Dáil Éireann debate -
Tuesday, 3 Mar 1992

Vol. 416 No. 6

Written Answers. - Re-Employment of Military Personnel.

Ruairí Quinn

Question:

102 Mr. Quinn asked the Minister for Finance if he will confirm that retiring military personnel were re-employed within a matter of days on to the staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas; the reasons for this decision, and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Minister for Finance (Mr. B. Ahern)

Appointments to posts on the joint staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas fall to be be made by the Ceann Comhairle. In most instances such appointments are made on foot of competitions held by the Civil Service Commission or in line with well-established promotion procedures which are well-established in the Civil Service. In the case of a small number of grades, notably services officer and services attendant, the Ceann Comhairle is empowered to make unestablished appointments without the involvement of the Civil Service Commission.

Since 1987, the only competition for posts as services officer or services attendants was held in April 1991, as a result of which 12 new staff in these grades have been appointed to date.

The selection was made following interviews of candidates listed by FÁS to the Office of the Houses of the Oireachtas. All candidates were registered with FÁS and were known to be immediately available for employment.

Four of the 12 candidates appointed were former military personnel.

Three of these were appointed as services officers on 6 May 1991, their dates of discharge from the Defence Forces being September 1990, 31 April 1991 and 13 May 1991 — in the case of one appointee who took up duty while on pre-discharge leave from the Defence Forces.

The other person concerned was appointed as a services attendant on 9 September 1991. He was discharged from the Defence Forces in 1983.

No open competition for appointment to the usher grade was held in recent years. However, a competition confined to staff of the Houses of the Oireachtas who had a minimum of two years service was held in 1991 from which five appointments were made.