Written answers

Tuesday, 16 June 2015

Department of Children and Youth Affairs

Parliamentary Questions

Photo of Seán FlemingSeán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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516. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs the protocols in place since March 2011 to set standards in parliamentary replies; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23495/15]

Photo of James ReillyJames Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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I would like to assure the Deputy that I and my Department take very seriously the obligations to ensure that all Parliamentary Questions are appropriately responded to. This includes adherence to deadlines set by the Oireachtas for both oral and written Parliamentary Questions.

Parliamentary Questions are circulated to relevant Departmental Units and generally approved at the level of Unit Principal Officer. Ultimately, they make their way via the Department’s Secretary General to myself. While there are no official protocols in place to set standards, guidance is available to staff which addresses issues of timeliness and quality of draft responses. In fulfilling my remit as Minister I aim to ensure that the detail included in responses to Deputies is succinct and pertinent to the issue being discussed. In the context of oral PQs, any Deputy is free to pose additional questions and I endeavour to respond on the day to those additional questions. In cases where I do not possess the details sought, I undertake to send a written response to the Deputy as soon as possible following the PQ session.

Good relationships have been built up with the Questions Office in Leinster House. Where guidance or notifications of changes in practice issue from the Oireachtas to my Department, the staff of the office of the Secretary General circulate same without delay. The Secretary General’s office is also available to advise officials preparing responses to questions, should any issues arise.

Photo of Seán FlemingSeán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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517. To ask the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs if he is satisfied that parliamentary questions are adequately replied to within his Department; the steps he has taken since March 2011 to ensure that parliamentary questions are fully responded to within his Department; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [23511/15]

Photo of James ReillyJames Reilly (Dublin North, Fine Gael)
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Since commencing in the role of Minister for Children and Youth Affairs in July 2014, I have been satisfied with responses to Parliamentary Questions provided by me in Dáil Éireann. While turnaround time for the preparation of oral and written responses can be short, every effort is made by my Department’s officials to ensure responses are ready in sufficient time. In some cases we are reliant on input from agencies under the Department’s remit, and there is a full understanding in the agencies of the need to provide such input promptly, in order that I can meet my Oireachtas obligations.

I am fully cognisant of the importance of the Parliamentary process and will continue to endeavour to provide up to date and informative responses to all questions.

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