Eoghan Murphy (Dublin South East, Fine Gael)
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Question 241: To ask the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he will be appointing a chief information officer in addition to forming a committee; and if members from professional bodies will be invited on to that committee. [30491/12]

Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)
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The CMOD Division of my Department has a public service-wide brief with responsibility for researching, developing and implementing policies in the areas of technology, shared ICT services, eGovernment and telecommunications. It also operates as the sanctioning authority for ICT expenditure in the public service. It represents Ireland at EU level in relation to public service ICT and eGovernment. The Director of CMOD, at Assistant Secretary level, represents Ireland on the EU's Chief Information Officer (CIO) Network.

In November 2011, my Department established a Public Service CIO Council in accordance with our commitment in the Public Service Reform Plan. This CIO Council is chaired by the Director of CMOD and comprises a representative sample of the most senior and experienced ICT and eGovernment personnel in the public service. The purpose of the Council is to work with CMOD in developing ICT and eGovernment policies, procedures, principles and best practices for the public service, reflecting Government policies and supporting the reform programme. The Council discusses key ICT and eGovernment issues, and provides expert input to decisions and actions aimed at maximising the positive impact of these on public service modernisation and customer service. For example, since its establishment, the Council has assisted with the development of the new eGovernment Strategy which I published in April and with the development of a Cloud Computing Strategy which I hope to bring to Government in the coming weeks. The Council may also establish working groups to research and/or develop proposals/recommendations for specific topics or actions. The Council determines the composition, size, mandate, terms of reference and timelines for such working groups, subject to ethical safeguards and avoiding conflicts of interest. This would include engagement with industry, academia and professional bodies. Full details of the Council's membership and operation will be published on a new website for the Council shortly.