Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 September 2014
1757. Deputy Ruth Coppinger asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht if she will lift the cap on the recruitment of new staff at the Natural History Museum; and her views on the impact the level of staffing is having on the operation of the museum. [33566/14]
View answerAs the Deputy may be aware, whilst my Department provides funding to National Museum of Ireland, the board of that institution is responsible for all operational matters, including recruitment, and I have no direct function in these matters. The moratorium on recruitment within the public service applies to the National Museum in like manner to Government Departments, State bodies and non-commercial agencies, including all of the National Cultural Institutions. Any applications for exemptions from the moratorium are dealt with by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform on a case by case basis in the context of the overall Employment Control Frameworks for the relevant institutions and/or organisation.
In this context, I am given to understand that the Museum has recently carried out a comprehensive staff restructuring review and the outcome of this is currently the subject of ongoing discussions between management at the Museum, officials within my Department and the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform with a view to determining how it might best be implemented within current financial and staffing number constraints.
