Joan Burton (Dublin West, Labour)
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Question 7: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number and status of staff assigned to his Department; the location of such staff; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14254/10]

Róisín Shortall (Dublin North West, Labour)
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Question 47: To ask the Minister for Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs the number of staff who will transfer from other Departments to his Department as a result of the reconfiguration of Departments announced by the Taoiseach on 23 March 2010; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [14274/10]

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 7 and 47 together.

As the Deputies will be aware, as part of the restructuring of Departments and agencies announced by the Taoiseach in Dáil Éireann on 23 March to ensure greater coherence and produce more efficient delivery, the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs will become the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs and will incorporate responsibility for social inclusion policy and family policy from the Department of Social and Family Affairs and for equality, disability, integration and human rights from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform.

The Deputies will also be aware that the process of transferring functions and changing departmental titles is currently being progressed by the Department of Finance which, in consultation with the relevant Departments, will bring proposals in this regard to the Government for approval in due course. The Deputies will appreciate, therefore, that until the transfer of functions process is complete, it is not possible to provide the specific information requested in regard to the number and status of staff to be assigned and transferred to my Department, as well as the location of such staff.

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. As with previous questions, if the Minister could give us the details at his earliest convenience, it would be a help.

An item was raised with regard to the national drugs strategy and the substance strategy. I made strong representations to the Minister of State, Deputy Curran, that before the strategy was brought to the House, all the national sports organisations would be consulted on it. He gave a commitment that this would happen and that the Minister would talk to all of the organisations with a view to including in the strategy that there is an alternative to drugs and drink, and that all the facilities we have should be used to attract young people, rather than letting them think only one thing is available to them. While I appreciate much is involved in this, I hope it will happen. I will talk with the Minister in this regard shortly.

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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With regard to the last part of the question, last Saturday I spoke at the opening of the ASAP conference organised by the GAA in Croke Park, which was attended by some 250 co-ordinators from across the island. I agree with the Deputy. I spoke with the president of the GAA at the conference and know the Minister of State, Deputy Curran, has spoken to others. I propose, subject to diaries being sorted out, that the remaining sports organisations would be included. One of the great ways we can reach large numbers of young people is through the sports organisations. I remember the Deputy raising this point two years ago.

With regard to the proposed functions, divisions and agencies to transfer from the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform to the newly formed Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs, the numbers have not yet been finalised but approximately 190 staff will transfer with this work from that Department. Approximately 150 of these are civil servants and 40 are public servants. They come from the gender equality division, the disability equality division, the diversity and equality law division, the Office of the Minister for Integration, the Equality Tribunal, the Equality Authority, the National Disability Authority and the Irish Human Rights Commission. The line divisions transferring into the Department are currently based in Dublin. In addition, two of the agencies transferring into the Department are currently based outside of Dublin — the Equality Authority is based in Roscrea and the Equality Tribunal is based in Portlaoise.

The programmes transferring out of the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs to the new Department of Social Protection are the rural social scheme and the community services programme, which are two labour activation schemes. They are operated by my Department's offices in Tubbercurry and it is estimated that approximately eight staff will move with this work out of the Department.

Michael Ring (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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As the Minister of State, Deputy Mary White, will be the one to suffer, I hope we will not have a situation such as is already happening with this portfolio. We put down a number of priority questions and other questions but they have been transferred to other Departments. I hope, when the Department becomes the new Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs, that these questions will be dealt with by the Minister of State and will not be transferred to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform. If that begins to happen, there will be some row in this House.

Deputies Jack Wall, Catherine Byrne and myself have a problem in regard to the questions we put down in regard to drugs because their transfer to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform and Health and Children has created all kinds of difficulty for us. This is why I said earlier that we want to know clearly what the Minister of State, Deputy White, has responsibility for. Will we be able to put down questions to her or will they be transferred to the Department of Justice, Equality and Law Reform? With no disrespect to the Minister of State, if that is to happen, there is no point having her in the Department. We need to be able to ask her questions and I hope the powers will be granted to this Department so we will be able to ask questions.

Pat Carey (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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There are two stages. One is the transfer orders for the sections. At present, this Department is still known as the Department of Community, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs but, as soon as the new order is made, we will have the Department of Community, Equality and Gaeltacht Affairs. I will then be in a position to make delegation orders of specific functions to the Minister of State. There will also be other matters. For example, the Minister of State, Deputy John Moloney, will continue as Minister of State with special responsibility for disability issues and mental health at the Department of Health and Children as well as at the re-named Departments of Education and Skills and Enterprise, Trade and Innovation. We need to get this right so what the Deputy suggests will not happen.