Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 10 May 1990

Vol. 398 No. 6

Ceisteanna—Questions Oral Answers - TLAC Appointments.

Richard Bruton

Ceist:

11 Mr. R. Bruton asked the Minister for Finance, since the establishment of the Top Level Appointments Committee in January 1984 (a) the number of senior posts which were advertised in each year and (b) the proportion of these posts which have been filled in each year by (i) individuals in the Government Department in which the post is available, (ii) individuals from other Government Departments and (iii) individuals from outside the Civil Service; and if he will make a statement on the matter.

Mr. A. Reynolds

I propose to circulate in the Official Report the information requested by the Deputy. As the Deputy will note approximately 73 per cent of posts advertised were filled by candidates from the Department in which the vacancy occurred which, in my view represents a fair balance between "home" and "outside" candidates. Following is the table:

Year	Number Advertised	Department with vacancy	Other Department	Outside Civil Service
1984	23	15	8	—
1985	19	14	5	—
1986	17	12	5	—
1987	10	8	2	—
1988	13	8	4	1
1989	27	24	3	—
1990	*7	3	2	—
Total	116	84	29	1

*Two competitions in train.

Mr. R. Bruton

The Minister has said that only a quarter of those appointed were from outside. Does that not defeat the purpose of the Top Level Appointments Committee which was established essentially to bring in outside talent, either from other Departments or other walks of life into the Civil Service? Would he not agree that there is a need to review the procedures obtaining to ascertain whether the proportion appointed could be lower than the 73 per cent about which he expressed satisfaction?

Mr. A. Reynolds

My interpretation would be that the 73 per cent who obtained jobs in that manner were the best equipped people for those jobs. Otherwise I would have expected TLAC to have brought out a different result. I have no complaints, nor do I know of any possible existing complaints about TLAC on the manner in which they carry out their task. Quite clearly they appoint the best people as they see fit — 73 per cent — which is a fair indication of the calibre of the people on the "inside". Not all the good people are on the "outside".

Mr. R. Bruton

Is the Minister satisfied with the level of applications from outside the Department where the vacancy occurs? Are there sufficient people coming forward so that TLAC have a wide choice available to them? For example, is there some possible defect in the system in encouraging people to apply?

Mr. A. Reynolds

I would not be aware of all the various areas with which TLAC would deal but in my Department I am aware of a certain area in which we did endeavour to recruit or entice people from outside and I have to say the response was very poor.