Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 5 May 2021
684. Deputy Catherine Murphy asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine the number of staff in his Department that have had access to files and or email restricted and or revoked as part of a disciplinary process or preceding or following a disciplinary process from 1 January 2018 to date in 2021. [22800/21]
View answerIn the normal course of events, access to Department’s files is based on an officer’s work area within my Department. Any restrictions that apply generally ensure that access to files is confined to officers working in the relevant Division.
In terms of disciplinary processes, where a concern arises about an officer’s conduct, a manager may commence a disciplinary process in accordance with the steps set out in the Civil Service Disciplinary Code. Where the disciplinary process results in the suspension of an officer with or without pay, or the alleged misconduct relates to improper access to files, the officer in question is restricted from accessing files. I should point out that officers will be made aware that disciplinary action is being taken against them and that such a restriction is not usually the primary sanction, unless it is relevant to the alleged conduct in question.
I understand that this scenario has arisen in four cases in the time period in question.
