Dáil debates

Wednesday, 9 November 2005

Other Questions.

Departmental Appointments.

1:00 pm

Photo of Liam TwomeyLiam Twomey (Wexford, Fine Gael)
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Question 109: To ask the Minister for Finance the number and proportion of appointments made by the Top Level Appointments Committee in the past five years of persons outside the public service; the number of persons outside the Department where a vacancy occurred. [33109/05]

Photo of Brian CowenBrian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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The Deputy will be aware that the Top Level Appointments Committee, TLAC, recommends candidates to Government for the most senior appointments in the Civil Service. Subject to certain exceptions, TLAC deals with all posts at or above assistant secretary level or equivalent across the Civil Service. The Government is the appointing authority for posts at secretary general level and the TLAC recommends up to three candidates, if found suitable, for posts at this level. The Government appoints the secretary general from among the recommended candidates. In the case of posts below secretary general level, for example, assistant secretary posts, the appropriate Minister is the appointing authority and one candidate is recommended by TLAC to the Minister for appointment.

Some 70 TLAC competitions were run over the past five years, 14 of which were at secretary general level and 56 were at assistant secretary level and equivalent. No post was filled by a person from outside the Civil Service in the past five years, even though two posts were filled by open competition rather than by competition among eligible officers across the Civil Service. Some 13 posts, including four at secretary general level, were filled by people from outside the Department where the vacancy occurred.

Photo of Richard BrutonRichard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael)
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I thank the Minister for his reply. I note that recently the Secretary General of the Taoiseach's Department indicated that there was a need to bring in more expertise into the senior levels of the public service. Against that background, the Minister revealed that out of 70 competitions, just two were open competitions, neither of which produced anyone from outside the Civil Service. Does the Minister think there is a need to change the practice of recruitment so that more outsiders will begin to come into positions in the public service? Surely it is long past the time when we rely exclusively on home grown talent to come up through the ranks. If there is expertise and talent outside, the public service should avail of it. I recognise that the morale of people who wish to apply for these posts is at stake and everyone should have a fair chance, but zero out of 70 posts is an extraordinarily low and unacceptable percentage.

Does the Minister believe there needs to be more progress in opening up competition generally. Even 13 of the 70 coming from outside the sponsoring Department is an unacceptably low figure. We ought to have professionalisation of the Civil Service where skills in financial management or human resource management can be transferred between Departments. This silo approach to Departments is not acceptable. Will the Minister take up the suggestion of the Secretary General of the Taoiseach's Department and initiate a serious programme of reform in this area so that we will begin to see new talent in crucial areas? Clearly project management skills within the public service are seriously depleted relative to the task that must be addressed.

Photo of Brian CowenBrian Cowen (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail)
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I recently said that there is a need to open up opportunities from the private sector to the public sector in many specialised and technical areas. There is also provision in the social partnership programme for open competition in these areas. In fairness, there is much churning within Departments. By the time people get to assistant secretary level, they may have served in two or three other Departments. They may have come in at principal officer level to that Department, therefore, the Deputy is not getting the full story in the reply.

Making positions available for open competition is a matter for TLAC. The senior civil servant referred to, who is a senior member of TLAC, indicated that the body is open to considering, consistent with the maintenance of morale and the expertise available within the service, how there might be some cross-fertilisation with the private sector. Contracting out to the private sector should be engaged in to a much greater extent. Exchange programmes should be taking place in technical areas as well as in the wider policy formulation, administrative and commercial areas. Civil servants who have come back into the system following a degree of knowledge and practice in the commercial world would have more experience.

This is an area in which we must be creative and innovative, consistent with acknowledging and giving opportunities to those in the system who are providing a good service and who would be suitable for senior positions.