Ms Rosarii Mannion:

It has definitely yielded an improvement. Again, I will set this out in the correspondence. The numbers are not enormous, but it has yielded an improvement.

For the third year running, we are offering all our graduates permanent contracts this year. All interviews can be held locally. Heretofore, as the Deputy will recall, graduates became eligible for the register in October or November and interviews started at that point. We have made clear for the past two or three years that interviews need to take place in January with graduates offered contracts before May to ensure they are not headhunted to work in the UK or elsewhere internationally. This approach has been successful. Last year, we retained more than 900 of our graduates. In some areas we are turning the corner and making progress, but it will take time. That is not to say we cannot do better or more. We are committed to doing more. Is that response acceptable to the Deputy?