Written Answers Nos. 188-195
188. Deputy Catherine Martin asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the number of appointments he has made to State boards since the move to the Public Appointments Service two years ago to date; the names of those appointed and the relevant position on each board; the names of those persons on the shortlist; the date when the shortlist was provided to him; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20071/16]
View answerAs the Deputy is aware the Government introduced new arrangements to the appointment of State Board members in 2011. Under the new arrangements departments now invite expressions of interest from the public on their websites for vacancies on the boards of bodies under their aegis. It is open to all members of the public regardless of gender, political affiliations or geographical location to apply for appointment to these vacancies.
The Public Appointments Service Board
|
Name |
Relevant Position |
|
Judith Eve |
Chairperson |
|
Fiona Tierney |
Holds office on ex officio basis, current CEO (Public Official) |
|
Eddie Molloy |
Board member |
|
Anne Marie Taylor |
Board Member |
|
Eimear Kenny |
Board Member |
|
Paul Lemass* |
Official nominee of the Department of Housing, Planning & Local Government |
|
Oonagh McPhillips* |
Official nominee of the Department of Justice |
|
Damien McCallion* |
Official nominee of the Department of Health |
|
David Cagney* |
Official nominee of the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform |
*The Public Service Management (Recruitment and Appointments) Act 2004 states that the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform in consultation with the Minister for the Environment, Community and Local Government, the Minister for Health and the Minister for Justice and Equality should appoint members of the Board of the Public Appointments Service. The Board is meant to be representative of our client base.
The Act also specifics that in appointing members of the Board the Minister shall ensure that at least two of them have either or both civil and other public service experience and knowledge and two of them have expertise in human resource management, customer service and recruitment outside the public service that the Minister considers relevant.
The Public Appointments Service (PAS) are strongly of the view that the names of those persons on the shortlist are covered by personal confidentiality and that the public interest is not served by disclosing these names. Furthermore, in their opinion, members of the public may be reluctant to come forward into the PAS process should their names be subject to disclosure in circumstances where they are not actually being appointed.
189. Deputy Sean Fleming asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the number of positions he will make available for persons with a disability or special needs as part of the current recruitment campaign for clerical officers and other grades in the public service; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20079/16]
View answerAs the Deputy will be aware, the civil and public service is an equal opportunities employer and all recruitment campaigns are conducted in strict compliance with the Codes of Practice set out by the Commission for Public Service Appointments. Codes include the Code of Practice governing the External and Internal Appointments of Persons with Disabilities to Positions in the Irish Civil Service and Certain Public Bodies, available at www.cpsa.ie.
Public service bodies are also subject to specific legal obligations in the Disability Act 2005. For example, Part 5 of the Act sets out the requirement of public service bodies:
- to promote and support the employment of people with disabilities;
- to comply with any statutory Code of Practice;
- to meet a target of 3% of employees with disabilities;
- to report every year on achievement of these obligations.
The National Disability Authority (NDA) reports on compliance with this 3% and the 3% target for the employment of people with disabilities in the public service remains in place.
You may also wish to note that a number of Departments and Offices in the civil service are participants in the Willing Able and Mentoring (WAM) Programme which is a paid mentored work placement programme aimed at graduates with disabilities.
As the Deputy will be aware, the Comprehensive Employment Strategy for people with disabilities was agreed by the Government last year.
One of a number of key performance indicators in the strategy requires two things to be considered as follows;
- commence a review of the Commission for Public Service Appointment's (CPSA) Code of Standards to ensure that they fully support the employment of people with disabilities in the public service; and
- the establishment of special public service competitions for people with disabilities to meet identified shortfalls in public service employment targets, including where appropriate the provision of alternative recruitment channels for people with disabilities, with work in that regard to be taken forward by the Department of Public Expenditure in consultation with the Public Appointments Service (PAS);
Consideration of these key performance indicators has commenced.
In the context of the implementation of the Strategy, it has been agreed in principle to increase the public service employment targets on a phased basis from 3% to 6%. This decision requires the making of formal statutory instruments by individual Ministers under Section 47 of the Disability Act 2015.
190. Deputy Michael Healy-Rae asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his views on a matter (details supplied) regarding entitlements for An Garda Síochána; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [20080/16]
View answerPay issues for public servants are currently determined within the constraints set by the Financial Emergency Measures in the Public Interest (FEMPI) Acts 2009-2015 while the industrial relations environment is managed under the terms of the Public Service Agreement 2013-2018 (Lansdowne Road Agreement).
My colleague with direct responsibility for matters relating to the terms and conditions of An Garda Síochána, the Tánaiste and Minister for Justice and Equality, and her officials, along with officials of my Department, have had discussions with the Garda Representative Association (GRA) over the last number of weeks aimed at facilitating their engagement with the Lansdowne Road Agreement. The Tánaiste has indicated that she believes that there is a pathway to progress on these issues and her Department remains available to work with the GRA. I believe that it would be in the best interests of their members and An Garda Síochána as a whole for the GRA to engage on issues of mutual concern, and am taking a direct interest in the outcome of those discussions.
I note in that context that the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors (AGSI) decided last week to re-ballot their membership with a recommendation to accept the Lansdowne Road Agreement following such engagement.
191. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform if he expects to provide an additional €1 billion capital investment over and above that outlined in the programme for Government, given the outcome of the British referendum to withdraw from the European Union. [20101/16]
View answerPlanning for the potential implications of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union is challenging as the economic impact of the UK's eventual exit from the EU will very much depend on the outcome of the negotiations between the UK and the EU. The Government has adopted a Contingency Framework, coordinated by the Department of the Taoiseach, to map out the key issues that will be most important to Ireland.
The prudent economic and fiscal policies implemented over recent years have placed Ireland in a better position to deal with shocks arising from the UK exit from the EU. Unemployment has fallen from a peak of over 15% to 7.8%. Gross general government debt that peaked at over 120% of GDP is expected to fall to 88% at the end of this year. Net debt at the end of 2016 is forecast to be 76% of GDP.
The Summer Economic Statement (SES), published last month, set out the Government's medium-term strategy for sustaining economic growth and for the conduct of budgetary policy. The SES set out a macroeconomic assessment of a UK decision to leave the EU outlining a potential adverse impact on the growth outlook.
The SES includes a proposed increase in cumulative capital expenditure of €5.1 billion over the amount of €27 billion in Exchequer capital investment set out in the Public Capital Plan published last September. The Programme for a Partnership Government outlined a cumulative additional increase of €4 billion. The allocation of this additional funding will be determined as part of the mid-term review of the Capital Plan in 2017 and will take account of emerging priorities.
The proposed budgetary strategy for 2017 set out in the SES is not expected to change materially following the result of the UK's referendum on EU membership. The majority of components feeding into the expenditure benchmark calculation for 2017 are included the European Commission's 2016 Spring Economic Forecast and, based on the forecasts in the SES, the 2017 budgetary strategy is consistent with compliance with the balanced budget rule. In addition, there is a broad consensus as evidenced by the discussion at last week's National Economic Dialogue of the requirement for increased public investment to address infrastructural deficits and reinforce the basis for sustainable economic growth over the medium-term.
As noted in the SES, the Department of Finance will prepare a full macro-economic projection in advance of Budget 2017. This will include updated estimates of economic growth taking account of developments up to that time.
192. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform the public expenditure contingency planning he is putting in place to provide for the potential economic shock arising from the decision of the United Kingdom to exit the European Union. [20102/16]
View answerPlanning for the potential implications of the result of the referendum on the UK's membership of the European Union is particularly challenging. Until Article 50 is invoked by the UK, the precise timescale for the UK's withdrawal from the EU is not known. The economic impact of the UK's exit from the EU will also very much depend on the nature of the new arrangements to be agreed between the UK and the EU.
The Government has adopted a Contingency Framework, coordinated by the Department of the Taoiseach, to map out the key issues that will be most important to Ireland.
The Summer Economic Statement (SES), published last month, set out the Government's medium-term strategy for sustaining economic growth and for budgetary policy and includes a macro-economic assessment of a UK decision to leave the EU outlining a potential adverse impact on the growth outlook.
The proposed budgetary strategy for 2017 set out in the SES is not expected to change materially following the result of the UK's referendum on EU membership. The majority of components feeding into the expenditure benchmark calculation for 2017 are included the European Commission's 2016 Spring Economic Forecast and, based on the forecasts in the SES, the 2017 budgetary strategy is consistent with compliance with the balanced budget rule. As noted in the SES, the Department of Finance will prepare a full macroeconomic projection in advance of Budget 2017. This will include updated estimates of economic growth taking account of developments up to that time.
As set out in the SES, in the period following achievement of the MTO, the projections provide for a €1 billion per annum contribution from 2019 onwards to a rainy day fund or contingency reserve. This provides a buffer against any unanticipated shocks to the economy.
The prudent economic and fiscal policies implemented over recent years have placed Ireland in a better position to deal with shocks arising from the UK exit from the EU. Unemployment has fallen from a peak of over 15% to 7.8%. Gross general government debt that peaked at over 120% of GDP is expected to fall to 88% at the end of this year. Net debt at the end of 2016 is forecast to be 76% of GDP.
Consistent with the careful and responsible approach taken by Government to date to contingency planning for the result of the UK referendum, the Government will, of course, continue to assess, seek to influence and respond to developments with a view to minimising the adverse impact of the result of the UK referendum.
193. Deputy Sean Sherlock asked the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform his views on the creation of a public service pay commission, including its composition, the date for its establishment and if he has consulted with the trade unions on its composition. [20103/16]
View answerThe Programme for Government states that Government will establish a Public Service Pay Commission to examine pay levels across the public service. As I have previously advised, the precise structure of such a commission and the technical aspects as to how it would operate have yet to be decided upon and would require broad consultation. The Commission's work will help Government, staff representatives and the taxpayer to come to a mutual understanding of the challenges of managing the public pay bill over the coming years. I intend to bring proposals to Government shortly on this matter before commencing discussions thereafter with public service unions and associations. This is in keeping with the terms of the Lansdowne Road Agreement which commits the Government to engage with the representative bodies of public servants in advance of deciding on any alternative pay determination structure.
194. Deputy Niall Collins asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht the level of Údarás na Gaeltachta supported jobs on a county basis at 20 June 2015, 31 December 2015 and 30 June 2016, in tabular form; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [20011/16]
View answerI understand from Údarás na Gaeltachta that job figures are collected annually on a specific date in the last quarter of each year. Consequently the Deputy will appreciate that the organisation does not have job figures for the dates specified in the question. However an tÚdarás has provided job figures for year end 2015 along with year end figures for 2014 and 2013. These figures are outlined in the table.
|
County |
Year ending 31.12.2015 |
Year ending 31.12.2014 |
Year ending 31.12.2013 |
|
Dún na nGall |
2,058 |
1,942 |
1,942 |
|
Maigh Eo |
665 |
685 |
728 |
|
Gaillimh |
2,879 |
2,835 |
2,741 |
|
An Mhí |
239 |
186 |
167 |
|
Ciarraí |
665 |
671 |
683 |
|
Corcaigh |
614 |
586 |
577 |
|
Port Láirge |
148 |
148 |
131 |
|
Total |
7,268 |
7,053 |
6,969 |
195. Deputy John Brassil asked the Minister for Arts, Heritage and the Gaeltacht to request feedback and a breakdown on an unsuccessful application by a person (details supplied) for the specialist panel for heritage in schools; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [19910/16]
View answerWhile the Heritage Council is funded by my Department, it is a statutorily independent body and as such I have no role in respect to this matter. However, officials in my Department have requested the Heritage Council to make direct contact with your office to discuss the issue in question as applicable.
