Minutes of Proceedings

In attendance to brief the Committee on the implications of the EC Water Framework Directive for fisheries and waterways: Dr Kevin Pelan, Research Service.

The Chairperson opened the meeting, in public, at 10:20am.

1. Chairperson's business

1.1. The Chairperson reminded members that mobile phones should be completely turned off.

1.2. Members noted the Minister's invitation to attend a reception in the Great Hall for the Men's Senior European Cricket Championships on Thursday 18 July 2002 between 7:00pm and 9:00pm.

1.3. Members noted the invitation to meet with the Board of the Lyric Theatre and to attend the revival of Marie Jones' play 'A Night in November' and agreed that this meeting would take place after the Summer recess.

1.4. The Chairperson advised those members, who were unable to attend the meeting with the Chairman of the Northern Ireland Film and Television Commission on Thursday 13 June 2002, about the Commission's strategy for the future of film and television productions in Northern Ireland. The Committee agreed that it would keep a watching brief on this issue.

1.5. The Committee agreed to include a visit to the Nerve Centre in the October work programme, to see in particular, the CultureNorthernIreland website project. It was also agreed that other outstanding invitations in the area could be undertaken at that time.

Mr McCarthy attended the meeting at 10:23am.

Mr Kelly attended the meeting at 10:24am.

1.6. The Committee noted that the Education Committee had forwarded a copy of the draft Education and Libraries Bill, the Committee Stage of which will take place after the Summer recess, and agreed to invite Departmental officials to brief it on the clauses which relate to the Department's libraries responsibilities.

1.7. The Committee noted the copy of a letter, which Mr Peter Curistan, Chairman of the Sheridan Group, sent to all directors of the Odyssey Trust Company. Members also noted that no response had been received from the Department to the Committee's request about the cost of legal action and the Departmental record of attendance at Odyssey Trust Board meetings.

1.8. Mr Kelly raised the issue of the athletics running track in the Odyssey complex. The Committee agreed to establish to what extent this track is used.

Mr Agnew attended the meeting at 10:29am.

1.9. Members agreed to consider the report of the review group, set up by the Minister, to look at simplifying licensing arrangements for anglers, and to submit comments to the Clerk by Monday 24 June 2002. It was agreed that Mr Jim Wilson would give a short presentation, to demonstrate the complexity of the current licensing arrangements, at the meeting on Thursday 27 June 2002.

1.10. Members noted that the Minister would be making a statement, at 10:32am on Tuesday 25 June 2002, on the responses to the "Creating a Soccer Strategy" consultation document.

2. Minutes of the meeting on 13 June 2002

2.1. The draft Minutes of Proceedings of the meeting on 13 June 2002 were agreed.

3. Matters arising

3.1. Para. 1.6: Members noted diaries for Thursday 26 September 2002, for the Committee visit to Ordnance Survey Northern Ireland.

Para. 5.2: Members noted that reminder letters had been issued to the editors of the Newsletter and the Sunday World, and that a response had been received from the Sunday World enclosing a copy of an article that was issued to correct the original error.

Para. 8.1: Members noted the Department's confirmation that the Minister was represented by the Permanent Secretary at the Public Record Office Northern Ireland event on 12 June 2002. It was agreed to seek clarification as to why a different Departmental official made the speech at the event.

Mr Shannon attended the meeting at 10:42am.

Dr Adamson left the meeting at 10:43am.

Mr Hilditch attended the meeting at 10:45am.

4. EC Water Framework Directive: First Consultation Paper - Briefing from Dr Pelan

4.1. Dr Pelan briefed the Committee on the background and aims of the Water Framework Directive and the important issues that the Directive raises for Government Departments.

4.2. The Committee agreed that Dr Pelan would be asked to address the issue of what River Basin Management would mean for all those players involved, including the angling community.

4.3. The Committee also agreed that the Chairperson would raise the subject of cross-cutting issues at the next meeting of the Chairperson's Liaison Group, such as the requirement, in the case of this Directive, to adopt integrated river basin management as the basis for managing the water resource, and therefore the need for an integrated committee scrutiny approach.

4.4. The Committee agreed a response to the Department of the Environmental.

5. Executive Position Report

5.1. The Clerk briefed the Committee on the wider budget process, and developments in the Department's bids since the Committee met with the Minister on 23 April 2002.

5.2. Members agreed to consider the draft response to the Chairperson of the Committee for Finance and Personnel and to submit comments to the Clerk by Thursday 27 June 2002.

5.3. The Committee noted that it was still awaiting a response from the Department on its proposals for managing/maintaining its existing asset base and developing new sustainable investment opportunities and agreed that it would revisit this issue after the Summer recess.

5.4. The Committee thanked the Clerk for the detailed briefing on the Executive Position Report.

6. Inland Fisheries Report - Monitoring session on implementation of recommendations

6.1. The Committee discussed progress on each of the 67 recommendations in the report on Inland Fisheries in Northern Ireland and agreed that the following recommendations required no further action by the Committee:- Recommendations 6, 7, 8, 12, 21, 22, 43, 48, 50, 53, 54, and 57.

6.2. The Committee further agreed that there were recommendations where there had been action taken by the relevant Department or Agency and progress had been made, but that these recommendations required to be monitored by the Committee over a longer period.

6.3. It was also agreed to write to Departments for updates on activity on a number of other recommendations.

Mr Davis and Mr Shannon left the meeting at 11:45am.

Mr Kelly left the meeting at 12:00noon.

7. Any other business

7.1. Mr McCarthy advised the Committee that one of his constituents, who had sent in a written submission to the Committee's Inquiry into Inland Fisheries in Northern Ireland, had complained to him about having received no information from the Committee about the outcome of the Inquiry. The Committee office undertook to provide a copy of the Report.

7.2. Members noted the recent Comptroller and Auditor General's Report on the Northern Ireland Events Company.

8. Date of next meeting

8.1. The next meeting of the Committee will take place at 10:15am on Thursday 27 June 2002 in Room 152.

The Chairperson brought the meeting to a close at 12:18pm.

E ONeill
Chairperson