Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 283: To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the date for each year since 2000 of pre-budget meetings held with the Department of Finance and the Department of An Taoiseach; the attendees at such meetings; if an agenda was circulated in advance; if minutes of such a meeting were kept; if not the reason for same; if officials were directed not to keep minutes of such meetings; if so, by whom and the date of same; and if she will make a statement on the matter [17562/08]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The Minister for Finance normally holds a formal bilateral meeting with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment each year as part of the Estimates process, to discuss the Department's requirements for the year ahead.

As my Department's records relating to the Estimates process for the period 2000 to 2004 are stored off-site, it has not been possible, in the time available to my officials, to identify the dates of bilateral meetings, if any, held between 2000 and 2004. However, the dates of the meetings held in the last three years were: 16 November 2005, 28 September 2006 and 24 October 2007.

There were no separate pre-Budget bilateral meetings with the Taoiseach in those years. However, as the Deputy will be aware, the preparation of the Budget is a matter which is discussed at Cabinet.

The normal arrangement at the bilateral meetings is for the Minister to be accompanied by the Secretary General of the Department, the head of the Department's Corporate Services Division, and one or two other senior officials.

The bilateral meetings are normally preceded by extensive consultations at official level with the Department of Finance, and followed up with further communication at official level. Therefore, it has not been the practice in recent years for an agenda to be circulated in advance or for my Department to take formal minutes of these meetings, although no instruction has been issued to that effect.