Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)

In December 2008, the chairman of FÁS confirmed in writing that FÁS was fully compliant with Department of Finance regulations in regard to foreign travel.

As the foreign travel issue centred around the science challenge programme, in December 2008 I commissioned an internal review into the science challenge initiative. The review focused on whether the initiative as it then operated offered value for money and in drawing its conclusions would make recommendations with regard to its future. The working group carrying out the review comprised officials from my Department, FÁS officials who had not hitherto been involved in the administration of science challenge, Forfás and Science Foundation Ireland. Senior officials from the Higher Education Authority were also consulted.

The working group's principal conclusions were that the science challenge programme was outside the main remit of FÁS, did not represent best value for money on the basis of efficiency, effectiveness and economy and offered no evidence to show that it had, in itself, contributed to the goals of the Government's strategy for science, technology and innovation.

In light of the working group's findings, I directed the Department to make the necessary arrangements for the commencement of the orderly wind down of the science challenge initiative once all existing commitments for the 2008-09 academic year had been met.

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