Vol. 440 No. 3
64 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Enterprise and Employment whether he has a special section in his Department dealing with EU matters; if so, the number and rank of those involved; and his views on whether relationships between his Department and the Commission of the European Union need to be strengthened.
Most of the sections of my Department deal directly or indirectly with EU matters, as the EU impinges on most areas of their work. Two sections in my Department, dealing with Structural Funds, are engaged exclusively with EU matters.
The staffing in those sections is as follows: Principal Officer, 1; Assistant Principals, 4; Higher Executive Officers, 6; Executive Officer, 1; Clerical Assistants, 5. Part of the time of one assistant secretary and of one further principal officer is also devoted to the Structural Funds.
In addition, a special section deals, inter alia, with the co-ordination of EU matters which affect more than one section of the Department.
I am quite satisfied that there is an excellent working relationship between my Department and the Commission of the European Union which has resulted in close co-operation at all levels.
