Michael D Higgins (Galway West, Labour)
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Question 165: To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the progress made to date with regard to the establishment of the new National Consumer Agency; if the membership of the board of the agency has been finalised; the number of meetings held by the board to date in 2005; the number of full-time staff the agency will have and the numbers appointed to date; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [31601/05]

Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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As I advised the House in my reply to a previous question, the core recommendation of the Consumer Strategy Group is that a new statutory body, the national consumer agency, be established to be an advocate on behalf of consumers. The Government fully approved this recommendation and has agreed to establish the new agency as soon as practicable.

The establishment of the NCA will require primary legislation. My Department has already commenced the necessary preliminary legislative and organisational work to ensure that the NCA is established as soon as possible. I am conscious, however, that establishing the new agency may take some time. For that reason, with the approval of the Government, I recently appointed a board to the national consumer agency to act in an interim capacity until such time as the agency is established on a statutory footing. The board, which is comprised of a chairperson and 12 other members, has held three meetings to date.

Given its non-statutory status, the interim board does not have any staff itself. It does, however, have the assistance of Forfás in carrying out its activities. Forfás has assigned 4.5 staff to assist the interim board in this regard. This number will increase considerably in 2006 to cater for the significant increase in activities which the interim board intends to undertake in the course of next year.

With regard to the numbers of staff that the NCA might have when formally established, it is not possible to give a precise estimate of that number at this stage. It is the case, however, that one of the interim board's priority tasks is to prepare a detailed estimate of staffing, resource and budget requirements of a fully operational and statutory based national consumer agency.

I very much welcome the Government's decision to approve the establishment of a national consumer agency. I am certain the agency will have a key role in advocating the consumer case and in the development of future consumer policy. I am also of the view that the appointment of an interim board until the NCA is formally established is most important. The interim board will ensure that the momentum of the Consumer Strategy Group's report is maintained, that the consumer's voice will be heard and that the construction of a fully operational NCA can begin.