Frances Fitzgerald (Dublin Mid West, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Section 13(2)(f) is intended to focus on the special and unique relationships between the service delivery systems in the education and health areas and the effective functioning of the Child and Family Agency. Services within the remit of the Departments of Health and Education and Skills obviously have to work in tandem with the agency and may depend on one another. That is why the focus is on the particular relationship between the agency and other bodies. The services are being taken from under the umbrella of the HSE, but there is ongoing contact with, for example, public health nurses and the CAMHS. The task force recommended that aspects of the public health nursing service and the CAMHS ought to be under the agency. While that is not happening at this stage of development of the agency, we already have 4,000 staff transferring and it is intended that these staff will move across once the legislation has been completed.

There is a particular relationship between the Department of Health and the new agency, about which there is no question. We also have the National Educational Welfare Board moving in under the aegis of the agency to work in a very specific way on the issues affecting children in the education system. That is why both ministries are named in terms of the preparation involved. This is about the annual report. It is stating the agency, like all agencies, will prepare an annual report and that it shall comment on what happened in the previous year. It outlines what should be included in the annual report and inserts a provision that "An annual report shall include ... other particulars that the Agency considers appropriate or as the Minister after consulting the Minister for Health and the Minister for Education and Skills may require". That is simply to reflect the particular relationship between these two ministries, but, of course, it does not in any way preclude the agency in preparing the annual report from taking into account the various consultations in the preceding year, perhaps with other Departments, with some of which being more relevant than others. I will be consulting colleagues on an ongoing basis in terms of general Cabinet business and business related to the work of the agency. I will be preparing memos on any legislation I bring forward and it is mandatory, as the Deputy knows, to get the views of every Department on legislation. Therefore, there is already a mechanism in place for every Department to be involved in the legislative programme of the Department. That is standard practice. It is also standard practice to engage across ministries on an ongoing basis on elements of work being undertaken.

This amendment and amendment No. 15 particularly point to the strategic functions and close relationship of the Departments of Health and Education and Skills. It is important to focus on that relationship which does not have to be diluted by saying one has to consult "all Ministers" before one can prepare the annual report. There is more of a strategic relationship with these two Departments. One only has to look at the different bodies coming together in the agency to appreciate this, which is the reason they are mentioned. It is understood work will be done with different Departments from time to time and I have no doubt that this work will be reflected in the annual report of the agency. However, I do not believe it is necessary to build into the legislation that before the annual report is produced there has to be consultation with all Ministers.

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