Donnchadh Ó Laoghaire (Cork South Central, Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I may take some comfort from that to a small extent. I do not think it helps that there is such a baroque structure here. These are companies but they are not for profit and they are funded exclusively through the public purse. There is the Minister, the Citizens Information Board and then the citizens information service. I do not know why this is the case. Leaving that aside, it is important to put on the record what this means practically. The pay has not changed in 16 years. The starting salary is less than €30,000. Recruitment campaigns to the service have not been successful in recent times. It is not attracting people and it is easy to understand that. Previously, there would have been more than 200 applications for positions. Now, there is only a handful. Four long-serving staff members have recently left the national phone service in the past nine months. My understanding is that the employers group and the trade unions agreed a pay claim, brought it to the Department of public expenditure and it was refused last year. That should not have been the case. My understanding may not have been correct. I understand the employers group and the employees are on the same page. It is that the board and the funding is not available through the Minister's Department and through the Department of public expenditure and reform.

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