A briefing document has been proposed. We must discuss proposed time slots for meetings.
Business of Joint Committee.
What about Tuesday evening at 4.30 p.m. or 5 p.m?
Would Tuesday evening be agreeable?
We have difficulty with that because we have a meeting of the parliamentary party at 5.30 p.m.
We could meet from 4.30 p.m to 5.30 p.m.
We could meet earlier at 4 p.m.
I had to leave a meeting of the Joint Committee on Agriculture, Fisheries and Food to get here so I do not know if that will clash.
Is there not a meeting of the Chairmen of all committees scheduled to iron out that situation?
It will take place after Christmas but at the moment we are trying to arrange slots. We could propose Tuesday afternoon.
If it is in the afternoon I suggest Wednesday.
In so far as it is possible we will try to ensure that where spokespersons are members of a committee, meetings will not clash. Is Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon agreed? How often should we meet? I suggest a meeting every fortnight. Is that agreed? Agreed. Are there any other items to be discussed?
I congratulate the Chairman and Vice Chairman on their election. I look forward to playing my part on this committee. Senator Coghlan and I discussed this and were interested to read the background on the need for this committee.
I thank Senator Coghlan.
I imagine that one of the first duties will be to meet and have discussions with various regulators. It will be up to the Chairman and the clerk to decide how the meetings are arranged. That is how we will best read ourselves into the brief. As an oversight body concerned with matters outside the remit of the Committee of Public Accounts, we should get to know these people.
This is a moment of déjà vu. I wish the Chairman well. The agenda refers to the Commission on Aviation Regulation. At the Joint Committee on European Scrutiny we had an interesting discussion on an EU directive on airport regulation. This committee could examine it. The Chairman could read the debate of the committee. The regulation will be implemented early in the new year and it is bad for competition.
I am not sure if I am in order proposing that which I am about to propose. The role of ComReg in broadband could be examined. When I table a question to the Minister with regard to a specific location I am told that it is an operational matter for the various service providers. Given that it is Government policy to roll out broadband and achieve maximum penetration, does ComReg have a role and where does it lie in respect of this committee?
It has a role but unfortunately that specific issue is for the Joint Committee on Communications, Energy and Natural Resources. Our terms of reference refer to the effects of regulations and regulators. We must examine how they regulate the industry, rather than the day-to-day running of what is proposed. As public representatives we see over-regulation of various sectors.
This committee has two aspects with which to deal, namely, economics and regulatory affairs. I propose we begin with regulatory affairs and, as members suggested, bring the regulatory bodies before the committee one by one to see what they do and how they affect the policies they implement and familiarise ourselves with what they do.
We will go through each of the regulators to regulate the way in which the regulators regulate.
Yes.
Added to this, the Chairman may wish to arrange a meeting with the interdepartmental group. I know it will not commence until March but its work is to be completed by the end of 2008. It will come to a stage when we will want to meet it.
When should we hold our next meeting? We should have been up and running five or six weeks ago and have a great deal of work to do. I suggest we meet by the second week of January to put together a framework of how we will progress. Will we have a discussion with one or two of the regulatory bodies? Perhaps we should meet to decide a work programme. We should hold a number of meetings in January. Is that agreeable to members?
Agreed.
Does the Chairman mean the week commencing Monday, 14 January?
I mean the week beginning Monday, 7 January.
Will the Chairman fix the date and time now?
I suggest Tuesday, 8 January at 2 p.m. Is that agreed? Agreed.
An interdepartmental body has been established to deal with the overall issues. Is it agreed we invite officials from the Taoiseach's Department to have a discussion with them prior to bringing the regulatory bodies before the committee? We can question them on the interdepartmental review. Is that agreed?
Agreed.
After the meeting with the officials, members can reflect on the issues and we can discuss what groups we need to bring before the committee. Is that agreed?
Agreed.
Is there any other business?
This committee can play an important role in holding regulators to account and examining their accountability and effectiveness. However, the regulators also have a role to come before the committee and discuss the challenges of their roles and, in some cases, recommend changes required in the regulatory environment. It may sound overly beureaucratic—
It can be a two-way flow.
We can examine how the regulators do their jobs and the regulators can make recommendations for changes. We are in a new era of regulations and several regulators have not been in the job for long. This is an opportune juncture to examine how they perform. I am mindful of the plethora of quangos which have sprung up in recent years. A key role of this committee will be to pull it all back and ensure bodies are held to account and regulators do a decent job.
The joint committee adjourned at 4.45 p.m. until 2 p.m. on Tuesday, 8 January 2008.