Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My last question on the strategy statement for 2011 to 2014 relates to page 21, which refers to the programme for Government commitments for the Department of the Taoiseach. If there is no time to answer the question today, the witness might send a note to the committee. Page 21 refers to a plan to reduce the number of committees. I presume that is a reference to Oireachtas committees. Is the witness aware that the Houses of the Oireachtas (Inquiries, Privilege and Procedures) Bill, which will be debated on Second Stage this afternoon in the House, provides for at least four or five new Oireachtas committees? How does that gel with reducing the number of committees?

Second, there is a reference to the role of the Ceann Comhairle in deciding whether a Minister has failed to provide reasonable information in response to a question. What is the current position on achieving that objective? What is the position with legislation on Cabinet confidentiality? The programme refers to having a committee week once in every four weeks in the Dáil to deal with committee activity. There is also reference to regulatory impact assessments for EU directives. Is that happening in all cases?

Finally, the programme refers to rationalising the regulators. Only last week we were establishing a new regulator for the national lottery, which was not necessary until now. How many new regulators have been established since the Government took office, notwithstanding the commitment to rationalise the number of regulators?