Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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Question 65: To ask the Minister for Transport if he is satisfied with the progress made by Iarnród Éireann in implementing the recommendations made by the railway investigation unit in its report into the Malahide viaduct accident in August 2009; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42716/10]

Jack Wall (Kildare South, Labour)
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Question 73: To ask the Minister for Transport if his attention has been drawn to Iarnród Éireann's admission at a transport committee meeting that it had no structures in place to maintain and preserve its corporate memory; the steps he will take to ensure that the corporate memory of all transport bodies is secured; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42729/10]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 65 and 73 together.

The Railway Safety Commission is the independent statutory body charged with responsibility for ensuring implementation of recommendations made to Iarnród Éireann by the Rail Accident Investigation Unit, which is the independent body responsible for accident investigations.

I wrote to the Chairman of Córas Iompair Éireann on 17 August last emphasising the importance of implementing in full the recommendations made to Iarnród Éireann by the Rail Accident Investigation Unit and the Railway Safety Commission in its compliance audit.

The Chairman responded by letter of 20 October indicating that Iarnród Éireann accepted all of the recommendations in the Railway Accident Investigation Unit report and that a wide and substantive range of actions are being progressed on all of the recommendations. The Chairman confirmed that Iarnród Éireann has completed 8 of the 14 recommendations and have submitted documentation to the Railway Safety Commission for verification that they have been achieved and can be closed. He also indicated that the remaining 6 recommendations are being completed at the rate of envisaged in the programme agreed with the Railway Safety Commission and are in advanced stages of completion.

Since the issue of the Rail Accident Investigation Unit report on 16 August 2010, I understand from the Railway Safety Commission that it continues to hold on-going discussions with Iarnrod Eireann in regard to progress with all recommendations arising from investigations into the collapse of the viaduct at Malahide. The Railway Safety Commission has confirmed that documentation has been received from Iarnród Éireann in regard to the 8 recommendations that it considers have been completed and this documentation is currently being assessed by the Railway Safety Commission with a view to confirming that the recommendations have been adequately closed off. The Railway Safety Commission continues to monitor progress with the remaining 6 recommendations to ensure that they remain on schedule with the agreed implementation plan.

As to the question of loss of corporate memory, I understand that Iarnród Éireann is committed to implementing the organizational and system changes recommended in the Railway Accident Investigation Unit, Railway Safety Commission and Iarnród Éireann investigations of the Malahide viaduct accident. Iarnrod Eireann extensively re-organised the Civil Engineering Department and implemented a structured Safety Management System for that Department.

I have also been informed by the Railway Safety Commission that it has recently engaged specialist consultants to examine the organisational and cultural factors present in Iarnrod Eireann that contributed to a loss of corporate memory and to determine if such factors still persist and affect the engineering functions. A final report is scheduled to be presented to the Railway Safety Commission at the end of March 2011.

The Railway Safety Commission have also clarified that in accordance with good Safety Management System procedures, all recommendations and agreed actions, whether closed or in progress, will remain on the Iarnród Éireann Risk Register as a means of underpinning corporate memory.