The Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation Richard Bruton, TD, has been granted Irish Government approval to start drafting legislation that will see policy advisory board Forfás transformed into a strategic policy division in his department.
The move is part of a broader reform programme across the Department of Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation and its agencies. Other changes planned include reform of the five workplace relations bodies to create a single two-tier mechanism and the dissolution of the City and County Enterprise Boards and transfer of their functions to Enterprise Ireland.
Commenting on the announcement, Bruton said that sustaining positive growth in the jobs sector will require the Government to focus on jobs and competitiveness. “That is why we are integrating the strong policy-making capabilities of Forfás into the heart of Government, to help drive job-creation policies across Government,” he said.
“(Forfás CEO) Martin Shanahan and his team have made a major contribution to the momentum we have built on the jobs challenge in the past two years. I look forward to continuing the strong collaboration we have built, to drive new reforms in employment and competitiveness policies and create the jobs we need,” Bruton said.
