Joe McHugh (Donegal North East, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I will certainly ensure that proposal will feed into the business development group. The Deputy asked where is the process now, with the conversation having started in March or April. At an October meeting of the Cabinet committee on social policy, approval was conveyed for the establishment of a business development group to examine potential opportunities for both government and commercial sectors. The group will be chaired by an independent chairperson and will have representation from An Post. My colleague, the Minister of State with responsibility for rural affairs, Deputy Ann Phelan, will have significant input, along with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. The group will also have the capability to call on representatives from other Departments, and it will be asked to provide an interim report by the end of the first quarter of 2015, with a final report concluded by the second quarter of 2015.

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