asked the Minister for the Public Service if he intends to sanction the recruitment of more staff to assist the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Written Answers. - Comptroller and Auditor General's Staff.
280.
There is no request before me at present for the recruitment of additional staff to the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General. What is at issue is the restoration of five posts lost from his Office under the restrictions announced on 21 July 1981 and a further three lost under current rules governing the filling of vacancies.
Under current Government policy on the control of staff numbers (which applies equally to all Departments/ Offices) there are only two possible remedies: (a) to curtail the work of the Office so that it can manage with the present reduced numbers, or (b) to curtail or eliminate schemes and programmes elsewhere, thereby providing compensating savings so that additional staff can be assigned to the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Discussions are in progress between my Department, the Department of Finance and the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General to see how the situation may best be resolved.