Marc Ó Cathasaigh (Waterford, Green Party) | Oireachtas source

I thank the witnesses for coming in. I am looking at the growth of the organisation since 2019. It went from an expenditure of €600 million to more than €1.6 billion. It is right to acknowledge at the outset some of the NTA's achievements, particularly the bounceback of figures on public transport post Covid. Ireland was very much an outlier in the European sense. If one lives down the country the eight-fold increase in passenger numbers on rural public transport is very palpable. Living in Waterford, as I do, we see those Local Link buses and their usage. I will come to the matter of the question about their visibility in terms of bus stops later in the questioning. However, it is right to acknowledge that some very good work has been done in recent years.

That growth obviously comes with growing pains so I will begin with the issues of staffing and consultancy costs. I understand the NTA currently employs 261 staff and it is trying to do a recruitment call for 90 staff. The number of people outsourced for business as usual at the end of 2022 was 97, going by the figures I have. Perhaps not surprisingly, given the growth of the organisation over the four years, it is creaking at the seams a little in terms of core staffing. Will the witnesses give me the current standing for that?