Imelda Munster (Louth, Sinn Fein)
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1654. To ask the Minister for Employment Affairs and Social Protection the projects undertaken to consolidate or amalgamate existing legislation, including the cost, the duration and the number of staff required, and if this process was carried out by her Department or outsourced in each of the years 2007 to 2017 and to date in 2018, in tabular form. [1564/18]

Regina Doherty (Meath East, Fine Gael)
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My Department is responsible for the legislation underpinning the social welfare code and for a number of other areas of legislation, as follows:

- Occupational and Private Pensions

- Civil Registration and Gender Recognition

- Redundancy and Employer’s Insolvency

- Citizens Information Board (Comhairle)

- Employment and Labour Law

The main provisions of the Social Welfare code are contained in the various Social Welfare Acts that are enacted each year. The provisions of these Acts were consolidated in 2005 as the Social Welfare (Consolidation) Act 2005.

In 2007 the Social Welfare (Consolidated Occupational Injuries) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 102 of 2007), the Social Welfare (Consolidated Claims, Payments and Control) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 142 of 2007) and the Social Welfare (Consolidated Supplementary Welfare Allowance) Regulations 2007 (S.I. No. 412 of 2007) were published.

These consolidations were conducted by staff of my Department as part of their normal duties. There was no requirement to outsource any of the work associated with these consolidations. There were no additional costs incurred by my Department as a result of the work undertaken.

No other projects to consolidate or amalgamate existing legislation have been undertaken by the Department of Employment Affairs and Social Protection within the relevant timeframe. However, some preliminary scoping work is currently under way with a view to preparing a new consolidation of the Social Welfare Acts.