Dara Calleary (Mayo, Fianna Fail)
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233. To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the number of new agencies and State bodies established since 9 March 2011 under the remit of his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3351/14]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
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Since my appointment as Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport, I have created no new agencies.

Shannon Airport separated from the Dublin Airport Authority on 31st December 2012. This new body was merged with the restructured Shannon Development to form a new integrated Shannon entity in public ownership. 

My focus to date has been on reducing the number of bodies under my Department's remit. To this end:

- Coaching Ireland has been merged into the Irish Sports Council; 

- Dublin Tourism has merged with Fáilte Ireland;

- Dundalk Port has been merged with Dublin Port;

- four harbour authorities have been abolished with their responsibilities taken over by the relevant Local Authority; and

- one further harbour authority under my Department's remit, Bantry Bay, has been merged with the Port of Cork on 1 January 2014.

Plans are also advanced for the merger of a number of other agencies. Minister of State Ring yesterday published the Heads of the Sports Ireland Bill which will, when enacted, merge the Irish Sports Council and the National Sports Campus Development Authority. On 14 January 2014, I published the Roads Amendment Bill 2014, the effect of which will be to merge the Railway Procurement Agency and the National Roads Authority. The Deputy will find a list of all agencies under the remit of my Department on the Department's website .