Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour) | Oireachtas source

We have approached the Bill by not being prescriptive or trawling through every body to decide which is in and which is out. Instead, we have set out criteria, namely, the absolute level of funding provided to the body, who gives the money if it comes from the public purse, the percentage that comes from the public purse, the significant funding provided annually as opposed to a one-off grant - if a body received a grant, it would not suddenly be captured, as the money must form a significant part of core ongoing funding - the nature and function of the body and the extent to which it provides a service to the public. This discussion will mirror our debate on the Ombudsman. Some bodies have no public interaction and, therefore, will not be subject to freedom of information requests. These are the criteria. Once we have set them out, we will draw up a statutory instrument listing the bodies that fall under the Bill's remit. If people believe that bodies have been wrongly included or excluded, we can discuss the matter then.