Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)
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To ask the Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade the number of additional staff hired for the Irish Presidency of the EU Council; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [50180/12]

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade received a temporary reprieve from the impact of the Government’s employment control framework and was also allocated 50 temporary extra posts for 2012 and 2013 in order to enable it to plan and fulfil its EU Presidency responsibilities and activities in the first half of next year. Most of the temporary additional staff required by the Department for the Presidency are now in situ and have been assigned as appropriate. The additional staff are directly engaged in Presidency-related activities in most cases, although some have been assigned to positions vacated by experienced officers who have been redeployed to Presidency roles. Presidency responsibilities will also have varying impacts on the work of a number of the core staff of my Department at home and abroad.

At headquarters, eight staff have been redeployed to my Department from other Departments and offices, to which they are scheduled to return in summer 2013. Ten administrative and eight clerical staff have also been recruited on fixed-term contracts through the Public Appointments Service and eight interns have been recruited on the same basis directly by the Department.

Furthermore, a small number of staff have been temporarily seconded to the Department from other EU member states and from the Union's External Action Service, at no cost to the Exchequer. One retired officer has been temporarily re-engaged until July 2013.

In the context of missions abroad, the majority of Presidency-related posts have been assigned to the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the European Union in Brussels, with smaller numbers allocated to other missions including the permanent missions to the UN in New York and Geneva and those to the OSCE, the IAEA and a number of smaller international organisations in Vienna. The Presidency staffing plan for the permanent representation in Brussels was prepared following a carefully co-ordinated interdepartmental needs evaluation. Overall, the staffing of the permanent representation has been temporarily increased by 80 officers in various grades. The majority of these individuals have been assigned by other Departments and offices, at their own expense and from within their own staffing resources, with some 30 temporary administrative and clerical staff recruited locally.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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I thank the Tánaiste for his reply. I take the opportunity to wish him and all his colleagues in government every success with the Presidency. Each of Ireland's presidencies of the European Union has been extremely successful. I do not doubt that this will also be the case with the forthcoming Presidency. As the Tánaiste is aware, a new troika system applies and Cyprus and Lithuania are involved in our preparations. By and large, member states are now involved with the Presidency for the 18 months immediately prior to the six-month period for which they hold it.

I welcome the allocation of additional staff to the Tánaiste's Department. The Permanent Representation in Brussels is a critical nerve centre for the entire operation. Unfortunately, many highly qualified young people do not have jobs. In that context, has provision been made in respect of the recruitment of interns? Experienced people will naturally be given pivotal roles. I presume the responsibilities of some senior officials will be reallocated when they are temporarily transferred to different positions. Perhaps their routine duties could be undertaken by interns with relevant qualifications and ability, thereby allowing them to gain valuable experience.

Eamon Gilmore (Dún Laoghaire, Labour)
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That is a matter of which we have been very conscious. We have taken on eight interns as part of the recruitment drive relating to the Presidency. We have also reassigned some experienced staff to various missions and consulates in order that they might carry out specific duties in the lead up to and during Ireland's Presidency. We have replaced them with temporary staff in some instances. What the Deputy describes involves moving of experienced people to positions where they can carry out Presidency duties and replacing them with specifically recruited individuals. We have done some such recruitment.

Brendan Smith (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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That is welcome.