Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)

We are a small Department, although it has increased in size - more or less doubling - over the past number of weeks. Much has been done in the Department to make it lean and efficient, and one of the most progressive aspects has been the Department's investment in ICT. Most meetings are conducted through video conferencing, with officials, the Minister of State and I conducting many meetings, including those with delegations, through video conferencing. There is little travel involved, although it happens from time to time when senior officials in a unit may come to Dublin or travel from Tubbercurry to Na Forbacha.

By and large, most of the work is conducted using video conferencing which I encourage other Departments to adopt if they work from dispersed locations throughout the country. Both the Minister of State, Deputy White, and I have been impressed at the capacity to conduct very effective meetings in that way.

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