25 Sep 2013, 15:39
The Joint Oireachtas Committee on Public Service Oversight and Petitions will tomorrow afternoon meet with Ombudsman Emily O’Reilly on her Office’s Annual Report for 2012.
25 September 2013
The report was published earlier today and the Committee will have an opportunity to engage with Emily O’Reilly on some of the issues it highlights in relation to public service delivery.
Chairman of the Committee Pádraig Mac Lochlainn says: \"This Committee has a formal role engaging with the Ombudsman and tomorrow’s meeting is valuable opportunity to discuss with Emily O’Reilly her Office’s newly published annual report. The report logs a small reduction in the numbers of complaints received by the Office, from a record 3,727 in 2010 to 3,412 in 2012.”
“As a Committee, we will be keen to follow up with the Ms O’Reilly on the decision by the Department of Health and Children to discontinue the Mobility Allowance Scheme and the Motorised Transport Grant. This was on foot of the Ombudsman’s findings that both schemes are being operated on the basis of eligibility conditions which breach the provisions of the Equal Status Acts. In our engagement with the Department in March, we were updated on the efforts underway to find a satisfactory replacement to these schemes and look forward to hearing Ms O’Reilly’s viewpoint on the issues.
\"This is the last annual report from Emily O' Reilly and the Committee looks forward to hearing her perspectives on her tenure as she prepares to assume the position of European Ombudsman.This will be an important opportunity for us to not only learn from those perspectives but also prepare for our forthcoming meeting with the incoming Ombudsman when that person is confirmed by Government\".”
The meeting takes place tomorrow Thursday 26 September in Committee Room 3, LH 2000 at 10 am. The meeting can be viewed online via this link.
Media enquiries to:
Paul Hand,
Communications Unit,
Houses of the Oireachtas,
Leinster House,
Dublin 2
P: +3531 618 4484
M: +353 87 694 9926
Committee Membership
Deputies: Richard Boyd Barrett, Michael Conaghan, Alan Farrell, Charles Flanagan, Noel Harrington, Michael Healy-Rae, Seamus Kirk, Michael Kitt, Pádraig Mac Lochlainn (Chair), Michael McCarthy, Helen McEntee, Michelle Mulherin, Derek Nolan (Vice-Chair), Aengus Ó Snodaigh and Mick Wallace
Senators: Jimmy Harte, Tony Mulcahy, Trevor Ó Clochartaigh and Susan O’Keeffe