Committee Reports > List of Committees > Dáil > 1994 > Committee of Public Accounts > Interim Report No. 02 - Appropriation Accounts 1993

MINUTE OF THE MINISTER FOR FINANCE ON THE FIRST INTERIM REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE OF PUBLIC ACCOUNTS ON THE APPROPRIATION ACCOUNTS 1992

CIVIL SERVICE COMMISSION

Value for Money

The Minister is informed that the Report requested by the Committee has already been furnished.

LABOUR

Fitting out costs of premises for the National Authority for Occupational Safety and Health

The Committee recommended that the Department of Labour (now the Department of Enterprise and Employment) and the Office of Public Works should not confine themselves to expensive centre city locations when seeking new office accommodation. The Minister is advised that these bodies have no policy of confining themselves to city centre locations when seeking office accommodation. Where suitable space is available elsewhere it is taken. However, given that the vast bulk of office development in recent decades has taken place in Dublin 2 and 4, public service accommodation requirements have generally been met in those areas.

Employment Subsidy Scheme

The Minister is informed that the low up-take on the scheme was not attributable to structural and organisational problems. In practice the scheme proved unattractive to employers, with the result that only 6,123 persons were recruited in 1992 as compared with a target of 15,000. Accordingly, the scheme was terminated in February 1993.

A new freephone facility for entrepreneurs seeking assistance with business start-ups or expansions is to be established within Forbairt. This will provide entrepreneurs with a service which will provide ready access to information on the whole range of support services which the State can offer to enterprise. The aim of this service will be to simplify the contact process for entrepreneurs - a business person will no longer have to make several telephone calls to get basic information. This service will be a virtual “one-stop shop”. Any person contacting the Department of Enterprise and Employment seeking to establish, or obtain assistance for, an enterprise will be referred to this facility. Any person contacting the Department with new policy approaches on employment, and/or unemployment, will be referred to the Planning Unit of the Department.