Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 534: To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport the details of any organisation under his Department which has informed him of staffing difficulties which may impinge upon its ability to effectively oversee the spending of public funds; and his views regarding same. [28378/11]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The various agencies, which fall under the remit of my Department, submit regular reports and returns to my Department regarding staffing, expenditure and related business matters. These are reviewed by my Department and, where a particular agency raises a concern relating to how their staffing may impinge on their ability to deliver, the merits of the case outlined is examined in the context of the agency's commitments set out in various strategic documents including the current Programme for Government, the Public Service (Croke Park) Action Plans, Transforming Public Service initiatives etc.

With regard to the non-commercial agencies reporting to my Department both the Croke Park agreement and the Employment Control Framework for staffing requires those agencies to achieve very substantial cost and staffing efficiencies and I expect them to identify the best means of achieving these. In the case of commercial State agencies, while I have no direct function in relation to their day-to-day functioning, I equally expect that in the current economic market realities they too will seek the maximum cost and staffing efficiencies.

Willie O'Dea (Limerick City, Fianna Fail)
Link to this: Individually | In context

Question 535: To ask the Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport if he will outline the organisations under his Department for which an employment control framework has been agreed; the current numbers they have in place; if they have been waiting more than one month to receive sanction to proceed to fill or retain any positions in spite of such positions falling below the agreed ECF ceiling. [28394/11]

Leo Varadkar (Dublin West, Fine Gael)
Link to this: Individually | In context

The organisations under my remit with an agreed Employment Control Framework with regard to their staff numbers and the Whole Time Equivalent (WTE) staff number of each agency at 30th September 2011 is set out in the table. My Department engages on a regular basis in the context of managing the staff numbers in the Transport, Tourism and Sport sector as well as in the individual agencies.