Vol. 926 No. 2
9. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the total number of premises to be covered by the national broadband plan between State intervention and commercial operators; the latest timetable for implementation; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32284/16]
13. Deputy Maureen O'Sullivan asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the progress to date of the national broadband plan, with specific reference to the offshore island communities; and his views on the continued difficulties these communities face regarding education, employment and viability without high-speed Internet access. [32338/16]
Over the course of the summer, the Minister announced that it had emerged that 170,000 homes previously considered to be adequately covered for the next generation of broadband connection were unlikely to access high-speed broadband services. I ask him to enlighten us a little more on the position as regards these homes and indicate how many homes he expects will be covered under the national broadband plan.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 9 and 13 together.
The Government's national broadband plan, NBP, aims to ensure that every citizen and business, regardless of location, has access to a high quality, high-speed broadband service which will stimulate businesses and communities in villages and towns across Ireland. The NBP is a national plan and aims to connect all premises in Ireland including those on our offshore islands, 66 of which are inhabited and which have a total population of 9,000. The national broadband plan is being achieved through private investment by commercial telecommunications companies and State intervention in areas where commercial investment has not been fully demonstrated.
The commercial telecommunications sector has invested more than €2 billion in the past four years in upgrading and modernising networks which support the provision of high-speed broadband and mobile telecoms services. This investment is continuing and approximately 1.3 million premises in Ireland can now get high-speed broadband of at least 30 Mbps.
I will cite some examples. Virgin Media currently provides services of up to 360 Mbps, which are passing more than 750,000 premises. Eir’s broadband roll-out of services of up to 100 Mbps has passed 1.3 million premises across Ireland. SIRO, an initiative made possible by Oireachtas legislation introduced by my Department - I remember supporting the Bill in question at the time - is rolling out fibre to the home in towns across Ireland. To date, 17 towns and 30,000 premises have been passed by SIRO. Wireless operators have developed new technologies capable of delivering speeds of 100 Mbps. Mobile operators are also rolling out 4G services across Ireland. This is significantly enhancing the mobile broadband experience.
The high-speed broadband map, available at www.broadband.gov.ie, shows the extent of the State intervention area and the areas targeted for commercial services.
There are approximately 2.3 million premises in the State. Of these, up to 1.6 million premises are in the commercial area, which is marked in blue on the map, and more than 750,000 premises are in the State intervention area, which is marked in amber on the map. On 5 July 2016, I announced that my Department had also identified that up to an additional 170,000 premises, which are currently marked in blue on the high-speed broadband map, are unlikely to get access to services. My Department is conducting further analysis to identify these additional premises, with a view to ensuring they can get a connection either by including them in the formal procurement process or through an alternative mechanism. This work will conclude in the coming weeks and will be reflected in a further update to the high-speed broadband map.
The Department is now in a formal procurement process to select a company or companies which will roll out a new high-speed broadband network to all of the premises in the intervention area, which covers 100,000 km of road network and 96% of the land area of Ireland.
Intensive dialogue with bidders is continuing. Approximately 150 hours of dialogue have taken place and more than 2,000 pages of contract documentation has been provided to the bidders. The three bidders have indicated that they are proposing a predominantly fibre to the home solution. Householders and businesses may get speeds not just of 30 Mbps but potentially up to 1,000 Mbps, with businesses potentially availing of symmetrical upload and download speeds.
Earlier this year, before I came into office, the Department announced it would be June 2017 before contracts were awarded under the national broadband plan. The bidders in the process have recently indicated that they may need more time to conclude the procurement process. The timing of each stage of the procurement continues to be dependent on a range of factors, including the complexities that may be encountered by the procurement team and bidders during the procurement process. Bidders need adequate time to prepare detailed proposals and their final formal bids and get the relevant shareholder and funding approvals at key stages of the process. I do not propose to comment any further at this juncture given the sensitivity of discussions in the procurement process.
What I have gleaned from the Minister's reply is that he does not know how many homes or premises will be covered by the national plan or when the procurement process will conclude.
There is no clear timeline for its completion and no plan that dictates a start point for the roll-out to begin. I am not laying this at the Minister's door as he is a relatively short period in office. However, he deals with constituents in the same way that I do. The programme for Government in 2011 stated that 90% of the homes and businesses in Ireland would have fibre broadband by 2015 but that did not happen. Prior to the 2016 general election, commitments were made to meet the target of 100% coverage by 2020. The pre-procurement process is under way and contracts were to be awarded by June 2017. We were told there would be a three-year to five-year timeframe for the ultimate build-out.
The Minister can understand how vast groups of people throughout the country do not believe anything that emanates from his Department at this stage and anything he has said today would not give them confidence. It is a kind of rolling exercise - it depends on how it goes. The facts are that there are many people in homes and communities who are in dire need of broadband, not just for business, but for education for their families and so on. We understand the contracts will require nothing more than a document speed of 30 Mbps and an upload speed of 6 Mbps, while the commercial world is offering up to 1,000 Mbps. Much higher speeds need to be enshrined in the tender documents.
Deputy Dooley has raised a number of questions. With regard to the speeds, to the best of my knowledge there is no commercial operator offering 1,000 Mbps at the moment. What I am telling the Deputy here and now is that, under the national broadband plan, the rural areas throughout this country will potentially be able to get up to 1,000 Mbps because the contractors are telling me they will predominantly provide fibre to the home. We will see a turnaround in regard to speeds in that people in the most isolated rural communities will have significantly higher broadband speeds than those available in many parts of this city and other urban areas across the country.
The number in the intervention area at present is 757,000 premises. We said last June there are potentially another 170,000 homes in the blue area, to which the company said it would have brought high-speed broadband by 31 December. We now know that is not the case and we are going through that. This is why, when I met Members of the Oireachtas in the AV room in Leinster House last June, I actively encouraged them to ask the public to go onto our website at www.broadband.gov.ie to see if they are in the blue area, and, if they are not getting or are not promised those speeds by the end of the year, they should let us know.
My question relates to islands in particular. While I totally accept what the Minister said about the need for rural broadband in order to halt rural decline, the islands are in a particularly precarious position. We can drive anywhere for classes and education but if people are living on an offshore island, they do not have that access and they are also very dependent on the weather for ferry services. From my own experience of islands, I know that broadband would make a difference in terms of people's access to classes and further education. For example, I believe Teagasc is planning to offer a distance education green certificate online and various other colleges, including the Organic College in Limerick, offer a number of online courses. These would all be of great benefit to people living on the islands, not to mention what could come about for business and employment.
The children on those islands that only have a primary school and go out on a Monday to second level school are dependent on the ferry. If there is no ferry, they could continue their education online. There is also potential for a televised veterinary health service. When the Minister is looking at the strategy, I ask that there be a specific strategy for the islands.
The Minister of State, Deputy Seán Kyne, has argued with me that we should start with the islands and work back in regard to the roll-out of broadband. I know he is discussing this with the Minister, Deputy Heather Humphreys.
Let me make it crystal clear that every second level school in Ireland has a minimum of 100 Mbps broadband speed, whether it is on the mainland or on an island. What is hugely disappointing for me, as the Minister who funded the roll-out of this broadband through my Department, is that a number of the schools are not using it. I was amazed to learn from talking to some second level schoolteachers during the summer about the lack of engagement in regard to the high-speed broadband that is currently available in our second level schools. As the Deputy said, this could provide a far broader range of subjects. On some of the islands, for the first time, second level pupils are getting access to honours mathematics, a subject that was never available to them before. I would urge parents and pupils to actively encourage principals and teachers in the schools to use the broadband they have.
I would be slow to lecture the schools in regard to the use of broadband. The difficulty they have is when the children go home and attempt to do their homework. If they are a couple of miles from the school, they have very poor coverage when they attempt to connect with the Internet. I can understand how some principals would not raise expectations because they find that children are not able to participate in the kind of environment they would want.
We need the Minister to recognise there will be further delays. He should hard wire into the contract documentation minimum speeds well above what is being talked about. As I have met them too, I accept the operators are coming to the Minister and offering him this, that and the other, but unless it is a requirement in the contract documentation, there will be no obligation on the operators who ultimately win the contracts to provide those speeds. It may be available in some areas or at some times of the day, but it will not be available uniformly. Some 30 Mbps is too slow as an upper limit.
First, 30 Mbps will never be and is not, as part of this contract, an upper limit for anything whatsoever. The contract that will be signed by whoever the successful bidder is, or bidders are, will be future-proofed for the next 25 years. That is why they have now committed to bringing fibre to the homes of the vast majority of premises across the country. As a result, we are going to see speeds of up to 1,000 Mbps. No one in this country is getting that at a domestic level at the moment and it is not being offered by any commercial operator, but we will be able to provide it. We are future-proofing this contract for the next 25 to 50 years.
With regard to school premises, there is not much point putting the facilities in place and then taking the attitude that Deputy Dooley is taking. First, we need to utilise the assets that are there and provide access to online courses in a range of subjects that are not available in those schools at the moment. There is no reason those schools cannot be opened in the evening as well. Some of them provide adult education classes and there are opportunities in that regard also. With the national task force on broadband and wireless, we are improving the existing coverage so people will be able to get services in the short term as well.
I hope the Minister will take the advice of the Minister of State, Deputy Kyne, and start with the islands and work from there because they are in a particularly vulnerable position. We have lost the island community on the Blaskets and there is a danger of losing the community on Tory Island. We do not want to lose any more.
In addition to the advantages for residents of the islands, there would also be advantages in regard to tourism.
The islands are to be found in some of the most beautiful places, although I know that when the Minister was on one of them in the summer, there was very bad weather. They are places of outstanding natural beauty. If there was live streaming of events, it would be very encouraging.
I have a short anecdote about Cape Clear, the island with which I have the strongest association. Back in the 1860s, there was a telegraph station on it. When a ship would arrive from North America, a boat from Cape Clear would pick up a cylinder from it and bring it back to the island. The information would be sent by telegraph to Cork and then London. It was said the people on Cape Clear were the first to know about the start of the American Civil War and the assassination of President Lincoln. As we have come a long way in the meantime, I hope that when the programme is rolled out, there will be a stricter timeframe in order that the islands can have broadband very quickly.
On the weather report, the weather on Inis Oírr was fabulous when I was there.
On the Deputy's point, let me make it crystal clear that the rolling out of the national broadband plan will take place in every single county at the same time. Just because County Roscommon has the worst broadband connection in the country and the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Heather Humphreys, represents County Monaghan which has the second worst broadband connection in the country does not mean that they will be the first two counties in which the plan will be rolled out, with everywhere else being left behind. That will not be the approach taken. Every single community will have an opportunity. The Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs is prioritising consideration of how the programme will be rolled out in each county. Do we focus on primary schools and community centres initially or do we focus on industrial estates or the areas in the vicinity of towns? These questions are all being teased out and there is engagement with the local authorities and local Leader groups. I look forward to receiving the submission from the Minister.
10. Deputy Brian Stanley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he has read a recently published report (details supplied) on the concentration of media ownership here; his views on the monopolisation of the media market here; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32281/16]
Has the Minister read the report launched this week on media ownership in the State? It was commissioned by Ms Lynn Boylan, MEP, and highlights a number of serious concerns about the development and domination of the media by one very wealthy individual, in particular. Does the Minister share our concerns and those of journalists and the wider public about the issues raised in this and previous reports?
I understand the report referred to was published last Monday. I was not furnished with a copy in advance of its publication, which means that I am not in a position to respond comprehensively to its findings.
As the Deputy is aware, the current media mergers regime was introduced by the 2014 revision of the Competition Act 2002 and is operated by my Department. This was in recognition of the fact that having free and pluralistic media was an essential component of a modern representative democracy.
An important part of the current regime is the requirement on the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland, BAI, to prepare, every three years, a report on the ownership and control arrangements of media businesses in Ireland and to describe any change that may have taken place in the period since any previous report.
In June this year I published the first such report from the BAI entitled, Report on Ownership and Control of Media Businesses in Ireland 2012-2014. In the report which is available on my Department's website the BAI concludes that there has not been a material reduction in media plurality in the State due to the limited changes in ownership and control in the period 2012 to 2014.
To answer the Deputy's specific question, I have not read the report. It was presented by Ms Lynn Boylan, MEP, at the European Parliament at the beginning of October. It would have been helpful to include a copy when the parliamentary question was submitted. In fact, my Department was not presented with a copy and had to download it from a news website during the week. We received it within the past 48 hours and are going through it. I understand it refers to the domination of two media outlets, one controlled by an individual and the other being RTE.
I thank the Minister for his reply. I received my copy of the report yesterday morning. It was launched on Monday. It raises serious concerns about media concentration and notes that Ireland has one of the most concentrated media markets in any democracy. It points out that media plurality is an essential component of a well functioning democratic society. As the Minister knows, the media landscape is on the verge of losing more diversity owing to the possible purchase of Celtic Media Group by International News & Media which is controlled or owned by Mr. Denis O'Brien. Journalists are very concerned. For a number of years the NUJ has sought the establishment of a commission to investigate these aspects of the media and map the way forward. In his supplementary reply the Minister will probably refer to the constitutional questions. I wish to deal with that aspect.
I compliment the Deputy. He submitted the question last Wednesday and only received the report yesterday. Fair dues to him. He received the report yesterday and I am supposed to respond to it today. That is the difficulty and it is disappointing. I have tried to be as open as I can with Members of the House, with whom I have engaged, including the Deputy, on various issues and for whom I have tried to provide as much information as I can within the legal confines I face as Minister. The task would have been made easier if we had been given a copy of the report in advance.
On the issue of constitutionality, as raised by the Deputy, it is correct to say an issue arises. It was debated in the House in 2014 when we considered the Competition and Consumer Protection Bill. One cannot deal with the issue of retrospective legislation without great difficulty. On top of this, there is the issue of property rights. I realise the two legal firms involved, one based in the United Kingdom and the other in Northern Ireland, have dismissed this issue, but it is complex. There is a myriad of legal complexities involved. One cannot just dismiss the Constitution.
The report has been available for the past couple of weeks. I had hoped the Minister had a copy, but I recognise he has not had access to it. We will correct this.
With regard to retrospective legislation and the Constitution, Article 43 is the article to which the Minister alludes. It states exercising the right to private ownership ought to be regulated by the principles of social justice. Article 43.2.2° states: "The State, accordingly, may as occasion requires delimit by law the exercise of the said rights with a view to reconciling their exercise with the exigencies of the common good". The provision is qualified by the recognition of the common good. The Constitution is very clear. If it is not, we can change it. Has the Minister sought the opinion of the Attorney General on this issue? The former Deputy and Attorney General, Senator Michael McDowell, has expressed a view that is different from that of the Minister. If the Minister did obtain an opinion from the Attorney General, what was it? If Article 43 of the Constitution is a problem, it should be noted that we have had referendums on issues that some people might not count as being too important. Having proper, functioning and open media is key in a democracy. There is nothing stopping us from holding a referendum on this issue. The Constitution was used as an excuse by the previous Government in the case of upward-only rent reviews. The Minister should not use it as an excuse in this case.
I am in no way using it as an excuse. When the issue was debated in the House in 2014, there was no significant Sinn Féin intervention on the issues highlighted in the report produced by Ms Lynn Boylan, MEP. Deputy Peadar Tóibín did make reference on Second Stage to the need for diversity and plurality, but there was no amendment tabled in that regard.
Reference was made on Committee Stage to cross-ownership of the media, particularly to the setting of hard thresholds on cross-ownership. At the time, the Minister, Deputy Bruton, responded that the advisory group on media mergers, whose recommendations preceded the Bill, believed that specifying metrics in legislation would be fraught with risk. A large number of issues regarding the passage of this legislation were debated not so long ago. The legislation is now in place. There is a mechanism through the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland to review on an ongoing basis the mergers that take place and report back. I published the first such report in June of this year. The next review will take place in 2018, and I will publish that when it is made available as well.
11. Deputy Timmy Dooley asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment if he will provide an update on the latest developments in the corporate governance of An Post; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32285/16]
12. Deputy Bríd Smith asked the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment his views on the financial position of An Post; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32126/16]
As the Minister has lead responsibility for the corporate governance at An Post, I ask him to update us on the commitment in the programme for Government to secure the future of the post office network throughout the State.
The Minister has four minutes to reply.
Does Deputy Smith not introduce her question? I do not know what the procedure-----
Only one Deputy is meant to introduce, but if Deputy Smith wants to say-----
I wanted to ask a related but slightly different question about the viability of An Post. There are rumours in the air - rumours usually have some foundation to them - that it is possible that An Post is in trouble financially. I ask the Minister to make a statement on the matter.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 11 and 12 together.
I thank both Deputies for tabling the questions. As Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment, I have responsibility for the postal sector, including the governance of An Post, to ensure the company is fully compliant with the code of practice for the governance of State bodies and the governance functions included in the statutory framework underpinning An Post.
Operational matters and the role of developing commercial strategies for the post office network are a matter for the board and the management of An Post and not one in which I, as Minister, have a statutory function.
It is Government policy that An Post remains a strong, viable company and in a position to provide a high quality, nationwide postal service and that it maintains a nationwide customer-focused network of post offices in the community. However, the postal sector as a whole is undergoing systemic change as a result of the growth of the digital economy. The continuing decline in mail volumes, combined with the ongoing impact of e-substitution on retail businesses transacted through the post office network, is a significant challenge for the company and has an impact on its financial well-being.
In recognition of the changing commercial environment within which An Post operates, my predecessor established the post office network business development group last year, the remit of which was to examine the potential from existing and new Government and commercial business that could be transacted through the post office network. The final report of the post office network business development group, which was published in January this year, represents an important step towards greater financial sustainability for the post office and the wider network. On foot of the reconfiguration of Government Departments earlier this year, responsibility for the post office network transferred to the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs. In my role regarding the corporate governance of An Post, I have impressed upon the company the vital importance of giving its full support and assistance to the Minister, Deputy Humphreys, as work is progressed on bringing about new opportunities for the nationwide network of post offices.
Managing the scale of the challenge facing An Post will require a focus on innovation and new business models by the company as well as the development of new commercial strategies. In so far as the commercial and operational activities of the company are concerned, the board and management of the company are constantly working to ensure that the services the company provides are developed and delivered to meet the needs of its customers. As a shareholder, however, I have a strong interest in the commercial and financial position of the company and I regularly liaise with the company in this regard. The future sustainability of An Post and its relevance to consumers is recognised as an important priority for all involved.
The fact is that the Government has continuously dragged its heels in announcing a sustainable plan for the future of the post office network. The programme for Government committed to act swiftly on the recommendations of the post office business development group and expand provision into such areas as motor tax and the new payment account system. The Minister is a signatory to the programme for Government. He entered into discussions with Fine Gael about the creation of a programme for Government. He represented rural Deputies, as a result of which he finds himself in Cabinet, so I do not accept that he can somehow wash his hands of responsibility for the post office network and just talk about the corporate responsibility, financial viability and position of An Post as the shareholder of the company. That is fine. That is his fiduciary duty as a Minister acting on behalf of the State as the shareholder. However, he is a signatory to the programme for Government and a Minister with a responsibility to the wider rural community based on his negotiations with Fine Gael. I put it to him that it is incumbent on him to act in good faith on behalf of the people of the rural areas who believed this Government was serious about acting in a manner that would protect the network as it currently exists.
At the end of September, there were 1,127 outlets, comprising 51 company and 1,076 contract-operated post offices, and 113 postal agencies throughout the country. The implementation of the recommendations of the post office development network group falls under the remit of the Minister for Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Humphreys. However, I am conscious of the issues involved here. Deputy Dooley is correct that this issue affects rural and urban communities across this country, because the urban communities have lost their post office networks as well, but there will not be a post office network for anyone if we cannot secure the long-term financial viability of the overall company. The difficulty with the overall company is that it is managing a significant decline in mail volumes. Mail volumes have declined by 30% since 2009. The projected rate of fall in mail volumes between now and 2020 is 5% per annum. Every 1% drop represents a €5 million drop in revenue. The reality is that the post office network and the other commercial operations of the company are profitable and the mail sector is the one that is losing money.
I would like to respond to the Minister on the question of the post office network losing custom to e-business. That is true. There is no doubt that when one looks at one's letter box, one sees how much less is coming in. However, what the Minister has just said is like saying "I will split your head and give you a plaster" because at the same time as we acknowledge that e-business is taking over the actual post business, the Department of Social Protection has removed the option of payment of cheques through post offices. There is an insistence by many Government Departments that payments to them are made by bank draft rather than, as happened in the past, giving people the option of using a post office draft. Therefore, on the one hand, we are trying to keep the post offices viable and, on the other, Government Departments are removing business from them. Where is the progress on the recommendations made in the Kerr model for a new model of community banking? When I lived in Germany there was a community bank called Sparkasse through which all workers got paid, regardless of where they lived. It had branches in every village, every town and every corner, and ordinary people used them all the time. They were basically a developed form of post office. Where is the investigation into bringing that kind of viability to An Post which would actually work and retain the post offices, both rural and urban?
First, I will pick up on the final point Deputy Smith made. She is right in saying we need to look at new innovative products that can be developed and marketed by An Post. The two big strengths An Post has are its name recognition and the fact that the organisation is trusted by the public, particularly older people. It also has a strength not only in its brand, but also its nationwide reach. It brings vans and postal workers to every single premises in Ireland five days a week, 52 weeks of the year.
It has been suggested that there is a question mark over the universal service provision, that is, the five day a week delivery to every address in the State. I want to make it crystal clear to everyone in the House and outside it that I will not be changing the designation of An Post as the universal service provider or changing the obligation to deliver post every single working day, as set out in section 16 of the Postal Services Act 2011.
We need to explore options such as the one Deputy Bríd Smith mentioned to ensure the long-term commercial viability of the company-----
The Minister will get back in.
-----and using its assets to ensure we can bring in additional income.
Based on the rolling audit taking place among post offices and the reduction in transactions there is concern in rural communities that it will not be viable for many of the independent postmasters to continue to provide the service they are providing. I am sure the Minister would accept that the loss of the post office in such communities would signal the death knell of those communities and it would only be a matter of time before other services are hollowed out.
We need Government action to identify the kinds of State services that can be delivered through the post office network. There is no point in doing it when it is too late. As the post offices become less viable, once these people retire the positions will not be taken up by others and the long-term future of rural Ireland will be seriously eroded. Time is of the essence here.
The Deputy is correct. This is why I was one of the few Members who bothered to make a submission to the Kerr report. In my submission I highlighted that point and gave specific examples of State business that is not currently going through the post office network and that could be put through that network. While there is a lot of wringing of hands over the post office network, it was disappointing that so few submissions were made by people in this House who seem to be concerned today over the viability of the post office network.
We need to look at new services that can be done there. The Deputy is correct that there is a reduction in the number of transactions within existing post office services. If we stand still they will continue to reduce and put further pressure on the viability of many of our sub-post offices. We need to look at new and additional services that ensure the State operates far more efficiently by diverting business-----
The Minister will get back in.
-----through our post office network.
On a point of order, I had tabled a question regarding this issue affecting An Post. I was told it could not be taken and it was taken off the Order Paper. However, for the past ten minutes we have been discussing An Post.
I am only an Acting Chairman.
I know that.
I do not adjudicate on what is selected.
I appreciate that.
Perhaps the Deputy could take it up with the Ceann Comhairle's office.
I have taken it up with the Ceann Comhairle's office.
These are Priority Questions.
There seems to be confusion over which Minister is dealing with the issue. I tabled the question to the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment and his Department came back indicating it could not take that question today during Question Time because it was not appropriate to this Minister. That is what he told the Ceann Comhairle's office.
I accept the Deputy's bona fides and I am not saying that he is not telling the truth. He will have to take it up with the Ceann Comhairle-----
I have taken it up with him.
-----and with the Minister's office.
Perhaps the Minister could clarify, because there has been some confusion since the Government was formed regarding even the name of the Department. We had the term "communications, climate change and natural resources", and then "environment".
I accept what the Deputy is saying.
It would be good to know for the future.
To be fair to other Deputies who have questions selected today, we cannot get into it. I cannot change the decision that has been made.
I am being passed around the House on this, from the Questions Office to the Ceann Comhairle. I am asking now on the floor of the Dáil in whose Department is the issue of An Post being dealt with. Is it this Minister's Department or whose is it? My question was removed and I was not given the opportunity to table another one in its place, which I regard as unfair.
Deputy Bríd Smith has a minute to put her last question.
I repeat the point I am trying to make to which the Minister does not respond. It is not just a question of a falling volume of mail; that is being compounded by the insistence of Departments on reducing Government transactions in post offices. Together, these are putting huge pressure on the viability of An Post, while at the same time the Government insists that all these services be outsourced and liberalised. That cannot be done.
The third thing that kicked in here is the commitment in the programme for Government to investigate new models of community banking. The speed with which the State was able to respond to the banking collapse that led to a bailout of €64 billion by the citizens of the State was extraordinary. Overnight the Government could pass legislation to save those banks. Since the Government has been formed, to my knowledge there has been one meeting of the committee chaired by the Minister of State, Deputy Ring, and since then nothing has been done about it. There has been no update on investigating a simple form of community banking and my guess is that is because the big banks will not tolerate it. That is the kind of move we need in order to sustain the viability of this company. The foot-dragging is doing nobody any good.
The Minister might allude to the point Deputy Stanley made.
I will, but I want to answer Deputy Bríd Smith because she has asked the question a few times. I apologise to her because I am trying to answer all the questions here.
There has been a difficulty with instructions given to various Departments which has at least not helped the maintenance of the volume of transactions through the post office network. I spoke directly to the Minister for Social Protection on the issue. As the Deputy will be aware, before the summer the Minister for Social Protection issued an instruction to his departmental staff regarding the use or not of the post office network. That has led to an improvement there.
Work is ongoing on the basic bank account. That will provide new and additional services to the post office network across the country. There is the opportunity to expand that along the lines the Deputy mentioned.
I believe there is an opportunity to outsource some administrative work, which is currently being done quite inefficiently in Departments, through the sub-post office network. That was the basis of the submission I made to the Bobby Kerr report. My submission is available online along with everything else.
I thank the Minister.
I point out to Deputy Stanley that in my initial reply I laid out exactly the responsibility regarding my Department and my role as Minister as well as that of the Minister, Deputy Humphreys. That makes clear exactly who has responsibility for what. I have never been afraid to answer questions. I have tried to answer any question that was put to me today. I am quite willing to answer any questions tabled.
