Mr. Martin Fraser:

It was recommended that the staff be put under the management of the assistant secretary for corporate affairs, which was done. There should be no new national campaigns run by the unit. Where expenditure was committed but not yet spent, it should be redirected to non-contentious campaigns like Healthy Ireland or Brexit preparation, which has been done. The Government Information Service, GIS, should continue to have a co-ordinating and supporting role for national cross-government communications, as has always been the case, but campaigns should be led and funded by the relevant line Departments, which is being done. Project Ireland 2040 should be the responsibility of the Project Ireland 2040 delivery board, which is outside our Department. That was done. International communications - Global Ireland, the Security Council campaign and the diaspora work - should be led by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. All other activities should continue as before, including www.merrionstreet.ie, central support services, providing services to the media, managing media events and producing communication material across all platforms.

The committee endorsed these recommendations, which also called for us to continue the streamlining work, the capacity building work, the continuing professional development work, the single Government identity project, which members will see being rolled out, the www.gov.ieproject, which we are doing, and efficiency measures, for example, rationalisation and consolidated buying. It was also recommended that the research survey proceed, but that has not gone ahead yet. All my recommendations, which the committee endorsed, have happened.