Vol. 436 No. 4
72 Mrs. Owen asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs the staff numbers that are working in the Passport Office; the number of these who are seconded from other Government Departments; the position of such secondments; and if temporary staff will be employed to deal with the normal increase in applications in the spring of 1994 in view of fact that this happens each year.
There are 50 permanent staff in the Passport Office. In addition there is sanction from the Department of Finance to hire up to 80 temporary staff each year to cope with the demand in peak season. These temporary staff are drawn from a panel established by competitive interview some time ago. No staff are seconded from other Departments.
With regard to plans for staffing in 1994, a review of the resources available to the Passport Office was conducted recently and its findings are being studied at the moment with a view to determining staff and general resource levels for 1994 and beyond.
