Pearse Doherty (Donegal South West, Sinn Fein)
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To ask the Minister for Education and Skills if his attention has been drawn to the hardships caused to post-primary schools where selection and approval of assistant principal appointments made in April 2012 may now not be eligible for payment of allowances for these appointments, in view of his response in February 2012 whereby he stated that appointments could still be made with his Department's approval; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45877/12]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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When the moratorium was introduced the Government exempted Principal and Deputy Principal posts in all primary and post-primary schools and these continue to be replaced in the normal manner. The impact of the moratorium is therefore limited to the Director of Adult Education, Assistant Principal and Special Duties allowances payable to teachers on promotion. Vacancies at this level arise due to retirements in the specific grades and typically also from the knock on effect of filling Principal and Deputy Principal posts.

Interim alleviation measures were announced in August 2012 for schools that are acutely affected by the impact of the moratorium at Assistant Principal level. School Management bodies were notified of these arrangements at the beginning of the current school year. Applications for alleviation have been received from 127 post primary schools. These applications have been processed and schools have been notified of the outcome in the recent weeks. Following the review of allowances by the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform, my Department is currently in the process of contacting schools that had sought approval to fill vacant assistant principal posts last January and were subsequently unable to complete the appointment process pending the outcome of the review.