Cormac Devlin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

On the implementation of the White Paper and the new system, the Secretary General said it will be supported by a programme board. I understand it will be phased in between now and 2024. The Secretary General said it would include representatives of Departments, agencies, NGOs, a person who has transitioned through the direct provision system, which is very welcomed, and relevant experts. There is also a programme board which is chaired by the Secretary General and there is a separate external advisory group. Will the Secretary General go through that again? I am looking at the structures and I made notes as the Secretary General spoke. We have two programme boards, one from the Secretary General's Department and one from the Department of Justice. We have a co-ordination committee, we have an International Protection Support Services, IPSS, transition team, we have an external advisory group, we have the Cabinet committee on social affairs and equality and we have a risk committee. I understand that it is complex but I hope we have tried to simplify it. If that is the aim, it scares me that there are so many different oversight committees. I hope for the Secretary General's sake that he is not sitting on each one of those. For myself and other committee members, would the Secretary General run through that again so we can see how they all fit in with each other?

As we know, stakeholders can be very broad. Who are we hoping will fill the roles on these very important committees and oversight groups? Speaking of people who have already transitioned though the system, as it were, I would like to hear the voices of current service users, be they adults or minors. The only way we can really and truly learn is from those who are experiencing it. That is not to detract from those who have gone through it, but by the time this is implemented, the system will have hopefully radically changed.

On the programme boards, what integration and co-operation will there be between the two Departments? It scares me to have two programme boards in two different Departments. I am worried about duplication or things falling through the gaps.

To go back to the Ombudsman, Mr. Tyndall's appearance at this committee, one of the big concerns highlighted was in respect of individuals who currently look to stay where they are being told they have to move, move school, move the whole family to another part of the country and without any regard for their feeling about it. How is that going to change with the full implementation of the White Paper? What can we expect from the perspective of those who want to relocate?

I refer to respecting people's cultural and religious ethos. The Secretary General mentioned a new customer service phone line, which is wonderful. I am wondering about the languages skills of those agents. The Secretary General mentioned literature being distributed. How broad is that?

The issue of unaccompanied minors is sadly a huge one, which could potentially get worse over the next few years. What specifically are we going to do to improve the reception and the greeting those individuals get, given the fear they faced getting here in the first place?