Vol. 465 No. 6
155 Mr. S. Brennan asked the Minister for the Environment the plans, if any, he has to introduce a National Travellers' Agency or similar body; if so, the terms of reference of any such body; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [10133/96]
The report of the Task Force on the Travelling Community recommended the establishment of an independent statutory Traveller Accommodation Agency. As I indicated in my statement on the report in the Dáil on 23 April 1996, such an agency would conflict with Government policy on devolving functions to local authorities and, accordingly the Government decided on an alternative approach involving the establishment of a special traveller accommodation unit in the Department of the Environment. The functions of the new unit, which has now been established, include the preparation and enactment of new and amending legislation; overseeing and monitoring the preparation and implementation of local traveller accommodation programmes and their co-ordination into a national programme for traveller accommodation; and servicing the proposed statutory national traveller accommodation consultative group.
