Nicky McFadden (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Question 91: To ask the Minister for Finance the specific roles and responsibilities of the Ministers of State in his Department. [17054/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Deputy Brian Hayes is serving as Minister of State for Public Service Reform and the Office of Public Works at the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform and Department of Finance. His role is to carry out the functions, tasks and policies as agreed within his remit.

Nicky McFadden (Longford-Westmeath, Fine Gael)
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Question 92: To ask the Minister for Finance the level of participation and responsibility of each Minister of State in his Department in relation to attendance at Ministerial Councils for which he has responsibility since the formation of the Government; if he will list all such meetings which have taken place and the Minister in attendance at each meeting [17065/11]

Michael Noonan (Limerick City, Fine Gael)
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Since I was appointed as Minister for Finance, there have been four months meetings of the Council of Economics and Finance Ministers (Ecofin) in March, April, May and June. I have attended every one of these meetings. Usually on the eve of the monthly Ecofin, the Eurogroup meets and again I have attended these monthly meetings also. An extra Eurogroup meeting was called on 21 March to prepare the discussion on the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) for the March European Council. I also attended this meeting. While I was abroad on official business in the US, Mr. Brian Hayes, Minister of State at the Department of Finance, attended a meeting of Ecofin on 14 June, which was called to discuss Economic Governance proposals. This meeting was to discuss the state of play on the so called "Six-Pack" of legislative changes designed to strengthen the economic governance of the EU and to give a new mandate and political guidance, to the Hungarian Presidency in its ongoing negotiation with the European Parliament. He also attended a meeting of the Eurogroup on the same day.

The table below gives details of all meetings of EU Finance Ministers and Irish representation at them since the Government took office.