Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)

I propose to take Questions Nos. 3 to 7, inclusive, together.

I have no plans to review the work of the communications unit. There has been no change in the work of the unit and it continues to provide news updates and transcripts to the Government press office, Departments and my Department. Consequently the arrangements in place for me and my Department for updates on media coverage remain the same.

The Government press office staffing arrangements have not been finalised yet. The Government press office currently has extra responsibilities in dealing with the considerable international media presence for the forthcoming visits of the Queen and President Obama. The outgoing Government press secretary was asked to stay on for a period of transition. The Tánaiste has indicated that Ms Cathy Madden will be his appointee as a deputy Government press secretary. Ms Joanne Lonergan will also be contracted to the Government information services.

There have been no other staff changes to date, and the working arrangements of the Government press office have not changed. The Government press office and the Government information service provide an information service on Government policy to the public through the national and international media on my behalf, on behalf of my Department and the Government and they promote a co-ordinated approach to media matters across all Departments.

The website www.merrionstreet.ie was developed and launched by the previous Government. Its purpose is to provide citizens with a single on-line location where the activity of the Government can be viewed. As it did in the previous Administration, www.merrionstreet.ie reports this activity in an impartial and factual manner. The latest press releases from all Departments are available on the site, which over time will be a valuable archive of Government information. Its main purpose is to make the work of the Government more accessible to citizens by reporting Government news in a user friendly manner, using audio-visual tools and Internet capabilities, including YouTube, Flickr, Facebook and Twitter.

See this speech in context