Professor Siobhán Mullally:

We are aware that the legislative framework may take some time to be put in place, but we hope it will be progressed as soon as possible. We will continue to work in the interim pending the adoption of the relevant legislation. We hope the recruitment and selection of the chief commissioner can be progressed prior to completion of the legislation. We hope to continue with the recruitment and selection process, although the legislation may not yet be fully enacted.

With regard to strategic priorities on human rights and equality issues, as a body, we will work on these as part of our strategic planning process. Two bodies are already up and running, the Equality Authority and the Human Rights Commission, and both have work plans in place for this year and are addressing a number of ongoing issues, on which they have been engaging with us. I will defer to my colleagues from the Human Rights Commission and the Equality Authority to address the ongoing work of both bodies and their current work plans.