Olwyn Enright (Laois-Offaly, Fine Gael)

I, too, wish the Minister well in his new portfolio.

The Minister's predecessor, the current Minister for Arts, Sport and Tourism, Deputy Mary Hanafin, indicated that she did not mind being removed from her previous portfolio because the Department's policy functions had been removed. I am paraphrasing rather than quoting the Minister directly but that was the import of her words. Will the Minister confirm that his Department will continue to have a policy function, specifically in the area of creating employment opportunities?

The Minister used the word "seamless" in connection with FÁS. No one in the House would describe FÁS as a seamless organisation. I am concerned by the decision to divide the organisation's function among three Departments. Will the Minister provide further detail on exactly how this will work, in particular, on the ground in local FÁS offices? At present, a person visiting a local office will find the community section and employment officer in the same place and the training function elsewhere. Will this continue to be the case? While the Director General of FÁS has ultimate responsibility, will three FÁS officials be answerable to the three responsible Ministers or will only one official be answerable to all three Ministers?

The Minister stated everything will come together. Will the 59 facilitators operating in the Department come under the remit of FÁS or continue to operate independently? While we all want seamless operations, I am not convinced that will be the outcome of the proposed changes.

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