Brendan Howlin (Wexford, Labour)

I may give some comfort to the Deputy on the figures. The target of 3,000 for this year is the old one. We have not yet put in place a revised target because I want to do some forensic analysis of the number of public service staff who will retire and so on. At the end of the first quarter this year there were slightly less than 304,000 employees in the public service. As the Deputy correctly noted, the published target in the documentation he has received was to reduce public service numbers to 301,000 by the end of the year. This figure will be significantly exceeded. I am working on a better target and will try to have one firmed up by the time I take questions again. I will give the House a better target as soon as I can. It is my judgment that public service numbers will have fallen below 300,000 by the end of the year.

We are examining how many staff will leave the public service voluntarily. As I indicated yesterday, the previous Government allowed those who will retire up to the end of February next to avail of the pension entitlements they would have enjoyed prior to the public service pay cuts. I decided to require three months' notice of retirement. Obviously, not everyone will retire in February and many will decide to leave at the end of the year. We should have an indication in September of the number who will take the final opportunity to avail of their pension entitlements as they stood prior to the pay cuts. I am confident the number will be significant and that the target of reducing public service numbers by 3,000 this year will be easily exceeded.

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