Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Question 5: To ask the Taoiseach the membership of the task force on active citizenship; when it will issue its first report; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [24621/05]

Joe Higgins (Dublin West, Socialist Party)
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Question 6: To ask the Taoiseach when the new task force on active citizenship last met; and when the next meeting will take place. [25352/05]

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Question 7: To ask the Taoiseach the progress made to date by the task force on active citizenship; when he will receive the report of the committee; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26563/05]

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Question 8: To ask the Taoiseach when the active citizenship task force last met; when the next meeting is planned; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28644/05]

Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 9: To ask the Taoiseach if he will report on the recent work of the task force on active citizenship; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [28680/05]

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 5 to 9, inclusive, together.

A high level of civic engagement and participation significantly contributes to individual, community and societal well-being. However, it is generally accepted that there are pressures on this type of civic engagement in modern Ireland arising from work and family responsibilities, changing settlement patterns and evolving societal values.

Recognising the importance of these issues, I announced my intention earlier this year to establish a task force on active citizenship. There was a strong public response to my statement and many individuals and groups made suggestions as to how this task might be pursued. A secretariat established in my Department has analysed these suggestions as well as gathering further relevant material, such as the recently published report from the ESRI on the place of sport in Irish society, and further work from the National Economic and Social Council, which will be incorporated in its forthcoming strategy report.

I am now in a position to confirm the terms of reference of the task force. They are to review the evidence regarding trends in citizen participation across the main areas of civic, community, cultural, occupational and recreational life; examine those trends in the context of international experience and analysis; review the experience of organisations involved in the political, caring, community, professional and occupational, cultural, sporting and religious dimensions of life regarding influences, both positive and negative, on levels of citizen participation and engagement; and recommend measures which could be taken as part of public policy to facilitate and encourage a greater degree of engagement by citizens in all aspects of life and the growth and development of voluntary organisations as part of a strong civic culture.

I expect to be in a position to announce the membership of the task force shortly. It is intended that the task force will complete its work within nine months. An important part of its work will be to provide an opportunity for individuals and organisations throughout the country to contribute their experiences and suggestions to inform the work of the task force.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Does the Taoiseach recall that when the task force on active citizenship was established it was expected that a report would issue within six months? Now that more than six months have elapsed, when can we expect the report? Does he also recall that when the task force was announced the initiative was questioned by the Community Workers Co-operative, in the context of the Government's decision to cut the core funding of that organisation? The CWC has provided, certainly in my experience, a valuable service in terms of networking with the community and voluntary sector.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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Does the Deputy have a question?

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Yes. Does the Taoiseach agree with this view of the Community Workers Co-operative? Does he also agree that the support the organisation has provided, specifically to disadvantaged communities, is such that a revisitation of the decision to pull its funding is merited?

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The matter does not arise from this group of questions.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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I hoped it would arise because one——

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy should submit a separate question to the appropriate Minister.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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As I explained, when the task force on active citizenship was established the Community Workers Co-operative almost met its demise. The two issues are, therefore, linked.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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The Deputy must ask a question as other Members wish to contribute.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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While I accept that my colleagues wish to speak, I would also like to be shown the courtesy of being able to put my question. I ask nothing further.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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I have ruled the question on funding is out of order.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Will the Taoiseach advise whether funding for the Community Workers Co-operative will be restored? A White Paper on community and voluntary activity has been published and an implementation group established. Will the implementation group and the task force on active citizenship be linked?

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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I will deal briefly with the questions. The first issue is not a matter for me as it relates to a community workshop which has an ongoing issue about funding with the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs, Deputy Ó Cuív. I have done some work to try to assist in that but it is a matter for the Estimates.

When we announced the task force on active citizenship we asked for submissions from people outlining their views on the terms of reference and seeking initiatives on how best the task force could function and what issues could be addressed. The reason we did so was the huge range of issues involved and the large number of requests received from people seeking an input into how the issue could best be handled and requesting that the work of the task force be based on a White Paper on the community drawn up some years ago by a committee chaired by former Deputy Chris Flood. Parts of the White Paper in question are being implemented and it was considered that a task force was required to examine this issue. It is hoped the task force will commence work at the beginning of the new year and conclude in September.

To make way for the work of the task force, three things happened. The secretariat in my Department worked with a number of organisations on the terms of reference and used material from NESC and the ESRI to provide a framework for the work of the task force. That would ensure it would not attempt to examine a whole host of ideas from several hundred organisations but that there would at least be a framework allowing it to make progress in its work.

The Deputy mentioned the White Paper, which was published, and there are studies from the ESRI and NESC, with many other very good submissions from numerous organisations. The secretariat has put all that together in a meaningful fashion. It covers such a broad range that it was necessary to put that work in place. Otherwise, a new group would have operated in the dark. Even if they were not in the dark regarding their own knowledge, it would have taken them a long time to proceed. I hope that, after those preparations, work will start formally in January and will finish by autumn next year.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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Deputy Rabbitte.

Caoimhghín Ó Caoláin (Cavan-Monaghan, Sinn Fein)
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Perhaps I might ask a very brief supplementary question.

Rory O'Hanlon (Cavan-Monaghan, Ceann Comhairle)
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I am sorry, but I have called Deputy Rabbitte.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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The Taoiseach told me on 14 April that the task force would report within six months. Did I hear him say that it has not yet been appointed? Will he say when that will happen? Does he agree that one of the most important manifestations of active citizenship is fulfilling one's duty to vote, something that has been declining in recent years? Will the Taoiseach ask the task force to examine that, for example, in the context of remarks made in a report published recently by Democratic Dialogue on similar terrain? Does the Government intend to do anything about the state of the electoral register?

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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The first speech I made on this issue was in April and at that stage, I asked people to make submissions. A great variety of ideas came from those at the conference regarding how we might best take this forward, and it has taken us a long time to agree terms of reference regarded as workable by all the relevant organisations on the basis of their submissions.

I agree with the Deputy that voting is a key part of social involvement and participation. The Minister for the Environment, Heritage and Local Government, Deputy Roche, is moving ahead with a separate initiative, but a more pressing and important issue is to work on the present register, which I regard as containing an unacceptable number of errors. I encounter these issues in my area but I do not have knowledge of matters outside it. People who have moved from apartments and flats in the inner city remain on the register, while those who live there are not on it. Dublin Corporation and others must make a great effort in this regard. The position may be perfect elsewhere, but not where I am.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Is it appropriate to leave the issue to the local authorities? One gets the impression that they are not really that pushed when it comes to keeping the register up to date and accurate.

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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It is certainly not being done as it was in the past. I am not sure whether it could be contracted out in the same way as the census, but it could be done far better than at present — that would not be hard. The Minister, Deputy Roche, is bringing forward an initiative on the register and another on the Deputy's first point regarding awareness and the importance of participation. I understand that he will do that shortly. It is probably better that it is kept that way since it will be far speedier.

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Will the Taoiseach give the matter some more thought? He can see how appalling the register is for every constituency, rather than simply his. Will the task force on active citizenship recommend that someone be on the register as soon as he or she turns 18, given that the data are now in place and it is possible to do so through current computer systems? Will the Taoiseach recommend that so that we might see some light at the end of that tunnel? Second, will the Taoiseach leave open the possibility, although I know his opinion on the matter, of lowering the voting age, given that it has been mooted in a number of quarters by people concerned about low voter turnout? Third, is the Taoiseach interested in any of the initiatives taken in other countries, Switzerland being the most famous, where citizens' initiatives are allowed to bring about referenda on amending the constitution, not without considerable preparation and collecting of signatures? Is that something the Taoiseach would welcome as a way of engaging people further in the democratic process and perhaps getting people into the habit of casting their franchise?

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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I have spelled out the terms of reference, which are broad and will allow people put forward what they believe are the various dimensions of Irish life regarding influences, both positive and negative, and the levels of participation and engagement. Having seen many of the submissions, both written and e-mail, on this, there is an enormous interest on the part of all kinds of groups, bodies and individuals. A task force could be at it forever but the existing reports, including the White Paper on community involvement, what NESC and NESF have done and the various reports they produced, and what has been done by ESRI, provide a good basis for that within the terms of reference I mentioned. The task force will get at that and give some good advice on the issue.

Regarding Deputy Sargent's point on the register, the Minister, Deputy Roche, is dealing with that and it is best left with him. He has been talking to numerous bodies about that and it is best to leave that process with him because it will be far quicker than this process. That does not prevent people making comments about voter activity in this area but the physical work of improving the current register by advertising and increasing people's interest in voter participation will continue. To answer the age question, 18 is fine and I do not see any difficulty about that.

On the Swiss idea the Deputy raised, not many of Switzerland's initiatives are on the constitution but its practice is to allow people, when local issues arise within the cantons, to have plebiscites on those issues. Five or six times a year they put forward popular votes initiatives and decisions in various ways and the practice is that they get very high voter turnout. They recently had an initiative about traffic and 86% of the people voted on a Sunday afternoon between 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Obviously it is a practice with them——

Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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What does the Taoiseach think of it?

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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On initiatives like that it is not a bad idea within local authority areas, but it is not so good in constitutional or legislative areas.

Pat Rabbitte (Dublin South West, Labour)
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Does the Taoiseach believe they would have a planning problem with St. Luke's? Would it be put to a referendum if it was in Switzerland?

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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I know which way I would vote. I do not want my footpath removed. That is the practice in Switzerland. The only example of it being used here is the plebiscites the councils use in areas but it is a small number of cases. It could resolve many arguments but I know local authorities are not in favour of it because it has been mooted previously.

Billy Timmins (Wicklow, Fine Gael)
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I have two brief questions for the Taoiseach. First, will he agree that a concern of people who get involved in voluntary projects is the concept of litigation? Second, we have a very good scheme in Wicklow called the first responders which deals with volunteers who assist people who suffer cardiac arrest. The scheme has proved very successful. They are covered by the Department of Health and Children clinical indemnity insurance. We are trying to expand the project to include sporting, mountaineering and canoeing clubs but one of the drawbacks is legislation that acts as a defence for those who try to assist people in good faith. Does the Taoiseach agree that legislation to indemnify members of the public in such circumstances would be useful? Fine Gael's Good Samaritan Bill 2005, which is on today's Order Paper, deals with this issue. It will not cost anything and will not offend anybody.

Bertie Ahern (Dublin Central, Fianna Fail)
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I do not want to get into the issue of indemnity. One of the regular complaints from active members of the community relates to the restrictions on their activities because of the cost of insurance. One of last year's reports on the insurance industry included entire sections on the issue of indemnity for persons active in civil society, particularly those involved in scouting and sports. This is a matter for the Minister. Indemnifying community groups against actions and litigation is a complex and costly area, as sporting organisations have discovered to their cost.