Enda Kenny (Mayo, Fine Gael)
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Question 75: To ask the Minister for Transport if he plans to abolish the CIE holding company; the annual cost of this company to the State; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42684/10]

Tom Sheahan (Kerry South, Fine Gael)
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Question 77: To ask the Minister for Transport the reason his Department did not pursue the report PricewaterhouseCoopers research study into the financial and other implications of a proposed restructuring of the CIE companies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [42689/10]

Noel Dempsey (Meath West, Fianna Fail)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 75 and 77 together.

It is not planned to abolish the CIE Holding Company. The CIE Holding Company provides central services for the whole CIE Group. These include services such as IT, legal, insurance, property management, management of the pension schemes and human resources management. Strategic direction, control and overall co-ordination is provided by the holding company whilst each subsidiary has a high degree of operating autonomy. The number of employees in the CIE holding company is less than 2% of the total number of employees in the whole CIE Group. The Exchequer does not fund the operating costs of the CIÉ holding company. CIÉ has a statutory mandate under various Transport Acts to provide Public Service Obligation (PSO) passenger services. The National Transport Authority governs the funding of these PSO services through the Public Service Contracts which are in place between Iarnrod Eireann, Bus Eireann and Dublin Bus.

In 2002 PriceWaterhouseCoopers undertook a research study into the financial and other implications of a proposed restructuring of the CIE Group. This report concluded that any restructuring of the Group would require extremely complex issues to be addressed in areas such as ownership of CIÉ property, pensions, insurance liabilities, debt management and human resources. In the event radical CIE restructuring did not proceed for the reasons mentioned. However, since the report was published, the bus and rail subsidiaries have operated with enhanced devolved responsibilities.