508. Deputy Éamon Ó Cuív asked the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government the number of bills his Department has published since March 2011; the number of regulatory impact assessments that his Department has published since March 2011; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [29292/14]

My Department has published 23 Bills and 21 Regulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) since March 2011. Eleven of these RIAs relate to legislation, with the remainder relating to a range of policy matters.

RIAs are generally undertaken within my Department at an early stage in the policy development process, as they are regarded as a valuable tool in deciding the best policy approach to adopt.