Éamon Ó Cuív (Galway West, Fianna Fail)
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498. To ask the Minister for Communications, Climate Action and Environment the number of agencies, boards or other bodies under the aegis of his Department that have been disbanded or amalgamated or whose functions were subsumed back into his Department since 2011; the number of such bodies set up by his Department since that date; the names of the bodies in each case; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [3399/18]

Denis Naughten (Roscommon-Galway, Independent)
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The Government, on completion of a wide ranging review of State Bodies, published its decision on the rationalisation of such Bodies in November 2012.

On 1 January 2016 corporate governance of Ordnance Survey of Ireland (OSI) transferred from my Department to the Department of Justice and Equality.  The transfer was to facilitate the merger of Ordnance Survey Ireland with the Property Registration Authority and the Valuation Office.  Tailte Éireann is the name of the Government body to be formed from the merger of those three offices.

On 14 January 2015, the Government approved my Department’s proposals for the merger of the Digital Hub Development Agency (DHDA) with Dublin City Council (DCC) by means of an independent company, wholly owned by DCC, and the drafting of Heads of Bill to effect the merger. Drafting of the necessary legislative provisions to provide for the dissolution of the DHDA and the transfer of assets, functions and responsibilities to DCC is being progressed.

A Memorandum of Understanding was signed on 15 December 2015 for the merger of certain back-office administrative functions of the Commission for Communications Regulation (ComReg) and the Broadcasting Authority of Ireland (BAI).

The Radiological Protection Institute of Ireland (RPII) was merged with the Environmental Protection Agency in 2014.  Primary Legislation to deal with legal issues in the Radiological Protection Act 1991 and to give effect to the transfer of certain  functions therein from the Minister for Housing, Planning and Local to my Department is currently being progressed.

There have been two Groups established by my Department since 2011.  The Climate Change Advisory Council (CCAC) was established on 18 January 2016 in accordance with the provisions set out in the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015.  Repak End of Life Tyres (ELT) was established on 1 November 2015 as an approved body under the Waste Management (Tyres and Waste Tyres) Regulations 2007, to replace the previous Compliance Scheme for Tyres – Tyre Recovery Activity Compliance Scheme (TRACS).