dedicated email address. Details of this email address is published on the Pensions Authority’s website: The Pensions Authority - Information. |
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Target Deadlines |
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Comply with target deadlines and standards in terms of acknowledgements and substantive responses to queries as follows: 1.Response time for acknowledgement of a query is 3 working days. Acknowledgement should include contact details for the staff member dealing with the query. 2.Response time for substantive reply 15 working days. [Bodies should of course seek to surpass the target response times where possible]. |
The Pensions Authority complies with all target deadlines and standards in terms of acknowledgements and substantive responses to queries from Oireachtas members as outlined in DPENDPDR Circular 25/2016. The Authority monitors all queries received to ensure they are dealt with in line with its Customer Charter. |
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Designation of Responsible Person |
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Designate a person at senior management level within the State body with responsibility for ensuring the timely provision of information to members of the Oireachtas. |
The Head of Operations/Data Protection Officer is responsible for ensuring the timely provision of information to the members of the Oireachtas. |
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Open Government Partnership |
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In the spirit of Open Government Partnership, bodies should seek, where appropriate, to publish the response to queries from members of the Oireachtas on their website.
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Enquiries received typically contain sensitive information in relation to individual’s personal pension arrangements. On that basis, the authority does not publish details of these enquiries. |
Pensions Council
The Pensions Council was established to provide policy advice to the Minister for Social Protection. Administrative staff from the Pensions Authority provide secretariat support to the Council and deal with any enquiries received by it from Oireachtas members. The Head of Operations/Data Protection Officer of the Pensions Authority has responsibility for ensuring compliance to the standards set out in the Circular are met in the same manner for the Pensions Council as outlined above for the Pensions Authority.
Social Welfare Tribunal
The administrative functions of the Social Welfare Tribunal are carried out wholly by existing staff resources provided from within my Department. A staff members’ email address is provided for Oireachtas members' queries. It should be noted that the Tribunal has not been required to sit since 2014.
