Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

I would have to get analyses on those court judgments and their full implications from the Attorney General and our own people. The remit of the director is as wide as one would want it, and that applies to the remits of many agencies. Inevitably there will be a need for prioritisation and targeting. There must be a realistic assessment of what is achievable. That is the context in which we will approach the resourcing of the agency. The agency has grown and I acknowledge it has a significant workload. I must work in the budgetary context of the resources available to me and do what I can to allocate resources across the agencies.

The emphasis in the Department last year was on employment rights compliance and the need to do something to significantly improve our capacity. The social partners and the House agreed with that emphasis and that received priority last year. We got good results which are to be seen. It is a question of competing priorities within the system. I will take on board what the Deputy said. The number of staff in the office will have increased by eight by the end of the year.

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