Departmental Meetings.

Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 6 December 2007

Thursday, 6 December 2007

Ceisteanna (262, 263)

Ruairí Quinn

Ceist:

262 Deputy Ruairí Quinn asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if his Department has a management advisory committee or an equivalent management committee; if it meets regularly; and if so, the frequency of same; if he and the Ministers of State attached to his Department attend the meetings; if a special advisor or advisors attached to the ministerial office or offices attend such meetings; if the minutes are circulated subsequent to each meeting with an indication as to the action to be taken by whom and when; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32975/07]

Freagraí scríofa

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (Deputy Eamon Ryan)

My Department has a Management Committee which is chaired by the Secretary General. It includes the Deputy Secretary General and the Assistant Secretaries of the Department. The Personnel Officer of the Department also attends and the Private Secretary to the Secretary General is Secretary to the Committee. Meetings generally take place weekly. Minutes are circulated subsequent to each meeting including, where relevant, documenting actions to be taken by whom and when. Formal meetings between myself and the Management Committee also take place on a regular basis every 6 weeks or so. The meetings are attended by the Minister of State and by the special advisors. Minutes of these meetings are also prepared and circulated.

Ruairí Quinn

Ceist:

263 Deputy Ruairí Quinn asked the Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources if he convenes specific policy meetings with officials in his Department; the way a policy meeting with officials is different to that of a management meeting, such as a management advisory committee meeting; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [32989/07]

Minister for Communications, Energy and Natural Resources (Deputy Eamon Ryan)

The policy meetings that I convene fall into two categories. Firstly, I convene regular meetings with members of the Management Committee of my Department as a group, every six weeks or so and with the Sectoral Divisions of the Department on a three to four weekly basis. Secondly, I convene ad hoc meetings on policy issues with Departmental officials as they arise. These meetings may be with officials at any level of the Department and occur relatively frequently.

Meetings with Sectoral Divisions and ad-hoc policy meetings are attended by officials from the relevant sectoral area and focus on sectoral or relevant cross-Government policy issues. My meetings with the Management Committee, whilst focusing on policy, also consider corporate issues relevant to all areas of the Department. An example would be monitoring of expenditure under the Department's Vote.