Eoin Ó Broin (Dublin Mid West, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

Amendment No. 61 is a straightforward amendment. It has been drafted by the Association of Irish Local Government. It is one of a group of amendments it sent to all Deputies on the committee urging them to support them.

It is very straightforward. It is an attempt to have a greater level of transparency and accountability. The Minister of State will see from the amendment that it requires the agency to furnish an annual report, both to the Minister and the relevant Oireachtas committee, regarding progress towards achieving the aims the Government is setting out for the LDA. As we have seen with other State agencies, the lack of annual reports, or substantial delays in their publication, means there is not the level of transparency and accountability that is required.

This is even more so the case when one is structuring an organisation like this as a designated activity company that has the cover of commercial sensitivity in terms of FOI and parliamentary questions. The requirement to publish a detailed annual report and to make it available not just to the Minister but also to the relevant Oireachtas committee is eminently sensible. I hope all members of the committee can support the amendment.