Paul McAuliffe (Dublin North West, Fianna Fail)
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I thank Mr. Gloster and the other witnesses for joining us today. Often at the Committee of Public Accounts we concentrate on the procurement elements of Tusla's budget, whereas often staffing represents the most significant level of spending. In Tusla's line of business, it is also the area that has the greatest impact in terms of service delivery. I am not sure if Mr. Gloster is familiar with the Montague report, entitled Ballymun - A Brighter Future, which Dublin City Council published. The report focused quite a bit on the impact of the drugs industry on the community in Ballymun. It mentioned the engagement of Tusla in that area. It pointed out that north Dublin city, which of course includes Cabra, Finglas and other areas, has the highest number of children in care in the country. While it also has one of the highest allocations of staffing, there are a huge number of vacancies. Perhaps Mr. Gloster can provide us with detail on filling those vacancies and the costs of doing so, and explain why the posts are so consistently vacant. I will ask more questions after that.